“Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
This little song we’ve been singing along with Paul in verses 5-11 comes to a close here. It’s easy to notice the flowery language (heaven, earth, under the earth, every tongue, glory to the Father!). It’s a dramatic finish to a beautiful poetic description of Jesus’ path of freedom when he humbled himself and died on the cross.
Today’s verses start with a “therefore” — in other words, “because of everything we just talked about…” So we could say, “Because of Jesus’ total humility and surrender of power, God elevated him to the place of highest honor.” Interesting. Jesus obtained ultimate power because he didn’t make power a thing. What is God doing in your life right now? Take a moment and just sit with him on that. Think about your hardest battle — the one you feel like you are losing. Do you believe that God could make something good come of it? Do you think he could restore you?
Jesus released power and control, and in doing so he found freedom, victory and elevated status. Is there one thing you could release today in order to allow God to lift you up in honor when the time is right? Obedience may be hard sometimes, and excruciating at other times, but it will always lead you into a position of God lifting you up in honor at the right moment. And one day you will rule alongside Jesus.