The Downward Ascent

Graduation at the university where I serve is a splendid affair. Gowns of all colors swish around the town, academics process in order of seniority and new graduates are lauded for their intellectual achievement. This festival of optimism assures parents and patrons that their considerable expenditure is well invested, as future wealth and influence are assured. In a world where you climb the ladder of success, grabbing all you can as you go, these words in Philippians are stark, splendid, subversive and shocking.

Most strikingly, this narrative of Jesus’ pre-existence, followed by his earthly life and beyond, is not just a series of propositions to keep Christians, theologians and Jehovah’s Witnesses arguing ad
infinitum. We are given a glimpse into the very heart of divinity. Here we are shown in stunning graphic detail what it means to be God. Rob Lacey captures it delightfully: “He took off all the royal bits, cut up his heavenly credit cards, chucked his global contact list, walked off without his bodyguards. He unplugged his airwave connection, left his precious star collection, he gave it all up” (The Street Bible). The self-humbling, self-sacrificial love of Jesus displays God’s identity and character. He willingly takes on human limitation and dies a slave’s death, cursed by God.

Amazingly, the incarnation has changed the Godhead forever. From the lowest to the highest place, God has vindicated Jesus. He is Lord: Lord of all angelic beings, human beings and the dead, Lord of all Caesars throughout history, Lord of the United Nations and the World Bank, Lord of all Who’s Who lists and the Church. We worship him as Lord, not least as we emulate his counter-cultural, self-giving attitude and actions. In letting go of our rights in order to serve each other, we honor the once-shamed Lord.

Here is a challenging question: Where in my life is Christ calling me to give up my security, safety and comfort, to be offered up on the needs of people and our world?