Sunday, July 8, 2012

Every Knee Shall Bow & Tongue Confess...


That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:10-11

Paul writes a letter to the church of Philippi focused on imitating the life of Christ… When Jesus was resurrected from the dead He received all power in heaven and on earth, He was given authority over every matter and situation and defeated the devil with His sacrifice… Paul reminds us of the authority that Jesus has in today’s focus verses… “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…” Today we see the reasons as to why we can smile in the midst of tragedy, today we are given evidence of how we can hold our head up in the midst of a storm, through this passage we learn how to continue in praise despite the circumstances that we face… We have victory through the blood of Jesus; we have the ability to triumph because of His nail scarred hands and we have received a clean slate because of His humility… Paul says every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord… You may see some people going the wrong way right now, you may see some people smiling in their life of sin and you may see others that appear to be better off than you; however, we must remember that Jesus experienced the same things when dealing with the Romans and Pharisees, Jesus was belittled on this earth, but now has place next to the father that everyone would love to have… He reigns because of His sacrifice and determination to fulfill the will of His father… Money, fame and popularity don’t bring success; its your sacrifice and determination that align you with the prosperity that only God can give… Paul reminds us that every knee will bow because there are many that disrespect the name of Jesus, many that have given Jesus a different name and many that have simply devalued His name… Paul’s words to the church of Philippi inform us that everybody will come to know Jesus whether it is on this earth or on the Day of Judgment… Everyone will stand before Him and the dead in Christ will be raised again… Jesus received authority and power because of His sacrifice…

Paul writes this letter to a church that has seen some good days and bad, he writes today to a church that has laughed and cried, Paul records this letter and sends it to a church that has experienced highs and lows… His message to the church is that things will get better after they have gotten worse… You can rest in knowing that even though people may appear to be moving ahead of you, you are going to be able to make it through and will cross over the finish line that matters most when Christ returns… There are many people who appear to have a leg up at times; however, you must maintain your faith and allow the faithless to take there rewards on this earth while you store yours in heaven… Make no mistake about it, every knee (those who know Him will by with praise while others will bow in humility) shall bow before the Lord… The verses that precede these two scriptures speak of Jesus suffering… The previous verses speak of His humility and compassion… Often time we hear people talk about the authority that Christ has and how we have the same authority because we are heirs with Him… The truth of the matter is that we have been given a chance to inherit eternal life and reap bountiful blessings, but being a child of God is more than acceptance of His will, we must suffer in this life to achieve greatness in the life to come… As I stated earlier, this passage taken from Paul’s letter speaks to the Disciples of Christ imitating His very nature… The angels in heaven will bow before Him because of His humility, every creature on this earth will bow before Him because of His sacrifice and everything under the earth (the devil) will bow before Him because of His death and resurrection… In imitating Christ we must humble ourselves, we must sacrifice and we must crucify the desires of the flesh… Paul concludes by saying that all this is “…to the glory of God the father!” God’s name will be exalted by your suffering, God will smile when you persevere, God will rejoice when you overcome… Just like a child we experience growing pains, but our parents are most proud when we blossom into wonderful men and women… God looks at you in the same manner, Jesus (His son) suffered to gain all power and bring glory to God… Today you suffer, but in the end God will be glorified and you will be exalted…If you want to become the disciple God has called you to be than imitate Christ and suffer in and for His name…

BE BLESSED!!!

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