1. is Guided by Discernment;
2. is Motivated by Love; and
3. Comes from a Position of Security;
we move on to discover that:
4. Ministry is an Expression of Humility;
5. Ministry is Received as a Gift not an Entitlement;
6. Ministry Requires both Words and Actions; and
7. Ministry Produces a Blessing.
Discovering Jesus in the Gospel of John pt 32
The Master’s Model of Ministry part 2
John 13:1-17
27/03/2011
4. Ministry is an Expression of Humility
…he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 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.
If the culture of the day said that such a task was beneath the dignity of a rabbi or even of a Jewish servant if a Gentile one could be found, how much more is it beneath the dignity of the Creator of the Universe? Is it fitting for God to wash the feet of men? Doesn’t it seem to be against the very nature of things?
Later this year Perth will be hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings. Can you imagine the Queen coming over to launch the conference and then surprising some householder in the suburbs by turning up for tea? Having the Queen in your home would be quite an honour wouldn’t it? You would be pretty concerned to serve Her appropriately.
How would you respond if she were to hop up after the meal and start stacking dishes, taking them to the sink and preparing to wash up? You’d be shocked! Surely such labour is beneath Her Majesty! Surely she should not be clearing away your dirty dishes – it just doesn’t seem fitting.
That doesn’t begin to compare to the scandal of the Lord of Heaven and Earth washing the dusty feet of His disciples.
This demonstrates the humility of Christ, that He does not hold on to His position but chooses to be a servant.
There is no excuse in the church of God for people demanding to be served rather than desiring to serve. It doesn’t matter whether you are the leader of a church of thousands or a denomination of millions, humility is the hallmark of leadership. Ministry without humility is just pride in disguise.
I’m sure we’ve all seen that. Jesus identified it in the religious leaders of His day who loved to be observed and admired. Their supposed service to God and others was really self-service.
In the church we try to be very careful about people who are ambitious for positions or for roles of public leadership. On the other hand we look for people who desire to serve, and these are the ones we entrust with leadership. Any time you have a leader who considers certain tasks beneath them you have a problem.
If washing feet is not beneath Jesus, can anything be beneath the dignity of you or I?
A preacher without humility is not content to be a hard-working messenger who faithfully delivers His master’s message. He wants to be an entertainer, an orator, an authority on every subject. He wants to be cool, or dignified or whatever because it’s all about him.
A leader without humility considers their own opinions and preferences as more important than the needs of others. He or she must be respected and obeyed because they are God’s appointed person.
A church member without humility does not listen to guidance or correction from others. They criticise leaders and other members while being very sensitive to criticism themselves. They prefer to evaluate others rather than personally doing any real work. They have more problems, more demands on them and more important things to do than others in the congregation; and should therefore not be expected to do much at all to serve others’ needs.
In contrast to this a person of humility sees a need and meets that need by the grace of God at work in them. Whether the work should have been done by someone else is not the point. Whether the work is considered by others to be beneath them is not the point. Whether any recognition follows the service is not the point. All that matters is serving others in love. That’s humility in action.
Genuine ministry is an expression of humility.
5. Ministry is Received as a Gift, Not an Entitlement
6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
8 “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
9 “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”
10 Jesus answered, “A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.
Imagine you were that householder I mentioned and the Queen was starting to clear away your dishes. Wouldn’t you object to that? You’d say “Please don’t worry yourself with that Ma’am, I’ll take care of it” or something similar.
That’s what Peter does with Jesus. He knows that it’s not appropriate for Jesus to serve Him in this way and he’s very uncomfortable about it. He doesn’t want to allow Jesus to do it, but Jesus is determined to teach His disciples about His own character of Humility and His expectation that they will follow suit.
Jesus is also foreshadowing His own death on the cross for our cleansing from sin. Unless we accept His act of service for us in dying in our place, we cannot enter His kingdom.
Peter would have accepted foot-washing from a servant. In fact he would have felt entitled to it. But accepting it from His master was a completely different matter.
When a brother or sister serves us in love, we must be careful to never feel like we are entitled to it, rather we must receive it as a gift that is undeserved and be thankful for it.
In humility we must consider the one serving us to be greater than ourselves, just as in their humility they are considering themselves to be our servant.
Peter responds to the correction of Jesus in his usual exuberant manner, and invites Jesus to wash his hands and head as well if that meant a greater participation in Jesus’ Kingdom.
Jesus again corrects Peter and points out that the physical washing is not really the point here. They’ve had a bath and only need their feet washed to be physically clean. However physical cleansing does not cleanse the soul, and one of those present who had received the washing of his feet still did not really belong to Jesus. Rather, as we know, he had followed the temptation of Satan to betray Jesus.
6. Ministry Requires Both Actions and Words
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 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.
We’ve covered these principles as we’ve moved through the story this morning, but the thing I want to especially note here is the questions of Jesus: “Do you understand what I have done for you?”
Earlier in the evening He had spoken to them about these exact principles, and He followed that conversation up with the powerful demonstration of washing their feet. Once finished, He still did not assume that they had gotten the point. He explained it to them again.
I have often heard people use a quote based on the teachings of St Francis of Assisi, which goes “Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary use words.”
This is a great quote in terms of highlighting the importance of our actions. Our actions must be consistent with our message, or else we are shown to be hypocrites and liars.
However our actions alone do not communicate truth. Actions can be interpreted in all sorts of ways. The Bible commands us to use words – to speak the truth in love.
I don’t want people to come into this church and get the idea that it’s full of lovely people. I want people to know the truth, which is that we are very ordinary, sinful people who have been saved by a wonderful God and are being changed to be more like Him. There’s no way actions can show that, it needs to be explained.
A lot of us would rather serve unoffensively and have someone else use words to share the truth. We know that the truth of God is in sharp contrast to the philosophies of this world, and speaking God’s truth can get us in all sorts of hot water. Yet it is when we speak the truth that people have an opportunity to hear it, believe it and so be saved (Romans 10:14).
John Stott shares the following story from 1958 when he was leading a university outreach in Sydney, Australia. The day before the final meeting, Stott received word that his father had passed away. In addition to his grief, Stott was also starting to lose his voice. Here's how Stott describes the final day of the outreach:
It was already late afternoon within a few hours of the final meeting of the mission, so I didn't feel I could back away at that time. I went to the great hall and asked a few students to gather round me. I asked one of them to read … "My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness," (2 Corinthians 12:8-9). A student read these verses and then I asked them to lay hands on me and … pray that those verses might be true in my own experience.
When time came for me to give my address, I preached on the [broad and narrow ways from Matthew 7]. I had to get within half an inch of the microphone, and I croaked the gospel like a raven. I couldn't exert my personality. I couldn't move. I couldn't use any inflections in my voice. I croaked the gospel in monotone. Then when the time came to give the invitation, there was an immediate response, larger than any other meeting during the mission, as students came flocking forward …
I've been back to Australia about ten times since 1958, and on every occasion somebody has come up to me and said, "Do you remember that final meeting in the university in the great hall?" "I jolly well do," I reply. "Well," they say, "I was converted that night."
Stott concludes, "The Holy Spirit takes our human words, spoken in great weakness and frailty, and he carries them home with power to the mind, the heart, the conscience, and the will of the hearers in such a way that they see and believe."
That’s not just true for preachers. It’s true for you and me. It’s true of words spoken from a stage and words shared over a cuppa. If we really love people and want to serve them we will be prepared to do it with actions and with words.
7. Ministry Produces Blessing
Don’t swallow the lie of Satan that says satisfaction is found in the pursuit of selfish desires.
Blessing is found in serving others. As Jesus is quoted in Acts 20:35 “It is more blessed to give than receive”.
I have some bad news for you. The fact that you have sat there and endured listening to this message does not mean you will be blessed. Thousands listened to Jesus preach the sermon on the mount, and at the end of it He said these words:
Matthew 7:34-27
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Blessing comes from obedience.
In the case of today’s lesson, blessings will come your way when you do something about being a minister patterned after the teaching and example of Jesus.
When you work on developing a discerning mind;
When you work on cultivating a heart of love;
When you work on fully grasping your security in Christ;
When you work on learning true humility of spirit;
When you work on receiving ministry from others as a gift not an entitlement;
When you work on serving both in actions and in words;
When you work on cultivating a heart of love;
When you work on fully grasping your security in Christ;
When you work on learning true humility of spirit;
When you work on receiving ministry from others as a gift not an entitlement;
When you work on serving both in actions and in words;
Then you will be blessed.
Ministry is a blessing. Count on it, it’s a promise of God.
Are you living as a servant of Jesus and of the people of God?
Can you say today that you are living in obedience to Jesus?
What is the Holy Spirit saying to you today about how you need to grow in this area of your life?
[1]All Scriptures from The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
