“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Phil 1:4 NLT 

Footsteps #400. This verse is a guarantee; it carries with it the assurance of final victory! 

After discussing his own tribulations, (Phil 1:27 – 2:18) Paul then turns to the Philippians and he urges them to participate in Jesus’ example by taking up the same mindset. He tells them (& us) that their life as citizens should be consistent with the good news about the Messiah. They were living in a hotbed of Roman patriotism. But their way of life was to be shaped by another King, Jesus. That might bring persecution, but they are not to be afraid because suffering for being associated with Jesus is a way of living out the story of Jesus Himself, which leads Paul into the great Messianic poem of Chapter 2:6-11. It is rich with echoes of Old Testament texts, specifically the story of Adam in his rebellion in Genesis 1 – 3, and the poems about the suffering servant in the book of Isaiah. This poem is worth committing to memory. It is a beautifully condensed version of the Gospel story. Before becoming human, the Messiah pre-existed in a state of glory and equality with God and, unlike Adam, who tried to seize equality with God, the Messiah choose not to exploit his equal status for His self-advantage. Rather, He emptied Himself of status. He became human. He became a servant to all, and even more than that, He allowed himself to be humiliated. He was obedient to the father by going to His death on a Roman execution rack. But through God’s power and grace, the Messiah’s shameful death has been reversed through the resurrection. Now God has highly exalted Jesus as the King of all, bestowing upon Him the name that is above all names, so that all creation should recognise that Jesus the Messiah is Lord to the glory of God the Father. That is an astounding statement! In v10, Paul is quoting from Isaiah 45:23. It is a passage where all creation comes to recognise the God of Israel as Lord. There are many passages from the OT attributed to Yahweh that are now attributed to Jesus. Paul’s point here is very clear. In the crucified and risen Jesus, we discover that the one true God of Israel consists of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. For Paul, this poem expresses the convictions about who Jesus is, and it does more. It offers the example of Jesus as a way of life that His followers are to imitate.