Devotional: Every Knee Will Bow

Good Friday, 2015. The Church was rocked, once again, by the news of  Kenyan university students, targeted for their faith and slaughtered as many of them worshiped together in observance of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Those of us who stood by and watched helplessly as the news broke and the body count rose, what do we do with that?

Certainly, as I commented last week, we realize that suffering for the cause of Christ is an honor. But the blood—and the bodies—are so stark.

So final.

What’s worse, we hear of the attackers systematically asking the students whether they were Muslim or Christian, and sparing the former while killing the latter. We know God sees, but ... does He really plan to do anything about it?

The apostle Paul says yes, emphatically. Because Jesus, the glorious God-Man, our ultimate Hero, stepped down from what was His rightful place to become one of us—to become one of the most lowly of His creation, a man with no title and not even an earthly home, and then died a horrifically torturous death for our sakes, He will be exalted—lifted up—and given a name that will, in a most literal and physical sense, drive all of humanity to its knees in worship and acknowledgement of His rightful place over the universe.

Every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess.

I’ve heard it said, we have no choice in the bowing, but we have a choice on when. We either willingly bow now, and confess now—even if we possibly lose our lives for it—or be forced to it, just before facing judgment.

Utterly sobering, but—also comforting, for those of us who believe in Christ.

⁵ Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, ⁶ who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, ⁷ but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. ⁹ Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  (Philippians 2, NKJV)