Annihilation

"Have in you therefore that thought which was also in Christ Jesus, he who, being in the form of God, did not regard as an object to be delighted [or : spoils to be preserved] from being equal to God, but He has become an idol, taking the form of a slave, being made in the likeness of men." Philippians 2. 5-7

The annihilation of the Son of God is a mystery that no one will ever completely understand. What exactly does this word "annihilate" cover ? Theologians have been debating it for centuries. For some of them, it means that the Son, by becoming a man, has renounced his divine attributes and "emptied" of his divinity. Our faith, on the contrary, maintains that Jesus Christ is and remains "the same yesterday, and today and forever" (Heb. In him dwelt and still dwells "all the fullness of the Deity bodily" (Col. 2: 9). The voluntary annihilation of the Son signifies above all that Jesus renounced his personal privileges and the glory that surrounded them; he was just as God as before incarnating himself; but, incarnating himself, he decided to put himself in a position of submission and dependence; he became a servant to accomplish the work that the Father had entrusted to him.

These considerations lead us to adoration; but not only. They also allow us to better imitate Jesus to have the "same thought" as him. We are not able to give up our human nature. But we can also renounce, like him, our legitimate rights and take a position of humility, submission, dependence, when it is profitable for our service to God and to other people. It is by freely giving up ourselves that we will lead a fully fulfilled and useful life.

Because Jesus accepted this stripping, God clothed Him with the greatest imaginable glory. If we follow the same path, God will one day reward us. And today, instead of losing our life by refusing to renounce ourselves, our rights, our prerogatives, we will win (see John 12. 23-26).

Editor's note : This text, published on April 17, 2017, is republished, but with the verse of the day in the version corresponding to the commentary.

Source (Pleasing the Lord)