5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:  6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,  7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!  9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,  10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,  11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
- Philippians 2:5-11, The New International Version, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House) 1984.

In the name of Christ Jesus our King, dear Christian friends:

The time: spring in about the year 30 A.D. The place: somewhere on the short stretch of road that led from Bethany to Jerusalem.  Tens of thousands of faithful Jews had made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, now only a few days away.  As Jesus made his way from the Mount of Olives down into the Kidron Valley and back up to the Holy City, the buzz began to grow.

"Is it really him?  Is this Jesus of Nazareth, the one everyone has been talking about?  Did you hear about his friend Lazarus?  He was in the grave, dead for four days.  Jesus came to the tomb and called to him, ‘Lazarus, come out,’ and he did.  What kind of man is this?  What powers does he possess?  Could this be the Messiah, the Promised One, the Redeemer of Israel?"

As Jesus entered the city, the noises grew louder and the crowds grew larger.  Many went out to meet him.  Some laid down their coats in Jesus’ path.  Others took palm branches and laid them in the road.  The combined gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John give us a vivid picture of what we now call Palm Sunday.  This triumphant scene had all the makings of a grand procession, a homecoming parade given in honor of a victorious king. Adoring crowds bowed down before Jesus and proclaimed: "Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" (Mark 11:9)!

But a closer look reveals that Jesus did not exactly receive a king’s welcome.  There were no armies marching ahead of him.  There were no trumpet blasts, no flags snapping in the breeze.  Jesus did not sit atop a majestic stallion covered in gold.  He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, a common beast of burden.  He didn’t give a stirring speech in front of thousands.  Instead, Jesus wept alone.  He wept for Jerusalem because he knew that the city would be destroyed in the not-so-distant future.  Even the people who lined the streets and hailed Jesus as the son of David were not the most faithful of followers.  Where were they on Good Friday when the crowds were shouting: "Crucify him, crucify him?"

On Palm Sunday, the crowds probably didn’t realize it, but they were not too far from the truth.   Jesus was the son of David.  And yes, Jesus was a king.  But he was different.  He didn’t come to establish an earthly kingdom in Israel.  He came to establish an eternal rule in heaven.  The words of Paul remind us that Jesus was and is…

No Ordinary King

I.  As our king, he humbled himself for us

II.  As our king, he is exalted forever

If you look at the sermon text from Philippians on the printed page, you probably notice that the words look more like poetry than the normal paragraph format surrounding it.  Some have suggested that Paul borrowed these words from an early Christian hymn and applied them to his readers.  Whether these words are Paul’s original words or not, they do express his deep convictions.

Remember that Paul was one of a select group to whom Jesus appeared after his resurrection.  Jesus appeared to Paul (then his name was Saul) as he traveled to Damascus.  That miraculous meeting changed Paul’s life forever.  It was on that road that God chose Paul, the church persecutor, the Christ hater, to be his missionary to the Gentiles.   Now picture Paul, reliving the day of his miraculous conversion in his mind, remembering the glimpse of God’s glory he had seen, as he explains the mystery that is Jesus Christ.

First, Paul wants to make one thing perfectly clear.  Jesus is God.  Jesus is by very nature God.  John tells us in the opening verses of his gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning" (1:1,2).  Jesus is the Word that John was talking about.  Before he took on human flesh, even before the creation of the world, Jesus was with God the Father from eternity.

Many people who are not Christians are willing to call Jesus a good man and a great teacher, but Jesus is so much more to us.  Jesus is God, equal to the Father and the Spirit in power and glory and majesty.  As true God, he did not "consider equality with God something to be grasped" (6). Jesus is God and he knows it.  Therefore, he doesn’t have to prove himself.  He doesn’t have to strive to attain "god status" or hold on to it tightly as if it could slip away.  Simply put, Jesus always was and always will be God.

But Jesus is also true man: "[Jesus] made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness" (7).  Jesus made himself nothing.  Literally, he "emptied himself" out.  When Jesus was born he did not stop being God, but he did give up the full use of his divine powers for a time.  He remained our king, but he covered up the royal robes of his divine power and glory with sackcloth and human flesh.

As a man, Jesus faced the temptations that are common to all of us.  He knew what it meant to be hungry and thirsty.  He felt sorrow and pain.  He wept over the death of his friend Lazarus.  Jesus was every bit as human as we are.  But what Jesus did is not as amazing as why he did it.  Jesus humbled himself…for us.  "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mt. 20:28).

Jesus didn’t just serve.  He served with perfect obedience.  He did more than live on earth. He even died a human death.  The very thought of death was far beneath the sinless Son of God, but the death that he endured stripped him of all human dignity.  Jesus did not go down in a blaze of glory.  He didn’t die peacefully in his sleep.  Jesus was crucified.  He was nailed to a cross.  His enemies put him on public display and then left him to die alone.  As true God, Jesus had the power to stop his execution at any moment, but he didn’t.  Jesus went to the cross willingly.  He endured all of its shame and scorn for us.

I think its safe to say that Donald Trump is still a household name.  He is the famous business tycoon who even had ideas about running for president earlier this year.  Among his many earthly achievements, Donald Trump built the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York City.  During my vicar year, I was able to take a trip to New York City and see this monument he built to himself.  I think it was when I saw the indoor waterfalls in the lobby that I realized the place was a little bit out of my price range.  What would you think if he gave it all up, if he gave up his penthouse offices on the top floor to open doors and carry luggage at the entrance of the building that bears his name?  You might call him crazy for giving everything away. You might call my story crazy because it will never happen.

As unbelievable as it may sound, that is exactly what Jesus did, except on a much greater scale.  Jesus is true God.  He was seated at the right hand of God the Father from eternity.  And he set it all aside.  He humbled himself and took the form of a servant.  He even subjected himself to a death.

He didn’t do any of it for himself.  Jesus came to earth to suffer and die for one reason and one reason only, to obey the Law perfectly for us.  Because we can do nothing to save ourselves, because we cannot obey God’s law on our own, Jesus the God-man took our place.  He removed the curse of God’s law by becoming a curse for us.  And we are left to marvel at the amazing grace of God.   Jesus did it all…for you.

Jesus probably didn’t look like much of a king on the cross on Good Friday, but Jesus’ death has given us the final victory.  On the cross of Calvary, Jesus defeated death and hell and Satan because he is no ordinary king.  The king who humbled himself for us is exalted forever.

God the Father exalted his Son Jesus to the highest place.  The king, who came down to earth as a man, who set aside his divine power and glory, took it up again.  His glory and radiance now shine as brightly as ever.  As our exalted king, God gave to Jesus the name that is above every name.

That name is not a royal title that Jesus earned by completing his work faithfully.  God didn’t give Jesus a promotion for accomplishing our salvation.  Jesus was and always will be God.  And when he reassumed the full use of his divine power and glory, it was nothing new to him.  He was only returning to the place he had been before.

God gave Jesus the name that is above every other name.  Peter wrote about the power that lies within that name:  "there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).   Jesus’ name is the only name that gives us hope.  Jesus is the only one who can give life to a world dead in sin.  Jesus isn’t the Way to heaven.  He is the ONLY way to heaven.

At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow.  All will acknowledge Jesus as the supreme king of the universe. Everyone will confess Jesus as Lord, those in heaven and on earth and under the earth.  "Everyone" includes all the saints who have gone before us and have found eternal rest.  "Everyone" includes the angels who announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds and continue to worship him in heaven.

The church on earth also confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord.  Although we offer Jesus imperfect praises now, we will worship him perfectly in heaven.  Even those under the earth will be forced to acknowledge Jesus.  Those who have walked down the wide road of unbelief to their own destruction, the fallen angels, even the Prince of Darkness himself, all will be forced to admit that Jesus Christ is Lord on the Last Day.

This section of Scripture offers us perhaps the most complete discussion of Jesus’ humiliation and exaltation, and connected with that, the teaching that Jesus is true God and true man in one person.  What is interesting is its context.  This section begins: "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus" (5).  And then Paul goes on to explain what makes Jesus the perfect example of selfless, self-sacrificing love.

So how do you measure up?  How do you measure up to God’s perfect standard? Are you always looking for opportunities to show love to your spouse, to help your kids, to thank your parents, to do what needs to get done even if it isn’t your job, to spread the good news, to pray for your enemies, to praise your Lord? Or are you like me and have trouble thinking about anyone but yourself?       

Christ is the perfect role model for Christians, but that does not make Christians perfect role models for others.  We don’t always think of others.  We rarely humble ourselves.  But if Jesus had the same kind of selfish attitude, where would that leave us?  Lost, condemned, headed for hell?  All of the above.

Paul does not give us this challenge only to beat us down, to remind us of how sinful we really are.  Paul’s words are words of encouragement.  Jesus is our perfect example today because he was our perfect substitute two thousand years ago.  Jesus lived a perfect life for us.  Jesus endured a terrible death for us.  His love allows us to confess that he is King of all, and his love motivates us to imitate him in our attitudes and our actions.

On Good Friday, after Jesus was nailed to the cross, Pontius Pilate had a notice fastened to the cross.  It read: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews (John 19:19). Why did Pilate do this? Maybe Pilate did it because he was plagued by feelings of guilt and self-doubt.  Maybe he just wanted to mock he Jewish leaders.

Some of the leaders protested to Pilate: "Do not write ‘the King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews" (John 19:21).  The leaders were at least partly right.  Jesus was not their king, at least not the kind of king they were looking for.  He led no army.  He had no political agenda.  Jesus was not their kind of messiah, so they crucified an innocent man.

At the same time, the notice on the cross was accurate.  Jesus was a king, but not an ordinary king.  He did not come to conquer.  He came to serve.  Jesus humbled himself for us and he is exalted forever.  With the crowds who lined the streets on Palm Sunday, we pay homage to Jesus Christ, our Savior and our king: "Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord…Hosanna in the highest" (Mark 11:9,10)!  Amen.