“For this reason God also highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow— of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth— and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11, HCSB)
Last week we saw how Jesus’ humble attitude led him to humble action…it led him to the cross. That’s the “reason,” mentioned above, that Jesus is now exalted. The Bible is ironic like that: the last will be first, the humble will be exalted, the proud will be abased. Jesus’ humility led to his current exaltation and in this heavenly position in the universe, every knee will bow.
The Greek word for “worship” describes this. It refers to prostrating oneself before a deity or a king. By definition, worship requires assuming a position of humility.
When Paul tells us that a day will come when every knee will bow, we’ll see two types of people. Worshipers – those of us with practice – will gladly and willingly kneel before the King. Others, who have rejected his reign, will also kneel…perhaps begrudgingly or out of fear…as they realize they have been mistaken. Either way, we will all assume the same posture.
I’m suggesting we don’t wait until we’re compelled to kneel. Let’s begin now by becoming people of worship. Let’s learn to humble ourselves before our Creator. As Paul reminds us, Jesus deserves it. C.S. Lewis put it this way: “You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon, or you can fall at His feet and call Him lord and God.”
Join us this Sunday for my message “I Will Worship!” See you in church!
Pastor Jim
