Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11 | 5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, 8he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,11 and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
It is a sobering and powerful thing to realize what Jesus went through on our behalf. But have you ever considered what He gave up? The second chapter of Philippians has what may be the first Christian hymn and its theme is emptying. Jesus did not count His Trinitarian equality with God something to hold onto and instead emptied Himself, taking the role of a servant even to the point of death on a cross. The word for empty is kenosis and it signifies a voluntary letting go of privileges and powers, a willingness to forsake entitlements.
Jesus let go of the beauty of heaven, the peace of eternity, and the position of divine authority. In becoming a creature, He became subject to the vagaries of life on earth, the vicissitudes of history, and the uncertainties of time. He not only accepted suffering and death, but limitation and the loss of heavenly things we can only partially imagine.
Have you ever had to forsake your natural or institutional advantages for someone else’s good?
What is the hardest thing you have ever given up?
Notice that Jesus gave up many things in order to serve others. It is difficult to serve if you are separate and all-powerful and not subject to the same conditions as those you serve. Are your sacrifices putting you in a better position to serve others?
