The Name Above All Names

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth: And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  Philippians 2:9-11

Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi (and us) to urge them to have the same mind which Jesus has, a mind that is humble, loving, and kind.  Believers are to walk in His steps and in the same spirit of selflessness, thinking of others more than themselves.  Jesus has two natures: the divine nature and the human nature.  He was with God in the beginning (Genesis 1:26), made several appearances throughout the Old Testament disguised as an Angel, came to earth as a human baby born to a virgin, taught and performed miracles during His ministry, was transformed into His glorious image on the mount of transfiguration before Peter, James, and John, was crucified, and rose again.  He said that He and His Father were one (John 10:30).  He is the Word which was God in the beginning (John 1:1-2) and remains so forever.  Jesus had no problem with identifying as God because He was and is God.  He did not steal or rob God of this divine identity.

When Jesus came to earth, He left His royalty behind and became a servant, appearing as a Man born in near poverty, a Carpenter who worked with His adopted father, Joseph.  He lived a rather obscure life until the age of 30 when He began His ministry of teaching the people about His Father and illustrating how God expected them to live their lives, at the same time, calling on His divinity to perform miracles as proof that He was sent by His Father as the Savior of those in bondage to sin.

The position of servant in Jesus’ day as well as ours was close to being the “low man on the totem pole”, that is, there was really no prestige or acclimation attached to serving others in various capacities.  Servants were looked down upon by the more affluent classes.  They still are today by the “upper” class who consider servants as people to be used to benefit themselves and not fellow humans.  An illustration of that occurred this week when a well-known politician made the remark that the immigrants crossing the border should stay where they are so that they can pick crops implying that they should not invade the land of the elites.  (Folks usually reveal their true colors eventually.)  Jesus left His home in paradise to become a servant of the people, however, His role as servant went even further when He died on the cross in obedience to His Father.  It takes extraordinary humility to volunteer to suffer the penalty for man’s sin, and, Jesus, as the sinless Servant, did just that.  Because of Jesus’ obedience to His Father, God rewarded Him with a name which is honored above all other names, making Him highly exalted forever.  From His low position as a humble Servant, He rose to the height of glory in His divinity, the same glory that He had since the beginning (John 17:5).

Not only was Jesus exalted in honor, but also in power.  When He returns to earth to banish evil and rule in righteousness, every person that has ever been born, whether living at the time or dead, will fall to their knees, bowing before Jesus Christ.  That includes those in heaven, those on earth, and those in hell.  No one will be able to avoid that most momentous of all events.  All people, small and great, rich and poor, and of every tribe and nation will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.  While millions on earth had denied Him the honor due Him, everyone will know for a certainly that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that the gospel message many of them rejected is without a doubt the truth.  They will realize that Jesus died to reconcile them with their Creator, but for many on this day, while calling Jesus Christ Lord, will not be able to call Him Savior because they had chosen to go their own way rather than repenting of their sin and receiving Him as Lord and Savior while they had opportunity.

Zechariah 12:10 tells us that those who pierced Jesus will one day look upon Him and shall mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son.  It wasn’t just the Roman soldiers who pierced Jesus with nails through His hands and feet and with a sword in His side as He hung on the cross.  It was the sins of all people who caused Jesus to be pierced, hung on a cross, and die.  Those whose sins were not forgiven because they didn’t repent and believe will mourn because they know they are doomed to eternal punishment without the presence of the One they rejected while those who know Christ as Lord and Savior because they were obedient to the Holy Spirit’s call to repent and receive Christ will rejoice.