Adj.:  Empty

1.                  The doctrine receives the name from the verb kenoo in Phil. 2:7, which means to “deprive oneself of proper function” or “to divest oneself of privileges.”  Arndt and Gingrich Lexicon:  to make empty.

2.                  In the Incarnate state, Jesus Christ was both undiminished Deity and total humanity; therefore, Christ did not empty himself of His Deity.  This is a false concept of kenosis.

3.                  The true concept of kenosis is:  that while our Lord surrendered no attribute of Deity, He voluntarily restricted independent use to accomplish the Father’s Plan for the Incarnation.

4.                  This reveals that Jesus Christ did not exercise or use His Divine attributes for His own use or His own Glory.

5.                  To accomplish God’s Plan for the first Advent, the Humanity of Christ relied upon the Holy Spirit and the power of the Word.  Lk. 2:40, 52, Matt. 4, Isa. 11:2

6.                  For Christ in His Humanity to express His Deity was not a treasure to be retained.  The purpose was to express His humanity to provide so “great Salvation”  Heb. 2:3.

7.                  In expressing His humanity He became obedient to Death, even the death of the Cross.  Phil. 2:8.  Remember:  Deity obeys nothing!  Christ in Humanity does, and did, and died!

8.                  He surrendered therefore, independent expressions of Divine essence in order to provide Salvation for mankind.

9.                  Christ voluntarily took the form of man to redeem man and to propitiate the Father.  He did not use Deity to benefit himself.

10.              Christ was superior to man in every way, yet deprived himself of the proper function of Deity, having assumed the essence of a slave and having become in “likeness” of man, for the specific purpose of going to the Cross to provide redemption for mankind.  Phil. 2:7

11.              Jesus didn’t lose any Divine characteristics by becoming a man. It didn’t rob one bit of essence of God to be man.  This is undiminished Deity forever.  He chose to restrict himself of the independent expressions of Deity to comply with the Father’s Plan for the Incarnation (Jesus in Flesh).

12.              The Thinking of Jesus while He was on this earth in the flesh was determined by His relationship to the Father and to the Father’s design and message.

13.              Since Christ, the Second person to the Trinity, chose to become true humanity, He left Heaven by an act of His own choice (Gal. 4:4) and He also left this world by an act of His own choice – the only person who ever did so apart from suicide.  He dismissed His Spirit to God – Lk. 23:46.  He dismissed His soul to Abraham’s bosom – Lk 23:43.  He dismissed His body to the tomb – Lk. 23:53, Jn. 10:17-18.

14.              Conclusions:

a.      Christ did not give up Deity.

b.      Christ did give up in receiving a body but not inner change (schema but not morphe)

c.      Christ took the form of man (schema:  overt likeness).

d.      The union of Christ to humanity was a part of humiliation

e.   The Attributes of Christ such as Sovereignty, Righteousness, Justice, Love, Eternal Life,   Omnipotence, Omnipresence, Omniscience, Immutability or Veracity were never surrendered.