Philippians 2:10

Philippians 2:10

I. Even angels are to worship in the name of Jesus. It is, however, more to the purpose for us to remember that God desires men, all men, so to worship. And it is a thought at once solemnising and comforting that not only living men, but the dead also, are required to call upon God in the name of Jesus. It is assumed in the words of our text that all God's creatures will bend the knee somehow. Prayer is an instinct of nature. God has so made us that we feel a power above us, and desire that that power should be friendly to us, and not hostile. The first element of prayer" is the calling in of that power, the praying it not to be unfriendly to us, not to exert itself to crush, but to benefit, to bless, to save. The poor idolater does that. All his miserable superstitions point that way. Prayer in some form is an instinct. But is prayer in the name of Jesus an instinct? Is it the prayer which even Christians always offer? That is the name which is our passport; that is the name which has power with God and prevails; that is the name which we must take with us if we would know what it is to be heard and to be answered.

II. And that every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. This is the second part of the design of the exaltation of Jesus. God will have Him owned as Lord throughout the whole world. Yes, the praises of the Church as well as the prayers of the Church have a value in heaven. The religion of many Christians never gets beyond prayer. There is not a word of praise in it; there is no bold, frank, honest avowal of convictions deeply cherished as to the person and the work of Christ. The language of praise in God's worship ought to be consistent with the still more real language of the life. "Why call ye Me Lord, Lord," our Saviour Himself asks of us, "and do not the things which I say?" If the tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord, ought not our acts and common words, our habits and principles, our aims and motives, to say the same thing? The acknowledgment which is frank and emphatic ought to be consistent also and harmonious.

C. J. Vaughan, Lectures on Philippians,p. 103.

Reference: Philippians 2:11. W. Wilkinson, Thursday Penny Pulpit,vol. iii., p. 109.