Spiritual Disciplines: Service
June 6, 2021
It’s the night of the Passover celebration, you don’t realize this will be the last meal you eat with Jesus. You’re one of Jesus’ disciples and you walk into the room and you expect someone to wash your feet . . .
You see water, a towel, but there’s no servant to wash your feet. What do you do? Do you wash your dirty feet or just shake your head at the poor hospitality and sit down? Knowing that when you sit down, your feet and everyone’s dirty feet will be close to the food.
Foot washing was a common practice, but there were no servants there. So, each disciple does the same thing. They all file in and recline at the table, making themselves comfortable as they stick their dirty feet in each other’s faces.
They’re ready to celebrate the Passover. Jesus takes His place at the center of the table. Suddenly He gets up, walks over to the water basin and takes off His outer garment. He looks at the disciples who are waiting to be served, and they stare back at Jesus. You wonder what Jesus was thinking, ‘Father this is unbelievable! Don’t they get it? I’ve talked to them until I’m blue in the face. What more do I need to do?’ Sermon after sermon, illustration after illustration, confrontation after confrontation, miracle after miracle and they still don’t get it.
So, Jesus picked up the servant’s towel, poured water into the basin and went to each disciple and kneeled as he washed their dirty, smelly feet.
After washing their feet, including Judas’, Jesus returned to the table and said --
13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am.
14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet.
15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you
16 I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
The call from Jesus to the disciples and to each one of us is to become a servant. And if we were really to speak the truth about serving, many of us aren’t really thrilled with the prospect of becoming a servant. You see the call of Jesus is not just to serve, but to become a servant.
In his book Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster wrote,
In some ways we would prefer to hear Jesus’ call to deny father and mother, houses and land for the sake of the gospel than His word to wash feet. Radical self-denial gives the feel of adventure. If we forsake all, we even have the chance of glorious martyrdom. But in service we must experience the many little deaths of going beyond ourselves. Service banishes us to the mundane, the ordinary, the trivial. (126)
Those are tough words, words which step on our toes. And when we think about it, there are many who just don’t like to serve. There are a myriad of reasons why-
We think people will take advantage of us.
We complain why aren’t other serving along with me.
We wonder if anyone will see me serve, so they will think more of me.
We think the work is beneath us.
We judge those we are supposed to serve.
We don’t have the love within us.
We just refuse to do it. - - - No time
I mean let’s be honest, serving comes in all different shapes and sizes and at all different places and times in our lives. I like what John Ortberg said in his book, The Life You’ve Always Wanted, when he spoke about serving taking place at home. He explained when the baby cries in the middle of the night, he could fake being asleep, and then as his wife is leaving the room, say a few words in a kind of groggy voice, as if he would’ve gotten up to take care of the child, but he’s just a heavier sleeper. This way, he gets credit for wanting to help, but being just a little late, and he gets the extra luxury of staying in bed and falling back to sleep.
But what would happen if he just got out of bed and groggily, but joyfully went over to that child and took care of the crying child? He could be a blessing. (118)
Some may say it’s a matter of perspective, I would say it’s a matter of the heart, the heart of a servant.
When a loved one is sick, we don’t often consider the toll it will take on us, instead we willingly and lovingly care for our loved one. We don’t view it as a service, we don’t call ourselves a servant, we do it because of love. There are times when we take in a parent or child who has met up with a difficult time in life and we know it’s right to take them into our home and care and love them. You’re being a servant, but you don’t see it as a spiritual discipline, in fact, it is a natural event in your life, and you don’t think twice about doing it.
Look again at the words of Jesus after washing the disciples feet - - -
14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet.
15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you
It was unheard of for a person of Jesus’ stature to wash someone else’s feet. But Jesus didn’t do the conventional, He didn’t follow the ways of the law, He followed the ways of love. It was love that motivated Jesus to wash the disciples feet. It was His desire to show the disciples what type of life the Christ-follower must lead. . . a life of humility and servanthood.
Jesus repeatedly told the disciples they were to be servants, but they just didn’t get it, sometimes we don’t either. In Luke 22:24, after the foot washing, and after the dinner, the disciples were arguing over who was the greatest. Do you get it? They just had one of the most amazing gifts given to them, and it still didn’t compute. This is why Jesus repeated Himself so many times. He tells us again and again, we are to be servants, humble servants.
Paul follows up on humility as he wrote the great Christ hymn in Philippians 2. Paul describes Jesus’ humility when he calls us to follow Jesus’ example, saying,
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.
4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7 but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
This is a great prescription for being a servant. Consider what Paul says - - -
? do nothing out of selfish ambition. It’s not about you.
? do nothing out of vain conceit. Put away pride / arrogance. Instead - -
? in humility consider others better than yourself.
? look out for yourself, that’s OK, but also look out for others.
? Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus.
? make yourself nothing, and
? take the nature of a servant.
That my friends is the call to servanthood. But understand being a servant is different than serving.
Richard Foster explains, when we serve, we still have control, we still have the choice about what we will or won’t do. We decide whom we will serve and when we will serve. If it fits our schedules or not. Is it convenient or not.
But when we choose to be a servant, we give up the right to be in charge. And when we do this, we find there’s great freedom in this. You see, if we voluntarily choose to be a servant, and even to be taken advantage of, something we fight against, then interestingly enough, we can no longer be manipulated.
It’s pretty radical. If we choose to be a servant and give up our rights, then who can step all over us? In essence, nobody. When we choose to be a servant we surrender the right to decide who and when we will serve. We become vulnerable and available. Who can hurt someone who has chosen to be stepped on. It’s a different way of thinking about servanthood.
When we combine service with our spiritual gifts, then we find greater fulfillment in serving others. Spiritual gifts do us no good if we keep them hidden. The very purpose of receiving spiritual gifts is to use them for the glory of God, as we serve Him. Peter said we are commanded to serve. Peter wrote –
8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.
11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God.
If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.
Isn’t that great . . . love covers a multitude of sins. So, love one another deeply. Know we all mess up and sin, but when our love is deep, repentance and grace will be just as deep. And that’s a gift from God.
So, take your spiritual gifts and use them at home, in the church, at work, in the community. Use them as a way to serve God. These gifts were given to us, really, they were entrusted to us, to build the kingdom of Jesus on earth.
I’ve done a lot of talking about this spiritual discipline and I want to conclude by giving us some practical ways that we could put the servanthood into action.
What’s the most basic way to serve? Psalm 100:2 tells us -
2 serve the Lord with gladness.
We are not to serve begrudgingly, but joyfully and willingly. When we know someone has a need, we help in whatever ways we can. When I’m doing premarital counseling, I always tell the couple their goal in marriage is to outserve the other person. Can you imagine arguing about who’s going to have the joy of washing the dishes, changing diapers, taking out the trash? Do it with a smile.
On top of that we can look beyond the walls of our homes and into the church. Who in the church has a need in which you can provide some type of service. Maybe there is a family who needs child care for a night; or maybe it’s a neighbor who learns about Christ because you served them. Is there a family who needs a meal because of difficult times? Does someone need a ride? Maybe there’s a need to clean someone’s home. None of it is glamorous, but it is necessary.
As I said, we often resist the hidden and inconspicuous jobs, which is exactly why we need the spiritual discipline of servanthood.
There are a multitude of opportunities available within our church, as well as in our community. Those needs are met when you use your spiritual gifts in the act of being a servant.
In Mark 10:42-45, we read –
42 Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.
43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.
45 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."
Jesus calls us to a life of servanthood. It’s a life where we practice a term which has become popular in leadership literature, it’s called “servant leadership.” One book I have is titled, They Smell Like Sheep.” Meaning, the leadership is not separate from the people of the church, instead they are part of the body, and because you work with the people and are not in a separate class, you all smell the same, because you’re working together.
So greatness becomes radically redefined. Because if we want to be great in the kingdom of God, we must become a servant, to have that servant mentality.
Verse 45 is a sobering statement from Jesus. He makes two very important points for us to hold onto. First, Jesus reminds us that He came not to sit on His throne which as a king, He was entitled to, instead He took off the royal crown, put the royal scepter down and joined the people and lived with the people, and in essence smelled like the sheep.
Secondly, and what we must recognize as the ultimate example of servanthood comes in the final part of the verse when Jesus explained He not only came to serve, but His greatest act of servanthood comes in giving His life as a ransom for you and I. His death on the cross is the ultimate gift of servanthood.
Our call is to serve God, not out of guilt, but out of joyful obedience to the One who gave His life for us. As we serve God, we serve one another. We do this because of our faithfulness to God,
We serve not to receive any type of gain, rather we serve with humility because it leads to Christlikeness” (Whiteny 116).
Love for others starts with a love for God. When we discover that God loves us with the most powerful and amazing love and that He died for us, and adopted us as His kids, we want to obey Him. And He calls us to love one another.
After washing the disciples feet, Jesus said - -
34 A new command I give you: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you must love one another.
35 By this people will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another - John 13:34-35
Those are our marching orders. Love one another, just as Jesus loves you. How can you and I be like Jesus? Have the right motivation - - be humble, don’t consider yourself better than others, serve because God served you first because of His love for you.
Here’s a final thought as we move to communion - - -
After Jesus finished washing all of the disciples’ feet, He put away the towel, put on His robe, and returned to the table.
Then He took a piece of bread and broke it and said, “This is my body which is for you.” Next, He took a cup and said, “This is my blood. Poured out for you.” One more act of service would follow — the ultimate act of service: the giving of His life.
You see, as Jesus poured water into a basin to wash the disciples’ dirty feet to show what a servant looks like, He would then pour out His blood on the cross to wash our dirty hearts. That being the ultimate sacrifice.
