Philippians 2:9-11

God Has Exalted Christ

Jesus prayed just before his death that God would glorify him again as he had been glorified before the world was (John 17:5). Because Jesus lowered himself to lift man up, God exalted him more than ever before (Romans 1:3-4; Matthew 28:18). Remember, Jesus taught that the man who humbled himself would be exalted (Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11; Luke 18:14). The "name" God gave Jesus would appear to be that of Lord. Man had lowered, or humiliated, Christ as much as he could, but God raised him up to be master of all who would be saved (1 Peter 2:9; John 14:6; Acts 2:32-36; Ephesians 1:22-23; 1 Timothy 2:5).

Isaiah 45:23 says every knee will bow to God. Clearly then, Paul is ascribing deity to Jesus when he says every knee will bow at the sound of his name (1 Peter 2:10-11). We can recognize Jesus now and submit to him, (Romans 10:9-10; Matthew 10:32-33), thereby becoming one God will confess in heaven. Or, we can wait and acknowledge him as the conquering Lord who has come to reclaim his own. Thus, we would make ourselves one of his enemies who will be made subject to him at the time of his second coming (1 Corinthians 15:24-26). The choice of the time when we will confess his Lordship is left up to us. In either event, we should remember when man confesses Jesus as Lord, God is glorified (John 17:1).

1 Peter 2:12

The Importance of Obedience

As we saw in the last lesson, Christ's life stands as the greatest example of obedience. Because of Christ's example, Paul challenged the Philippian Christians to obey. The writer of Hebrews said, "Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him" (Hebrews 5:8-9). Paul urged the brethren to have such obedience as a constant goal in their lives.

Christ is going to punish those who do not keep on obeying the gospel (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). Those in the church at Philippi had started well on the road of obedience with Paul present. In this letter, he expresses a desire for them to continue even in his absence. "Work out" carries with it the thought of working to full completion. It is like working out a math problem. In other words, do not stop until you have attained the final goal of salvation. It is evident the inspired apostle believed in individual accountability.

In fact, Paul wrote of his concern for his own salvation. "But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified" (1 Corinthians 9:27). Similarly, the Hebrew brethren were warned to be aware of the danger of drifting (Hebrews 2:1-4). No wonder Paul told those at Philippi they ought to hold God in awe and tremble at the possibility of failing to do his will (1 Peter 2:12; Isaiah 66:2). "Therefore let him who thinks he stans take heed lest he fall" (1 Corinthians 10:12).