************ Sermon on Philippians 2:9-11 ************
By: Rev. Adrian Dieleman
This sermon was preached on May 21, 1998
Acts 1:1-11; Philippians 2:5-11
Phil 2:9-11
"God Exalted Him"
Introduction
A virgin, a manger, shepherds, wise men. When I say this you right away think of Christ's birth.
The Jordan, John the Baptist, a dove, a voice from heaven. This brings to mind Christ's baptism.
A donkey, palm branches, cloaks on the road. Right away you think of Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
An upper room, bread, wine. You think of the Last Supper and Christ's institution of the Lord's Supper.
Pilate, Herod, a crown of thorns, a purple robe, a cross. When I say this you think of Christ's death.
A stone, an empty tomb, two angels, Mary Magdalene, linen cloths. Christ's resurrection, you say.
Now, what image comes to your mind when you think of the Ascension? I want to tell you on this Ascension Day that we should never think of the Ascension without an image of a cloud, a crown and throne, and a name leaping to our mind.
I God Exalted Him
A "God exalted him," says our text. The first sign of His exaltation is the cloud.
The Book of Acts tell us that Jesus "was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight." Have you ever wondered about that cloud? When children play hide-and-seek they don't say a tree hides them; rather, they hide behind a tree. In the same way, a cloud doesn't hide a plane; a cloud may block the view; or a plane may hide in or behind a cloud. Yet, we are told that "a cloud hid him from their sight."
There is something special about this cloud. In the Bible clouds are a sign of the glory and presence of God. Think of the pillar of cloud and of fire that guided the Israelites through the wilderness and gave them light so they could travel by day and night (Ex 13:20,21). The Lord was in that pillar of cloud and fire. When Pharaoh, king of Egypt, had second thoughts about letting Israel go he chased after them with his horses and chariots. The pillar of cloud moved from in front of the Israelites and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long (Ex 14:19-20). The same cloud covered the Tent of Meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle (Ex 40:34). And the same thing happened when the Temple was dedicated (1 K 8:10-11). Think, too, of the transfiguration of Jesus. A cloud enveloped Jesus, Moses, and Elijah and a voice came from the cloud saying, "This is my Son" (Lk 9:34). The cloud is a supernatural cloud. It represents the glory and presence of God.
"God exalted him," says our text. "A cloud hid him from their sight." The cloud, in other words, symbolizes that Jesus was taken into the glory and presence of God in heaven.
B "God exalted him," says our text. The second sign of His exaltation is a crown and throne. "God exalted him to the highest place."
In the Ancient World the highest honor a ruler could bestow was to place someone at his right hand. This was the place of honor at the banquet table. This was the place of honor in the judgment hall. Only the emperor's most trusted advisors and friends could occupy this place. The king's right-hand man functioned as a kind of Prime Minister. As the right-hand man he could rule, give commands, and pass judgments all in the name of the king.
In the Bible, the highest place in the universe is the right hand of God. To be seated at the right hand of God is to be given a place of supreme honor and authority. To be seated at the right hand of God is to be made King under God.
In my call to worship I read from Psalm 110:1. This is an Ascension Day psalm. The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand ..." These words were fulfilled when Christ ascended into heaven. Over and over again the New Testament message is that the ascended Jesus is sitting at the right hand of God (Mk 16:19; Acts 2:33; 7:55-56; Rom 8:34; Col 3:1; Heb 10:12).
Jesus is seated at the right hand of God – this means Jesus has been given power, majesty, and honor. Jesus is seated at the right hand of God – this means Jesus has been given a crown and a throne. Jesus is seated at the right hand of God – this means Jesus is King and Lord. This means Jesus has been given the highest place in the universe.
To the Israelites who lived in Jerusalem at the time of Christ's death, Jesus did not seem like a king. After all, He had just been put to death like a common criminal.
And, to many people today, Jesus also doesn't seem like king. We watch or listen to the news and it is hard to imagine that Jesus is reigning now: I am thinking of such things as war, AIDS, teen pregnancy, abortion, militant homosexuals, famine, persecution of Christians around the world. You know why there are these problems and these sins? Because not everyone in the world acknowledges Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords.
But the unbelief of the world does not take away Jesus' crown and throne. Whether the world acknowledges it or not, He still is King and Lord and at the highest place in the universe!
C "God exalted him," says our text. The third sign of His exaltation is a name. "God ... gave him the name that is above every name."
According to the Bible God has given Jesus many different names. We start off with His given name, the name "Jesus." "Give him the name Jesus," said the angel to Joseph, "because he will save his people from their sins" (Mt 1:21).
He is also known as "Christ." The Hebrew equivalent is "Messiah." We say "Anointed One."
There are so many other names for Jesus found in the Gospels. Let me briefly mention just some of them. Matthew calls Him "Immanuel," God with us (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:23). Mark begins his brief Gospel by introducing Jesus as the Son of God (Mark 1:1). John pulled out all the stops in his introduction of Jesus Christ: the Word Who made the world (1:1-3), the Life (1:4), the Light (1:5), the Glory of God (1:14), One full of grace and truth (1:17), the Son Who makes the Father known (1:18). Further in John's Gospel Jesus is also called the Water of life (4:14); the Bread of life (6:41); the Light (8:12); the Door (10:7); the Good Shepherd (10:11); the Resurrection and the Life (11:25); the Way, the Truth, the Life (14:6). Matthew, Mark, and Luke call Him the Son of Man.
Hebrews calls Him the great High Priest, Who both makes the sacrifice and is the sacrifice.
Finally, I want to mention the names given Him by the prophet Isaiah: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Is 9:6).
So many great and wonderful names. Yet, there is one name that is above them all. What is this name? The name above every name is Lord. Jesus Christ is LORD.
What is so special about this name? God revealed Himself to His Old Testament people as Yahweh. The Jews held this name of God in such reverence and awe and were so scared of misusing it that they refused to ever say it. Instead, in the public reading of Scripture they always substituted the Hebrew word for "LORD" in its place.
Jesus Christ is LORD. Notice what this says about Jesus. This means the New Testament uses the same name for Jesus that the Old Testament uses for God. Jesus is God. Like God, He is the Maker and Creator. Like God, He is the Lord and King of Creation. Like God, He is the Master of everything.
Jesus truly has the name above all names – He has the name of God. He is LORD.
D "God exalted him," says our text. We know why God exalted Him. Jesus, though the eternal Son of God, humbled Himself. He humbled Himself by taking on human flesh. He humbled Himself by living a life of service and obedience. He humbled Himself by suffering the most despicable kind of execution in that time and place – even death on a cross! He humbled Himself in order to save us from our sins!
Jesus humbled Himself. "Therefore," says Paul, "God exalted him." Jesus humbled Himself. Therefore a cloud hid Him from sight, therefore He was given a crown and a throne, therefore He was given the name above every name.
II We Must Exalt Him
A Ascension Day means God has exalted Jesus. But Ascension Day also means that we should exalt Jesus. Paul says,
(Phil 2:10-11) 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 exalted him." And, so should we. We exalt Jesus when we bow before Him.
In the Ancient World bowing was a sign of honor and respect. It was a sign that the person you are bowing before is over you. It was a sign of obedience. They knew, back then, that you bow or you perish. You bow down or the king chops off your head.
Bow or perish. That's the message for us on this Ascension Day. Don't forget, Jesus today holds ultimate power. All of us are at His mercy – in the most literal sense of the word. To reject Him, to rebel against Him, is not only a grave sin, it is also incredibly stupid.
We know from the Bible that someday – on the last Day – every knee shall bow before Jesus. On that Day you will either do it out of fear as you await judgment or you will do it out of reverence as you praise your God.
Jesus has ascended into heaven. He is seated at the right hand of God. He is king. Therefore bow before Him now, today, before it is too late.
Topic: Christ
Subtopic: Lordship of
Index: 715
Date:
Title:
When Queen Victoria had just ascended her throne she went, as is the custom of Royalty, to hear The Messiah rendered. She had been instructed as to her conduct by those who knew, and was told that she must not rise when the others stood at the singing of the Hallelujah Chorus. When that magnificent chorus was being sung and the singers were shouting "Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth," she sat with great difficulty. It seemed as if she would rise in spite of the custom of kings and queens, but finally when they came to that part of the chorus where with a shout they proclaim Him King of kings suddenly the young queen rose and stood with bowed head.
Queen Victoria realized the truth of what Paul said long ago: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.
B "God exalted him." And, so should we. According to Paul we exalt Jesus when we confess Him.
There are two kinds of confession. We confess Christ with men. And, we confess Christ before men.
We confess Christ with men when we join the church. Jesus is exalted when we join His body. Jesus is praised when sinners repent and turn to Him in faith. Angels sing out for joy to Him when this happens.
We also confess Christ before men. We confess Christ before men through the monies we give to C.R.W.R.C., World Missions, Home Missions, the Back to God Hour. We confess Christ before men through the monies we give for Faith Promise. We confess Christ before men by supporting the evangelism program of our churches. We confess Christ before men by being His witnesses in our day-to-day life: by telling our co-workers, our neighbors, our friends about the Lord. Jesus is exalted when we are not ashamed to tell others about Him.
C "God exalted him." And, so should we. We exalt King Jesus when we serve Him in all of life.
Jesus is king. Therefore, we are to serve Him in our jobs. We don't work for the big pay check; rather, we work to serve the Lord. We don't work for our own glory, advancement, promotion; rather, we work for the glory of God. We don't enter any kind of occupation; rather, we enter only those in which we can serve the Lord. We aren't satisfied merely with punching the time-clock; rather, we do our best for the Lord.
Jesus is king. Therefore, we are to serve Him in our homes. This says something about the kinds of books and magazines we read. This says something about the kind of programs we watch on TV. This says something about Bible reading and prayer.
Jesus is king. Therefore, we are to serve Him in our marriages. This means we are to be faithful in thought, word, and deed. This means we are to keep our promise to love until death do us part.
Jesus is king. Therefore, we are to serve Him in the way we bring up, educate, discipline, and love our children and grandchildren.
Jesus is king. Therefore, we are to serve Him with our bank account and wallet. Our money does not belong to us first of all. It belongs to the Lord. Our spending habits are to reflect this.
Jesus is king; He is a demanding king. He demands our all. He wants us to totally serve Him in every area of life. He wants us to hold no area back.
Topic: Halfheartedness
Subtopic:
Index: 1088
Date: 12/1997.1803
Title: Total Commitment
The story is told of a man in Haiti who wanted to sell his house for $2,000.00. Another man wanted very badly to buy it, but because he was poor, he couldn't afford the full price. After much bargaining, the owner agreed to sell the house for half the original price with just one condition: he would retain ownership of one small nail located just over the front door.
After several years, the original owner wanted the house back, but the new owner was unwilling to sell. So the first owner went out, found the carcass of a dead dog, and hung it from the single nail he still owned. Soon the house became unlivable, and the family was forced to sell the house to the owner of the nail.
The point of this story: if we don't surrender all of our life to the control of King Jesus, if we give Him all but one small nail, then Satan will hang his rotting garbage on it and make us unfit for Christ. But if we do give Him all of life, He is exalted.
D God exalted him and so should we. We should exalt Him for the same reason God did. Because Jesus humbled Himself by taking on human flesh; because Jesus humbled Himself by living a life of service and obedience; because Jesus humbled Himself by suffering the most despicable kind of execution in that time and place – even death on a cross!; because Jesus did this in order to save us from our sins!
Conclusion
Today is Ascension Day. Today we celebrate that "God has exalted him." God exalted Him when a cloud hid Him from sight, when He was given a crown and a throne, when He was given the name above every name. Today, we are called upon to be like God: we also are to exalt King Jesus. God has exalted Him and so should we!
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