Every Knee Will Bow Because of the Open-Handed Christ (Phil. 2:1-11)

The Monday after Easter, Newsweek magazine ran this headline article: “The End of Christian America.”  The article revolved around two recent findings.  First, the number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990.  The number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990.  Second, the percentage of Americans who identify themselves as Christians has dropped by ten percentage points since 1990.  The percentage of Americans who identify themselves as Christians has dropped by ten percentage points since 1990.  In other words, there has been a significant increase in the number of Americans who have no religious affiliation.  And there has been a significant decrease in the number of Americans who do affiliate themselves with Christianity.  It is for this reason that the article is entitled “The End of Christian American.”  The article’s point is simple: There are many people with little or no affiliation with Jesus. 

 

That is one of the issues behind the writing of the letter we call Philippians.  Paul is writing from a place where there are many non-Christians who have no affiliation with Jesus.  And he is writing to a church with some Christians who are behaving as if they have little affiliation with Jesus.  In Phil. 1 Paul describes how some non Christians with no affiliation with Jesus have arrested and imprisoned him.  He is now writing from jail.  And in Phil. 2 Paul describes how some Christians are behaving as if they have little affiliation with Jesus.

 

And one of the things Paul does in Philippians is to demonstrate just how appealing a life lived in affiliation with Jesus is.  Paul uses the word “Lord” to talk about this.  In Phil. 2:11 Paul writes about the fact that “Jesus Christ is Lord.”  The reality in Paul’s day and in our day is that there are many who do not have Jesus as their “Lord.”  Those who jailed Paul don’t have Jesus as their Lord.  And some of the Christians Paul is writing to act as if Jesus is not their Lord.  Thus, Paul illustrates how appealing the Lordship of Jesus is.  He wants to demonstrate why people should want to have Jesus as their Lord.

 

To do this, Paul sings a song.  In Phil. 2:6-11 Paul quotes what most scholars believe to be a hymn.  The language and the structure seem to be that of an ancient worship song.   Paul may have written it himself or he may be quoting the work of another Christian.  This song reveals just what kind of Lord Jesus is and why any person should want to make Jesus their Lord. 

 

Listen to verse 1 of this worship song: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage (Phil. 2:6 TNIV).  What kind of Lord is Jesus?  First, Paul sings of how Jesus is “in very nature God.”  Literally, Paul writes Jesus is “in the form of God.”  He’s going to use this word “form” again.  Here, he sings of how Jesus is “in the form of God.”  The word “form” simply means that Jesus is in his very essence God.   It means Jesus possesses all the qualities of God.  Jesus doesn’t just look like God.  Jesus is God.  The phrase “in the form of God” is a synonym to the phrase that follows it: “equality with God.”  To be “in the form of God” is to be equal with God.  Jesus is not a junior member of the Trinity.  He is equal with God.  That’s the kind of Lord he is.

 

Many high school seniors are making decisions about college right now.  And what many are hoping for is a top-tier school.  Seniors who have excelled in football or basketball or soccer would like to attend a college that is top-tier, a school that offers a coach who is one of the best in his/her field and in a conference that is competitive.  Seniors who have excelled in music or art would like to attend a college that is renowned for its music or art programs.  Paul is saying that Jesus is as top-tier as you can get.  Jesus is as renowned as is possible.  If a person decides to place himself under the Lordship of Jesus, the person’s not settling for second-best or third-rate.  There is no spiritual figure more divine, more God-like than Jesus. 

 

But what kind of God is he?  It’s one thing to say Jesus is fully God.  It’s another to describe what king of God he is.  I remember the Disney movie my children used to watch called “Aladdin.”  The bad guy in Aladdin was a shady character named Jafar.  Jafar wanted to become as powerful as possible so he could gain as much as possible for himself.  Thus, Jafar stole Aladdin’s genie and forced the genie to make him the most powerful sorcerer in the world.  With this unmatchable power, Jafar then begins to grab and snatch everything he wants—all for himself.  Paul has just sung about how Jesus is the kind of Lord who has unmatchable power.  He is equal to God.  But what’s this Jesus going to do with all that power.  If I put myself under his Lordship, is he going to pull a Jafar on me?

 

Let’s listen to the rest of verse 1: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage. The phrase “something to be used to his own advantage” literally refers to the act of snatching.  The song is saying that for Jesus, being God doesn’t mean you get to snatch whatever you want.  Being God does not mean selfish grabbing.  Take one of your hands and close it as if you were clutching something valuable.  Hold up that hand.  That’s the image Paul wants us to have.  It might be easy to assume that a being like Jesus who has all the powers of God would turn around and use those abilities to grab, snatch, and steal whatever he wanted—all for himself.

 

But Paul says that is not the kind of Lord Jesus is.  Jesus is not a close-fisted Lord.  Listen to verse 2: rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (Phil. 2:7 TNIV)  The New American Standard puts it a little more literally: but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant.  Paul writes that this Jesus “emptied himself.”  It’s not that Jesus was full of deity and then emptied himself of deity so he could become human.  Instead, “Emptied himself” is defined by what comes after it: “taking the nature/form of a servant.”  This word “form” is the same word used earlier when Paul sang that Jesus was in the “form of God.”  In his very essence, at his core, Jesus is God.  That’s what Paul means when he calls Jesus “in the form of God.”  What does he mean when he describes Jesus here as taking the “form” of a servant?  He means that in his very essence, at his core, Jesus is a servant.  This phrase “emptied himself” means that Jesus emptied himself, he poured out himself, he took everything he is and everything he has as God and he gave it, placed it, offered it in service to us.  This stands in stark contrast to some of the Christians in the church.  In Phil. 2:1-4 calls out Christians in the church who are doing things out of “selfish ambition,” who value themselves above others, and who are looking only to their own interests.  They’ve missed what it means to make Jesus their Lord.  So Paul reminds them what kind of Lord Jesus is: he’s the kind that pours out himself for others.  At his very core he is a servant.  He does nothing out of selfish ambition.  He values others above himself.

 

Take one of your hands and close it as if you were clutching something valuable.  Hold up that hand.  That’s the image Paul doesn’t want us to have.  Now, open that hand as if whatever you were clutching you are now offering to someone else.  That’s the image Paul wants us to have.  Jesus is not a close-fisted Lord.  He is an open-handed Lord.  At his very core, he is a servant.  He delights in pouring out himself, his resources, and his powers for the good of others. 

 

In his book Based on a True Story James Choung writes that the fundamental human problem on the planet is this: We wanted to be in charge—to be ‘like God.’  We warped our relationship to everything on the planet so that it would serve our own needs.  Choung argues that this is the root that produces the fruit of virtually every problem today.  Our default setting, our starting point when it comes to our relationship with other people, our relationship with the planet, and our relationship with God is this: we want those people, this planet, and that God to serve our needs.  That’s what causes marriage conflict.  That’s what causes political turmoil.  That’s what leads to global crises.  Our default setting is this: we want everything to serve our needs. 

 

But if a closed fist is our default, Paul is saying that an open hand is Jesus’ default.  That’s the kind of Lord he is.  That’s the kind of God he is.  At his very core, at his very essence, he is a servant, he is one who pours himself out for others.

 

Paul’s song then moves to an example of just how open-handed Jesus is: And being found in appearance as a human being, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! (Phil. 2:8 TNIV).  Just how much of a servant is Jesus?  Just how open-handed is he?  Paul says Jesus was willing to give to death.  He gave everything he could until he could give no more because there was no more to give.  But he didn’t just give to death.  He gave to death—on a cross.  Roman readers regarded crucifixion with revulsion.  Jewish readers viewed crucifixion as a sign of God’s abandonment.  It was a method of death reserved for slaves, robbers, rebels and the like.  Yet this Lord volunteered for this humiliating death.  That’s the kind of God he is.

 

The Ad Council once produced a series of public service commercials called “Don’t Almost Give.”  One ad shows a man with crutches struggling to go up a flight of concrete stairs. The narrator says, “This is a man who almost learned to walk at a rehab center that almost got built by people who almost gave money.”   Another ad shows an older woman sitting alone in a room, staring out a window. The narrator says, “This is Sarah Watkins. A lot of people almost helped her. One almost cooked for her. Another almost drove her to the doctor. Still another almost stopped by to say hello. They almost helped. They almost gave of themselves. But almost giving is the same as not giving at all.”  Each ad ends with a simple message: “Don’t almost give. Give.”  That’s the difficulty with us.  We almost pay the price to truly help.  But Paul is saying Jesus is the kind of Lord who never almost gives.  He gave.  He gave the ultimate gift.

 

Listen to the last few verses of the song: Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:9-11 TNIV)  Paul literally sings that God “super-exalted” Jesus.  Because Jesus demonstrated such enormous open-handedness, God super-exalted him to the highest position of power and authority.  And God gave him a title, a name: Lord.  The name that is above every name is “Lord.”   But it’s not simply a title.  Paul calls it a “name.”  And in that ancient culture a name signified the very essence of the one who wore the name.  Jesus is Lord, at his very core, at his very essence.   He is leader, master, Lord.

 

Paul has been using this song to help us see just how appealing the Lordship of Jesus is; just how appealing life under the leadership of Jesus is; just why people should want to affiliate themselves with Jesus.  Why should people want to affiliate with Jesus?  Because he is the kind of God, the kind of Lord, who is open-handed.  His concern is your concern.  He values your needs above his.  At his very essence he is a servant.  Every power and possession has been placed at his disposal.  But it is his intent to use them for our behalf.

 

And because of the kind of Lord Jesus is, Paul says this: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord.  (Phil. 2:10-11 TNIV)  Because Jesus is this kind of amazing Lord, God the Father wants every living thing in heaven, on earth, and under the earth to have the chance to be affiliated with Jesus.  The song’s phrase “in heaven and on earth and under the earth” is a poetic way of saying “everywhere.”  God wants people everywhere to experience life under this open-handed Lord.  The phrases “every knee” and “every tongue” are the songs way of saying “everyone.”  God’s dream is that everyone everywhere could experience life under the leadership of a Lord like Jesus.  The word “tongue” also carries with it the idea of language—no matter what language people speak, God wants them to have the chance to live under the Lordship of Jesus.   God wants everyone everwhere to have a chance to live under the Lordship of the open-handed Christ. 

 

Take a globe, spin it, and stop it randomly—wherever your finger is touching God wants them to know the Lordship of the open-handed Christ.  Take a map of the United States, close your eyes, and drop a penny on it.  Whatever city, town, village, or spot in the road lays under that penny—God wants the people there to know the Lordship of the open-handed Christ.  Watch the weather forecast for the Mid South tonight.  Walk up to the TV screen close your eyes, and randomly put your finger on that screen.  Whatever Mid South area your finger is touching, God wants those people to experience the Lordship of Christ.

 

That’s what our Special Contribution is about on May 17.  In two short weeks we will collect over $143,000 to fund our world missions and our urban missions.  Why?  Because God wants the knees of every person in urban Memphis to have a chance to bow before this amazing Lord Jesus.  God wants the tongues of every person in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and the Ukraine to have a chance to confess belief in this open-handed Christ.  Doesn’t every struggling child, every single mom, every hardworking father, every hurting person in urban Memphis deserve the opportunity to know the joy of living under a Jesus whose very mission is to serve them?  Your gift on May 17 will help Memphis Urban Ministry, Agape, FIT, and Hope Works do just that.  Doesn’t every child, couple, and family in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and the Ukraine deserve to know just how much better life could be under the Lordship of the open-handed Christ?  Your gift on May 17 will help Nathan and Karen Luther in the Philippines, Jab and Becky Mesa in Papua New Guinea, and Joe and Betty Canon and Kostya and Alona Kilsenko in the Ukraine do just that.  Many of you know the joy of having this kind of God as the Lord of your life.  By giving $143,000 on May 17 you’ll become part of Gods’ mission to let every person everywhere know that same joy.

 

But this dream also includes those closer to home.  Think of the people you work with.  Think of the people in your class.  God wants those knees to have a chance to bow before this giving Lord.  God wants those tongues to have a chance to confess belief in this giving Lord.  Think of the people who live in your neighborhood.  Think of the people in your family.  Think of the people in the grocery store you frequent or your favorite restaurant.  God wants every one of them to have a chance to live under the Lordship of the open-handed Christ. 

 

But here’s the hard truth: we have almost forgotten that dream.  We’ve remembered this dream when it comes to those in Papua New Guinea and the poor in urban Memphis.  And we must continue to remember it.  We must fund those ministries on May 17.  But we’ve forgotten this dream when it comes to the people in our workplaces, neighborhoods, schools, and families.  How do I know?  Because this year, the people of Highland have led only one person to be baptized.  Only one person this year has bowed their knees before this Lord at Highland.  Last year we baptized the lowest number in over two decades.  We are on pace to do even worse this year.  And I’ll confess that I’m part of the problem.  It’s been over two years since I had an on-going Bible study and relationship with a non Christian.  I’m part of the problem.  We’ve all gotten distracted.  We’ve gotten so focused on our relocation and all of the issues that surround it, that we have forgotten this dream.  Today is a day for us to reclaim this dream as our own.  It is time for us to act as if we believe the Lordship of Jesus is so good, so beneficial, so amazing that we cannot help but share it.

 

And how do we that?  It’s very simple.  I’ve been encouraging you to take up four habits in what we call “Revolution.”  We introduced this last October.  Revolution is how God can use us right now to turn the lives of people to the Lordship of Jesus.  It consists of four steps.  “Summit” is where we focus on being good news among the people of the Mid South.  By practicing its commitment, we become good news.  “Marketplace” is a promise to get out of the church building and get into non Christian places and rub shoulders with people who do not live under the Lordship of Jesus.  “Table” is the practice of forming friendships with and deepening relationships with those same people.  Finally, “Storytime” is sharing the story of this amazing open-handed Christ with those people.  These are the four kinds of habits that can make God’s dream a reality.  We absolutely must meet our goal of $143,000 on May 17 so that people in urban Memphis and around the world get the chance to hear about this open-handed Christ.  But we also absolutely get busy being good news, rubbing shoulders in the marketplace with non Christians, forming friendships with non Christians by inviting them into our homes, and sharing with them the story of Jesus.  Let’s be part of witnessing every knee bow and every tongue confess.