Philippians 2:5-11, What Happened at the Incarnation?

Merry Christmas!

While we don't know exactly what day Christ was born, it is celebrated Dec 25 as a substitute for a pagan holiday tied to winter solstice. It is a warm time of year for Christians and a time to remember how God Himself entered history as a man without ceasing to be God. This alone is a staggering idea in terms of complexity, but nothing that the first 4,000 years of world history and Scripture didn't prepare the world for. In other words, it is logical and necessary inside the real world that exists. Tomorrow I want to walk through a couple of passages related to this. Luke 1:26-38 raises the question of how this can happen and Phlp 2:5-11 tells us what did happen. The Philippians passage is difficult, but it is the heart of Christmas, and it is wonderful in the original language. I will try to make it clear, but understand that Jesus Christ in hypostasis as a member of the Trinity is probably the most complicated subject in the universe.

I have attached a handout/summary that introduces these ideas. I hope we have fun tomorrow, if only to marvel at Him and how His incarnation and substitution put our interests ahead of His own and were acts of true servanthood. It is truly humbling. If we can walk away with His mindset as we are exhorted to do, and serve others as He served us, it will change our lives in 2023.

Grace to you,
Jeremy

Attachment:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_ftACy0u4939liwP4WgE-k1IeIzI9pRH/view?usp=share_link