Sermons
Serving God
Serving God
When we talk about having a relationship with God, what it means to have a close relationship with God. What it means to build this close relationship, not just knowing things about God, but actually getting to KNOW God personally. God has given us different things and ways to grow in our relationship with him.
Lets cover just one of the many ways God has given us to truly know Him.
Let’s start with a story that goes all the way back to the 1920s. A story that all of us actually have experienced.
There was a young Michigan farmer, a teenager at the time and it was expected that he would take over the family farm. But he really loved building things and engineering things. So, in 1927, he developed a new kind of furniture. Back then, furniture just sat there. Didn't really move around a whole lot. He created a chair with a back and seat that simultaneously moved into a reclining form. Later on, he developed a lever that, when pulled, kicked a footrest out in front of this piece of furniture. He began with his cousin going around to department stores and saying, "Hey, would you consider selling this?" People fell in love with this brand new technology from the self-taught engineer. They began selling this product and it began to grow and grow.
He and his cousin ran this business for years. In the 1970s, this business went public. It was such a huge business by that time. Years before that, they’d run a naming contest and the winner was Lazy Boy. You're probably familiar with that. Last year alone, in 2019, the revenue for Lazy Boy was over 1.5 billion dollars. And this young farmer-turned-engineer, Edwin Shoemaker, whenever he would be asked about this company, Lazy Boy, he would say, "Well, I guess we did pretty good." In 1998, at the age of 90, he was still working and helping run the company. He went out with his friends in Sun City and they had dinner together and they were just having fun. He came home that night and he sat down in his lazy boy recliner, leaned back, and he passed away.
It's poetic that he literally reclines in the Lazy Boy and passes away, isn’t it? That's the American dream. He did it. He accomplished it, right? He had all of this success and he went out just peacefully having this huge impact on the world. What we're about to look at today is going to kind of take the American dream and flip all of it upside down.
Back in Jesus’ day, they didn't have the American dream because they didn't have America. They had the Roman dream and the Roman dream is a little bit different than the American dream. But it's not that different. Not a whole lot has changed in the last 2000 years. Back in the Roman time period, a hierarchy that existed, a class system in Roman culture. The goal was moving further up the ladder. At the very top of the ladder, the Roman dream, was this very prestigious position called Caesar. Caesar was referred to as the king of kings. Right below Caesar on this ladder, you had the Senate, 600 men that made up the Senate and that class.
All those guys, whether they said it or not, they secretly wanted to be Caesar. But it was really hard because that's just one guy. Below the Senate, you had the Equestrian class. It also had the Decurions. They made up the wealthy landowners of ancient Rome. The way you became Decurion was you had to have a lot of land. You had to have a lot of money. You had to be really successful and you could kind of buy your way into that class. These few classes at the top, they had 100% of the power. This is where all the decisions were made. This is who had all the authority. Just below that, you had the common Roman citizen. That wasn't the lowest class, but still you weren't quite achieved enough to have Decurion or Equestrian status.
Below the common citizen, you had the freed men. Those who had been servants but had been freed from servitude. At the very, very bottom of this class system were the servants. They were the lowest of the low. At every single level of this class system, the goal was to just move up. That was the Roman dream. No matter where you were, if you worked hard enough, you tried hard enough, did enough work, you might be able to work your way up.
We would like to present a new twist on the old story that all of us have heard. Perhaps a new way of looking at and understanding what it is the Jesus is about to teach His disciples and in turn us!
Open your Bibles and turn to John chapter 13.
Jesus, in John Chapter 13, He's going to take this hierarchy that would have been impacting the community around Him. It would have been the way people thought of the goals that they had. He's going to flip that entire thing upside down and help us understand what life is truly about.
John Chapter 13, starting in verse 1 says, “It was just before the Passover festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.” In the next 24 hours, Jesus is going to be betrayed by one of his disciples, one of his closest companions, one of his closest friends, one of the 12 disciples.
His name is Judas Iscariot. Jesus is going to be arrested, is going to be put on trial. He's going to be mocked. He's going to be beaten, and he's going to be crucified all in the next 24 hours and Jesus knows it. The timing of this is really important. This is like the Braveheart speech moment. Jesus knows what's about to happen. He knows His time has come. Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end, knowing this is the end. Verse 2. “The evening meal was in progress and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power and that He had come from God and was returning to God.”
All things. Everything is under the power of Jesus, including that entire hierarchy we just looked at, from servant all the way to Caesar. Jesus understands He's above all of that. All power. All authority. Even though the people at the time would call the Caesar the king of kings, Jesus was the true King of kings. The true Lord of Lords.
Capital K. Capital L. This is Jesus knowing, "This is all just my footstool here. This is my footrest. All things.” So what does he do with his power? Verse 4. “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 he began washing his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.” Don’t miss this point, the towel was wrapped around Him!
What? Jesus, this is what you choose to do? It just doesn't make sense. You're supposed to work your way up because if you get to the top, you can just chill out in the recliner chair. Everybody serves you. You're at the top of the food chain. But Jesus does something that was radical. It was unexpected and shocking. Jesus gets up from the meal, takes off his outer garments, so he still had his undergarments. He put a towel around his waist and he kneels down and he begins to wash his disciples' feet.
I don't know what picture you have of God in your head. Maybe you see God as this angry judge who's just out to find you messing up so that He can throw a lightning bolt or whatever, Maybe you see God as reclining in the recliner chair. Just kind of not caring, not doing anything. But scripture says Jesus is the image of the invisible God. If you want to know what God is like, you look at Jesus.
In this moment, Jesus takes on the form of a servant wrapping a towel around his waist. This is the picture of who God is. Jesus isn't replacing the form of God with a servant. He is revealing the form of God as a servant. This is God in His very nature. This is who He is. God came to serve. Who did He come to serve? In that room, you'd have 13 people. You have Jesus and you have his 12 disciples. One of those disciples we just read about, Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Even if you've never been to church before, and maybe you've heard that name. Judas. "Hey, you're a real Judas." Thanks. That's not a compliment in our culture. Maybe you're familiar that Judas was the one who betrayed Jesus. Jesus knows that Judas is about to betray him, yet Jesus kneels down with his towel around his waist and he begins to wash the feet of his betrayer.
Also in the room is Peter. In these next 24 hours, he would be denying that he even knew Jesus. He goes to the feet of his denier and he washes his feet. He goes to the feet of his doubter, Thomas, who would say, "I don't think Jesus really rose from the grave," and washes his feet. Jesus serves those who didn't deserve it. Jesus serves those who rejected him, those who would betray him, those who would deny him, those who would doubt him. Yet he humbles himself. There's something that happens in this passage. Jesus takes the towel and wraps it around himself and he goes to these feet. They would've worn sandals back then. The roads would have been dirt and there would have been all kinds of animal excrement and filth all over the streets. They would have picked that up on their feet as they were walking through town. Jesus goes and he washes that off with the towel that is still wrapped around him.
He could have taken that towel off. He could have done it at arm's length. But he chose, in this moment, not just to give us an example to follow. He gave us a picture of who he is and what he is doing. He takes all of this filth and junk from the feet of these guys and he takes it and he wears it on himself.
This towel would've been filthy, yet he chooses to clothe himself in that. Jesus is giving us a picture of the Gospel. The Gospel means good news. The Gospel is that when you and I were covered in filth because of our sin, because we were covered in all of this, grossness, Jesus came. He met us right where we were. He humbled himself. He knelt down and he took our filth onto himself. He did that through the cross. He took our sin. He took all of this stuff that we had picked up. He took it and he wore it on himself. In this moment, it's this beautiful picture that when you and I couldn't clean the filth off of ourselves, God came to us to take it upon him, to wear it upon him. It's beautiful. This is what makes Christianity different than every other faith on the planet. It's not about us cleansing ourselves, figuring it out, working out on our own. It's about God meeting us where we are and us allowing him to simply wash our feet. To cleanse us from our sin.
Jesus gets to Peter in verse 6. He came to Simon Peter. Peter sees what's going on. He sees Jesus going around cleaning people's feet. Peter's going, "I'm not comfortable with this Jesus." “It kinda grossed peter out. Simon Peter says, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet? I don't know if I can receive this from you." He just got done saying earlier, "You're the Christ. You're the one that's been promised all throughout scripture. God in the flesh. I can't allow you to just wash my feet.” Jesus replies, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you'll understand." "No," said Peter, He isn't having it. "You shall never wash my feet." A little bit scary when you look Jesus in the face and you tell him, "No." Peter's going, "No, you're never going to wash my feet." Jesus answers, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me." Do not miss this.
Jesus says, "Unless I wash you, Peter, unless I do this thing, you have no part with me.” Then Peter's like, "Well. then, Lord, not just my feet but my hands and head as well." Jesus, if that's true, if I have to allow you to do this, let's do the whole manicure, pedicure. Let's scrub down the whole thing. I want to make sure I don't miss out on this. What Jesus is teaching us in this moment, and I love that John recorded so much detail of this moment in John 13. He's saying that here's where the Christian life begins for all of us. Any person who's ever walked this planet, here's where it begins. It begins by allowing Jesus to serve you.
The Christian life begins by allowing Jesus to meet you right where you are. To cleanse you of the dirt, the filth. Jesus said, "Peter, you don't get it yet, but you'll get it. You'll understand this. You have to allow this. You have to humble yourself enough to allow me to serve you in this way." So Peter goes, "Okay, that's fine. You can do that." Christian life begins with allowing Jesus to serve you, but it doesn't end there. Christian life, practically speaking, is learning to receive the love, the grace, the mercy of Jesus. But, then, the second part is learning to give it away to others.
Jesus continues in verse 12. “When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. ‘Do you understand what I've done for you?’ he asked them. ‘You call me teacher and Lord and rightly so, for that is what I am.’" Jesus is saying, “I am above the hierarchy. Higher than Caesar. You call me Lord, you're right on.” Verse 14. “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. Very truly, I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed...”
He could've put a period there. He could've gone, "Man, now that you know these things, now that you understand that I have given you an example and you're to serve the way I've served you. Now that you know that, you guys are good, you guys are all set. Take that to the bank. You're welcome." But it doesn't end it there. He says, "Now that you know these things, you will be blessed..." When, how? “...if you do them again.”
Jesus says here's where the blessing comes from. Not just hearing it. Not just knowing it. But actually taking action. Actually doing something with what I'm showing you, with what I'm teaching you. He says, "You will be blessed."
Whenever Jesus makes a promise, 100% of the time, he's right on. Here, Jesus makes a promise: If you do these things, you will be blessed. If you actually put into action, you will be blessed. There's kind of this formula. It starts with God's word, information, knowing what God says about who he is, about who we are. We find that in the Bible, but it's not just about knowing the right information. It's also about applying that information. Information plus application in the context of relationships is how we grow.
In a relationship with God, it's not just about knowing what to do, it's about actually putting that into practice. Actually doing what God's word says. Here Jesus says it very clearly. It's great if you know these things. You will be blessed if you do them and Jesus is saying, "I want you to go out and serve others."
"Well Jesus, I just want to serve God." Jesus would say, "Then serve the people around you." "Jesus, I just want to serve you. You've done so much for me. This is my way of showing my gratitude. How do I serve God?" Jesus would say, "It's by serving your neighbor."
He connects these two things. Serving God means serving others. Serving God means serving others. Jesus has made a connection between these two things. The Greatest Commandment is: love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, all your strength. Then Jesus says, "and the second, it's just like it. Love your neighbor as yourself." He makes this connection.
The way that we love an invisible God is by loving, by serving our visible neighbors. That's how we do it. The way you love an invisible God is by serving your visible neighbor.
That's how Jesus has set this up and we serve at all places and all opportunities. We serve in the church. We serve in our community. We serve in the workplace. We serve in the marketplace. We serve in our homes. Where we see opportunity, we serve and when we do that, we will be a blessing to others and be blessed ourselves.
Love is the process of meeting needs. It's action-oriented. It's not about emotion, it's not about feeling. It's about humbling yourself enough to serve somebody else. That is exactly what Jesus is teaching by the washing of feet!
To give of your time, your talents, your treasures. The reason why I believe Jesus could serve so freely is that he was confident in who he was. He knew exactly who he was. He wasn't worried about other people serving him. He wasn't worried about what other people thought about him. He knew who he was and where he was going and so he was free to serve. If you've said yes to following Jesus, you've put your trust in and allowed Jesus to cleanse you, to wash you and you are a child of God.
You're adopted into his family. You are his masterpiece. You were created to serve those around you and you are free. Free from the penalty of sin and free to serve those around you because you know who you are. Because you know whose you are. Jesus says, "Listen, you got to trust me with this. It's not going to be natural. It's not going to feel natural, but if you do these things, you will be blessed." You never know what God might do through a simple act of service in somebody else's life.
But, also in your own life. Jesus knows what he's talking about. When Jesus makes a promise, pay attention. Here's how Jesus ends this interaction with his disciples. Verse 34. Jesus says, "A new command I give you." He just got done washing their feet. They're all kind of in shock going, "Did this just happen?" "Love one another." If you study the Old Testament, you realize that's not a new command. That command had been around for a long time at this point, but then Jesus continues. "As I have loved you."
“So you must love one another as I have loved you. Not because you earned it. Not because you deserved it. The betrayer, the denier, the doubter. I loved you. I met you right where you are. I took your filth upon myself.” That’s the kind of self-sacrificial love that ultimately would take Jesus to the cross to give everything so that you and I might live. He says that's the kind of love that you should have one for another. "As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another."
If every person who said yes to following Jesus would follow the example and go, "I'm going to serve people. I'm going to meet needs where I see them," Jesus says people are going to notice that. Because we live in a culture that's all about “I want to be served. I want to sit in the chair. I just want to relax, live the American dream.” By the way, it's okay to have a Lazy Boy recliner. It's okay to sit in it once in a while. But what Jesus is helping us to break free from is a lazy boy mindset. We're to have the same mindset of Jesus who even though he was God in the flesh, he didn't consider equality with God something to be clung to, something to be grasped. Instead, he emptied himself. Taking on the form of a servant.
Did you think servants were at the bottom of that list? Well, Jesus flips that whole list upside down. Jesus says that greatness comes not from being served but from serving others. Jesus humbled himself even to the point of the cross. The lowest of the low. Lower than being a servant would be being crucified publicly on a cross. Jesus says, "I'll go all the way to serve you. To love you." He says, "I want you to take that example and I want you to follow it."
We can serve without loving, but we cannot love without serving. Love is the process of meeting needs. I don't want to guilt anybody. Don't serve because you feel guilty. You can serve with the wrong reasons, the wrong motives. Serve because you know who you are. You know whose you are and he's inviting you to experience something great. Serve because you don't want to miss out on this reward that Jesus promises.
If you do these things, you will be blessed. The word blessed that Jesus uses is a Greek word, makarios. He says, “You will be blessed/makarios.” It's not like you're just going to get some kind of superficial reward. You're not going to get some kind of "Wow, my paycheck was higher this week because I served." That's not what Jesus is saying here. The word makarios means the deepest level of soul satisfaction. When Jesus says, "If you do these things, you will be blessed," he's saying, "In a way that nothing in this world can deliver, in a way that is in the very depths of your soul, you will be blessed. Trust me Jesus is saying."
True soul satisfaction is totally upside down to the American dream (and to the Roman dream). True soul satisfaction is found in serving.
You are never more like Jesus than when you give and when you serve. The Christian life, practically speaking, is learning to receive the love, the grace, the mercy of Jesus, and then giving it away to others.
I pray that this morning’s sermon is helpful to our walk with the Lord.
I also pray for those who have yet to accept Jesus as Lord. I pray that this lesson has touched your hearts. Has sparked your interest in what it is to be a child of God. We are about to stand and sing an invitation song. That song is for you. It is your opportunity to come forward and become a child of God, blessed beyond measure. It’s your opportunity to have your sins washed away by Jesus through the waters of baptism.
