We love the Bible’s honesty – the way that Paul admits to the difficult ways that God’s commands often hit us. But he also calls us to consider this even greater mystery: Christ—the exalted-forever Creator, who lowered himself to human form, willingly humbling himself to the point of death. Consider how he came not to be served but to serve. What a glorious mystery indeed! If we truly follow King Jesus, aren’t we called to the same? If we follow him in his humility, can we not also hope to share in his glory? As followers of Christ, we don’t have to guess at what godliness looks like, it has been manifested in Christ himself, for us to see and believe.
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:
He was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated by the Spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.