Personal Choices. Philippians 2:7. “But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:” Our Lord Jesus Christ made Himself of no reputation by taking on the form of a servant. He gave up the privileges of God and took on human existence. He didn’t exchange the form of God for the form of a man, and by doing that, He would lose the attributes of God, but He remained in the nature of God and added to Himself the nature of a servant. As a servant, He was always submissive to the will of the Father.
There was a glory that was uniquely our Lord’s, which He chose to set aside when He came into this world. The glory was hidden when the Savior arrived in humility, not pride, as one obedient to His Father. He whom angels worshiped was here on earth as a humble man. That humiliation was not forced upon Him or unwelcome but was part of God's eternal plan before He created the world.
For our benefit, we learn that even though Jesus was, is, and always will be God, as a man here on earth, He chose to be “led by the Spirit” and guided by the Spirit. He daily received instruction from the Father and, as a man, was willing to act on it. He was never limited in His power and authority but chose to do what He did through the power of the Spirit so that we could “follow in His steps.”
Having the mind of Christ means I must choose to set aside my own ambitions so I can lose my life living for myself and instead live for Him. Those He has chosen need to know that His care for them involved laying aside everything that was His by sovereign right to do the Father’s will. The nature of a servant is to be submissive to the will of another. When He came, Lord Jesus did the will of God the Father. Through years of humble, submissive service, He was obedient, humbly doing the will of God as a man, even though He was deity.
It is important for me to remember that I am a servant of the living God. Having the mind of Christ in me motivates me to do whatever my Lord indicates in thought, word, and deed. It is my calling and responsibility as a servant of the Lord to always do the Master’s will and to prioritize the interests of the kingdom of God and its citizens. Humanity is not my choice; it is what I truly am. God chose me to make me a servant like His Son for His own reasons. As He is now, I will be like Him when my life’s work here is finished, and I will see Him face to face, far beyond the starry sky.
The Lord Jesus chose to be a normal man while here and then humbled Himself to be obedient even to the point of dying on the cross. As He traveled long distances across the land, He submitted Himself to human limitations so I could see that He was willing to be a man like me and the faithful Servant of Jehovah. I should always remember He was God’s chosen Lamb.
There was no limit to the sufferings that the Lord Jesus Christ endured as a man. There was no limit to the insults against Him that He silently accepted. There was no limit to how much He was willing to bear so that we might be saved. This same attitude should be in us. The death of the cross was uniquely His. The life that each of us lives is uniquely ours and can be directed toward whatever the mind chooses. We can live for ourselves or for others. We can serve God or be self-serving.
There was no limit to how much the Lord was willing to set aside so that He could forgive us. If we place limits on our willingness to forgive, that will effectively hinder our joy. The death of the cross involves far more than we can comprehend. God's righteous demands had to be satisfied. Sin had to be removed for us to be justified. Satan and death had to be defeated. The Lord accomplished all these things and more. His sacrifice has saved us from the consequences of our sins and made us citizens of heaven.