I teach New Testament Greek, and we spent an entire class on this one verb - ekenosen. He emptied. The theological fireworks around what exactly that means - did Jesus empty himself of his divine attributes? Of his power? - have filled libraries.
But I realized I was missing something. Whatever Jesus emptied, it was the opposite of what I'm constantly doing. I'm busy acquiring, accumulating, protecting my image, making sure I matter. And Jesus is described as emptying himself. Taking the posture of a slave. Losing everything.
There's something in me that knows that's the direction wholeness actually goes. Not acquiring more - emptying. Not protecting my status - giving it away. The theological complexity is real, but the invitation is simple. It's an invitation to stop trying to be full of myself and see what happens when I empty.
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