Made Himself nothing

Importance, rank, position. Things we all, at some level, place a great emphasis on. I have found myself, as I have started a new job with a fancier title, getting caught up in a sense of importance. People must listen to me; do they know who I am? People must respect my opinion - I'm an expert after all.

“Jesus, who being in very nature GOD, did not consider equality with GOD something to be grasped, but made Himself NOTHING” Phillipians 2:5-7

This is compounded by observing the way in which people run their lives. On the train everyone has their Blackberry out - a status symbol - showing the trust their company has in them. Many have their phones glued to their ears loudly conducting conversations, and always sounding terribly knowledgable and important. The words “I don’t know”, don’t go far in the corporate environment, everyone has an answer for everything. I go into meetings and people sketch out organisational charts showing where they fit, and why they are important. People ask me “what is your role?” and I proudly tell them. I am seeking to hold on to my sense of importance.

And yet, this passage in Philippians 2, points to Jesus Christ, who did not consider his status, his position. Instead he “made Himself NOTHING”; made Himself like us. And so, I’m challenged - how does this fit in with my thinking. Jesus made Himself nothing compared to Himself, and therefore I am nothing compared to Himself. And then I realise where my true importance comes from. My importance is not attached to me, it’s not attached to my achievement, my position, my title. It’s attached to the God of the world. The God of the world who made Himself nothing. For me. How much more important could I be? And how much more important, therefore, is each one around me.

When we realise the standing we have in front of the holiness of Father God, our head cannot be but bowed. But when we realise the standing Jesus has put us on by expiating our sin and by knowing that by His death I stand tall in front of God, clothed in the righteousness of Christ; this is where I find that my sense of importance is all upside down - The most important act in history was a result of Him humbling Himself. And so I ask, how can I humble myself, so I may be more like Christ, and be part of the most important part of His story?

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