In his letter to the Philippians, Paul provided a precis of the offering through which Jesus Christ was manifest as God in the flesh. He said, ‘Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.’ Php 2:5-7. We note that Paul identified a number of steps in this passage.

To accomplish Their Everlasting Covenant initiative to make man in Their image and likeness, the Holy Spirit first emptied Himself to become the Helper of the Father and the Son. Then, by the capacity of Eternal Spirit from the Holy Spirit, the Son emptied Himself to be begotten of the Father. By Eternal Spirit, the Father emptied Himself to the Son when He declared, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You’. Heb 1:5. Through this declaration, the Son was begotten of the Father.

The Father’s glory was now only revealed by the Son, beginning with the creation of the heavens and the earth. Joh 1:1-3. Joh 1:18. The Son then emptied Himself to become flesh as the Seed of Abraham and the Son of David, when He was born of Mary. At around the age of thirty, He commenced His earthly ministry, which continued for 3 ½ years. Joh 12:27-28. Joh 14:9. These are the stages of offering by which the Son emptied Himself and came in the likeness of men. Php 2:6-7.

At the last Passover, Jesus was ‘found in appearance as a man’, where He emptied Himself again. Describing this process, Paul said that Jesus Christ ‘humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.’ Php 2:8. After three days and three nights, Jesus was begotten from the death of emptying by the word of the Father, who declared a second time, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You’. Heb 5:5.