Philippians 2:10-11 That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Many believers read, sing or say these verses with great familiarity. My mind, however, takes a pause at “every knee shall bow”. Why? Simply this – It is not normal to bow the knee, instead we speak of bowing the head but bending the knee. So what is the reason that the word bow is used in this verse? Indulge me for a moment. Has anyone ever hit you on the knee or have you ever walked into a piece of furniture and hit your knee? Are you old enough to suffer from knee pain? Are you getting the picture? I have figured out that the knee is the source of your strength. Injury to your knees put you out of commission – without them you are not going anywhere.

Your knees allow you to walk and stand with pride, hold your head high and look the world in the face, salute, or draw attention to yourself. But God’s word says: “every knee shall bow” meaning he requires you to humble yourself before him while you can do so voluntarily. Set aside pride, accomplishments, status, authority, riches and every other vestige of power you have imagined yourself to possess and bow the knee to Almighty God and acknowledge his Son Jesus.

Have you or anyone in your home kneeled before the Lord in prayer lately? When we were children our parents (mostly my mother since Papa was overseas at times) would gather all eight of us children for Bible reading in their bedroom.  At the end of each session we kneeled down to pray. This has shaped our response to a Holy God – one who loves and protects but whom we hold in reverence. He gave his Son who in turn humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name which is above every name.” (Phil. 2:9) That is why we should bow the knee. We do it now in awe, with joy and thanksgiving, or later we will be judged and made to bow.