“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself” (Phil. 2:5-7, NASB)

Christ was so entirely emptied of Himself, so entirely was He from being manifested in any way, that no influence went forth from Him except the influence of the Father. No man could come to Him except the Father drew that man to Him.

That shows how completely He Himself was kept in the background, how completely He was emptied. It was done so thoroughly that no man could feel any influence from Him or be drawn to Him except from the Father Himself.

That illustrates what it is to glorify God. It is to be so entirely emptied of self that no influence go forth from the individual but the influence of God,-so emptied that everything, every word, will tell only of the Father.

When Jesus was upon earth, He was in our human, sinful flesh. And when He emptied Himself and kept Himself back, the father so dwelt in Him and manifested Himself there, that all the works of the flesh were quenched. The glory of God, the character of God, were manifested instead of anything of the human.

God was “manifest in the flesh,” in sinful flesh-not God manifested in sinless flesh, but in sinful flesh. He will so dwell in our sinful flesh today that although that flesh be sinful, its sinfulness will not cast any influence on others. In spite of all the sinfulness of sinful flesh, His righteousness, His character, shall be manifested wherever that person goes.

That was the intent of God from the beginning, which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Jones, General Conference Bulletin, 1895, p. 368