April 4

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. — Heb 2:9 BSB

How incredible it is that the very Son of God, who made the angels, would be made lower than them, even needing and receiving their help and support. The depth of the humiliation the blessed Redeemer embraced is astonishing, bringing down to its lowest point that pure, spotless, and holy humanity which He took on in union with His divine Person as the Son of God. But let’s remember that humiliation is not the same as degradation. Our blessed Lord "humbled himself" by a voluntary act of immense grace. No person or circumstance had the power to strip Him of His glory, just as no false witness could take away His innocence. His perfect, holy humanity, united with His divine nature and upheld by the Holy Spirit, was never degraded, even in His deepest humiliation. The crown of thorns, the mocking soldier, the jeering priest—these didn’t tarnish the glory of our suffering Lord. Instead, His holy obedience to the Father, His meek dignity amid the worst insults, and His calm acceptance of the full weight of suffering, all shone even brighter in the face of every attempt to dishonor Him.

It’s both sweet and blessed to look into some of the depths of humiliation into which the Redeemer descended, and to see that even in His deepest suffering, when His heart was melted with grief and sorrow, He was still the glorious Son of God, though in that moment He was also the suffering Son of man. The same Jesus who hung on the cross is the same Jesus who sits at the right hand of the Father today, and He will be the same forever in the realms of heavenly glory.