This morning we will be in the book of Philippians. Today we will be talking about the name of Jesus. We pray in the name of Jesus, we sing about the name of Jesus, we live for the name of Jesus, etc. But why? What is it about the name of Jesus? Why do you pray in Jesus’ name? Why do we sing about the name of Jesus? Why is the name of Jesus so important? We will look at Philippians chapter 2 to answer that question. So let’s go there!
Philippians 2:5-8
“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.
Paul in a minute here is about to talk about the name of Jesus. Before doing so, he starts with who He was before. You see, before the crucifixion, before the miracles, before the virgin birth, before all of it, Jesus was God. He still is God, but before all of those things, Jesus was God.
John 1:1-2
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.”
When John refers to the “Word” he is referring to Jesus. How do we know that?
V14 - “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us”
So at the beginning of creation, at the beginning of time and beyond, Jesus was God; and He still is. He has the full nature of God. You may have heard scriptures refer to Jesus as the son of God. It means that He is of the same nature as God.
V6 - “who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped…”
Although Jesus is God and Jesus was God, He did not consider it as something that He was unwilling to let go of. There are kings who are unwilling to let go of the crown, celebrities who are unwilling to let go of the fame and lifestyle, there are rulers and leaders who are unwilling to let go of their power and authority. However, Jesus did not consider His position as something that He was not willing to let go of.
In Heaven, He was undisputed as God of the universe. He was worshipped by angels day in and day out. Their responsibility was to glorify Him! Through Him all things were created and sustained in heaven and on earth. He was God!
However, Jesus was willing to let it all go.
V7 - “but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”
Jesus “emptied Himself,” what does that mean?
Jesus emptied Himself, not of His divine nature, but of His glory. He did not empty something from Himself, but instead He emptied Himself from something. He emptied Himself from the glory He had in heaven, making Himself of no reputation. He went from being recognized as God in Heaven to being recognized as “no-one” on earth.
Bondservant: Jesus went from the highest position in all of creation to the lowest position on earth. He voluntarily took on the role of a servant. Jesus washed His disciples feet. Jesus had compassion on the outcasts and helped them. Jesus stooped down and looked up at the woman he served that was caught in adultery. In that time, only a servant would bend down to look up at someone. Jesus was a servant; Jesus came to serve.
Jesus also took on human nature; meaning that He became fully God and fully man. Though He was God, He was also completely man. He had to eat like we do, He had to sleep like we do, He had to be careful like we do, He had to rest like we do, He laughed and cried like we do, He was tempted like we are (though He never sinned), etc.
Jesus was truly God, but He veiled His deity and was also fully man. If you saw Jesus during that time, you were not thinking, “Wow, that is the most incredible human I’ve ever seen!” You were not seeing a man glow with the nature of God. No, you saw an ordinary man.
So why did Jesus become a human? Why did Jesus lay down His glory in heaven to become human of no reputation? Verse 8 explains…
V8 - “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Jesus left heaven and came to earth as a human for one reason and one reason only, that was to die. Christ willingly humbled Himself when He became a man. He willingly humbled Himself when He allowed Himself to be mocked, to be stripped, to be beaten, to be hung on a cross, all the way to the point of death. Jesus willingly laid down His life. Why? So that you and I would be saved.
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
He humbled Himself all the way to death on a cross so that you could be saved. Why? Because He loves you. He showed His love when He took on all of your sin, was beaten, mocked, spit on, and then carried His cross all the way up to Golgotha, the place where He would be crucified. He showed His love when He died for you and me and was buried. But He didn’t stay in the grave, He rose victoriously from the dead!
Now, since Jesus did not consider his position in heaven a thing to be grasped, and since He emptied Himself of His glory and willingly humbled Himself in becoming a man, and humbled Himself by dying on the cross for our sins, since Jesus did all of that…
9 Therefore God has highly exalted him 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.
God has “highly exalted” Him. That is a double meaning! In other words, God lifted Him up to the highest place there is in all of the universe. Remember, Jesus emptied Himself. He gave up His place in heaven in order to become a man for our sake (God-Man). Therefore, God highly exalted Him and set Him at His right hand. Jesus left heaven as God and returned to heaven as both God and man.
God the Father has given Him the name that is above every name! No name is greater than the name of Jesus! There are some great names that have come through our history. Yet none of those names even come close to the name of Jesus. If there is any name that deserves your honor, your praise, your admonition, your worship, your respect, the name of Jesus deserves more! His name deserves the upmost praise, honor, and respect than any other name.
In fact, God has made it so that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord! That is every person today, every person that ever lived, and every person that will live. That is every being in heaven and every spirit under the earth. All will bow down to the name of Jesus.
The name of Jesus is not just any name, the name of Jesus is not just another name. The name of Jesus is the name above all other names! Every spirit, every authority, every principality, every person will bow before Jesus and proclaim Him as God. The question is, do you?
Have you made Him Lord and savior of your life? If you don’t call Him Lord now, you will call Him Lord in eternity. It will just be a question of what side of the fence you are on. Place your faith in Him today!
Why is the name of Jesus so important? It is the only name that can save.
Acts 4:12 - “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
It is only the name of Jesus has power to save your soul
Takeaways:
Romans 10:13 - “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Matthew 12:21 - “And his name will be the hope of all the world.”
1 Peter 1:3-5
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Jesus is the name above all names. No name is higher and no name is greater.
Regardless the situation you find yourself in, you can call on the name of Jesus. He is still mighty to save. Put your faith in Him and trust Him.
Only Jesus is your true hope.
