MEMORY VERSE FOR JUNE 13-19 - Philippians 2:9

(Comments on this week’s memory verse at Ringwood Baptist Church)


Philippians 2:9 - Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

Who is high on your “esteem list”? Who is it that you have a high regard for? Is it a music celebrity, a sports star, an actor, a preacher, or a good friend? Perhaps it’s a statesman, a family member, or a Christian friend.

Some of the people we have revered have really not done anything really worthy of our esteem. Some celebrities that we have held in high esteem have ended up doing nothing for us in a practical sense, and have actually disappointed us when we discovered some surly things about them.

Last week’s memory verse taught us that Jesus became “…obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” In doing so, God the Father has placed the Lord Jesus Christ in a place of high esteem. God has “highly exalted” our Lord Jesus, and rightly so. There is nobody more worthy of high esteem than the One who gave His life for sins as an act of obedience to His Father.

Note that God has given Jesus “a name which is above every name”. In doing so, God has placed the Lord Jesus above everyone in this world and the next. His name is superior because Jesus Christ is superior as God the Son. His name is superior because there is nobody who has been more obedient to His Father than Jesus was.

As we’ll see next time, all will bow at the name of Jesus. Nobody is esteemed more highly than God the Son.

Memory Verse for June 6-12 - Philippians 2:8

Comments on this week’s memory verse

Philippians 2:8 - And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

As a son growing up in my parents’ house I was obedient. That is I was obedient to a point. I mostly did what I was told, mostly didn’t cause trouble, and was mostly compliant.

However, there were times there were times when I frequented a sand pit that was “off limits”. There were other times when I had rebellious outbursts (to Mom, but not Dad – I knew better). I’m sure there were moments when I flat out disobeyed.

My Lord Jesus was not like that, and I am in told in Philippians 2:5-8 that I am to follow His example. Verse 8 tells us that Jesus as God the Son took on the form of a man. What a letdown that was from His position as God in Heaven.

After He came to earth we are told that He humbled Himself. If Jesus didn’t humble Himself, everyone He came in contact with would have been in trouble, especially those who told Him what He could and could not do.

This humility led to Jesus’ ultimate obedience to God the Father. He obeyed to the point of going to the cross to die for our sins.

To follow Jesus’ example we need to humble ourselves and be obedient to God, even if it means suffering death. Our rights must be surrendered if we are going to serve God well.