The Humility of Jesus (Phil. 2:5-8)
Verses 5-11 of Philippians 2 have been the focus of much theological discussion because of what they say regarding the person and work of Jesus. Several books have been written on them and many lectures and sermons have been based on this passage. Today it is common to assume that the verses are an early Christian hymn, but there is little evidence for such a use of the verses. Instead of being a poem, the words read like a connected argument (note the ‘therefore’ at the beginning of verse 9). It is possible that they were a memory statement similar to the faithful sayings found in the Pastoral Letters (the verses contain several crucial doctrines concerning the person and work of Christ). The most likely possibility is that they are statements composed by Paul as he wrote the letter; Paul was capable of writing in a poetic manner as 1 Corinthians 13 indicates, and Philippians 2:5-11 is another example of his ability.
The striking feature concerning the inclusion of these verses is that Paul is not primarily dealing with a Christological problem in the church in Philippi. Instead he is concerned with a wrong attitude that has surfaced within the church; some members are not behaving in a humble manner, and he uses the example of Christ as a correction of such behaviour. He also uses the examples of Timothy and Epaphroditus to rebuke those who were not as concerned about the interest of others as they should have been.
One deduction that can be made from Paul’s method is that one way, and surely the most effective way, of dealing with wrong behaviour in the church is to refer to the example of Christ. The apostle does this several times in his writings. For example, when writing to the Corinthians concerning Christian giving, he mentions what happened to Jesus: ‘For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich’ (2 Cor. 8:9).
Another example is his teaching in Ephesians concerning the roles of husbands and wives: ‘Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendour, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish’ (Eph. 5:25-27). This method should be effective because what kind of Christian would choose to ignore deliberately the example of Jesus? Such an appeal should work where others have failed.
Another deduction that can be made from Paul’s method is to note the suitability of deep doctrine as part of a healthy Christian outlook. Paul’s remedy for disunity in Philippi was profound doctrine concerning the person and work of Christ. The implication is that those believers who were not prepared to have a servant attitude would not have done so had they kept in mind what they knew about Jesus and what he did.
Paul’s concern here is humility. In focussing on the humility of Jesus, he touches on the most profound descent that has ever occurred. There have been notable examples of humility among Christians. Henry Martyn achieved two double firsts at Cambridge but discovered that he had grasped a shadow. Therefore he gave up his potential scholarly positions and went and served the Lord in Persia where he died a lonely death. C.T. Studd was the heir to a family fortune, but he forsook it and chose instead to serve the Lord in Asia and Africa. There have been many others, but the change in status that these men and women experienced was not as profound as what happened to Jesus.
Who Jesus was
Paul says that Jesus was ‘in the formof God’. The form of a person is what he or she is: the form of an artist is his ability to produce a work of art. His ability includes his capable preparation, precise performance, and finished product. Similarly, for Jesus, to say that he was in the form of God is to say that he was fully God. He possessed the attributes, performed the actions and shared the aims of God, and in heaven received the adoration that was his due from the angelic host, as we can see from the worship recorded in Isaiah 6, which John in his Gospel involved the Son of God.
What did the Son of God think?
Paul then says that the Son of God did not regard equality with God as something that prevented him humbling himself. The word translated ‘grasped’ is harpagmosand a lot of discussion as centred round its meaning.
First, the word could mean that Jesus tried to ascend and grasp equality with God. Such a translation is not possible because it denies that he was eternally equal with God and suggests that he was trying to promote himself. This is what the devil tried to do and brought sin into the universe. The whole context of this passage makes such a translation incorrect.
Second, the word could mean that Jesus could ‘hold on to’ his status, with the meaning that he was divine and secure in his position. Obviously, only a divine person could hold on to such a status; it is too high and too heavy for any creature to attain and maintain. Jesus did not think it was inappropriate for him to be so high. This had been his position from eternity. Yet that interpretation does not seem to be the point that Paul is making here.
Third, the word could mean that Jesus chose not to use his position for his own advantage. He did not regard his status as the divine Son as a reason for not getting involved in other situations where his uniqueness might be obscured from the view of onlookers. When he came to earth, how few recognised that he was the Son of God! Yet he did not regard this outlook as unbecoming to the Son of God.
Peter Lewis explains how we should understand this word: ‘Therefore the statement does not tell us how Christ refused equality with God (as a temptation), or how he achieved equality with God (as a reward), or even how he let go of equality with God (as a possession), but how he used it.’[1]
Although this was his position by right, the Son chose to do something surprising. He added to his august character and position what Paul calls ‘no reputation’ and ‘form of a servant’. These additions are almost the exact opposites of his eternal status. Yet he freely chose, while in heaven, that he would at some stage add them to himself.
The Son did not replace his august character and position with a lowly character and position; instead he added to his divine person a lowly human nature. This addition took place at the Incarnation when the eternal Son of God also became human. In addition to holding on to his equality with God, he became a man, but man in a low condition.
What did the Son of God become
When he became a man the Son of God became the servant of the Father, without ceasing to be the Son. This role of Jesus was predicted in the Old Testament. There are several prophecies that refer to him as the servant of the Lord. One of them is Isaiah 52:13-15: ‘Behold, my servant shall deal prudently; he shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. Just as many were astonished at you, so his visage was marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men.’ In that prophecy, we are told that the Messiah will be highly exalted, which would not have been surprising. Yet we are also told that his face and body will be marred more than any other human. No doubt, people of that era had seen bodies horribly mangled because of war or disease. Nevertheless, it should have been noted that however bad other people’s sufferings had been, they were not as bad as what the Messiah would experience. The next verse that his authority over the nations will be connected to his state of humility, which is what Paul says in Philippians 2:5-11.
What can we say about the service of Jesus? The service of Jesus was lifelong dedication. It commenced when he was a child, as we can see from the incident recorded of him in the temple when he was twelve. He informed his mother that he wanted to be engaged in his Father’s concerns. Later, as an adult, he continued serving God in Nazareth as a carpenter. People witnessed perfect service.
At his baptism by John, Jesus committed himself in a public way to serve his Father for the three years of his public ministry, which he knew would end in his rejection and death. This was the occasion when he received the Spirit in a particular manner in order to complete that role. And it would have meant a lot to Jesus to hear the Father’s endorsement of the previous three decades of service. There Jesus made himself of no reputation by identifying himself with sinners.
In Gethsemane, on the evening of his arrest, he humbled himself again and became obedient to the point of death. It was in Gethsemane that Calvary became very real to Jesus, when the prospect of enduring his Father’s wrath against the sins of his people caused the soul of Jesus to shudder and pray for another way if it was possible. But on realising that there was no other way, he resolutely proceeded.
Of course, his obedience to the Father reached its climax at Calvary. We cannot plumb the depths to which Jesus was prepared to descend in order to obey his Father, although we can admire the beauty of his humility and the resolve of his obedient mind and heart as he bore the wrath of God and paid the penalty for the sins of his people.
Some applications
We cannot forget that the descent of Jesus into humility brought great joy to others. For some, the joy came as they saw his humility in action: the penitent criminal and cruel soldiers at the cross discovered that Jesus was not a mere man, instead they discovered he was the road to heaven. For others, the joy would come later, after the resurrection, when they recalled what Jesus had gone through on their behalf.
An obvious lesson is that true service for God can only come from a humble heart. Within that lesson there are others. Humility shows itself by having compassion on those who abuse us (as Jesus showed to the soldiers who nailed him to the cross), by being patient with those who misunderstand us (like the woman of Samaria), by washing the feet of those who should have known better (the disciples in the Upper Room). The fact is, Jesus was successful because he was humble. And in order for us to hear the divine commendation, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master’ (Matt. 25:23), we will have to engage in humble service of the Master, done in grateful response to his great work on our behalf.
The example of Jesus was brought in by Paul in order to challenge Euodias and Syntyche about their sinful disagreement (Phil. 4:2). I wonder what they thought of their status seeking when they heard this section of the letter being read. The same example is brought by the Bible to challenge us in our situations. Let us aim, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to be like Jesus, the best example.
As far as the Son of God was concerned, humility was not a denial of his capabilities but his way of expressing them. His capabilities included the work of redemption, but he could only perform this task in a humble way. The example of Christ has much to say to us regarding the expression of humility. As Bunyan commented regarding the valley of humiliation,
1. Peter Lewis (1997), The Glory of Christ, Moody Press, 249.
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