Jesus made himself nothing. He was God in human flesh and
blood, but he made himself nothing. Although he was (is) almighty, immortal,
and omniscient he emptied himself and became obedient to death – even a
shameful, public, painful, awful death as death on a cross always is.
This is why Jesus was entering Jerusalem. The end of his
mission and ministry was coming. He had lived humbly. Now he would die in
humiliation, bearing the sins of all humanity.
This is why we praise him – because he died for us. Every
knee in heaven and on earth and even under the earth will bow to the crucified
God, confessing that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
But what about the resurrection? Isn’t the resurrection
the main thing? That is like asking which side of a coin is more important:
heads or tails. Without the crucifixion there is no resurrection. Without the
resurrection the crucifixion is just another meaningless death. But Jesus’
death was not meaningless. It was the atoning sacrifice for our sin. The resurrection
shows us that the sacrifice was accepted and Jesus is, indeed, our Lord and
Savior.
How is Jesus’ obedience to death (even death on a cross)
something we should emulate? Why is it so hard to have such a mind in
ourselves?
Lord Jesus, you
emptied yourself. You became nothing. You died for us. Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you. Forgive us for the many times that we are full of ourselves instead
of emptied. Forgive us for grasping at equality with God. Help us to be more
and more like you in our lives, our actions, and our attitudes. Amen.
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