Philippians 2:5-11 (v. 11) And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

       I have often had this discussion with my confirmands and probably have had it with you a few times too.  Yet it is an important discussion.  It is simply the discussion that follows the question, "What do you mean when you say, 'Jesus Christ is Lord?'"
       I personally think that is an important question.  When I say "Jesus Christ is Lord" I mean that I believe he is the true God who came to be our Savior from sin.  I absolutely trust his Word, the Bible and believe everything in the Bible is the revelation of this person who is God.  I therefore believe that Jesus is to be heard, believed and followed.  I do not believe that the Bible is unclear or uncertain but presents concisely the message of salvation that has been won by and through Jesus and His atoning sacrifice.
       Now why do I speak so strongly?  Well, it's because I believe that if you are going to call Jesus "Lord" recognize what is at stake.  If I call him Lord but don't listen what does that say?  If I call him Lord but decide to throw out parts or portions or teachings of his Word, what does that say?  If I call him Lord but determine that I am wiser, smarter and know better than He does, again what does that say?  If I call him Lord I believe it means something and that such a confession has an impact on my life and attitude.  But I also believe that calling him Lord and then acting like he is nothing or even acting like I can ignore him will also impact my life and attitude.
       Jesus Christ is the Lord!  He gets to call the shots and determine the values.  Yet be aware that we live in a world that won't tolerate that thought.  We live in a world that is hostile to Jesus and wants nothing to do with his truth.  As an example of what I mean consider a program I tuned into the other night on the History Channel.  The program was on the Day of Armageddon.  This was promoted as a day when Jesus and his army will do final battle against Satan and his army.  Frankly, I was horrified at that program.  Here they were talking about what needs to be done and how they think it is all going to take place.  But it was a program that completely undermined the idea and truth that Jesus Christ is Lord.  Isn't Jesus the Lord because He won the victory?  Isn't Jesus the Lord because he was raised from the dead and sits at the right hand of God?  Either Jesus is the Lord, who defeated sin, death and the devil or he is not.  If he is not then there needs to be a final showdown between the forces of good and evil.  I believe that Jesus won!  I believe that evil and the devil are already conquered, totally defeated and powerless against the true God Jesus.  But for those who teach such things, do they?  Is Jesus really the Lord of lords and the King of kings to them?  Such is the way of the world.  It is hostile and intent on denying the truth of Jesus and that in the guise of teaching Jesus.
       Today our text is one that really leads us to think on Jesus.  He is well worth the time and thought.  Our theme: CHRIST JESUS.  1st. Humble.  2nd. Obedient.  3rd. Exalted.
       I do indeed hope that my opening words got you to thinking about Jesus and what he is all about.  Our text is one that can help us grasp the marvel and wonder that Jesus is.  Consider those opening words and what they say.  "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness."
       I have often stood in awe of those words.  Those words in one beautiful sentence sum up the core of Jesus.  That core simply says, "humble".  He didn't just say he was humble.  He lived humble.  He was the very epitome of what humble is all about.  Just stop for a moment and really think about these words.
       First, consider what it means when it says he was "in very nature God."  Here in Jesus is the very essence of God.  The thing that makes God God is in Jesus.  Thus recognize that in Jesus you have the all knowing, all powerful, present everywhere God.  In Jesus you have him who was and is and always will be.  In Jesus you have the force the makes eternity.  Jesus himself is eternity.  In other words, Jesus is God.  What God is Jesus is!  In its greatest simplicity the power, majesty and glory of God is what Jesus is all about.
       But Jesus did not cling to that.  Jesus, for the sake of mankind, set aside his "godhood", set aside his power, majesty and glory in order to be our Savior.  When we speak of this theologically we call it "the period of humiliation."  An act of humbleness so vast that I'm not sure any of us can fully comprehend it.  God became man.  God taking human form.  The Everything becoming nothing.  The present everywhere confined to human form.  The greatest becoming the least, the highest the lowest, the richest the poorest.  All of this Jesus did for us.
       I wrestle with the full implications of this information.  The step down for Jesus would be like one of us volunteering to go from our human selves to the life of a gnat or housefly.  I can't grasp why I would do that, but in fact such is basically what Jesus did.  Only Jesus had a purpose.  His purpose was the salvation of our souls.
       That then leads us to our second point of consideration.  Jesus was obedient.  But listen to what extent he was obedient.  Our text says, "And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!"
So here is this Jesus, true man and true God, who comes and lives this absolutely perfect life.  He does nothing but good things.  He performs, even with his limited power, miracle after miracle for the good of the people around him and so that the people around him can grasp who he is.  And then, in this stunning turn of events, Jesus ends up hanging on a cross...crucified with criminals...suffering...dying.
Yet all of this was what Jesus came for.  He came to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  He came to die in our place, to suffer our agony for sins committed against God.  Jesus came to be our Savior, to offer us the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.  It was the plan of Jesus and God the Father to take care of the problem of sin.  Because of his perfect justice God the Father was bound to His Law: either be absolutely perfect or suffer the damnation of hell.  Since mankind, thanks to Adam and Eve, is sinful and by nature headed for hell God determined to take action.  His action is Jesus.
Jesus was perfect.  Jesus became sin for us.  That's exactly what 2 Corinthians tells us.  "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."  Jesus takes our sins, we receive of the perfection or righteousness of Jesus.  The case of sin is solved.  The gates of hell are closed.  Heaven is our promise and hope just because of Jesus.  All of this is what is taking place as Jesus hangs on the cross and becomes obedient to death.  The eternal, dying.  The Almighty, powerless.  The humble Jesus taking our place so that we might live.
Now if that were the end of the story then we would clearly have a problem.  If Jesus stays in the grave you have no Savior, no forgiveness, no victory over Satan, indeed, then we might have to talk about the big battle of good and evil that will end all things.  But Jesus does not stay in the grave.  Our text speaks of this in a rather unique way.  It says, "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Exalted!  We call this Jesus' exaltation.  When you speak of the period of exaltation it all pivots on the resurrection of Jesus.  It is the resurrection and the ascension of Jesus that shows us who and what he is.  Peter in his sermon at Pentecost put it this way, "God has raised this Jesus to life...exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and poured out what you now see and hear...God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."  Or we can turn to the words of our God in Romans where it says, "Christ Jesus...who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord."  These are the things that are spoken of when we speak of Jesus exalted.
It is these things that are to form the heart and core of our faith.  Either you believe that Jesus was raised from the dead, that he is God and Lord who rules over all things or you do not.  Either you believe that Jesus sits at the right hand of God and has had placed into his hands the judgment of this world or you do not.  Either you believe that God's Word is the truth, the reliable and inerrant history of Jesus for the sake of our souls or you do not.  And then I will simply remind you of what Jesus said, "For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.  There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not keep my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day."  All of this makes it clear.  If you reject God's Word you have rejected Jesus.  If you don't want to hear and follow God's Word, you have turned away from Jesus.  Jesus came to pay for our sins.  He wants us to be with him in heaven.  But when drowning men keep swimming away from the boat and away from the life preservers and away from the rescuer, then finally God lets them drown.  The sad part is that there was nothing wrong with the boat in the first place and all those people in the water are there because they believed a lie and jumped in.
Christ Jesus is just that, he is the Christ, the Son of God our Lord and Savior.  He came to rescue us and to do so had to humble himself for our sake.  He came to rescue us and suffered all that we deserve just for our sake.  He came to rescue us and was exalted by His Father so that we might grasp the wonder and marvel that he is.  May you confess his name.  May you believe and live the simple truth...Jesus Christ is the Lord.  Amen.