I have tried. I cannot think of a greater sacrifice than the Incarnation of the Son. If you want to argue that the death of Christ is greater, I will not fight back. I think that is a moot point since the death of Christ is a part of the Incarnation.
Jesus prayed that he could return to the glory he had with the Father before the world began (John 17.5). Jesus gave up glory to come to the earth. I do not know what that feels like. And I do not think you can conceive of a greater sacrifice.
But think even more about how Jesus humbled himself. 1 Cor 15.47 says “the first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.” It would have made perfect sense for Jesus to come to the earth as an adult, like the first Adam, and then just succeed where Adam failed. Instead, he came from heaven to be born a baby! He went beyond just humbling himself to become a man.
Jesus, who created the world, obeyed His Father by taking on an umbilical cord, becoming dependent upon his mother’s milk, learning how to read and write, honoring Mary and Joseph, actually growing in wisdom and stature, and favor with God and men. May we never be people who ever complain about what we think we deserve.
Todd's blog 