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[0:00] Welcome to our services today and as we come together to seek to worship the Lord, we pray that he would lift upon us the light of his own countenance and that he would bless his word to us.

[0:22] Let us join together in prayer. Father, Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, as we draw near to thee in this act of worship, we seek, O Lord, that we would be mindful of who we are and that we would be like thy servant of old, who was known as the friend of God and who approached thee and said, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes.

[1:03] O Lord, thou doth remember that we are the dust. Thou frame you well know. And we come before thee, O Lord, acknowledging that human life is like the grass, like the flower that grows in the meadows.

[1:23] For over it the wind doth pass, and thy way is gone, and the place where once it was, it shall nevermore be recalled.

[1:35] But we bless thy name, that thy love is everlasting, that God is love, and that thou changeth not, that thou art the same today, yesterday, and forever.

[1:54] Thou art the unchanging God. And so we have that boldness and confidence to come into thy presence through the merits of thy Son, and to seek the forgiveness for our sins.

[2:10] And we bless thee, O Lord, that thou art the one that can give to us that cleansing that we stand in need of, that in and through thy Son, that we can be reconciled to God.

[2:27] That we can have peace with God. That we can be brought into that fellowship and communion with God that was broken by sin.

[2:38] And we give thanks, O Lord, that as far as east is from the west, that in thy love thou hast borne away our sins and our transgressions.

[2:52] O Lord, we come and we bow down before thee, acknowledging that thou art the great God, for who is like unto thee. O Lord, we give thanks for thy love, for thy mercy, for thy compassion.

[3:09] And we come before thee, O Lord, and seek that it may please thee to bless us this day as we come together with thy word. O Lord, O Lord, that through thy spirit, that thou would take thy word and lodge it deep into our hearts.

[3:27] That it may bring forth evidence in our lives. For we acknowledge, O Lord, that we are dependent upon thee. That without thee we can do nothing.

[3:39] And so we pray that it may please thee to visit us today through thy spirit. To revive our spirits, to revive our hearts.

[3:52] To stir us up. So that we would come, O Lord, as those who truly seek to worship thee in spirit and in truth.

[4:04] Remember our homes and our families. We ask, O Lord, that thou would meet with each one of them at their point of need. Remember thy people, O Lord, those whom thou hast redeemed for thyself.

[4:19] We pray that they may be faithful witnesses for thee in this world. That we would, O Lord, be as lights that would shine into the midst of the darkness of the world that is around us.

[4:35] That, O Lord, that we may be Christ-like in our conversation and our walk in life. And we pray, O Lord, that thou would uphold our witness.

[4:49] We pray, O Lord, for those who are ill. That thy known healing hand would be upon them. Remember those who mourn the passing of loved ones.

[5:00] And pray, O Lord, that thy known comfort would be their portion today. That thy known comfort would fill their hearts. Remember the careless and the indifferent.

[5:13] O Lord, stir them up in their hearts. And through thy known comfort. And through thy known spirit, enlighten their understanding. Enlighten their minds.

[5:24] So that they may come to know how they are travelling on a slippery slope. And we pray, O Lord, that thou would draw them through thy spirit to thyself.

[5:36] That they may come to experience the salvation of God in Jesus Christ. Remember the preaching of thy word today. And all thy servants who have gone forth in proclaiming thy truth.

[5:51] May they have the unction of thine own spirit upon them. And we pray that thy gospel would go out in the power and demonstration of thine own spirit today.

[6:02] And we pray, O Lord, that thou would continue with ourselves as we come to read thy word. And to meditate upon thy word.

[6:13] We pray, O Lord, that through thy spirit thou would lead us unto thy word. And that what we reflect upon may be embedded into our hearts.

[6:26] And bring forth evidence in our lives in the days that lie ahead. We pray, O Lord, that thou would remember us as a nation. O Lord, that we would return in repentance.

[6:40] That we would seek the mercy of God in Jesus Christ. When there is so much confusion among us. We give thanks that there is no confusion with God.

[6:54] That thou art working out thine own purposes. And we give thanks that we do know that in the end it will all be to thine honour.

[7:06] And to the glory of thy name. We ask, O Lord, that we would rest in the sovereignty of God. In knowing that thou art in full control of all events and all situations and circumstances.

[7:23] That even the sparrow doesn't fall to the ground without thy knowledge. That the hairs of our head are all numbered by thee. And so we pray, O Lord, that we would bow ourselves in thy presence.

[7:37] In humility of mind, of heart and of spirit. And all that we ask with the forgiveness of our many sins. Is in Jesus' name and for his sake.

[7:48] Amen. Let us now read the word of God as we find it in the gospel according to John. And chapter 1.

[8:00] And we shall read the first 14 verses of that chapter. John's gospel, chapter 1. John's gospel, chapter 1.

[8:37] John.

[9:07] May the Lord bless to us the reading of that portion of his word.

[9:37] And seeking his help and his blessing. Let us return to the epistle of Paul to the Philippians that we have been studying over many weeks.

[9:48] Philippians chapter 2. Philippians chapter 2. And we shall read from verse 5. Philippians chapter 2 and verse 5.

[10:00] Let this chapter 2. Hebrews chapter 2.

[10:17] And was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

[10:29] Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name. That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth.

[10:42] And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. These verses 5 to 11 of this letter has generated more comments and theological discussion than all the other verses of this letter put together.

[11:07] Paul is concerned that divisions and splits could arise among believers due to strife, self-ambition and vainglory.

[11:20] People trying to draw attention to themselves and exert themselves into positions just to be seen and praised. So he exerts believers to be like-minded, to be of one mind and in lowliness of mind for each to esteem the other better than themselves.

[11:43] And then he goes on to clarify or define the kind of mindset that he is urging on them to practice in their relations one towards another.

[11:54] For he says, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Now it is generally agreed that this verse 5 forms the link between the two sections of this passage.

[12:15] Verse 1 to 4 and verse 6 to 11. It is the transition, as it were, from an exhortation, which we have in verse 1 to 4, to an illustration or an example, which we have in verse 6 to 11.

[12:35] And here he begins with Christ's pre-existence, followed by his incarnation, including his death on the cross in verse 6 to 8.

[12:45] And he concludes this passage that we have taken today with his return to heaven as the exalted Lord of heaven and earth in verse 9 to 11.

[12:59] However, today we are going to look at verse 6 to 8. Now at the end of the verse 6, At the very outset we must remember that Paul is writing this in the context of the trials and the sufferings that confronted the church at Philippi.

[13:44] He is very concerned about the threats to Christian unity that arises through strife, self-ambition and vain glory. And he is seeking to give them a new way of looking at the challenges that threaten to frustrate and prevent their efforts to stand fast with one mind in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation.

[14:07] He is attempting to reinforce the instructions that he has urged upon them as he instructed them in Christian living by appealing to the humble descent and glorious ascent of Jesus Christ.

[14:28] Whenever we think of Christian living by the humble descent, we are always to remember that they are theological ethics, so that we cannot divorce doctrine from ethics and vice versa.

[14:44] The church here at Philippi, the believers are in Christ. And because they are united with Christ, they are to live that out.

[14:58] And Paul is presenting Jesus' humble mindset as an example to believers. This humble mindset that was evident in Jesus must be seen in all who follow him.

[15:15] I think that the ESV translation catches better what we have already noted, how doctrine cannot be divorced from Christian living or Christian ethics.

[15:28] The ESV says, have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. In other words, this mindset is ours.

[15:42] As those who are in Christ.

[16:12] As those who are in Christ.

[16:42] Christ conveys his mindset to us through his Holy Spirit. So, if we are in Christ, through the Holy Spirit, we are given the mindset of Christ.

[16:58] We must remember that when Christ condescended from heaven to earth, his purpose was not only to rescue us from our sins, though it was that.

[17:10] It was not only to set us through the Holy Spirit. It was not only to set us an example, though it was that. But it was also to reconfigure, as it were, the inclinations of our heart.

[17:23] So that his mindset becomes our mindset. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.

[17:36] In other words, you are in Christ. And the Spirit of Christ is in you. Now, he says, follow that out in your Christian living.

[17:49] Now, following this imperative or instructional command to live out the mindset of Christ that has been given to us by the Holy Spirit, he begins by drawing your attention to Christ's pre-incarnate state.

[18:10] That is, the state or circumstances of being that was his before he took upon himself our humanity, before he became a man.

[18:23] Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.

[18:45] What does Paul mean by this phrase, the form of God? Much has been written and discussed about what it meant.

[18:58] The form of God. But before we look at that question in more detail, I would like to digress a wee bit. And for us to focus on two questions that we have in our shorter catechism, which in itself is a body of divinity.

[19:16] And the first question I want to focus on is, are there more gods than one? And the answer the catechism gives is, there is but one only, the living and true God.

[19:31] Then there is another question. How many persons are in the Godhead? And the catechism answers, there are three persons in the Godhead.

[19:42] The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. And these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.

[19:53] Now I want us to remember these two answers as we look at this phrase, the form of God. I want you to remember the answers that we have in the catechism.

[20:05] One God, three persons, same in substance, equal in power and glory. And Paul here in our passage is speaking of the second person of the Godhead.

[20:21] He is speaking of the Son. And he tells us that in his pre-incarnate state, he was in the form of God.

[20:33] He was God within the mystery of the Trinity. Now I know that the word Trinity is not found in the Bible.

[20:45] However, I believe that the concept of the Trinity is taught in both the Old and New Testaments. It is taught by implication in the Old and by direct statement in the New.

[20:58] For instance, the Bible contains numerous clear statements regarding the unity of God. And in Deuteronomy 6, verse 4, there it is written, the Lord is one.

[21:13] When we come to the New Testament and we come to 1 Corinthians 8, it adds that there is no God but one. And 1 Timothy 2 explicitly says, there is one God.

[21:28] However, the Bible also contains clear statements regarding diversity within that unity. For instance, in the very first verse of the Bible, we are told, in the beginning, God.

[21:43] Now the Hebrew word for God is Elohim, which is actually a plural form of the word El. It is a word that in other contexts is sometimes translated as gods.

[22:00] Especially when there is reference made to heathen gods. And later in the same chapter of Genesis, we have one of the most striking statements of diversity and unity.

[22:12] We read that God said, Now, in that passage, notice the shift in pronouns.

[22:53] Perhaps you were not so aware of it as I was reading it, but you can turn to it yourself. And notice the shift in pronouns.

[23:04] Let us in our image. So God created man in his own image. He created him.

[23:18] We find the shift in pronouns from us and our to he. Now, why the shift? Surely it teaches the diversity and unity within the Godhead.

[23:32] Of course, there are those who will say that what we have here in Genesis 1 is a literal form called the plural of majesty. But I am of the opinion that what it brings before us is diversity and unity within the Godhead.

[23:52] All three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are called God in different places in the Bible. For instance, the Father called God in Galatians 1 verse 1, where we read Paul an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ.

[24:14] And God the Father, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead. The Son is called God. That passage that is well known to us in John 20 and verse 28 regarding Thomas' confession.

[24:32] Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. And the Holy Spirit is called God. And Acts 5 verses 3 to 4.

[24:45] Peter said in 9, Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost and keep that part of the price of the land? Whilst it remained, was it not thine own?

[24:58] And after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. Three persons.

[25:10] Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One God. We sometimes use the term the triune God. Meaning Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

[25:24] Now there are many other passages where the three persons are associated together on equal basis. For instance, at the baptism of Jesus. In Matthew's Gospel, chapter 3.

[25:38] And we read there that when Jesus, when he was baptized, that he went up straightway out of the water. And lo, the heavens were opened unto him. And he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lightning upon him.

[25:51] And lo, a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. In regards to our own salvation, Peter says, in his first letter and first chapter, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, Through sanctification of the Spirit, And to obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.

[26:16] And regarding Christian growth, in 2 Thessalonians, we read, But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, Because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation, Through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.

[26:36] This shows us how easily Scripture passes from one person of the Trinity to another, Doing so in a way that assumes their equality of nature, That they're equal in nature, While preserving their distinct personhood.

[26:53] Now I know that the concept of the Trinity is a mystery, And there has been many illustrations brought forward to try and make it easier for us to understand.

[27:11] The scientist, Dr. Henry Morris, illustrated it this way. He knows that the entire universe is Trinitarian by design.

[27:24] The universe consists of three things, Matter, space and time. Take away any one of those three and the universe will cease to exist.

[27:36] But each one of those is itself a Trinity. You know, we must remember, there is so much we would like to know about God, But our finite minds cannot comprehend it.

[27:50] If we could explain God, He would not be God. However, before we lose track, What I want us to focus upon is One God, Three Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Same in substance, Equal in power and glory.

[28:15] So that, When Paul here speaks of Christ Jesus As being in the form of God, He is telling us, Or he is pointing us, To the pre-incarnate Christ Jesus As being, In very nature, God.

[28:34] That the form of God Does not mean anything less than Godhood. Essentially, Paul is saying that the Son of God Shares fully In the very essence of God.

[28:50] Or to borrow a phrase from the Nicene Creed, The Son of God, Jesus Christ, Is very God Of very God. And we have to hold on to the doctrine That Jesus is fully divine, That he is fully God.

[29:09] Because Islam considers Jesus to be a prophet, But not divine. Jehovah's Witnesses Pedal the notion that Jesus is less than fully divine.

[29:22] But the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus is fully divine. He is God That came to be manifest in the flesh.

[29:32] The incarnation, The coming of the Son into the world Did not mean that the Son Sees to be what he eternally was. God the Son.

[29:47] Now there are those who connect this phrase, The form of God, With the glory of God. Because the word that we have here, Form, Can mean an outward expression Of inward reality.

[30:00] It can be defined as Outward appearance And shape visible to human observation. For instance, In verse 7, We have the words, The form of a servant.

[30:17] Which we can easily accept To refer to outward appearance. So the question is, Can the form of God And the form of a servant Have the same meaning? Are they in both cases A reference to outward appearance?

[30:32] The form of servants, Or slaves, Is something that could be Easily observed every day In the open markets at Philippi. Their outward appearance Indicated that they were slaves.

[30:43] But if form is defined As an outward appearance And shape which is visible To human observation, How can that be true of God?

[30:53] Who is immaterial And who is invisible. Who is a spirit. Now I know that in the Old Testament We have God brought before us As having a face, Eyes, Ears, Mouth, Arms, Fingers, And back.

[31:13] But all these references To the form of God Is figurative expressions. We are prohibited In the second commandment To set up an image To represent God.

[31:26] God is a spiritual essence And being a spirit. He is invisible. So how can we associate The form of God With the glory of God?

[31:38] Well, there are many references In the Old Testament That indicate That the glory of God Is the outward appearance Of the presence And majesty of God.

[31:50] For instance, In Exodus 16 we read And it came to pass As Aaron spake Into the whole congregation Of the children of Israel That they looked out The wilderness And behold The glory of the Lord Appeared in the cloud.

[32:05] We are told In Exodus chapter 40 Then a cloud covered The tent of the congregation And the glory of the Lord Filled the tabernacle.

[32:19] In Psalm 19 We are told The heavens declare The glory of God And the firmament Showeth his handiwork. The vision of Isaiah In chapter 6 In the year that King Isaiah died I saw also the Lord Sitting upon a throne High and lifted up And his train Filled the temple Above it stood The seraphim Each one had six wings With two Covered his face And with twain He covered his feet And with twain He did fly And one cried Into another And said Holy, holy, holy Is the Lord of hosts The whole earth Is full of his glory.

[33:00] So what we have here Is that The glory of God As it were The presence of God Fills the tabernacle It fills the heavens It fills the whole earth You will notice how Paul In the New Testament Develops this argument In Romans chapter 1 From this perspective That the glory of God Is the outward appearance Of God's power And majesty He writes Because that which may be known Of God Is manifest in them For God hath showed it Unto them For the invisible things Of him From the creation Of the world Are clearly seen Being understood By the things That are made Even his eternal power And Godhead So that they are Without excuse Because that When they knew God They glorified him not As God Neither were thankful But became vain In their imaginations And their foolish heart Was darkened Professing themselves

[34:00] To be wise They became fools And changed the glory Of the uncorruptible God Into an image Made like to corruptible man And to birds And four-footed beasts And creeping things So both the Old Testament And the New Testament Speak of the glory of God As the manifestation of God And so that supports Of course the idea Of associating the form of God With the glory of God And all that We look at there Brings us back again To where we began With the Shortered Catechism One God Three Persons Father, Son, Holy Spirit Same substance Equal in power And glory In Hebrews chapter 1 We read regarding The Son Who had been The brightness Of his glory And the express image Of his person It's a reminder to us That the form of God Does not mean

[35:01] Anything less Than Godhood In John's prologue That we read Earlier on We read there In the beginning Was the Word And the Word Was with God And the Word Was God The same was In the beginning With God All things were made By him And without him Was not anything Made that was made In him was life And the life Was the light of men Then in verse 14 And the Word Was made flesh And dwelt among us And we beheld His glory The glory As of the only begotten Of the Father Full of grace And truth The form of God Is not something Different From God Or Something less Than God And so we read Being in the form Of God He thought it not Robbery to be Equal with God He was on

[36:03] An equality With God He was equal With God And this Equality Is not By robbery Or attainment It was not Something that He had gained Or was to gain It was the Consequence Of his being And continuing To be In the form Of God Yet The one Existing In the form Of God And equal With God Is a Distinguishable Person Within The Godhead He is distinct Within The Godhead God the Son Who is about To become Incarnate Possessed The glory Of God The likeness Of God The image Of God The splendor And majesty Of God He possessed Everything That makes God God For He was God Now this

[37:03] May sound Extremely Complicated And It is A mystery But A mystery That is Revealed To us In the Bible What I want You to hold On to Is that Jesus Is God He is Equal With God He is As the Bible says To us God Manifest In the flesh As we shall See in a Moment What I want You to hold On to Is that There is One God There are Three persons In the Godhead There is The Father The Son And the Holy Spirit They are The same In substance They are Equal in Power And Glory Who Been in The form Of God Thoughted Not Robbery To be Equal With God But

[38:05] Made Himself Of No Reputation The Literal Rending Would be That he Emptied Himself Emptied Himself Of what Well this Again has Caused a Lot of Discussion There are Some false Teachers Who take This too Far Saying Saying that Jesus Gave up All Or Some Of His Divine Nature When he Came To earth And We must Be careful Not to Go beyond What Scripture Says Jesus Jesus Did not Empty Himself Of His Divine Attributes It is Obvious In the Gospels That Jesus Possessed The power And wisdom Of God Calming The storm Is just One display Of Jesus Divine Power In his Incarnation In becoming Man The son Of God Did not Cease To be God As we Have Already Proved And

[39:05] He Did not Become A lesser God He Remained Fully God So Whatever The Emptying Entailed Jesus Remained Fully God Paul Writing To the Colossians Says In chapter 2 Verse 9 For In him That is In Christ Dwelleth All the Fulness Of the Godhead Bodily Christ Who Was In the Form Of God And Equal With God Had Rights So That When Here We Read In The Translation That is Before us He Made Himself Of No Reputation It Means That He Did Not Insist On His Rights He Had The Rights Of Being Respected And Valued He Had The Rights Of Being Immune From Poverty And Pain And Humiliation But

[40:05] He He Did He Did He Did He Did He He Made Himself Of No Reputation How He Took Upon Him The Form Of A Servant And Was Made In The Likeness Of Men And Been Found In Fashion As A Man He Humbled Himself And Became Obedient Into Death Even The Death Of The Cross Notice Here How Particular Attention Is Thrown To The Fact Of The Voluntary Action Of Christ Jesus He Made Himself Of No Reputation He Made Himself Of No Reputation His Own Action He Took The Form Of A Servant His Own Action He Humbled Himself His Own Action He Was Not Forced But He Voluntary Made Himself Nothing

[41:06] He Veiled His Glory And Chose To Occupy The Position Of A Servant Or A Slave He Did Not Regard Those Things That Essentially Belonged To Him As Something To Grasp Those Rights That Belonged To Him The Rights Of Being Respected And Valued To Be Immune From Poverty Pain And Humiliation Instead He Voluntary Made Himself Of No Reputation And When He Made Himself Of No Reputation Remember It Was Not An Emptying Of His Deity Or An Exchange Of Deity For Humanity Jesus Never Ceased To Be God During Any Part Of His Earthly Ministry But He Did Veil His Heavenly Glory He

[42:06] Voluntarily Refrained From Using His Divinity To Make The Way Easier For Him He Became Dependent Upon The Other Persons Of The Godhead The Father And The Holy Spirit He Prayed To The Father He Was Dependent Upon The Spirit Jesus Sometimes Functioned Within The Limitations Of Humanity He Was Hungry He Thirsted He Was Tired But We Know That God Never Gets Hungry Thirsty Or Tired Instead Of Holding On To His Own Interrupted Glory He Chooses To Veil It And Although He Is Under No Obligation To Do So He Comes Into Our Fallen World And He Does That In Order To Bring Salvation To Me And You In Order To Bring Salvation To Sinners Now So Far We Are Focused On What Jesus Surrendered Or What

[43:06] He Gave Up Or What He Veiled But Our Text Also Deals With What Jesus Took On He Took Upon Him The Form Of A Servant Or A Slave And Was Made In The Likeness Of Men Jesus Added To His Divine Person A Human Nature As He Humbled Himself For Us As He Condescended In Order To Bring Us Salvation He Added To His Divine Person A Human Person And He Took That Human Nature With All Of Its Limitations The Writer To The Hebrews Puts It Like This For Verily He Took Not On Him The Nature Of Angels But He Took On Him The Seed Of Abraham Wherefore In All Things It Behoved Him To Be Made Like Unto His Brethren That He Might Be A Merciful

[44:06] And Faithful High Priest In Things Partaining To God To Make Reconciliation For The Sins Of The People For In That He Himself Hath Suffered Been Tempted He Is Able To Sucker Them That Are Tempted Now As The Forum Of God Points To The Reality And Fulness Of God So The Form Of A Servant Or A Slave Points To The Reality And Fulness Of Servitude It Is Clear For Us That Jesus Took Not Merely The Outward Appearance Of A Slave Or A Servant But That It Looked Like A Servant He Did Not Merely Take On The Outward Appearance Of A Servant So That He Looked Like A Servant He Was Not Only Truly A Slave But

[45:08] He Was Came To Be Coming To That Extreme Servitude In Which He Was To Give Himself Over As We Shall See As We Go On He Took On The Inner Substance And The Very Nature Of What It Means To Be A Servant And He Is Going To Express That In The Highest Possible Way He He He He He Is Going To Give That The Highest Expression That Can Be Given To Servant Truth We May Ask Whom Did He Serve Well In John's Gospel In Chapter 6 We Read That Jesus Said For I Came Down From Heaven Not To Do Mine Own Will But The Will Of Him That Sent Me Psalm 40 Sacrifice An Offering Thou Didst Not Desire Mine Ears But

[46:09] Offering And Sin Offering Hast Thou Not Required Then Said I Lo I Come In The Volume Of The Book It Is Written Of Me I Delight To Do Thy Will O My God Yea Thy Law Is Within My Heart You See Jesus Did Not Subject Himself To The Will Of Man It Was To God The Father Principally That He Assumed This Relation Of Sermon And It The Form Of The Form Of A Man He Humbled Himself And Became Obedient Into Death Even The Death Of The Cross

[47:09] Even The Death Of The Cross As We Already Said He Came To Give The Highest Expression Of What Servanthood Really Means The Death Of The Cross Was An Act Of Obedience And It Was A Grand Climax Of His Ministry As A Servant To The Father Of His Commission As A Servant To The Father Well We Have To Leave It There Just Now But I Hope That From Our Reflections We Have In Some Measure Grasped That Jesus Did Not Give Up His Deity Or Any Aspect Of His Deity In Becoming Fully Human He Was And Is Both Fully God And Fully Man Again We Can Turn To Our Catechism

[48:09] And There In Answer To The Question Who Is The Redeemer Of God's Elect There Is The Answer The Only Redeemer Of God's Elect Is The Lord Jesus Christ Who Been In The Eternal Son Of God Became Man And So Was And Continueth To Be God And Man In Two Distinct Natures And One Person Forever I hope That we Have Been Able To Grasp The Heights From Which Jesus Came And The Depths To Which He Descended In Coming As The Suffering Servant To To Be To Be To Death Even The Death Of The Cursed Cross For Our Sins In Order To Give Us Sinners Salvation No Wonder The Writer To The Hebrew Says How Shall We Escape If If We Neglect So Great Salvation

[49:09] The Greatness Of That Salvation Can Be Seen If We Come To Grasp The Heights From Which Jesus Came And The Depths To Which He Descended In Order To Bring Us Salvation From The Highest Height Imaginable To The Lowest Depth Possible To Bring About Our Salvation Well May The Lord Bless Our Thoughts Let Us Pray O Lord Our God We Acknowledge And Confess Before The This Day That Because Of Our Finite Minds We Are Unable To Fully Grasp The Heights From Which Jesus Thy Son Came And The Depths To Which He Descended In Coming As Thy Servant

[50:10] To Be Obedient And To Death Even The Cursed Death Of The Cross What It Meant For Him To Bear What Our Sins Deserved In His Own Body Upon The Cross But We Pray O Lord That Thou Through Thy Spirit Would Be Able To Give Us A Little A Little Understanding A Little Enlightenment So That We Can Come To Truly Measure The Value Of Our Salvation That It Would Humble Us To Think That A Person Of The Godhead Would Condescend Into The Very Depths Of Hell In Order To Bring Salvation To Sinners O Lord We Pray That Thou Would Impress Upon Us The Depth To Which Thy Son Jesus Went

[51:10]  In Order To Bring Us To Experience The Freedom From The Bondage And The Slavery Of Sin To Reconcile Us To Thyself So That We Can Be Reconciled To God And Have Peace With God And We Pray Today That That Peace Would Flow Into Our Hearts Anew We Pray Oh Lord That They Would Meet With Each One Of Us At Our Point Of Need And May The Grace Of Our Lord Jesus Christ And The Love Of God And The Fellowship Of The Holy Spirit Be With You All Now And Evermore Amen Amen