Q. 27.  Wherein did Christ’s humiliation consist?

A. Christ’s humiliation consisted in his being born, and that in a low condition, made under the law, undergoing the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross; in being buried, and continuing under the power of death for a time.

The title of this blog post is jarring. The idea of Christ being humiliated may seem foreign to us. Part of that is due to our modern usage of the word. We tend to think of humiliation as a feeling of being embarrassed or stupid because of something we have said or done, like realizing we have been calling someone by the wrong name for months or stumbling while we are walking. There is no indication in the Scriptures that Jesus suffered humiliation in this sense.

But there is an older sense of the word that is used by the Westminster Shorter Catechism (WSC). This older sense carries with it the idea of a lowering from one state of being to another. We have already seen this at work in the catechism as it detailed the fall of Adam and Eve from their created state to their sinful state. It is this lowering that WSC Question 27 addresses. And when we consider Christ’s state before the incarnation and His earthly life, I think we can all agree that He underwent humiliation in this older sense.

Christ’s humiliation can be broken down into three main aspects. First, there is the Incarnation, which is described in Question 22, and which we celebrate during Advent and Christmas. Next, there are the years of His earthly life where He experienced this broken, fallen world. Finally, there is particular focus on His death and burial, with the emphasis on His taking upon Himself the wrath and the curse which should have rightfully fallen upon His people.

Consider two passages of Scripture that set forth Christ’s humiliation. The first is the great Christ hymn found in Philippians 2. Paul writes of Christ “who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Clearly, a humiliation, a lowering from His heavenly status (though not a relinquishing of His divine nature) to an earthly one. But take special note that this did not happen to Christ but that He did this lowering to Himself. He “made himself nothing” and He “humbled” himself. This humiliation was part of God’s will and done by God.

The second passage comes from Hebrews 2. If Philippians gives us the what and how of Christ’s humiliation, Hebrews gives us the why. We read:

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (vv. 14-18)

Why Christ’s humiliation?

- So that through His death, He might destroy the devil and deliver us from fear of death and the slavery that ensnared us

- So that He might be a faithful and merciful high priest who intercedes for us (cf Hebrews 4: 14-16)

- So that He might make propitiation for our sins

- And so that he might help us in our temptations

Notice how Christ’s humiliation leads to our benefit. We are delivered. We have an advocate with the Father who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses. We have had our sins dealt with and God’s wrath averted from us. And we have a “a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1). As with all things about our Savior, consideration of His humiliation should enliven our worship and stir our hearts to greater thanksgiving. Let us remember “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9)