The humility of God is on stunning display at the cross of Jesus.
We are currently looking at what the gospel teaches about God, and we come today to one of the most significant elements of the gospel, namely the cross. What does the crucifixion teach us about God?
Of course, you can fill libraries with this topic, so we will need to be selective. Let’s look today at one thing the cross teaches us about Jesus. In the crucifixion we see that the most glorious, exalted, powerful being in the universe, from whom and through whom and to whom are all things, whose name is above every name—this God is humble.
The humility of God in human form
Scripture says, “5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:5–8, ESV, italics added).
Humility was the “mind” (v. 5), the attitude, of Jesus. His humble attitude expressed itself in his actions.
Notice the threefold repetition of the word “form”:
- “the form of God,” in verse 6
- “the form of a servant,” in verse 7
- “in human form,” in verse 8
This repetition sets up a stark contrast. Jesus was and is God, the unique Son of God, and he had all the majesty, authority, and privileges inherent to the Son of God. Thus in heaven Jesus was worshiped, served, adored, obeyed. All this is what the phrase “the form of God” means—not his physical form but his exalted position and prerogatives. He had “equality with God” (verse 6).
Jesus emptied
But when Jesus became a man, he surrendered that form, leaving the glory he had in heaven. He “emptied himself” of it, as one pours out the contents of a full glass. He did this willingly. The Father did not have to pry it from his grasping fingers (v. 6); instead Jesus opened his hand and released it. In this, Jesus revealed his humility. Moreover, since Jesus is the perfect reflection of the Father and the Holy Spirit, he displayed their humility.
Imagine the Queen of England surrendering all the privileges, clothing, and majesty of her position to become the lowliest servant in the kingdom, washing floors and dishes in a dingy bar. That’s a picture of what Jesus did when he took “the form of a servant” (v. 7). Again, Jesus did this willingly. One only does something like this willingly if he is profoundly humble.
The humility of God in the obedience of Jesus
But Jesus took this self-humbling much further. “He humbled himself by becoming obedient.” He obeyed everything the Father commanded him to do. Have you ever found yourself chafing when someone gives you orders? Have you ever complied outwardly with the commands of someone in authority yet inwardly churned with rebellious thoughts and feelings? That’s pride, pure pride.
Jesus didn’t do that. Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work” (John 4:34). And, “I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father” (John 14:31).
Jesus obeyed willingly, joyfully, wholeheartedly, even though he too is God.
The humility of God in the death of Jesus
And now we come to the fullest expression of the humility of Jesus. He obeyed “to the point of death, even death on a cross” (v. 8). No one wants to experience death. It is the terrible consequence of sin. Jesus did not deserve to die. In his divine nature he could not die. In his human nature he could, but he had lived a perfectly holy and righteous life and therefore deserved only the reward of eternal life and blessedness.
Nevertheless, the Father determined that he must atone for the sins of evil humans, and so Jesus willingly went to the cross to suffer the agony of death (Acts 2:24), to die the death of the wicked.
Death in the worst way possible: “even death on a cross” (v. 8). This was the cruelest way to die known on earth. The Romans employed this form of execution to dissuade conquered subjects from rebellion. This was torture and torment.
The humility of God in the suffering of Jesus
And that was so if you were just dying like any human. But Jesus was not dying like any human. On the cross, he took upon himself the guilt of human evil and suffered the furious divine wrath that evil deserved. In this wrath was a spiritual and emotional agony beyond anything we can imagine. It included his beloved Father withdrawing his presence, withdrawing the awareness of his love, something Jesus had never in his eternal existence experienced, such that he cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
This was the humility of the Son of God.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, he saw all this coming and asked that the Father would find another way. But the Father said no, and Jesus said, “Not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).
This was the humility of the Son of God. This is the humility of God. This is the gospel.
To our exalted, humble God be all glory.
Our way and God’s way
Our way: We resist humility.
God’s way: The Lord values and demonstrates humility, and sooner or later he rewards it.
Philippians 2 continues: “ 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him [Jesus] and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so 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 2:9–11).
Life principle: “Whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:12).
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)