Philipians 2:5 Philippians 2:5 Begins

Philipians 2:5

Philippians 2:5 begins one of the most interesting passages in the Pauline epistles, because it includes a textual ambiguity that, upon close inspection, ultimately reveals the very nature of the Christian experience and its relation to the subjective experience of reality, and the way in which this experience relates to the notion of kenosis, or Jesus' emptying out of his own will in the service of God.. Though the particular verb choice of the verse itself is somewhat ambiguous, it serves as an introduction into the way Jesus supposedly inhabits and affects Christians, because it uses two distinct, yet related connotations of the word phroneo in order to convey the unique state of being made possible only through a Christian's interaction with the spirit of Jesus. By examining the specific language of Philippians 2:5 alongside its larger context, it will become clear that the verse is instructing Christians not merely to imitate the example of Jesus Christ, but rather to wholly embody his life through their own transcendent experience of the spirit, and the unique state of being it allows for, and furthermore, that what at first appears to be a problem regarding the lack of a distinct verb in actuality demonstrates an argumentative and theological coherence on the part of the author, down to the level of language itself. Considering the verse in this way reveals how the example of Jesus is not merely instructive, but rather a metaphor for the transformational experience which underlies any Christian life, an experience that is impossible without the sacrifice of Jesus, and in particular his decision to exist in the form of a man while maintaining his divine nature.

Philippians 2:5, which is translated in the American Standard Version as "Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus," despite the fact that it lacks a clearly identifiable verb, marks the beginning of a series of verses in which Paul outlines the Christlike example that Christians should not only follow, but should inhabit as if their own spirit or mindset had been replaced with that of Christ (ASV Philippians 2:5, 7). One may only understand Philippians 2:5, and in particular its repeated use of the Greek word phroneo, in the context of these additional verses concerning the example of Jesus Christ, because there is evidence to suggest that the ideas expressed in Philippians 2:5-11 are taken almost line-for-line from a "pre-Philippian 'hymn,'" with 2:5 serving as a theoretical basis for the information contained in the subsequent hymn (Peterson 178). Recognizing this is crucial for uncovering the importance of the verbal ambiguity in Philippians 2:5, because the hymnal structure of the subsequent verses sheds some light on the structural importance of 2:5, which is to introduce the particular notion of existence embodied by Jesus' kenosis; that is, the unique state of being first introduced by Jesus' existence as simultaneously divine and human but which is now seen every day when the spirit of God inhabits a Christian (Karris 43). The hymn, then, serves as a simple ways of understanding a complex concept, because it uses Jesus' experience as both God and man in order to ideally represent the Christian experience as both a faulty, sinful human and the elevated, inhabited follower of God.

Thus, Philippians 2:5 is often considered the introduction to the concept of kenosis, or Jesus' self-sacrificial giving up of his own identity in order to fulfill God's will (Carlin 918). Understanding the meaning of Philippians 2:5 is crucial because it serves as the introduction to one of the most important concepts in the Pauline epistles, the notion of kenosis. The concept of kenosis refers to verses six and seven, wherein the author states that Jesus, "who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men" (ASV Phil. 2:6-7). The humility with which Jesus decided to become "a servant" is important to note, because it helps to reveal the thematic relationship between Jesus and humanity that will be mirrored in the relationship between the Christian and humanity.

The emptying referred to here is akin to the emptying of a vessel, and suggests that Jesus completely evacuated his own human will in the service of God, thus allowing him to simultaneously exist as both fully-God and fully-man. Thus, the admonition in 2:5 to follow the example laid out in subsequent verses is really an admonition to embody this same kind of dual existence; this is not to say that Philippians is commanding the Christian to attempt to attain divinity on his or her own, but rather that the verse seems to suggest that by definition, a true Christian will reflect this dual-existence due to the functioning of God's will in his or her life. Just as Jesus' sacrifice covers over the Christian's sin, allowing him or her to attain the unblemished spiritual state that would be otherwise unattainable, so too does Jesus' dual existence as both God and man allow the Christian to transcend his or her human existence and embody something far beyond human capacity.

Understanding Philippians 2:5's interpretation of the Christian experience in regards to the ostensible dichotomy between the spiritual and the human becomes easier when one considers the language of the verse itself in detail, because only here can one see how the verse embodies its theological statement on the level of language itself, implying a kind of double-layered existence through its particular choice of language. Although translated as "Have this mind in you," the first clause of Philippians 2:5 actually contains a repetition of the word phroneo, which can imply both "the 'mindset' of how one sees oneself, one's brothers and sisters, the world, and God," as well as the act of having a particular mindset (Peterson 178). Thus, the reader is immediately confronted with a seemingly problematic formulation, because the verse may contain no verbs, a repeated verb, or a verb and related nominalization. However, this verbal ambiguity does not serve to confuse the meaning of the verse or its larger context, but rather reveals how the theological argument of the verse functions on an almost fractal level, due to the fact that the dual-existence of the Christian, as both fallible human and inspired creation, is reflected at every level of magnification, from the overall context of Philippians 2:5-11 to the specific language of verse five itself.

At the same time, the clause is rendered in a particular tense which connotes both an eternal present declaration and an imperative statement, thus suggesting that the statement regarding having something particular in mind, or to embody a particular mindset, is not merely a suggestion regarding a particular role model, but rather a command concerning the very core of the Christian's being (Hays 19). This blending of command and statement of fact makes sense when one considers that the repetition of the word phroneo itself suggests a unique interpretation of time and being. The verse essentially commands Christians to already be the embodiment of Christ's mindset, because it implies the already-having of a particular mindset, or put another way, embodying the eternal character of Jesus Christ in the terminable existence of a human. The verse, then, is simultaneously instructing the Christian to embody Jesus' example while pointing out that the Christian, by definition, already embodies this example due to their commitment to Christ. While this may appear like an overly complex temporal construction at first glance, close inspection reveals that it is merely an attempt to express in human language the almost-indefinable nature of Jesus as both man and God, and the reflection of that nature seen in the life of a Christian. It is no wonder that Philippians 2:5 contains this complex verbal curiosity; the verse is attempting nothing less than the encapsulation of both Jesus and the Christian's personal, spiritual experience in the space of a single clause, noting it simultaneously eternal and finite nature.