Verse of the Day: Jesus Gave So Much

9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.

2 Corinthians 8:9 (NKJV)

From the Life Application Bible:

There is no evidence that Jesus was any poorer than most first-century Palestinians; rather, Jesus became poor by giving up his rights as God and becoming human. In his incarnation, God voluntarily became man – the person Jesus of Nazareth. As a man, Jesus was subject to place, time, and other human limitations. He did not give up his eternal power when he became human, but he did set aside his glory and his rights.

In response to the Father’s will, he limited his power and knowledge. Christ became “poor” when he became human because he set aside so much. Yet by doing so, he made us “rich” because we received salvation and eternal life.

What made Jesus’ humanity unique was his freedom from sin. In Jesus we can see every attribute of God’s character. The Incarnation is explained further in these Bible passages: John 1:1-14; Romans 1:2-5; Philippians 2:6-11; 1 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 1:1-3.