“who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he appeared as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even to death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:6-8 CSB)
Devotional
There is a moment most of us know well. Someone underestimates you, overlooks you, or gets the credit you deserved, and something rises up inside that wants to correct the record. Wants to make sure everyone in the room knows what you actually bring. I am not saying that impulse is always wrong. But I am saying that when I feel it most strongly, this passage has a way of stopping me cold.
Jesus was God. Not metaphorically, not symbolically. He existed in the very form of God, equal with the Father, with every right and authority the universe has to offer. And He did not consider that something to hold onto. He set it aside. He took on skin and limitation and hunger and exhaustion. He washed feet. He touched lepers. He ended up on a cross between two criminals, and at any point He could have stepped out of it, and He didn’t.
That word “emptied” is worth sitting with. In Greek it is kenosis, and it means He poured Himself out. Not a little. Not while keeping one hand on His rights. He poured Himself all the way out, all the way down, to the lowest possible place, for us. That is not the behaviour of someone who is insecure. That is the behaviour of someone who is so completely secure in who He is that He has nothing to prove.
That is the part that undoes me. Humility, real humility, is not thinking less of yourself. It is being so settled in the Father’s love that you do not need other people to confirm your worth. Jesus did not need the crowd. He did not need Pilate’s acknowledgement. He did not need to be understood. He already knew who He was, and that freedom made it possible for Him to give everything.
I want that kind of freedom. I am not there yet, not by a long way. But this passage shows me what it looks like, and it makes me want to keep leaning toward it.
Reflection
When I feel that pull to protect my position or make sure I get the credit I deserve, I want to pause and remember what Jesus laid down. I do not want to be the kind of person who clutches their rights at the expense of the people around them. I want the security that made humility possible for Jesus to slowly become mine too. That kind of freedom is worth more than being right.
Prayer
Jesus, we cannot fully wrap our minds around what You gave up to be with us, and we are grateful. Loosen our grip on the things we hold too tightly: our reputations, our rights, our need to be seen. Make us people who are so secure in Your love that we can afford to serve. Amen.