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"Obedient to the point of death..."

Text: Philippians 2:8

THE PERFECT EXAMPLE

The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect example of what it means to be a human being! The following text is most uplifting.

“And being found in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death,
even the death of the cross.”

Philippians 2:8

1. “And being found in appearance as a man”

a) “Appearance” translates the word “schema” in the Greek text.

b) This word is semantically related to the word “form” (“morphe”).

c) Appearance is thus a synonym of the word “form”.

d) Jesus was not just having the appearance as a man (“schema”).

e) He was definitely in the form of man (“morphe”).

2. “He humbled Himself “

a) The word “humbled” (tapeinoo) is the same root word as “lowliness of mind” (Philippians 2:3).

b) Jesus voluntarily and personally made Himself lowly or humble.

c) This was logical to Him for He was in the form of “man”.

d) It is perfectly right that “man” should humble himself before God.

3. “And became obedient to the point of death”

a) Jesus exemplified perfect obedience.

b) He did not practise “selective obedience”.

c) If God required Him to die according to Divine will, Jesus was fully prepared to comply.

4. “Even the death of the cross”

a) Crucifixion was one of the cruellest ways of executing a person.

b) Nails are driven into the hands and feet to impale the victim onto a cross.

c) Death often comes very slowly.

i) It takes hours to die.

ii) Sometimes it takes days before death comes.

d) Jesus was fully compliant to God.

e) He suffered terribly so that He would satisfy Divine justice and anger for the sins of mankind.