Counseling Through Philippians 2:8-11, Part 2

Philippians 2:8-11: “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

In part 1, I looked at Christ’s humility in going to the cross to bear the wrath for our sins. While this truth should grip our hearts and compel us to worship and obedience, sometimes we lose sight of it. This can seem to us as something in the past, an event that is now over and done and has little relevance in our lives today. Yet this passage quickly moves from Christ’s past humble obedience, to His present and future exaltation.

Verse 9 teaches that Christ is highly exalted and has the name which is above every name. Verses 10-11 look to the future, when “at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. “

Christ first came to earth as our suffering Savior. When He returns to earth, He will come as King of Kings (Revelation 1:5). At that time, every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  Right now, we all have the choice: will I bow my knee to King Jesus? Will I submit to Him as Lord and King, living according to His will and rule, not mine?  However, a future day is coming when every one of us will bow before Him.  For some, this will be a glorious day of seeing the One we’ve long loved and worshiped.  For others, this will be a day of grief and despair because they have ignored, rejected and rebelled against Christ (Revelation 1:7).

If you are a believer, does your life show fruit of you bowing your knee to King Jesus? In what areas of life do you need to repent of living like you are king?

Jennifer Cantu
Jennifer Cantu works as a counselor and Shift Supervisor at Vision of Hope. She received her biblical counseling certification from ACBC in 2014. In addition to working at VOH, Jennifer counsels women through Faith Church’s counseling ministry. She is very thankful for ministry opportunities to help, teach and encourage women with God's Word.