INTRODUCTION

1. In our culture, the act of one person bowing toward another is rare, and bowing the knee is unknown.

   1. In eastern culture, men will bow at the waist toward one another in a show of respect and greeting.  However, they do not bow the knee.

   2. In western culture, only performers bow at the waist toward their audiences at the conclusion of their performances.  There is no setting in which one bows his knee for another.

2. At the end of time, bowing will be common to every soul, for everyone will bow the knee before Jesus.

   1. At that point, our spirits will be separated from our physical bodies, but the figure of bowing the knee accommodates our understanding that every soul will recognize and submit to the Lord Jesus.

   2. Before we reach that point, we have an opportunity to bow the knee to Jesus now.  Whether or not we do will make all the difference for eternity.

       

THE BELIEVER'S RESPONSE TODAY

1. While Jesus was on earth, those who believed in Him tended to bow before Him.

   1. Consider a few examples of those who bowed, worshiped, or fell down before Jesus.

      1. Even while Jesus was a child, the wise men from the east "fell to the ground and worshiped Him" (Matt. 2:11).

      2. When Peter understood who Jesus was, he fell down at His feet (Luke 5:8).

      3. The Lord's disciples worshiped Him when He came to them walking on the sea (Matt. 14:33).

      4. On many occasions, those who sought healing from Jesus or had already been healed by Him bowed down before Him (Matt. 8:2; 9:18; 15:25; 17:14; Mark 1:40; 5:33; John 9:38).

      5. After His resurrection, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary fell down, took hold of His feet, and worshiped Him (Matt. 28:9).

   2. Few men have ever received such attention from others, and no one has ever received as much.  Jesus' words and deeds were so potent that men and women were compelled to bow before Him unlike anyone else who has ever lived.

2. Such bowing indicates respect, submission, or worship.

   1. These actions are usually reserved for dignitaries and authorities.  Men bow before kings, governors, and rulers.

   2. Of course, Jesus held no such position in the world.  He was a mere carpenter from Nazareth (Mark 6:3). He had "no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him" (Isa. 53:2).

   3. When men bowed before Jesus, it was in recognition of His innate Deity, divine power, and authority.  Thomas expressed this in words, saying, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28).

   4. Like bowing before the Father in prayer, (Eph. 3:14), believers bowed before Jesus in godly reverence.  Their reaction to Jesus was typical of man's reaction in the presence of God (Gen. 17:3; Ex. 3:6; 4:31; Ezek. 43:3).

       

EVERYONE'S RESPONSE IN THE END

1. Many people have not bowed their knees before Jesus, but everyone will bow before Him in the end.

   1. When Jesus came into the world, the world did not know Him or receive Him (John 1:10-11).  This has not changed today.  The world still does not know Him

   2. However, the time will come when every soul will acknowledge Jesus.  There will be no choice in the matter.  "Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him" (Rev. 1:7).

   3. This result will be the end of the process that began with Jesus coming into the world as a man.  Consider Philippians 2:5-11:

      ⁵Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.  ⁸Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  ⁹For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

   4. Notice a few points from this passage:

      1. Verses 10 and 11 give a brief quote and reference to Isaiah 45:3, in which the Father said,

         "I have sworn by Myself, the word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back, that to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance."

      2. Before coming into the world, Jesus existed in the form of God, which would instantly command reverence, submission, awe, and reverence.  However, He gave up that divine glory for the form of man (John 17:5).

      3. The earthly life of Jesus exemplified God's promise to exalt those who humble themselves in His presence (Jas. 4:10; 1Pet. 5:6).  No one ever humbled himself more than Jesus, and no one will ever be more exalted, for His name is above every name.

      4. No one will be exempt from bowing to Jesus.  Every creature in heaven and on earth and even under the earth will bow to Him in submission and reverence.

      5. Every tongue will confess Jesus.  A confession is a statement of agreement, and every tongue will agree and confess to the truth that Jesus is Lord, Christ, and the Son of God.

2. The question to be answered for each person is: Will you bow before Him by your own choice in this life, or will you wait until you have no choice when this life is over?

   1. Life is an opportunity for faith in Christ (belief without sight, Heb. 11:1).  None of us have seen Him, but we may have salvation in Him if we believe in Him by the testimony of God's word (John 17:20; 20:29; Rom. 10:17).  See 1Peter 1:8-9:

      ⁸And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, ⁹obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.

   2. To obtain salvation, not only must we believe in Him, but we must also confess Him.  Consider Romans 10:8-10:

      ⁸But what does it say?  "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, ⁹that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; ¹⁰for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

   3. Confessing Jesus as Lord is not just a matter of words, but rather it is a matter of action.  Jesus said, "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46).

   4. In this is the practical meaning of bowing the knee to Jesus in this life.  We express our reverence, submission, and worship of Christ by yielding to His will and obeying His word.  If you will bow your knee to Jesus in this life, then it must be by obedience to Him.

   5. When life in this world is concluded, the opportunity for faith will be closed.  The dead can no longer bow their knees to Jesus by believing in the unseen Lord, submitting to His will, and obeying His word.

   6. However, when disobedient and rebellious souls stand in judgment before Jesus, they will bow to Him.  It will be too late to confess Him by faith, but they will see Him as He is. They will be forced to confess what they refused to admit in the world, and then they will be sent into eternal punishment (Matt. 25:46).

       

CONCLUSION

1. If the name of Jesus does not cause you to bow your knee to Him in humble submission, reverence, worship, and obedience, then you stand in great danger.  Your stubbornness and unrepentant heart is storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God (Rom. 2:5).

2. It is your destiny to bow your knee to Him, either by your own choice in this life or by necessity in the Judgment.  Why not bow to Him now while you may still win His reward?