Monday 17th July - Philippians 2

Today’s chapter is Philippians 2

Tom writes:

It is Jesus’ second humbling that makes him truly amazing.  One level of humility is hard enough.  The lower level is what really tests us.  Jesus humbled himself once; he didn’t cling onto his equality with God but chose instead to become a human.  That involved a huge sacrifice of his eternal authority.  It involved him giving up unbroken intimacy with the Father and the untold riches of the heavenly realms.  Jesus had the perfect life but he chose to humble himself and give it up to become a human.  That was the first humbling.  I wonder if I have ever actually humbled myself as much as that? I wonder if you’ve ever been so taken with the beauty of God’s invitation that you would lay down other riches in order to say “yes” to him?

But there is a second level of humility that Jesus then adopted; as a human, he chose not to use his unmatched intellect or his dynamic charisma to build his own career.  He chose not to see his unparalleled resources as things for his own benefit.  He resisted the urge to use his breath-taking skills to get a wife, a life and free himself from strife.  No, he chose instead to die a reject’s death which was misunderstood by those watching it. Most people didn’t even notice; they were thinking about something completely different. This lower level of humility puts my jaw on the floor.  Going beyond just giving stuff up but really choosing to do what is best for others even if they don’t notice it and I get no recognition??  That is what Jesus did. Isn’t he just so amazing. I really want to imitate him in this but it just seems so hard. I take comfort from the fact that the Philippians were no better than me and yet Paul believed they could grasp this powerful way of life. Like them, I have been united with Christ. That can encourage me that all things are indeed possible. Like them I can come before Jesus with “fear and trembling” and let his attitude towards all things soak itself into my soul.  Nothing is impossible with God.  I can become one of the most humble people on the planet, shining like a star in my concern and compassion and commitment to others. And you can too. We both, together, can grow towards the greatest levels of humility because we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. 

Question for reflection

What would double humility look like in your life?