Signs Of Love In The Strangest Places

SIGNS OF LOVE IN THE STRANGEST PLACES

02-25-2024

INTRO: Most of, if not all, of you folks are aware of the fact that both Wendy and I lost our Mothers at the relatively young age of 36. In both cases we saw our Father’s demonstrate amazing levels of devotion to our Mothers by taking care of them and rarely leaving their sides. Dad for all practical intents and purposes lived in Ashland during the Winter of 2007 so that he could be there for Mom at all times as she lied in a bed at KDMC for months. Throughout the Winter and early spring of 2010 Joe was inseparable from Sue and insisted that he be the one to perform all the tasks, even if they were of a hygienic nature, that Sue was unable to perform for herself. Nothing was beneath them or too unpleasant for them to perform for the one that they loved. They both were motivated purely out of love and a sense of wanting to do whatever it took to help out the one that they loved. Both of their examples left a very profound impact upon me as I saw true love and a sense of duty personified in their actions. That is the type of love that Jesus’ demonstrates and commands us to emulate toward each other and toward God’s children throughout the world in our passage for today.

It is that desire to love and serve one another that sits at the heart of the purpose of the Church.

TEXT: John 13:1-17’; 31-38

PREVIEW:

A. The importance of the servant leader form of leadership and commitment.

B. The willingness to be served, that Peter learned in today’s passage is also an important lesson we need to incorporate in our lives.

C. The importance of humility in our Christian Service

D. The preeminence of love in the message and the faith.

BODY:

A. Jesus Shows Us The Importance Of Being A Servant Of Those We Love and Wish To Lead Them To Christ.

a. Humility is key part of this passage.

b. Feet Washing not only a job for a servant in Jesus’ time, but also the job of a servant that was one of the lowest in importance and prestige.

c. However, it is important that we realize that the act of servanthood was intended as a demonstration of the love that we need to show both to our brothers and sisters in Christ and our fellow humans.

i. Matthew 20:25-28

ii. It about letting people see that they matter to God and therefore you that gives Christianity its true appeal.

d. We are willing to make great sacrifices for those that we love, but we are called to also be willing to make sacrifices for those that God loves.

B. Servant leadership also requires us to be humble enough to receive service from others.

a. PROVERBS 25:9

b. We must be willing to recognizing that God can use anyone to minister to us.

c. We can’t be too proud to admit the need for cleansing and forgiveness from God.

d. We must show a willingness to surrender to God and seek a close relationship with him

e. This is a lesson that Peter learned in that Upper Room. He thought he was showing Christ great respect by not allowing Him to wash his feet, but in truth Peter was simply conveying the idea that it was up to him what Christ could and could not do.

C. The importance of humility in our Christian Service.

a. Luke 14:7-14

i. This practical advice from Jesus is a great lesson on how to make our witness stronger and our efforts to lead others to Christ more effective.

1. If people think we have nothing to gain then the kindness has a greater impact.

2. Nearly all of my friends and aquintances who have run for and/or hold political office tell me that the part that they hate the most is fundraising. They say that is because nearly every dollar given is given with strings attached or the anticipation of a favor, be it voting a particular way on a bill or even something as blatant as expecting being awarded a contract or a job, being granted.

3. We can’t go around posting all of our good deeds on instgram or facebook and think that they are having the anticipated impact.

b. It must be a deeper sign of commitment to Christ and our willingness to become his by letting the world see His love in action.

i. Phillipians 2:5-8

D. Love one for another

a. John 13:35 states it bluntly that Love One for Another should be the calling card of the Church. However, this is something that we haven’t always proven to be very good at showing.