Prepare your heart for the Sermon by looking through these suggestions that will assist you in making the most of our time together hearing God's Word.

You will find suggestions for thinking more critically through the passage, meditating more intently on the text, and prayerfully seeking wisdom to deepen your understanding of the passage to be preached this Sunday.

Carefully Think

• Read Philippians 2:1-11. What is the primary function of vv. 5-11 in this section? How does this inform your approach to vv. 5-11?
• What was the state of the pre-incarnate Christ according to the first half of v. 6 What was his attitude toward that status according to the second half of v. 6?
• What did Christ do according to v. 7? How did he empty himself according to this verse? How does this inform our thoughts of Christ’s divine nature? His human nature?
• To what depth did Christ stoop/what was the extent of his humility according to v. 8?
• What was the result of his humiliation according to vv. 9-11?

Prayerfully Meditate

• What was Christ like prior to his incarnation?
• Describe the process of his incarnation according to this passage. According to this passage, did Christ lose any of his divinity? Did he set aside any of his divine attributes? What does this text say of his emptying? How did he empty himself according to this passage? Was it by the subtraction of deity or the addition of humanity?
• Describe the depths of the humility of Christ. Why was Jesus’ death on the cross particularly humbling, even beyond a normal crucifixion? How is this heightened by what this text says about his pre-incarnate state?
• Describe the exaltation of Christ described in this passage. How was this a result of his humiliation? How is this similar to the path for us? In what way is it dissimilar?