What’s our mission statement in Makati Gospel Church? “Glorify God by Multiplying Biblical, Committed and Loving Followers of Jesus Christ.” This morning we will look into the “committed” aspect of our mission statement through John 13:1-5, where Jesus washed the feet of His disciples.[1]
I once read a book about the leadership style of the Lord Jesus. And I was surprised to discover that it did not even talk about Jesus washing the feet of His disciples. That is sad because here we find His concept of leadership. In the business world, we hear a lot nowadays about being a “servant-leader.” But the emphasis is more on the “leader” rather than the “servant.” Stacy Rinehart points this out in his book Upside Down, “Viewed with this emphasis, serving is simply a means to an end: ‘I’ll serve you, so you’ll respect my leadership and follow me.’ This is just another subtle form of power leadership. In servant leadership, serving is an expression of leadership, regardless of how people follow. Serving is both the end as well as the means.”[2] I pray that MGC will truly have a true servant-leadership mentality.
Verse one says that this event took place “just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.” The Lord knew that in the next 24 hours people will betray, arrest and crucify Him. Before serving the evening meal, Jesus washed His disciples’ feet. Verse one gave us the reason why He did it: “Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.” Note that Jesus expressed His love through that act. Thus, to serve like Christ is to LOVE like Him.
So, what is it like to love like Christ?
First, it is UNCONDITIONAL. He commanded us: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”[3] Our enemies may not deserve our love for they hate us, curse us and mistreat us. But still we are to love them. We express that love by doing good to them, blessing them and praying for them. Now keep in mind that love is not just a noun but it is also a verb. That means we act upon it.
Second, it is SACRIFICIAL. Jesus declared, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”[4] We saw last week that in The Message translation it goes like this: “This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends.” Yes, sacrifice may mean dying for others. But it is easy to die. It is hard to live. You only die once. But living is daily. And we will only be ready to die for others if we really live for others.
Also, it is LOYAL. Jesus drew the battle lines when He declared, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”[5] Note that “love” is contrasted with “hate” and “devoted” with “despise.” That also means that we can connect “love” with “devoted” and “hate” with “despise.” So, to love is to be devoted or to be loyal. Now, circle the word “serve.” If you are loyal, you will serve.
Jesus commanded us: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”[6] So, to serve like Christ is to unconditionally sacrificially, and loyally love like Him. This is a command. It is our choice to love. It is not an emotional attachment but a heart commitment. It is the kind of love that serves. You can serve without loving, but you can’t love without serving.
In view of that, how do we serve like Christ?
Let’s go back to the washing of the feet. During that event, the disciples argued with each other: “a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.”[7] Jesus rebuked them. He said power struggles and jockeying for the top position are the ways of the world. Then He told them, “But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.”[8]
To underscore His point, “he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.”[9] The seamless robe that Jesus wore “had been especially prepared at great cost. It may be that Christ wore the robe of a rabbi. Such a robe would have entitled Him to respect and honor. In Israel only the priest was held in higher esteem than the rabbi.”[10] Christ took that robe off and “wrapped a towel around his waist.” That towel “was the sign of a servant. A servant had no position and no honor.”[11] Foot washing was a must in that dirty, dusty place. It was the work of the lowliest of slaves. That was the kind of slave that, if you command him to throw himself down the building, he would ask, “From what floor, Sir?” Jesus stooped down to that very level. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”[12] Though they may have washed the feet of Jesus, the disciples would not even dare to wash each other’s feet. According to the MacArthur Study Bible, “Peers did not wash one another’s feet, except very rarely and as a mark of great love.” Thus, to serve like Christ means to sacrificially SERVE. This means you just keep on serving no matter what. You don’t have to receive anything in return. You don’t even expect to receive at all.
After that, Jesus continued the meal. In verse two, the Bible points out that “The Devil by now had Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, firmly in his grip, all set for the betrayal.”[13] Then Jesus revealed that He will be betrayed by one of them. “Jesus’ favorite disciple was sitting next to him at the meal, and Simon motioned for that disciple to find out which one Jesus meant. So the disciple leaned toward Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, which one of us are you talking about?’ Jesus answered, ‘I will dip this piece of bread in the sauce and give it to the one I was talking about.’ Then Jesus dipped the bread and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.”[14]
They were seating in a u-shaped table. John sat next to Jesus at His right hand. It appears that Peter was on the other side of the table. That’s why, when Jesus announced that He will be betrayed, Peter signaled across the table to John so he would ask the Lord who was it. Then, when Jesus gave the bread, it appears Judas sat next to Him also. The fact that Judas was at the left hand of our Lord meant that He even gave His betrayer a greater place of honor!
Remember that the sign the Lord gave John to identify His betrayer was the giving of the bread. Now, why didn’t the disciples gang up on Judas when he got the bread? Were the disciples so dense?
We need to understand the culture behind the act of giving the bread. “The giving of morsel at a feast was a traditional expression of love and friendship in biblical times. It signified special respect and manifested good will.”[15] So that’s why they did not attack Judas. They thought all along that Christ was honoring Judas! That means Judas was no victim either of prophecy or of the Devil. Jesus expressed His love to Judas by seating him to His left and giving bread to him. He gave His betrayer a chance to repent. Therefore, to serve like Christ means to unconditionally SEEK OUT or reach out. Someone wrote that, even if we may or may not see something wonderful, attractive, or excellent in the object of our love, still we must serve nonetheless. For serving with the love of Christ is unconditional. No strings attached. No hidden charges.
Later, Jesus predicted that Peter would deny Him three times before the cock crows. We know that it came true. But you know why Peter got to his feet again? Because, even before the Lord predicted the denial, He assured Peter: “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”[16] Even before Peter denied the Lord, He encouraged Peter. In The Message, it says that his faith will “not give in or give out.” In another version, it says Jesus prayed for Peter so that his “faith will be strong.”[17] So, to serve like Christ means to loyally SUPPORT. You may or may not have pleasant emotion toward the object of your love. Yet you stay committed. People may or may not appreciate what you are doing. But you still serve.
After washing the disciples’ feet, Jesus said we should imitate Him. “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.”[18] If we claim to be His followers, we have to follow the pattern He laid out for us. That doesn’t mean we literally wash each other’s feet. That was a cultural expression then and there. The key is to look for a universal principle and apply that principle here and now. Find a way to serve people inside and outside the church in a way that expresses the love of Christ. Look at the various opportunities in our church. You can join a small group here in our church. You can serve as an usher, a musician, a song leader, a Sunday school teacher, a small group facilitator or a moderator. You can help welcome visitors. You can help us follow them up by calling, texting or visiting them. The question is not “Are we able?” but “Are we available?”
Jesus gave this promise: “Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”[19] If you want to be blessed, serve like Christ. Brothers and sisters let us “serve one another in love.”[20]
Let us pray...
[1]All Bible verses are from the New International Version, unless otherwise noted.
[2]Emphasis his.
[3]Luke 6:27-28
[4]John 15:13
[5]Matthew 6:24
[6]John 13:34
[7]Luke 22:24
[8]Luke 22:26
[9]John 13:4-5
[10]J. Dwight Pentecost, The Words and Works of Jesus Christ.
[11]Ibid.
[12]Mark 10:45
[13]The Message
[14]John 13:23-26, Contemporary English Version (CEV)
[15]J. Carl Laney, Marching Orders
[16]Luke 22:31-32
[17]CEV
[18]John 13:14-16
[19]John 13:17
[20]Galatians 5:13
