Celebrityship of Jesus Christ

THE OBJECTIVE OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

There are many super-grace heroes in Christianity, but there is only ONE CELEBRITY. Every super-grace hero recognizes the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ. He is our Savior and our High Priest, as well as the King who will one day rule the entire earth. Everything we have and everything we will ever be is directly related to the Lord Jesus Christ.

If you have made the greatest of all decisions in life — to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31) — you are the possessor, once and for all, of eternal salvation. This, however, does not indicate that you love Christ or that you even have the capacity to love Him. When you were born again, you began your Christian life as a spiritual baby and had no way of appreciating who and what Christ is. The capacity to love Him depends upon the amount of doctrine you have in your soul.

The super-grace status, which is the objective of the Christian life, is the place where you really begin to love Christ and where you have the normal function of your priesthood. Super-grace is characterized by occupation with Christ, or the recognition of His Celebrityship. No believer has truly reached maturity in the Christian way of life until he functions under the concept of Celebrityship, for this is the place where we have enough doctrine so that the principle of vindicating His Word is fulfilled.

God vindicates His Word in only two places today: by the preservation of the written word, and in the souls of individual believers. He vindicates the latter by super-grace capacity, which leads to super-grace blessings. At this point, God begins to pour out blessings for the believer who has a “cup” — the capacity that results from Bible doctrine in the soul — and true happiness becomes a reality in his life!

GRACE-THINKING

The second chapter of Philippians contains one of the greatest passages in the Word of God on the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ. Verse 3 introduces the background to our subject:

Nothing according to the standard of lust-ambition nor according to the standard of ambitious pride; but in grace-thinking regarding another of the same kind [believer] excelling themselves.

Lust-ambition creates factions in the local church. Some of the most ardent church workers are operating under the lust pattern of the old sin nature. When people receive a great deal of praise, letters of commendation or recognition of one kind or another, they often become intoxicated with approbation or power lust. It’s like dope: they must have more and more praise in order to satisfy this lust. The only way some people can keep their ego intact is to play “king of the mountain” — to find the flaws in others, to compare these with their own strong points and come out on top. In other words, they try to build their happiness on the unhappiness of others.

“The standard of ambitious pride” refers to the pastor who encourages such practices and is therefore ignoring the great principles of grace found in the Word of God. Grace-thinking is the state of mind which submits to the divine order and does not exalt itself; it eliminates all human viewpoint from the soul. Grace-thinking is regarding other believers as better than ourselves. Now, how can you possibly think that some “clod,” who behaves like a moron, is better than you? It is not done through some system of hypocrisy, hypnosis, group therapy, or the sensitivity training of “cosmos diabolicus” !Grace-thinking is accomplished by being so occupied with the Person of Jesus Christ that in your relationship with other people you do not judge, malign, criticize, ridicule or intrude on their privacy.

Each one not regarding the things of himself [his own personal interests], but each one also the personal interests of others (Phil. 2:4).

This is the concept of respect for the privacy of the priesthood of other believers. You cannot learn Bible doctrine when someone is trying to run your life. The key to verse 4 is respect for the privacy of other believers. This verse excludes “operation long proboscis.” Minding your own business, being considerate of others and having good manners are all by-products of the Christian way of life. “Operation Grace” allows every believer to live his own life as unto the Lord. This is the only bona tide “sensitivity training.” You don’t have to try to love people or to gush over them; you simply allow them their privacy.

The question is, how can you be so relaxed about other people that you keep your nose out of their business and avoid curtailing their freedom in any way? You must find Someone who is so much better than anything or anyone else in life that other people and other things will no longer be an issue. Paul is setting up this principle, under the ministry of the Holy Spirit, to present the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ.

The Celebrity of Christianity demands the attention of every believer! He is so wonderful and so marvelous that occupation with Him changes the entire picture! Many believers are petty, bitter, jealous, vindictive, implacable and full of gossip and maligning because they have no concept of the Celebrityship of Christ. The reason so many “Madison Avenue” substitutes and ridiculous practices and programs have crept into the church is that we have lost sight of Jesus Christ as the only true Celebrity. This condition exists primarily because pastors are not teaching Bible doctrine.

Occupation with Christ means that you harbor no mental attitude sins toward others. Whether or not they deserve your respect is NOT the issue; just put them in the Lord’s hands and move on! We build our happiness on WHO AND WHAT CHRIST IS — not on who and what people are.

There is no shortcut to this relaxed mental attitude. It requires the daily function of the “grace apparatus for perception” (GAP) — the pastor-teacher consistently communicating doctrine and the believer learning doctrine on a daily basis. The only purpose for the worship service and for the existence of a pastor-teacher is to enable believers to advance to the highest stage of super-grace — living in the sphere of the recognition of the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ. Other types of organizations are bona fide for witnessing, but the local church is God’s order for learning doctrine in the Church Age.

THE MENTAL ATTITUDE OF CHRIST

Keep on having this mental attitude in you which also in Christ Jesus (Phil. 2:5).

The Greek word PHRONEO means “to think objectively.” When our mental attitude” meets the standards of this word, we have arrived at the highest and noblest point in the Christian life. Mental attitude divine viewpoint — the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16) — is the objective and command for every believer. The only way you can obey this command is to have doctrine IN YOU in the right lobe. To do this, we must begin with Jesus Christ and the true concept of the Word.

THE PREINCARNATE CHRIST

Who [Jesus Christ] preexisting in the essence of God in grace-thinking thought it [deity] not a treasure retained being equal with God (Phil. 2:6).

HUPARCHO means that Jesus Christ always existed; there never was a time when He was not God. He is eternal; He never grows old. What is a “celebrity” ?Someone who is glamorous, someone who has status in life, someone with great ability or talent? What happens to celebrities in the human realm? They deteriorate; they lose their ability and their popularity; they grow old; their glamor fades; they die! Did you ever see a football player ten years after he was washed up as a professional? Three hundred pounds of flab! Have you ever seen a movie queen after her heyday? If she is working, she is playing character roles! A true celebrity is perfect. A believer with any knowledge of doctrine would never make a celebrity of a human being! Our true Celebrity is perfect; He has neither a beginning nor an end (Rev. 1:8).

The word translated “form” in the English — MORPHE — does not refer to outward shape but to inner character or essence. From eternity past, Jesus Christ possessed sovereignty, righteousness, justice, love, eternal life, omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, immutability and veracity. He has never changed His essence for anyone or anything. His character remains intact and will continue to do so throughout time and eternity. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever” (Heb. 13:8).

The true Celebrity of Christianity knew every person in the world from eternity past. He has always known every need, every problem, every heartache, every frustration in your life. He has gone through the entire angelic conflict without being inconsistent or unstable in any way. That’s our Celebrity!

“Of God” calls attention to the deity of Christ. He is and was and always will be God — coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

In the beginning [which was not a beginning], there always existed Jesus Christ [HO LOGOS], the LOGOS was face to face with God; the LOGOS was God (literal translation of John 1:1).

No one can enter into occupation with Christ or appreciate His character until he understands that Jesus Christ is God. Therefore, the Doctrine of the Deity of Christ is necessary at this point.

DOCTRINE OF THE DEITY OF CHRIST

1. Christ is a member of the Trinity (Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Pet. 1:2).

2. Syllogism based on Trinity (Mic. 5:2; John 1:1-3; 8:58; Rom. 9:5; Tit. 2:13; Heb. 1:8-10; 1 John 5:20):

TRINITY IS ETERNAL,

CHRIST IS A MEMBER OF THE TRINITY,

THEREFORE, CHRIST IS ETERNAL.

3. The preincarnate work of Christ necessitates His pre- existence and deity: Christ created the universe (John 1:3; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:10).

4. Jesus Christ is so identified with the doctrine of Divine Decrees as to be God (Psa. 2:7-9; 22:1-6; 40; 110).

5. The Theophanies of Christ indicate His preexistence; therefore, His eternity.

a. Angel of Jehovah identified as Jehovah (Gen. 16:7-13; 22:11-18; 31:11-13; 48:15, 16; Ex. 3 with Acts 7:30-35; Ex. 13:21; 14:19; Judg. 6:11-23; 13:9-20).

b. Angel of Jehovah distinguished from Jehovah (Gen. 24:7; 24:40; Ex. 23:20; 32:34; 1 Chron. 21:15-18; Isa. 63:9; Zech. 1:12, 13).

c. Angel of Jehovah is Second Person of Trinity, visible God. After incarnation, Angel of Jehovah no longer appears (John 1:18; 6:46; 1 Tim. 6:15, 16; 1 John 4:12).

6. Jesus Christ is called Jehovah (Isa. 9:6, 7; 40:3; Jer. 23:5, 6; Zech. 12:10).

7. All the divine attributes are ascribed to Christ.

a. SOVEREIGNTY (Gen. 1: Rev. 1:5, 6; 17:14: 19:16).

b. ETERNAL LIFE (Isa. 9:6; Mic. 5:2; John 1:1; 8:58; Col. 1:16, 17; Eph. 1:4; Rev. 1:8).

c. HOLINESS - i.e., RIGHTEOUSNESS AND JUSTICE (Luke 1:35; Acts 3:14; Heb. 7:26).

d. LOVE (John 13:1, 34; 1 John 3:16).

e. IMMUTABILITY (Heb. 13:8).

f. OMNISCIENCE (Matt 9:4; John 2:25; 1 Cor. 4:5; Col. 2:3; Rev. 2:23).

g. OMNIPOTENCE (Matt. 24:30; 28:18; 1 Cor. 15:28; Phil. 3:21; Heb. 1:3; Rev. 1:8).

h. OMNIPRESENCE (Matt 28:20; Eph. 1:23; Col. 1:27).

i. VERACITY (John 14:6; Rev. 3:7).

Now, back to Philippians 2:6: our Celebrity did some thinking. Remember, the meaning of a word is determined by its first use in context. “Thinking” was used in verse 3 of this passage for “grace-thinking.” Here we learn omething else about Jesus Christ: not only are His thoughts infinite, but He thinks about you and me in terms of GRACE. This means that there never was or ever will be one believer who has earned or deserved anything from God. His grace-thinking toward us indicates that He is the only source of blessing. If you have anything that is wonderful, worthwhile or valuable, it is because Jesus Christ is ultimately the source, no matter what intermediate agency may be involved. This gives Him all the honor and glory. One fact that characterizes the believer who has the capacity to appreciate the Celebrityship of Christ is that to him the honor and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ is more important than anything else in the world.

“In grace-thinking he thought it not a treasure or a prize to be retained.” The treasure is Christ’s deity His equality with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. There is noticing greater or more valuable than the essence of deity; yet He did not consider His deity MORE IMPORTANT than our souls!

The very nature of deity precluded the fact that. ANY Member of the Trinity could be judged for sin. Eternal life can neither be born nor die; holiness cannot have anything to do with sin; omnipresence cannot be reduced to one point — the Cross; immutability cannot change. Therefore, since nothing can be subtracted from deity, something must be added. To be able to go to the Cross and pay the penalty for sin, deity must also become true humanity. Jesus Christ was so occupied with us in eternity past that He did not consider His equality with the other Members of the Trinity a treasure to be clutched and retained so as to hinder the Father’s Plan.

There never was a time when Christ was not occupied with you. You were “the joy” (Heb. 12:2) that occasioned His Incarnation and His substitutionary death on the Cross with all its shame and pain. You were in His thoughts when all the grace blessings were provided in eternity past. It is important for you to realize that you now have the privilege of occupation with Him (Col. 3:10, II). When you reach this stage, the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ will be a reality in your life. Although you will have tremendous capacity to enjoy all the blessings that God will pour into your “cup,” they will seem insignificant compared to the One who gave them. But how ‘can you become occupied with Him, and what exactly is “occupation with Christ”?

OCCUPATION WITH CHRIST

1. The basis for occupation with Christ is the consistent or daily intake of Bible doctrine through the function of GAP.

But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me. . . (Jer. 9:24).

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love. May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God (Eph. 3:17-19).

The mechanics of GAP are accomplished through the communication of doctrine by the pastor-teacher. This doctrine enters the left or perceptive lobe of the believer, and positive volition cycles it into the human spirit. There it becomes complete knowledge — CHAKMAH (Hebrew) or EPIGNOSIS (Greek). The first doctrine that goes into the frame of reference in the right lobe acts as a primer for the “pump.” Once the pump is primed, doctrine goes into the frame of reference and memory center; it begins to form new vocabulary and categories; your norms and standards parallel divine standards, and you have a new conscience filled with doctrine. This puts doctrine on the “launching pad” for application and begins the construction of the Edification Complex of the Soul. From here you move on to super- grace, the normal Christian life.

2. With doctrine as the working object of faith, the believer has maximum Category One love response toward God; hence, he is designated PHILOS THEOU — “friend of God,” or literally, “lover of God.”

Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And . . . Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God (Jas. 2:22,23).

3. Occupation with Christ is based upon the glorification of Christ — that is, His resurrection, ascension and session. If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above [the above things — doctrine], not on things on the earth (Col. 3:1,2).

4. Occupation with Christ is the standard operating procedure for the Christian life. It is the normal super-grace life!

. . . let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb. 12:1, 2).

5. Occupation with Christ is beautifully illustrated by the doctrine of right man-right woman (1 Cor. 11:7-12; Eph. 5:25-32).

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it (Eph. 5:25).

6. The function of GAP is the believer’s response to Christ’s love in Phase Two. In other words, Christ initiates love to the believer through Bible doctrine. “We love him, because he first loved US” (1 John 4:19).

Wherefore, having removed all pollution [mental attitude sins] and the overflow of wickedness [sins of the tongue, overt sins], receive and retain in the sphere of meekness the impregnated word [doctrine in the human spirit], which is able to deliver your souls [from scar tissue]. (Literal translation of Jas. 1:21). But be ye doers of the word [the whole function of GAP], and not hearers only [doctrine in the perceptive lobe only] (verse 22).

7. The sealing of the Holy Spirit, which occurs at salvation, guarantees an eternal love relationship between Jesus Christ and the believer (Eph. 1:11-14).

8. Occupation with Christ includes total dependence on grace provision.

Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass (Psa. 37:4, 5).

9. Stability, confidence, inner happiness and capacity for life are related to occupation with Christ.

I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth [super-grace] . . . (Psa. 16:8, 9).

10. Occupation with Christ is the basis for blessing in suffering (2 Cor. 12:9, 10).

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me (verse 9).

Reversionism intensifies suffering; super-grace minimizes it and substitutes happiness (Psa 77).

11. Occupation with Christ is based on the believer’s entrance into the super-grace life: “Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord. . .” (Psa. 25:15; cf. 141:8).

Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus (Heb. 3:1).

We are associates with God, and our vocation is full-time Christian service. Therefore, we are to be occupied with Him — our Celebrity — so that our vocation becomes a reality.

But Christ as a Son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end (Heb. 3:6).

Moses, in Hebrews 3:5, was a hero in his house (dispensation), but Christ is OVER the house. Christ is the epitome of God’s plan” — the Chief Cornerstone, the Head of the Body, the only Celebrity of the Church Age! All believers are in the “house”; but how we “live” in the house depends on whether we “hold fast,” or maintain our course toward the super-grace life through “confidence” — that is, through the authority of doctrine. Our purpose in the Christian life is to enter super-grace, to function to the maximum under our priesthood, and to stay “firm” (stabilized) in super-grace till the end of Phase Two.

THE INCARNATE CHRIST

But he deprived himself of the proper function of deity, having assumed the form or essence of a slave, having become in likeness of mankind [without the old sin nature but with the human spirit] (Phil. 2:7).

This verse sets up a contrast between the treasure of Christ’s deity and the sacrifice of its function. The word KENOO, from which we get the Doctrine of Kenosis, means “to deprive oneself of a proper or normal function,” or “to debase oneself.” In becoming humanity, Jesus Christ had to deprive Himself of the normal function of deity; but His deity could not change or lose its quality. In the aorist active indicative here, KENOO describes a function in eternity past. This was when Christ made His decision to make the sacrifice. The actual fact did not occur until the time of the virgin birth. The emphatic position of the reflexive pronoun “Himself” emphasizes a voluntary action.

Some of you will never realize how important it is to understand that Jesus Christ thought about you in eternity past. He did not suddenly say, when He saw man’s sinful condition, “I think I’ll do something for man.” We think in terms of time, but God is not confined to time. Part of occupation with Christ is to understand that problem-solving goes back to this principle: Christ was cognizant of our problems billions of years ago. We yell “Help” in time; Jesus Christ answered before time began!

Deity has certain functions which are totally incompatible with humanity. There is no limitation in the function of deity as a Christophany (post-resurrection appearances of Christ) or a Theophany (preincarnate appearances of Christ); but when deity becomes a true Member-of the human race, it is an entirely different concept. Deity “assumed the form. . . .”

Here we have MORPHE again, which indicates His inner essence. This word is in contrast to SCHEMA, “overt essence,” which occurs in this same verse.

If you are ever going to understand the uniqueness of the Person of Jesus Christ why He is the revealed Member of the Godhead, why the Holy Spirit glorifies Him today, why He is the only Celebrity of Christianity you must be familiar with the Doctrine of Kenosis. The addition of humanity to deity is a technical concept which must be explained.

THE DOCTRINE OF KENOSIS

1. KENOSIS is derived from the verb KENOO, meaning “to deprive oneself of proper function” — in this case, the function of deity. This does not at all suggest the loss of the characteristics of deity. It is blasphemous to say that any characteristic of deity can be limited, canceled or removed.

2. In the incarnate state (Christ on earth). He was both undiminished deity and true humanity in one Person (hypostatic union). Therefore, Christ, being both true God and true Man, did not empty Himself of His deity. To assume that He did so is the false doctrine of Kenosis. Deity was not changed; it was retained at the point of the virgin birth.

3. Under true Kenosis, Christ did not surrender any attribute of His deity in coming to this earth. He voluntarily restricted the independent use or expression of His divine attributes in order to comply with the Father’s Plan for the Incarnation. In becoming the God-Man, He was in subjection to the Father’s Plan of the Cross. Although in His deity Christ is coequal with the Father, in His humanity he was submissive to the Father. To accomplish this, He had to have free will (Matt. 26:39) like all members of the human race. The entire issue in the angelic conflict is human volition, which

coexists with divine and angelic volition.

In order to submit His will to the Father’s, Christ limited His omnipotence. The only way He could do this was to refuse to use His omnipotence, omniscience, etc., for His own benefit or His own glory. His Kenosis was challenged in the great temptation of Matthew 4:1-10. The temptations by the devil were unique; they could have been leveled only at the God-Man, the unique Person of the universe.

4. To execute the Father’s Plan for the First Advent, the humanity of Christ relied on the ministry of the Holy Spirit, who indwelt Him from the cradle (Isa. 11:2); also He relied on Bible doctrine (Luke 2:40-52). By the time He was twelve years of age, Jesus Christ was a super-grace Person.

5. Therefore, in this context, the expression of His deity or the independent exercise of His divine attributes was not a treasure to be retained and at the same time provide our so-great salvation.

6. For example: Christ had to become obedient unto death (Phil. 2:8). While sovereignty is not subject to obedience, Christ did not use His sovereignty in opposition to the Father’s Plan. Christ as God is eternal life, but eternal life could not die on the Cross. The only way He could die was to refrain from using His deity to perpetuate His life. As perfect righteousness, the very thought of coming into contact with sin was abhorrent to Christ. When He bore our sins in His own body on the tree (1 Pet. 2:24), He abstained from using His righteousness, or else He would have. rejected the awful judgment.

7. Consequently, Christ surrendered the independent use of His divine attributes during His Incarnation in order to provide salvation for mankind,

8. That is why He voluntarily took upon Himself the form of a servant or a slave. In completing the mission of the First Advent, He redeemed and reconciled man, while at the same time He propitiated the Father. He could not have done so if He had used His own deity independently of the Father’s Plan. As believers, we are free (Gal. 5:1); but in order to purchase our freedom, Jesus Christ had to temporarily give up His freedom.

9. Summary of the factors of Kenosis.

Christ gave up the outward appearance of God (SCHEMA), but not the inner essence (MORPHE). He took upon Himself the SCHEMA of a slave, but He did not give up or change His eternal MORPHE. In other words. He did not show His deity, although it was present. Christ made Himself dependent on the Plan of the Father and operated within the limitations of His humanity, even though it was joined to deity. There are many illustrations of this in Scripture; e.g., Hebrews 10:5-9: the Baby in the cradle was holding the universe together. He was as much deity in the cradle as He was when He created the universe. There never was or ever could be a Celebrity like Jesus Christ! What He gave up in restraining His essence is phenomenal and inscrutable.

Christ voluntarily, through an act of sovereignty, took upon Himself the form of man true humanity. This was not glory or glamor but great humiliation for deity. Christ eternal God, who voluntarily hid His deity prayed for glorification in John 17:5. Why? For our benefit! Christ had not emptied Himself of His divine glory (as illustrated by the Transfiguration Matt. 17:2); hence, the glory of deity was veiled but not surrendered.

The union of Christ to unglorified humanity was a factor in His humiliation. There was nothing wrong with His humanity; it was perfect, and it never changed. At the point of the virgin birth, Christ was minus the imputation of Adam’s sin, minus the old sin nature; He had entered the world through His own volition. These are the three unique principles in the virgin birth.

Even His lineage was unique. Mary descended from the line of David through Bathsheba and Nathan. Joseph was also in the line of David, through Solomon; but because of the curse of Coniah (Jer. 22:24-30), this could not be the blood line — only the legal line. During His thirty-three years on the earth, Jesus used His volition constantly. Even though His temptations were greater than any we have ever had or ever will have; even though they became greater as He came closer to the Cross, He never committed one act of personal sin!

He left the world by an act of His own volition the only human being who ever did so, apart from suicide. From His own soul He dismissed His human spirit into the presence of God. He sent His own soul to Hades (Abraham’s Bosom Luke 16:22, or Paradise Luke 23:43; Psa. 16:10) His body was the only part which man could dispose of. Although the Father had said where His body would be placed (Isa. 53:9), its burial was not an act of Christ’s volition.

Since Christ’s humanity was not glorified at the point of the Incarnation, He was subject to temptation, pain, weakness, sorrow, limitation. However, His attributes of deity were not surrendered or used to benefit Himself. For example, although Christ was omnipresent. He took long journeys on foot. The omniscience of Christ was revealed in His prophetic ministry, but it was never used to ease His path or gain something for Himself. Jesus experienced physical and mental growth and suffered the inconveniences of His day. He kept silent on matters not related to doctrine such as electricity, airplanes, gunpowder, etc.

Two other doctrines are relevant to Kenosis. The first is important because it relates to spirituality in this dispensation.

THE SUSTAINING MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT TO THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST

1. This ministry of the Spirit was prophesied in the Old Testament (Isa. 11:2, 3; 42:1; 61:1-3).

2. The Holy Spirit was given without measure to the humanity of Christ (John 3:34).

3. The Holy Spirit sustained Christ during His earthly ministry (Matt. 12:18, 28; Luke 4:14, 15, 18).

4. The ministry of the Spirit discontinued during the time when Christ was bearing our sins on the Cross (Psa. 22:1 — prophetic; Matt. 27:46 — historical). When Jesus said, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” He was addressing the Father and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, who sustained Him, was deity. Since deity could have nothing to do with sin, the Holy Spirit forsook the humanity of Christ during the three hours He was bearing our sins.

5. The Holy Spirit had a part in the resurrection of Christ (Rom. 8:11; 1 Pet. 3:18).

6. The present ministry of the Holy Spirit and the filling of the Spirit in the Church Age are related to the glorification of Christ (John 7:39; 16:14).

THE HUMILIATION OF CHRIST IN RELATION TO KENOSIS

1. Veiling of the preincarnate glory of Christ: in taking upon Himself true humanity, Christ gave up the outward appearance of God.

2. The union of eternal God with unglorified humanity in the hypostatic union.

3. Christ did not use His divine attributes independently of the Father’s Plan, but relied on the ministry of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 4:1,2).

4. The greatest point of humiliation of Christ was bearing our sins (2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 2:24). This anticipates Philippians 2:8.

Now we are ready for the last half of Philippians 2:7:

“ .. . having become in the likeness of mankind. Although Christ was always deity. He became true humanity. His two natures are contrasted in John 1:1, 14 and Isaiah 9:6. The child (humanity of Christ) is born; the Son (deity of Christ) is given. “Likeness” (HOMOIOMA) has the connotation more of “similarity.” This Greek word is used because Christ was not absolutely like us. He was different in that He did not have an old sin nature, and He possessed a human spirit at birth.

No man could see Jesus Christ in the flesh and tell that He was different from any other human being. No man could see His inner perfection or deity — it had to be understood through doctrine! This was the problem of the Pharisees and other religious Jews — they saw only His humanity and refused to accept Him as Messiah. Hence, the hypostatic union is a pivotal doctrine which must be understood and mastered before you can appreciate the Celebrityship of Christ. While there is by necessity a certain overlap in these doctrines, this demonstrates their relationship and pertinence to one another.

THE DOCTRINE OF THE HYPOSTATIC UNION

1. Definition: In the Person of Christ are two natures (two beings, actually), inseparably united, without mixture or loss of separate identity, without loss or transfer of properties or attributes, the union being personal and eternal (John 1:1-14; Rom. 1:2-5; 9:5; Phil. 2:5-11; 1 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 2:14). This means that Christ is the God-Man now; He has been the God-Man since the virgin birth; He will be the God-Man forever. He is the UNIQUE PERSON OF THE UNIVERSE!

2. The incarnate Person of Christ includes undiminished deity. Jesus Christ is God, coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Spirit.

3. The incarnate Person of Christ also includes true humanity, with body, soul and spirit. Through the virgin birth, Jesus avoided both spiritual death and the old sin nature. His humanity was different from any other because it included deity and because He did not sin personally. His deity was different in that it included humanity.

4. The two natures of Christ are united without transfer of attributes. The attributes of deity never became humanity or vice versa — the attributes adhered to their corresponding natures. The essence of deity cannot be changed; it is immutable. The infinite cannot be transferred to the finite. To rob God of a single attribute of His essence would destroy His deity. To rob the humanity of Christ of a single attribute of His humanity would destroy His humanity.

5. In the Incarnation, no attribute of essence was changed. In fulfilling the purpose of the Incarnation, certain attributes of deity were not used; but this does not imply that they were either surrendered, diminished or destroyed, as in the false doctrine of Kenosis.

6. Therefore, the union of the divine and human natures of the incarnate Christ must be considered HYPOSTATIC AND PERSONAL. The Greek noun HUPOSTASIS means “substance, essence, standing under, taking a thing upon one-self.” Christ took upon Himself true humanity. HYPOSTATIC refers to the whole Person of Christ as distinguished from His two natures divine and human. The fact that Christ will be true humanity forever indicates that humanity CAN live forever — but not in the original body which comes into the world through physical birth; that body is subject to death. The resurrection body is never subject to any kind of death” — another unique characteristic of Jesus Christ — and we will have the same kind of body (Phil. 3:21). No believer has a resurrection body yet. Christ is the Firstfruits of resurrection. PERSONAL refers to the emergence of the unique Person of Christ. As God, He is coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Spirit. As man, He is superior to all mankind, both from the standpoint of human impeccability and deity.

7. This union does not imply that deity POSSESSED humanity or that deity INDWELT the humanity of Christ. The union was more than harmony or sympathy. It was PERSONAL. Two natures were combined in one hypostasis or essence forever — a unique hypostasis. In Genesis 6, the angels tried to duplicate this by taking on bodies. They tried to start a new hypostasis, which would have destroyed the angelic conflict and the distinction between angels and human beings. For this reason, God took away the angels’ ability to materialize.

8. The God-Man has one essence forever. Therefore, the attributes of both the divine and human natures belong to the Person of Christ. The characteristics of one nature are never attributed to the other. This means that during the First Advent, Christ could simultaneously be omnipotent and weak, omniscient and ignorant. However, the ignorance in His humanity was overcome by the daily function of GAP and the erection of the Edification Complex in His soul (Luke 2:40, 52).

9. The necessity for the humanity of Christ.

To be our Savior (Luke 2:11; Phil. 2:7, 8; Heb. 2:14, 15). Deity cannot go to the Cross; divine essence is not subject to death or change.

To be the Mediator (Job 9:2, 32, 33; 1 Tim. 2:5,6). There is a gap between deity and humanity; therefore, only Someone who is equal with both parties can mediate the reconciliation.

To be our High Priest (Heb. 7:4, 5, 14-28; 10:5, 10-14). A priest must always be a human being, for he represents human beings before God.

To be the King (2 Sam. 7:8-16; Psa. 89:20-37). God the Father made a promise to David that he would have a Son who would reign forever. God keeps His Word! (Luke 1:32, 33).

10. Everything Christ spoke during the Incarnation came from one of three sources. This explains why there are no contradictions in anything Jesus said.

From deity (John 8:58: “Before Abraham was, I am”) .His humanity did not exist eternally; His deity did. From humanity (John 19:28 — “I thirst”) Deity cannot thirst; and notice, deity did not give His humanity a glass of water. Here is an example of Kenosis.

From hypostatic union (Matt. 11:28; John 14:6).

11. Categories of attributes as related to the Person of Christ.

Attributes which are true or the result of His whole Person. All three attributes (God-Man-Hypostasis) are necessary for Christ to be our Redeemer; therefore, Redeemer is an attribute true of His whole Person.

Attributes true only of His deity, but the whole Person is the subject (John 8:58). When Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am,” He was speaking from His whole Person; the attribute of eternity applies only to the divine nature or deity.

Attributes true only of His humanity, but the whole Person is the subject (John 19:28). When Jesus said, “I thirst,” He was speaking from His whole Person; but only humanity can thirst. This classification disappeared after resurrection, ascension and session because of the freedom from the limitations of Kenosis.

The Person described according to the divine nature, but predicate of the human nature (Rev. 1:12-18). The deity of Christ is in evidence; yet Christ is described as the One who was dead (verse 18). Death is an attribute possible only for the humanity of Christ.

The Person described according to the human nature, but predicate of the divine nature (John 6:62). The title, “Son of Man,” belongs to the human nature; but “ascending up where he was before” applies to the divine nature.

The Person described according to His divine nature, but predicate of both natures (John 5:25-27). Christ as the Son of God spoke to those who were spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1), and those who heard (positive volition), lived. In the future, Christ will execute judgment as the Son of Man (human nature). Conclusion: while Christ is described as the Son of God (deity), the predicate of speaking can be attributed to both natures, for in the matter of judgment the human nature is specifically mentioned (John 5:27).

The Person described according to the human nature, but predicate of both natures (Matt. 27:46): “Why hast thou forsaken ME?” Christ was speaking from the viewpoint of His human nature, but the pronoun “Me” has reference to both natures. Christ was being judicially forsaken as the God-Man because He was bearing the sins of the world.

All these categories demonstrate what Jesus Christ had to accomplish in order for us to be saved. He thought it not a treasure to be seized to limit His deity in order to become true humanity and go to the Cross! One of the INSCRUTABLE mysteries of the Cross is what happened to the deity of Christ while His humanity was bearing our sins. We know He had to remain in hypostatic union. The two Members of the Trinity who were judging Him forsook Him; but there was no separation of the deity and humanity of Christ until His physical death.

The only Celebrity who ever lived suffered the ultimate in humiliation and excruciating agony for you and for me. If you don’t understand the implications of this, you will never understand the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ. Most believers are on a “blind date.” They have no clue as to what the Person they are going with is like. They are saved, but they have never bothered to KNOW their Savior. Instead, they pick up emotional substitutes — through ritual, through music, through so-called tongues, etc. — none of which constitute true love for Jesus Christ. This must come through DOCTRINE, DOCTRINE, DOCTRINE!

The last phrase of Philippians 2:7, “in the likeness of mankind,” requires a knowledge of one more doctrine in relation to the incarnate Christ.

THE DOCTRINE OF IMPECCABILITY

1. Christ did not have an old sin nature by birth, nor did He commit sin during the Incarnation (Heb. 4:15; 1 Pet. 1:19; 1 John 3:5). The only way Christ could have acquired a sin nature was the same way Adam acquired one — through volition.

2. This does not imply that Christ was not tempted. He was tempted in the area of His humanity (Heb. 4:15) — far beyond anything we could ever understand. That is why His temptations in Matthew 4:1-10 were unique.

3. As with Adam in innocence or sinlessness, all temptation to the humanity of Jesus Christ came from without. Neither had a sin nature: Adam was CREATED without one, but Christ was BORN without one. Because we HAVE a sin nature, our temptations come from within and without: we are tempted with mental attitude sins from within and with overt sins from without.

4. All temptations to Christ had to come through His human nature. The human nature of Christ was temptable, but the divine nature was not temptable (Jas. 1:13).

5. Christ resisted the greatest of all temptations in Gethsemane when He faced the Cross (Matt. 26:39; Mark 14:35, 36; Luke 22:42). The first Adam failed the volitional test; the Last Adam passed it with flying colors!

6. In Matthew 4:1-10, Christ resisted the temptation to use His divine attributes and thus act independently of God the Father. He could have turned the stones into bread through His omnipotence; but His humanity, under the filling of the Spirit (verse 1), refused.

7. Because of the hypostatic union, the Doctrine of Impeccability demands categorizing:

The humanity of Christ — temptable and peccable.

The deity of Christ — not temptable and not peccable.

The hypostatic union — temptable but IMPECCABLE. A piece of copper wire may be bent or broken; but when it is welded to a steel bar, it cannot be bent or broken. The wire is analogous to the humanity of Christ; the steel, to the deity of Christ.

8. It was possible for the humanity of Christ during the Incarnation to suffer physical limitations that have no moral aspects, such as weakness, fatigue, sorrow, hunger, thirst righteous indignation or death. But none of these suffering: presented complications that in any way affected His immutable holiness.

9. Hence, Christ was, according to Latin phraseology POSSE NON PECCARE (able not to sin) and NON POSSI PECARRE (not able to sin). Christ is God, and God is never the source of evil under any circumstance. Evil stems from both angelic and human volition but never from divine sovereignty.

THE UNIQUENESS OF CHRIST’S HUMILITY

And having been recognized in outward appearance [SCHEMA] as a man, he humbled himself, having become obedient to the extent of death, yes, the death of the cross (Phil. 2:8).

The first phrase of this verse is the application of the Doctrine of Impeccability. Though Christ had the outward appearance of a man, He did not possess the old sin nature. The humbling of Himself has been greatly misconstrued, particularly in this day of the “Jesus freaks.” Jesus Christ did not look or act like a hippie — that is not “humbling oneself.” As the God-Man, He is the Originator of the laws of establishment, and in the flesh He was the personification of every concept of establishment.

It is amazing how people try to “humble themselves.” Most of their efforts are nothing more or less than ascetic self-effacement. Asceticism is a part of the old sin nature. Self-effacement is the energy of the flesh — at best, legalism; at worst, reversionism. “He humbled himself” is the aorist (constantive) active indicative of TAPEINOO, with a reflexive pronoun. This indicates that the entire time Jesus lived on the earth, from the moment of the virgin birth to the resurrection and ascension, He was characterized by what is called here “humility.”

But remember, the “meek and mild” Jesus threw the money-changers out of the Temple — and that was also a part of His humility! Humility is not standing round-shouldered, lowering your eyes, shuffling your feet and whispering “God did it all.” Humility concerns neither appearance, dress, nor manner of speech. It is a mental attitude of grace — grace orientation. It is Bible doctrine in the soul; and this doctrine causes the believer to recognize that everything depends on who and what God is.

On the other end of the pole, pride is a mental attitude sin. The proudest people in Christianity are those who think they can do something to gain the approbation of God or to be filled with the Spirit; or those who think they must do something to be forgiven by God, such as some system of penance or feeling sorry for their sins.

Jesus Christ had the true mental attitude of humility. He was perfect in His humanity; and for perfect humanity to come in contact with the sins of the world is maximum humiliation. So we have another factor in the Celebrityship of Christ the uniqueness of His grace orientation.

THE UNIQUENESS OF CHRIST’S DEATH

The humiliation of Christ reached its peak at the Cross. “Obedient” in verse 8 means that He recognized the authority of the Cross and the Father’s Plan. The Cross is the place where Jesus Christ had to submit or there would have been no salvation. The Cross, therefore, was His objective, and it represented authority. The obedience was not to the Cross itself, but to His spiritual death on the Cross. Although Christ knew that there He would be judged for the sins of the world, He was still willing to be submissive — “to the extent of death.”

“Death” is THANATOS in the Greek, and almost without exception, this word refers to spiritual death. Most people think that when the Scripture says “Christ died for our sins” (Rom. 5:8; 1 Cor. 15:3), it refers to His physical death. If you think this, you are still a long way from understanding the Celebrityship of Christ! When Jesus said, “It is finished,” He was ALIVE; He was speaking! He kept saying, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The answer: “For he [the Father] hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Cor. 5:21).

Upon the completion of bearing our sins in His own body (1 Pet. 2:24), He said, TETELESTAI (perfect tense of TELEO) “It is finished in the past, with the result that it keeps on being finished forever!” Salvation was completed BEFORE He died physically. Physical death was no problem. He simply dismissed His spirit; it was painless the horrible agony was spiritual death. While many thousands of people were crucified by the Romans during the history of S.P.Q.R. (Senatus Populusque Romanus), no one ever died as Jesus died. He died twice on the Cross. The Person was unique; the work was unique; His death was unique!

THE EXALTED CHRIST

Because of which the God has bestowed optimum exaltation and graciously bestowed the highest office (Phil. 2:9).

The physical death of Christ was necessary for His physical resurrection, as He could not go back to heaven in a body of corruption. Therefore, because of the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross, God the Father, Author of the Divine Plan of Grace, has highly exalted and glorified Christ. This is a reference to the resurrection, ascension and session of Christ.

God the Father has also graciously bestowed the highest office on Jesus Christ. “Name,” ONOMA, plus the definite article, is an idiom which means “office, rank, dignity.” It is a maximum expression of the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ. “The highest office above every office” is KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS (Rev. 19:16).

The Doctrine of the Ascension describes the Celebrityship of Christ in His resurrection body.

DOCTRINE OF THE ASCENSION

1. The resurrection body of Christ was capable of space travel. The humanity of Christ in resurrection traveled through all three heavens (John 20:17).

2. The purpose of this space travel was to arrive in e human body at the throne room of God the Father. Although covered with no protective space suit, the resurrection body did not burn up as it traveled through the universe; it did not suffer fatigue, but arrived in perfect condition (Rom. 8:34 Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2). Upon His arrival, the Father said, “Sit down at my right hand” (Psa. 110:1; Heb. 1:13). Deity does not “sit”; only Christ’s humanity sat down. This indicated the acceptability of the humanity of Christ (Eph. 1:20) and guarantees the acceptability of regenerate

mankind (Eph. 1:6)!

The seating or session of Christ declared Him superior to all angels, elect or fallen (1 Pet. 3:22). Today believers are positionally higher than angels; but in the resurrection, believers will be experientially superior to angels. This is why God gives every believer at least one angelic servant — to some many more — a downpayment that we will one day be superior to them (Heb. 1:14). And who made all this possible? Jesus Christ, our Celebrity, through ascension and session!

3. The ascension and session of the humanity of Christ produce a strategic victory in the angelic conflict (Heb. 1:3-13).

4. The ascension begins a new sphere of the angelic conflict (Eph. 1:20-22; 4:7-10). Hence, the believer of the Church Age is involved in the intensification of the angelic conflict.

5. The ascension begins “Operation Footstool” (Psa. 110:1 and quoted in Luke 20:42,43; Acts 2:33-35; Heb. 1:13).

6. The Second Advent of Christ will conclude Operation Footstool (Dan. 7:13, 14; Zech. 13:2; Col. 2:15; Rev. 20:1-3).

7. The ascension completes the glorification of Christ in hypostatic union (Acts 2:33; Phil. 2:9; 1 Pet. 3:22).

8. The ascension explains the uniqueness of the Church Age (John 7:37-39), as well as the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ.

THE RECOGNITION OF THE CELEBRITYSHIP OF CHRIST

By means of the office, rank and dignity belonging to Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven, on earth and under the earth (Phil. 2:10).

His name or rank emphasizes the exaltation of the humanity of Christ. The principle is found in John 5:23.

That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.

Revelation 5:13 describes His exaltation in heaven after the Rapture of the Church. 21 That “every knee should bow” is

the recognition of the Celebrityship of Christ by unbelievers who did not do it the easy way. The easy way is through the communication of doctrine by the pastor-teacher to his congregation, so that they can reach super-grace and occupation with the Person of Christ, our unique Celebrity.

The hard way is described as the unbeliever on his knees at the end of time. He has rejected Jesus Christ. He has used the Name of Christ in profanity and derision; he has ridiculed Him. But the time will come when the Celebrityship of Christ will be manifest to all creatures in the universe (Isa. 11:9). There are three areas specified: (1) in heaven — angels; (2) on earth unbelievers; (3) under the earth — unbelievers in Torments, as well as fallen angels in Tartarus.

And every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ, Lord, resulting in the glory of God the Father (Phil 2:11).

God the Father has a Plan made billions and billions of years ago — sometime in eternity past. The quintessence of the expression-of God’s Plan is the God-Man-Savior. A perfect Plan from a perfect Father glorifies a perfect Son. His Plan was that all creatures would come to recognize the Celebrityship of Christ, first of all by the Gospel, leading a person to Phase One (salvation); next by reaching super-grace in Phase Two (the believer in time); or through a rude awakening in Phase Three (eternity). Where does this leave believers who are ignorant of doctrine and who do not recognize the Celebrityship of Christ? They are completely missing the Plan of God for their lives, and thus they are losing out on the greatest and most wonderful blessing life can offer!

Yet this need not be the case in any believer’s life. Christ CAN become a reality NOW through doctrine. “Christ is all and in all” (Col. 3:11), or literally, “Christ is all things because [He Is the source] of all things.” Beginning with doctrine, He is the grace source of everything we have of value. Were it not for Jesus Christ, we would have nothing and be nothing.

Bible doctrine in the soul counteracts the old sin nature, demon influence and every other adverse circumstance in life. It is the basis for reaching the fourth floor of the Edification Complex (capacity to love); and when we have maximum capacity for Category One love under super-grace living, then we have a new focus, a new concentration, a new motivation, a new happiness — in short, we have a fantastic life!

As for unbelievers, before they get to the Lake of Fire, they will recognize and finally acknowledge, the hard way, that Jesus Christ is the ONLY CELEBRITY of the universe. Unbelievers are going to hell on their knees saying “JESUS IS LORD!”

There is nothing greater that a believer can do during the course of Phase Two than to live in the sphere of the Celebrityship of Jesus Christ the highest status in experiential Christianity!