June 27
“Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father,” Philippians 2:9-11.
These verses speak of Christ in the State of Exaltation. Christ always and fully possessed, but did not always and fully use, the divine attributes which had been communicated or given to His human nature; He humbled Himself. This was the State of Humiliation. In the Second Article of the Apostles’ Creed, we confess our faith in the various events in the State of Exaltation: “He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.”
God has highly exalted Him who humbled Himself. The time of His humiliation has passed. Now He uses His divine attributes, His divine majesty and glory, in heaven and on earth.
The first event in the State of Exaltation was Jesus’ resurrection. Peter wrote that Jesus was, “Put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison,” 1 Peter 3:18-19. Early on Easter morning, before Jesus appeared alive to the women and the disciples, He descended into hell and showed Himself alive as the Victor over death and the devil.
Our resurrected Lord conquered death for us, and He promises us that we too will be raised from our graves when He returns to judge the living and the dead. The resurrection of the body gives us comfort for time and eternity.
After forty days, our resurrected Lord ascended into heaven by His almighty power. He did not need a launching pad and a rocket or any jet propulsion. He is not bound by the laws of gravity. Heaven and earth are under His almighty power. He is sitting at the right hand of God, which is an expression for the position of power. Jesus is ruling the universe, not some self-appointed or elected officials! Repeatedly, the prophet Daniel writes, “The Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses,” Daniel 5:21.
Jesus has the name that is above every name. Jesus is our Lord and Savior. All people, angels, and devils must all bow before Him. He who once was the rejected Jesus – captured, tried, condemned, and crucified – paid the price for our salvation. His precious blood washed away our sins. Now, “Every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
“To God be the glory – great things He hath done,
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life, an atonement for sin,
And opened the Life-gate that all may go in.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, thro’ Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory – great things He hath done!
O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To ev’ry believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.” Amen.