“Jesus emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, HE HUMBLED HIMSELF BY BECOMING OBEDIENT to the POINT OF DEATH, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name…” (Phil. 2:7-9) In taking on the mind of Christ, we are to follow His example of obedience to the will of the Father. The night before Jesus was to be crucified, He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane, “Not My will, but YOURS be done” (Luke 22:42). Jesus did not want to face death on the cross. He knew it would be excruciatingly painful and that He would endure the taunts, scorn, and rejection of men. But worst of all, He knew His Father would have TO TURN HIS BACK ON HIM as He BORE ALL THE SINS OF MAN. He asked the Father that if there were any other way, He would put it into place, but He also asked that ultimately God’s will would BE DONE.
The devil told Jesus He could bypass all that very extreme suffering and having to be separated from God, “…the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed Him ALL THE KINGDOMS of the world and their splendor. “ALL THIS I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and SERVE HIM ONLY.'” (Matt. 4:8-10) You see, at that time, “Satan, who is the god of this world, has BLINDED the minds of those who don’t believe. They are UNABLE TO SEE the glorious light of the gospel. They DON’T UNDERSTAND this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.“ (2 Corin. 4:4) For those who are blind obedience is definitely OUT OF STYLE but for those of us who “see” it’s our privilege and joy TO OBEY…
-Bill Stockham