A Servant’s Heart—John 13:1-20
Reaching the end of a job interview, the human resources person asked a young engineer fresh out of MIT what kind of a salary he was looking for.
"In the neighborhood of $140,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."
"Well, what would you say to a package of 5-weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical & dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, & a company car leased every 2 years...say, a red Corvette?"
"Wow! Are you kidding?"
"Yeah, but you started it."
A servant’s heart is sorely lacking in our society.
God’s people should have a servant’s heart.
Jesus expressed/demonstrated a servant’s heart before/for His disciples.
A servant’s heart is expected of Christians/Jesus’ disciples.
How are Jesus’ disciples to express a servant’s heart?
7 expressions/demonstrations of a servant’s heart.
This is NOT a commandment that the Church become ‘footwashers’ in the strict sense of the word, but it is a commandment of Jesus to apply the principles of footwashers to the whole of their relationships/life.
1—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF TIME to God(:1)
Explanation:(:1)Time awareness
:1—“Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He should depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”
We live as if immortal...as if time is irrelevant...as if no closure to our lives...infinite
...Then Concept of Time has become out of sync with God.
Servility suffers
*Jesus was aware of His time & the times.
*God’s Time gives deference to God’s will.
Argumentation:
Eph. 5:15-16—“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.”
Our time compared to Flowers—Grass—Smoke—Vapor
...Brevity
Illustration:
My brother, Mike/Unsaved/Owns PMS firearms/Even Lives below business/All his time dedicated to his business/Surrendered his Time to his god—the world/We must surrender ours to God
Application:
?Your TIME surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your TIME speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
2—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF AUTHORITY to God(:3)
Explanation:(:3)
:3—“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, & that He had come forth from God, & was going back to God,”
Our concept of Authority has everything to do with how we lead our ministries
Argumentation:
Jn. 5:21-24—“For just as the Father raises the dead & gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. “For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, in order that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, & believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, & does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”
Illustration:
Brown Supply Co./Family owned business with Howard, Jr.—David Shoe—Kevin Shoe/Howard Brown owner—died/Howard, Jr. authority/David & Kevin Shoe Surrendered Authority to Howard Jr./
Our Authority is Surrendered to God because He still lives!
Application:
?Your AUTHORITY surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your AUTHORITY speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
3—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF EXAMPLE to God(:4-5)
Explanation:(:4-5)Submission
:4—“*rose from supper, & *laid aside His garments; & taking a towel, He girded Himself about.
:5—“Then He *poured water into the basin, & began to wash the disciples’ feet, & to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.”
Example—Shown bodily
Shock therapy for Peter
Argumentation:
2Chr. 17:3-4—“And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the example of his father David’s earlier days & did not seek the Baals, but sought the God of his father, followed His commandments, & did not act as Israel did.”
Illustration:
Rick Jones/Chewing tobacco since 3 yrs. old/Grandaddy’s poor Example
?How far will you go to be an example?
Application:
?Your EXAMPLE surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your EXAMPLE speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
4—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF REVERENCE to God(:6-10)
Explanation:(:6-10)
:6—“And so He *came to Simon Peter. He *said to Him, “Lord, do You wash my feet?”
Humility
:7—Jesus answered & said to him, “What I do you do not realize now, but you shall understand hereafter.”
“Hereafter”
—After footwashing
—After the Holy Spirit
:8—“Peter *said to Him, “Never shall You wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
Peter’s Reverence made God Unreachable/Uncompassionate
“If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
:9—“Simon Peter *said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands & my head.”
:10—“Jesus *said to him, “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; & you are clean, but not all of you.”
“He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet”
—“Bathed”— Penalty of sin/uncleaness removed in Christ.
—”Wash...feet”—In regular contact with the dirt[sin].
“You[11 disciples] are clean”—Acceptable/“Bathed”
Jn. 17:6—“I manifested Thy name to the men whom Thou gavest Me out of the world; Thine they were, & Thou gavest them to Me, & they have kept Thy word.”
Argumentation:
Mk. 7:25-30—“But after hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit, immediately came & fell at His feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. And she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread & throw it to the dogs.” But she answered & said to Him, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.” And He said to her, “Because of this answer go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter.” And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having departed.”
Illustration:
2 Doors in my house/Garage doors—Storm & entrance/Squeaky/I must defer to them/Oil them/Surrender Reverence to the door
Application:
?Your REVERENCE surrendered to God?
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your Reverence speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
5—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF INSTRUCTION to God(:12-17)
Explanation:(:12-17)Learning/Teaching/Discipleship/Shepherd
:12—“And so when He had washed their feet, & taken His garments, & reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?
:13—“You call Me Teacher & Lord; & you are right, for so I am.
:14—“If I then, the Lord & the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.
“the Lord & the Teacher, washed your feet”
:15—-“For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.”
:16—“Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master; neither is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him.
:17—“If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.”
Servant(footwaher) never sees Himself as greater than the one whose feet are being washed.
*Jesus’ Concern not to get thru lesson material ,but that others understand.
Compassion drove Jesus’ instruction
Argumentation:
Js. 3:1—“Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.”
Illustration:
UPS Hub, Raleigh/Offload supervisor/Tie always tucked above 1st button hole—Down & dirty with you/Sweat with you/Show you how to do it/Surrender Instruction
Shocked in counseling sessions?
Avoid certain types of people?
Application:
?Your INSTRUCTION surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your INSTRUCTION speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
6—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF ALLEGIANCE to God(:2,10, 18-19)
Explanation:(:2,10, 18-19)
:2—“And during supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him,”
:10—“Jesus *said to him, “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; & you are clean, but not all of you.””
:18—““I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.’”
:19—“From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He.”
What is “betrayal” in spiritual matters?—The lost with appearance & trappings of religion—Stewardship of Church membership, Job, Family obligations....Facade only.
Argumentation:
Jn. 17:12—“While I was with them, I was keeping them in Thy name which Thou hast given Me; & I guarded them, & not one of them perished but the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.”
Illustration:
Worker cross Union picket lines/Name calling/Betrayal against Union/Worker surrenders allegiance to Family/We Surrender Allegiance to either Family(Christian) or Union(devil)
Application:
?Your ALLEGIANCE surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your ALLEGIANCE speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
7—A servant’s heart is seen in...
A SURRENDER OF REFLECTION to God(:20)
Explanation:(:20)Christlikeness/Representation/Mirror
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; & he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.””
‘I am meant to be a pure reflection of the truth’—Twila Paris
Argumentation:
Jn. 12:44-45—“And Jesus cried out & said, “He who believes in Me does not believe in Me, but in Him who sent Me. And he who beholds Me beholds the One who sent Me.”
Lk. 10:16—“The one who listens to you listens to Me, & the one who rejects you rejects Me; & he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”
2Cor. 5:18-20—“...God...reconciled us to Himself through Christ, & gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, & He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us...”
2Cor. 3:18—“But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.”
Php. 4:9—“The things you have learned & received & heard & seen in me[Paul], practice these things; & the God of peace shall be with you.”
Illustration:
Majestic mountain scene/Mirrored in lake/Calm lake-pond water/Perfectly reflects mountains/Air current stirs water/reflection of the turbulence rather than scene/Satan is prince of the power of the air/Surrender our Reflection
Application:
?Your REFLECTION surrendered to God?...
...in Jesus or your own ability?
?Your REFLECTION speak truth or selfishness to others?
?You demonstrate a SERVANT’S HEART?
Conclusion
Action:
7 expressions of a servant’s heart are seen in a surrender of...
Time
Authority
Example
Reverence
Instruction
Allegiance
Reflection
Presented 04/10/01pm to:
GCBA Spring Meeting
Capel Baptist Church
1041 Capel Road
Cairo, GA 31728
