WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.840 Today is a good example of somebody who took 00:00:01.840 --> 00:00:06.160 serious being discipled and is discipling others. 00:00:06.320 --> 00:00:09.759 And so Josh Turner and Josh and Kayla came to 00:00:09.759 --> 00:00:13.439 our very beginning when we started Radiant in 00:00:13.439 --> 00:00:17.079 my house. In fact, I met Josh the first time 00:00:17.079 --> 00:00:19.480 after he called me and said, hey, we're part 00:00:19.480 --> 00:00:21.620 of Radiant Anchorage and we hear you're starting 00:00:21.620 --> 00:00:24.140 a church and we're going to move to the valley 00:00:24.140 --> 00:00:27.160 to be a part of it with you. That was the only 00:00:27.160 --> 00:00:29.359 couple that did it. I mean, I left the whole 00:00:29.359 --> 00:00:31.100 church in Fairbanks, and not one person moved. 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:34.539 It's a way to go. So anyway, they showed up, 00:00:34.560 --> 00:00:36.960 and right from the beginning, they've been a 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:40.060 part of this. Two years ago, we were hunting 00:00:40.060 --> 00:00:43.369 together, and as we were sitting in the tent, 00:00:44.030 --> 00:00:47.990 Josh says to me, he says, I think it's time I 00:00:47.990 --> 00:00:51.320 get more serious about leadership and what that 00:00:51.320 --> 00:00:53.770 looks like in the church. And so we began to 00:00:53.770 --> 00:00:56.570 meet after that on a regular basis and still 00:00:56.570 --> 00:01:01.270 meet on a regular basis. And as we began that 00:01:01.270 --> 00:01:05.579 process, one of the questions we go through, 00:01:05.659 --> 00:01:08.180 and I'm going to go into a lot of this, but one 00:01:08.180 --> 00:01:10.540 of the things that Josh realized in the process 00:01:10.540 --> 00:01:14.819 of that was that his biblical competency, that 00:01:14.819 --> 00:01:16.760 means your understanding of the Bible, needed 00:01:16.760 --> 00:01:19.260 to grow. And then he needed to get really serious 00:01:19.260 --> 00:01:23.439 about it. In fact, it hit him so hard that he 00:01:23.439 --> 00:01:25.019 was ready to say, I've got to step away from 00:01:25.019 --> 00:01:26.879 this process. And I said, no, you've got to step 00:01:26.879 --> 00:01:31.879 toward it. And so he began to take serious his 00:01:31.879 --> 00:01:37.980 understanding of God's word. And so I basically 00:01:37.980 --> 00:01:39.500 said, okay, and you're going to preach at some 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:43.349 point. Which, if you know Josh, he'll tell you 00:01:43.349 --> 00:01:45.969 this. This is not his jam. At least that's what 00:01:45.969 --> 00:01:47.769 he thinks. I think you're going to be otherwise. 00:01:48.769 --> 00:01:51.629 convinced today. But it's been a really fun journey 00:01:51.629 --> 00:01:55.290 to go walk with Josh, and I'm just super excited 00:01:55.290 --> 00:01:58.409 for the chance that you guys get to hear him 00:01:58.409 --> 00:02:02.629 unpack God's Word. He's just a dude like the 00:02:02.629 --> 00:02:07.920 rest of us, or dudettes. I'll clarify that. But 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:10.360 I'm just super encouraged, and I think you're 00:02:10.360 --> 00:02:13.939 going to be blessed by what Josh shares today. 00:02:14.060 --> 00:02:16.319 So let me pray for you, Josh, and then we'll 00:02:16.319 --> 00:02:20.050 get into it. Lord, thank you for the work that 00:02:20.050 --> 00:02:23.259 you have done and are continuing to do in Josh's 00:02:23.259 --> 00:02:27.460 life. It serves as a good example to me and to 00:02:27.460 --> 00:02:29.680 others in this room that we need to take serious 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:36.669 our growth, that we need to press into continuing, 00:02:36.909 --> 00:02:40.550 stepping into a deeper and deeper relationship 00:02:40.550 --> 00:02:46.050 with you. And Lord, when the Spirit of God convicts, 00:02:46.050 --> 00:02:49.590 we step toward you, not away from you. And so 00:02:49.590 --> 00:02:52.150 thank you for that, that I have seen that with 00:02:52.150 --> 00:02:55.210 Josh and continue to see it. And so I pray today 00:02:55.210 --> 00:02:58.909 as he opens your word that Josh will get out 00:02:58.909 --> 00:03:01.550 of the way and that the Spirit of God will speak 00:03:01.680 --> 00:03:04.800 through him. So Spirit, we pray that you will 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:08.599 bring it today for us. Bring us the kind of conviction. 00:03:09.000 --> 00:03:11.900 Bring us the kind of words we need to hear through 00:03:11.900 --> 00:03:15.460 your word. In your name we pray. Amen. This is 00:03:15.460 --> 00:03:19.889 crazy. Yeah, if you had asked me eight years 00:03:19.889 --> 00:03:22.689 ago when Kayla and I moved out here to be a part 00:03:22.689 --> 00:03:24.490 of this, I'd have told you there's absolutely 00:03:24.490 --> 00:03:30.129 no way that I would be up here preaching. And 00:03:30.129 --> 00:03:34.759 all I can say is that it is because of Jesus 00:03:34.759 --> 00:03:43.280 that I stand here right now. Yeah, it is because 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:47.560 our Savior likes to take dirty, nasty, messy 00:03:47.560 --> 00:03:51.870 sinners, clean them up, and make them new. All 00:03:51.870 --> 00:03:54.949 the words that I have right here and all of my 00:03:54.949 --> 00:03:56.969 notes and everything I'm going to say is from 00:03:56.969 --> 00:04:00.370 him and for him, and it is by God's grace that 00:04:00.370 --> 00:04:04.840 I get to share it with you. And we're going to 00:04:04.840 --> 00:04:07.319 be going through a really popular passage this 00:04:07.319 --> 00:04:09.979 morning where Jesus washes the disciples' feet. 00:04:11.319 --> 00:04:13.599 And you would not believe how many people asked 00:04:13.599 --> 00:04:15.979 me if I would be washing someone's feet up here 00:04:15.979 --> 00:04:20.199 as part of this. No, we're not going to be doing 00:04:20.199 --> 00:04:24.319 that. My hope is that this wouldn't be just another 00:04:24.319 --> 00:04:29.410 foot -washing sermon. That after our time together 00:04:29.410 --> 00:04:32.470 this morning, you wouldn't leave here with just, 00:04:32.529 --> 00:04:36.889 oh, well, I need to be more humble. That you 00:04:36.889 --> 00:04:40.990 would actually be in absolute awe of the heart 00:04:40.990 --> 00:04:43.230 of Jesus after we're done with our time this 00:04:43.230 --> 00:04:49.689 morning, like you've never seen it before. And 00:04:49.689 --> 00:04:52.730 that we would not just know in our heads that 00:04:52.730 --> 00:04:55.449 Jesus loves us, but that we would believe in 00:04:55.449 --> 00:04:59.220 his love for us. Right? We've been talking about 00:04:59.220 --> 00:05:01.339 that since we started John. We don't want to 00:05:01.339 --> 00:05:03.800 just believe that Jesus. We want to believe in 00:05:03.800 --> 00:05:09.850 Jesus. Right? There's a difference. If there's 00:05:09.850 --> 00:05:11.870 anything you get from this sermon, the one thing 00:05:11.870 --> 00:05:15.370 I want you to walk away with is Jesus loves you 00:05:15.370 --> 00:05:19.310 and he willingly shed his blood and died so that 00:05:19.310 --> 00:05:22.620 you and I could be made clean. That's it. There 00:05:22.620 --> 00:05:25.839 it is. It's the gospel. That's what I want you 00:05:25.839 --> 00:05:30.300 to leave here with. And before we get too far, 00:05:30.420 --> 00:05:33.699 I want to set the stage for this passage. And 00:05:33.699 --> 00:05:35.980 John does that for us in verse 1. So let's read 00:05:35.980 --> 00:05:40.459 it. Before the Passover festival, Jesus knew 00:05:40.459 --> 00:05:43.300 that his hour had come to depart from this world 00:05:43.300 --> 00:05:46.079 to the Father. Having loved his own who were 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:51.930 in the world, he loved them to the end. The last 00:05:51.930 --> 00:05:53.769 several weeks, we've mentioned that we are in 00:05:53.769 --> 00:05:56.629 the last days before the cross in Jesus' life. 00:05:57.610 --> 00:06:00.370 And John tells us here that it takes place around 00:06:00.370 --> 00:06:04.680 Passover. So I want to touch base on what the 00:06:04.680 --> 00:06:08.189 Passover is and was. And then we'll keep going 00:06:08.189 --> 00:06:12.800 into our story. The Passover was when Israel 00:06:12.800 --> 00:06:15.560 remembered God rescuing them from slavery in 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:18.930 Egypt. God told them to spread the blood of a 00:06:18.930 --> 00:06:22.449 lamb across the doorpost, and the angel of death 00:06:22.449 --> 00:06:26.050 passed over their houses that were covered by 00:06:26.050 --> 00:06:30.779 the blood of a lamb. And in just a few minutes, 00:06:30.800 --> 00:06:33.300 as we go through this together, sitting here 00:06:33.300 --> 00:06:38.839 with his disciples is the Lamb of God, as John 00:06:38.839 --> 00:06:41.199 the Baptist refers to him in the first chapter 00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:44.769 of John. The one who takes away the sins of the 00:06:44.769 --> 00:06:48.560 world. And this is all happening during Passover. 00:06:51.550 --> 00:06:54.310 And Jesus is getting ready to do just that. He's 00:06:54.310 --> 00:06:56.629 getting ready to take away the sins of the world. 00:06:58.060 --> 00:07:00.800 He knows that the pain and the torment is coming. 00:07:01.180 --> 00:07:03.420 And he knows that he's about to feel the weight 00:07:03.420 --> 00:07:07.660 of every single sin committed on his shoulders. 00:07:10.079 --> 00:07:12.779 This is all happening in the shadow of the cross. 00:07:16.660 --> 00:07:18.420 So that's what's happening in the background. 00:07:18.560 --> 00:07:20.860 And I want us to keep... that in our minds as 00:07:20.860 --> 00:07:27.379 we go through this together. And in the last 00:07:27.379 --> 00:07:30.480 half of verse 1, it says, having loved his own 00:07:30.480 --> 00:07:33.300 who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 00:07:35.139 --> 00:07:37.839 That sentence really sums up a lot of what we've 00:07:37.839 --> 00:07:41.750 gone through together in John. We have seen Jesus 00:07:41.750 --> 00:07:44.350 love those around him and his disciples again 00:07:44.350 --> 00:07:48.160 and again and again and again. And John gives 00:07:48.160 --> 00:07:50.600 us a picture of what Jesus is going to continue 00:07:50.600 --> 00:07:57.300 to do. He's going to keep loving them. And through 00:07:57.300 --> 00:07:59.439 this passage today and over the next several 00:07:59.439 --> 00:08:03.709 chapters, Jesus' heart for his people and for 00:08:03.709 --> 00:08:06.490 his disciples is going to explode off the pages. 00:08:10.779 --> 00:08:14.160 The NIV translation of this verse says, having 00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:17.660 loved his own who were in the world, he now showed 00:08:17.660 --> 00:08:22.699 them the full extent of his love. And we're going 00:08:22.699 --> 00:08:25.920 to see that the full extent of Jesus' love for 00:08:25.920 --> 00:08:29.519 his disciples and for his people wasn't a parable 00:08:29.519 --> 00:08:32.899 or another miracle. or some crazy outrageous 00:08:32.899 --> 00:08:38.269 gift, we're going to see Jesus lower himself 00:08:38.269 --> 00:08:44.230 to the position of a servant. And we see in the 00:08:44.230 --> 00:08:47.090 rest of scripture that that love changes the 00:08:47.090 --> 00:08:50.879 disciples forever, just like it changes us forever. 00:08:52.659 --> 00:08:54.720 And I know we just prayed, but I'm going to pray 00:08:54.720 --> 00:08:56.620 again. I got to give this to the Lord. This is 00:08:56.620 --> 00:09:03.080 his. And then we'll dive in. Father, I thank 00:09:03.080 --> 00:09:04.860 you for your word. I thank you for everybody 00:09:04.860 --> 00:09:09.149 who's here. And I just ask that as we dive into 00:09:09.149 --> 00:09:12.039 this, that this would bring glory to your name, 00:09:12.179 --> 00:09:15.840 love to your people, and hope to those who don't 00:09:15.840 --> 00:09:19.210 know you, and that we would all know the love 00:09:19.210 --> 00:09:24.899 of Jesus. Amen. All right, let's go ahead and 00:09:24.899 --> 00:09:31.299 look at verse 2. Now when it was time for supper, 00:09:31.460 --> 00:09:35.070 I'm going to pause right there, because we all 00:09:35.070 --> 00:09:37.309 need to understand what supper looked like for 00:09:37.309 --> 00:09:41.889 Jesus. They weren't sitting at a modern dining 00:09:41.889 --> 00:09:44.820 table. and chairs similar to what you're sitting 00:09:44.820 --> 00:09:48.840 in right now. The table that they would have 00:09:48.840 --> 00:09:50.960 ate at would have been about this high off the 00:09:50.960 --> 00:09:53.919 ground, and they would recline and relax and 00:09:53.919 --> 00:09:56.840 kick back around this big table on cushions or 00:09:56.840 --> 00:09:59.730 pillows. So that's where we're at right now. 00:09:59.830 --> 00:10:02.350 Jesus is reclined with the twelve, getting ready 00:10:02.350 --> 00:10:07.850 to eat. So let's go ahead and read the rest of 00:10:07.850 --> 00:10:12.779 verse two. Now when it was time for supper, the 00:10:12.779 --> 00:10:15.399 devil had already put it into the heart of Judas, 00:10:15.620 --> 00:10:21.279 Simon Iscariot's son, to betray him. So picture 00:10:21.279 --> 00:10:24.830 this, Jesus is sitting there, reclining, kicking 00:10:24.830 --> 00:10:30.600 back, relaxing, with 12 men who have spent the 00:10:30.600 --> 00:10:34.700 last three years with him. They've traveled with 00:10:34.700 --> 00:10:39.620 him, they've eaten with him a lot, they heard 00:10:39.620 --> 00:10:42.440 all the teachings, and they saw all the miracles, 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:47.850 saw him turn water into wine, feed 5 ,000, and 00:10:47.850 --> 00:10:51.190 they saw Lazarus walk out of the tomb. They've 00:10:51.190 --> 00:10:53.629 grown really close together. This is an intimate 00:10:53.629 --> 00:10:55.710 setting, is what I'm trying to get across here. 00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:02.460 And reclining and kicked back there with them 00:11:02.460 --> 00:11:08.190 is Judas. He has heard all the same teachings. 00:11:08.389 --> 00:11:13.549 He has seen all the same miracles. And it tells 00:11:13.549 --> 00:11:16.750 us here in verse 2 that the devil has played 00:11:16.750 --> 00:11:23.629 his game with Judas and won. Judas knows what 00:11:23.629 --> 00:11:26.809 he's about to do. He has made his choice. And 00:11:26.809 --> 00:11:29.909 I always picture this scene, you know, at this 00:11:29.909 --> 00:11:33.370 table, they're reclining. Jesus and Judas are 00:11:33.370 --> 00:11:36.440 sitting right across from each other. able to 00:11:36.440 --> 00:11:41.730 look each other in the eye. Let's read verse 00:11:41.730 --> 00:11:45.809 3 and see where Jesus is at with his betrayer 00:11:45.809 --> 00:11:52.870 right in front of him. Jesus knew that the Father 00:11:52.870 --> 00:11:55.750 had given everything into his hands, that he 00:11:55.750 --> 00:11:57.870 had come from God, and that he was going back 00:11:57.870 --> 00:12:06.620 to God. Jesus knew. He knew that Judas was going 00:12:06.620 --> 00:12:09.000 to betray him. He knew that the cross was coming. 00:12:10.029 --> 00:12:12.850 He knew where he came from and where he was going. 00:12:15.000 --> 00:12:18.480 Jesus was not caught off guard. We don't have 00:12:18.480 --> 00:12:21.320 a Savior that is caught between the enemy and 00:12:21.320 --> 00:12:24.000 Jewish and Roman aggression, not wondering what 00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:27.279 to do. It says here that the Father has given 00:12:27.279 --> 00:12:31.759 everything into his hands. He has all the authority, 00:12:31.799 --> 00:12:34.980 and he is the most powerful person in that room 00:12:34.980 --> 00:12:39.600 right now. I was listening to a sermon by Joby 00:12:39.600 --> 00:12:42.500 Martin on this passage, and he had a great question 00:12:42.500 --> 00:12:46.389 for this part of the story. Oh yeah, it's right 00:12:46.389 --> 00:12:52.159 there on the slides. What do you do when it dawns 00:12:52.159 --> 00:12:55.080 on you that you are the most powerful person 00:12:55.080 --> 00:13:02.500 in the room? Dads, husbands, I'd guess that in 00:13:02.500 --> 00:13:04.460 your family, you hold a lot of the authority. 00:13:06.990 --> 00:13:12.389 What do you do with all that? Moms, wives, when 00:13:12.389 --> 00:13:18.879 dad's gone, that falls to your shoulders. Big 00:13:18.879 --> 00:13:22.659 brothers, big sisters, bosses, business owners, 00:13:22.860 --> 00:13:30.909 managers, GC leaders, elders. At some point, 00:13:30.929 --> 00:13:32.850 every one of us is going to be in a position 00:13:32.850 --> 00:13:36.980 where we hold all of the cards. What do you do 00:13:36.980 --> 00:13:40.279 with all that authority? And I'm asking you this 00:13:40.279 --> 00:13:42.860 question so that maybe just for a second, we 00:13:42.860 --> 00:13:45.440 can wrap our heads around what's about to happen 00:13:45.440 --> 00:13:47.419 here. Because what we're going to see is that 00:13:47.419 --> 00:13:50.659 the guy who holds everything in his hands, the 00:13:50.659 --> 00:13:55.470 creator, is about to lower himself to the position 00:13:55.470 --> 00:14:05.110 of a servant. Let's read verses four and five. 00:14:08.159 --> 00:14:11.980 So he got up from supper. laid aside his outer 00:14:11.980 --> 00:14:15.799 clothing, took a towel, and tied it around himself. 00:14:17.789 --> 00:14:20.570 Next, he poured water into a basin and began 00:14:20.570 --> 00:14:24.799 to wash his disciples' feet and to dry them with 00:14:24.799 --> 00:14:29.710 the towel tied around him. So Jesus gets up from 00:14:29.710 --> 00:14:32.889 the table, takes off his clothes, down to his 00:14:32.889 --> 00:14:37.570 shorts, and wraps himself in a towel. Weird. 00:14:38.629 --> 00:14:40.990 This would be super weird for us if this happened 00:14:40.990 --> 00:14:43.429 at dinner today, right? Imagine you're at someone 00:14:43.429 --> 00:14:45.730 else's house for dinner. one of the guests stands 00:14:45.730 --> 00:14:48.429 up and undresses down to their shorts and then 00:14:48.429 --> 00:14:52.159 wraps themselves in a towel. That would be really 00:14:52.159 --> 00:14:55.409 awkward. But for the disciples, this would have 00:14:55.409 --> 00:15:00.059 been common. In their day, when you came to someone's 00:15:00.059 --> 00:15:03.840 house for a meal, there would normally be someone 00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:09.129 there to wash your feet. And that someone was 00:15:09.129 --> 00:15:14.000 a servant. No one volunteered to be the foot 00:15:14.000 --> 00:15:18.289 -washing guy. People walked around with open 00:15:18.289 --> 00:15:21.009 -toed shoes on dirt roads and their feet would 00:15:21.009 --> 00:15:25.070 be covered in dust and sand and even animal waste. 00:15:26.100 --> 00:15:32.450 It was a disgusting job. And I was trying to 00:15:32.450 --> 00:15:34.549 think of like how this would relate to us now. 00:15:34.629 --> 00:15:37.330 How could we like put ourselves in this situation 00:15:37.330 --> 00:15:40.649 to try and understand like what's happening right 00:15:40.649 --> 00:15:43.649 here? And one of the things that I thought of 00:15:43.649 --> 00:15:45.710 was some of you probably have kids or teenagers 00:15:45.710 --> 00:15:50.250 that play sports, right? or have been the kid 00:15:50.250 --> 00:15:53.059 or the teenager that played sports. And when 00:15:53.059 --> 00:15:56.279 your kid or your teenager gets home from practice 00:15:56.279 --> 00:15:58.600 or a game and they kick off their shoes, I'm 00:15:58.600 --> 00:16:00.679 willing to bet that the smell would wake the 00:16:00.679 --> 00:16:06.110 dead. Now imagine your kids come home from a 00:16:06.110 --> 00:16:09.690 game, take their shoes off, and their stinky, 00:16:09.870 --> 00:16:14.840 sweaty, nasty feet need to be washed. And you 00:16:14.840 --> 00:16:17.879 have to clean them with nothing but water and 00:16:17.879 --> 00:16:21.779 your bare hands. That's the job we're talking 00:16:21.779 --> 00:16:28.120 about here. It was the job of a servant. So this 00:16:28.120 --> 00:16:30.080 wouldn't have been weird for the disciples. They 00:16:30.080 --> 00:16:32.399 would have been used to seeing someone wrapped 00:16:32.399 --> 00:16:34.759 in a towel, washing the feet of somebody else. 00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:38.799 What would have been really weird for the disciples 00:16:38.799 --> 00:16:46.470 was seeing Jesus look like a servant. Jesus has 00:16:46.470 --> 00:16:50.480 stripped himself of his dignity and actually 00:16:50.480 --> 00:16:54.399 looks like a servant. But don't misunderstand 00:16:54.399 --> 00:16:58.049 what I'm saying or what's happening here. This 00:16:58.049 --> 00:17:00.769 is still the same Jesus that John introduced 00:17:00.769 --> 00:17:06.819 to us in chapter 1. In the beginning was the 00:17:06.819 --> 00:17:09.140 Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word 00:17:09.140 --> 00:17:12.680 was God. He was with God in the beginning. All 00:17:12.680 --> 00:17:15.079 things were created through him, and apart from 00:17:15.079 --> 00:17:18.220 him, not one thing was created that has been 00:17:18.220 --> 00:17:21.849 created. In him was life, and that life was the 00:17:21.849 --> 00:17:25.240 light of men. That light shines in the darkness, 00:17:25.440 --> 00:17:29.630 and yet the darkness did not overcome it. That's 00:17:29.630 --> 00:17:35.869 who's standing here wrapped in a towel. He's 00:17:35.869 --> 00:17:37.890 taking on the role of a servant, and he's about 00:17:37.890 --> 00:17:40.990 to get down and dirty. The creator, the light 00:17:40.990 --> 00:17:44.450 of men, the one who holds all the authority is 00:17:44.450 --> 00:17:53.930 about to scrub feet. So Jesus grabs his bowl, 00:17:54.009 --> 00:17:59.289 his basin, and his towel. He fills it with water, 00:17:59.390 --> 00:18:04.599 and he comes to the table, gets down on his knees. 00:18:05.940 --> 00:18:11.730 He starts washing their feet, and he looks up, 00:18:11.769 --> 00:18:16.779 and it's Matthew. the tax collector, absolutely 00:18:16.779 --> 00:18:22.369 despised by society. He moves on to the next 00:18:22.369 --> 00:18:33.140 guy, kneels down, and he looks up, and it's Thomas, 00:18:33.279 --> 00:18:37.339 the doubter, the one who refused to believe that 00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:46.000 he would even rose from the dead. And next, he 00:18:46.289 --> 00:18:50.369 gets to Judas. Jesus knows what Judas is going 00:18:50.369 --> 00:18:54.059 to do. He knows the choice that he's made. And 00:18:54.059 --> 00:19:00.029 Jesus gets down, looks him in the eyes, and gives 00:19:00.029 --> 00:19:03.369 him the exact same loving care that he gave everyone 00:19:03.369 --> 00:19:06.130 else. He didn't wash everybody else's feet and 00:19:06.130 --> 00:19:09.900 then get to this guy and go, I'll wash everyone 00:19:09.900 --> 00:19:14.930 else's feet but him. He gives him the same loving 00:19:14.930 --> 00:19:18.509 care, and Jesus goes around the table, one disciple 00:19:18.509 --> 00:19:23.000 after another, the doubter, the despised, the 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:25.720 betrayer. Eventually, all of them would desert 00:19:25.720 --> 00:19:30.670 him, but he washes all of their feet because 00:19:30.670 --> 00:19:42.079 for Jesus, no one is below being served. And 00:19:42.079 --> 00:19:46.690 as Jesus continues, at the corner of the table 00:19:46.690 --> 00:19:50.660 or somewhere at the table, there's Peter. And 00:19:50.660 --> 00:19:54.099 Peter is watching this unfold before his eyes, 00:19:54.200 --> 00:20:00.549 and he does not like it. He is stressing out 00:20:00.549 --> 00:20:04.680 inside, and the anxiety is starting to boil over 00:20:04.680 --> 00:20:08.000 within him. And Jesus does the same thing. He 00:20:08.000 --> 00:20:11.380 comes to Peter, gets down on his knees, looks 00:20:11.380 --> 00:20:15.430 Peter in the eyes, And what happens next is one 00:20:15.430 --> 00:20:18.190 of my favorite conversations that these two have. 00:20:23.440 --> 00:20:28.769 Let's read verse 6. He came to Simon Peter, who 00:20:28.829 --> 00:20:31.789 asked him, Lord, are you going to wash my feet? 00:20:32.910 --> 00:20:36.569 Peter starts the conversation with a very appropriate 00:20:36.569 --> 00:20:40.809 question. Lord, are you going to wash my feet 00:20:40.809 --> 00:20:45.220 right now? Peter understood the status quo here. 00:20:45.380 --> 00:20:48.299 He knew that by all accounts, Jesus shouldn't 00:20:48.299 --> 00:20:52.059 be the one doing this right now. This didn't 00:20:52.059 --> 00:20:54.359 make sense. Peter is looking around and going, 00:20:54.440 --> 00:20:57.319 where is the foot washing guy? This isn't what's 00:20:57.319 --> 00:21:02.049 supposed to be happening right now. Now let's 00:21:02.049 --> 00:21:04.069 go to verse 7 and see how Jesus answers him. 00:21:06.720 --> 00:21:10.500 Jesus answered him, what I'm doing you don't 00:21:10.500 --> 00:21:14.000 realize now, but afterward you will understand. 00:21:15.710 --> 00:21:21.240 Jesus responds with, look, Peter, you don't get 00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:24.000 it right now, you don't understand, and that's 00:21:24.000 --> 00:21:32.349 okay. Trust me. And you would think that Peter 00:21:32.349 --> 00:21:35.069 in that moment would have the smarts in this 00:21:35.069 --> 00:21:38.450 situation to take the hint and let Jesus do his 00:21:38.450 --> 00:21:44.839 thing. But that's not Peter. Let's look at the 00:21:44.839 --> 00:21:48.119 first part of verse 8 and see Peter's response. 00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:52.079 You will never wash my feet, Peter said. Peter 00:21:52.079 --> 00:21:54.740 says, absolutely not. There is no way you're 00:21:54.740 --> 00:21:58.519 going to wash my feet. Peter is freaking out. 00:21:59.619 --> 00:22:02.299 This is going against every cultural norm that 00:22:02.299 --> 00:22:08.549 Peter knows right now. Now pay attention to what 00:22:08.549 --> 00:22:10.670 Jesus says next, because this is where it gets 00:22:10.670 --> 00:22:13.990 real. This is the important part of the conversation 00:22:13.990 --> 00:22:21.759 here. Jesus replied, if I don't wash you, you 00:22:21.950 --> 00:22:29.589 have no part with me. So first, I just want us 00:22:29.589 --> 00:22:33.250 to slow down and notice how gentle Jesus is with 00:22:33.250 --> 00:22:39.759 Peter. Jesus doesn't grab Peter and go, look, 00:22:39.799 --> 00:22:41.720 idiot, I'm trying to do something really nice 00:22:41.720 --> 00:22:47.069 for you right now, so chill out. No, Jesus is 00:22:47.069 --> 00:22:50.670 saying compassionately, Peter, if I don't do 00:22:50.670 --> 00:22:56.049 this, this isn't going to work. You and I won't 00:22:56.049 --> 00:23:06.250 be a thing. What Peter did not understand here 00:23:06.250 --> 00:23:09.069 is that it wasn't about how dirty his feet were. 00:23:10.720 --> 00:23:14.240 It was about the necessity for Jesus to clean 00:23:14.240 --> 00:23:19.180 him. Jesus, in this moment, is pointing to the 00:23:19.180 --> 00:23:23.940 cross. He was pointing to the spiritual cleaning 00:23:23.940 --> 00:23:27.650 that Peter needed. a cleaning we all need as 00:23:27.650 --> 00:23:38.970 well. Church, look at me for just a second. It's 00:23:38.970 --> 00:23:43.390 not about how deep your sin runs, and it's not 00:23:43.390 --> 00:23:46.230 about how much baggage you have when you come 00:23:46.230 --> 00:23:51.470 to Jesus. It's about the need for Jesus to be 00:23:51.470 --> 00:23:57.930 the one to clean you. Jesus had to take the beatings, 00:23:57.930 --> 00:24:01.130 carry the cross, and take the nails in his hands, 00:24:01.210 --> 00:24:04.630 and it had to be his blood that poured out for 00:24:04.630 --> 00:24:08.240 us to be cleansed from sin. And because he shed 00:24:08.240 --> 00:24:10.940 his blood, there is not a stain on us too deep 00:24:10.940 --> 00:24:19.009 that he can't cleanse. As we keep going, we see 00:24:19.009 --> 00:24:22.569 Peter give another classic Peter response. Let's 00:24:22.569 --> 00:24:30.509 look at verse 9. Simon Peter said to him, Lord, 00:24:30.650 --> 00:24:34.069 not only my feet, but also my hands and my head. 00:24:36.000 --> 00:24:39.720 So Peter, being this super enthusiastic, full 00:24:39.720 --> 00:24:42.940 -throttle guy, is like, okay, Jesus, you get 00:24:42.940 --> 00:24:45.440 the brush and I'll get the rubber ducky and get 00:24:45.440 --> 00:24:52.289 scrubbing. But Peter still didn't get it. And 00:24:52.289 --> 00:24:54.650 Jesus, again, is going to gently explain to us 00:24:54.650 --> 00:25:02.099 what's going on here in the next verse. Let's 00:25:02.099 --> 00:25:23.599 look at verse 10. I've got to be honest, verse 00:25:23.599 --> 00:25:26.460 10 was really hard for me to wrap my brain around. 00:25:28.180 --> 00:25:32.950 I'm going to read it one more time. bathed, Jesus 00:25:32.950 --> 00:25:36.150 told him, doesn't need to wash anything except 00:25:36.150 --> 00:25:40.970 his feet, but he is completely clean. You are 00:25:40.970 --> 00:25:46.029 clean, but not all of you. After reading it over 00:25:46.029 --> 00:25:48.349 and over and over again, I was like, okay, Lord, 00:25:48.509 --> 00:25:53.279 is Peter clean or is he not? He's completely 00:25:53.279 --> 00:25:56.500 clean but needs his feet washed? What's going 00:25:56.500 --> 00:26:01.210 on here? What Jesus is showing us here is what 00:26:01.210 --> 00:26:03.690 repentance looks like in the life of a believer. 00:26:06.289 --> 00:26:09.349 Jesus tells Peter, you are clean. You already 00:26:09.349 --> 00:26:14.549 had a bath. When we put our faith in Christ, 00:26:14.630 --> 00:26:18.250 our sins are forgiven, washed away, past, present, 00:26:18.390 --> 00:26:22.150 and future. Jesus told Peter, you are clean, 00:26:22.250 --> 00:26:25.150 knowing that in the coming hours, in this exact 00:26:25.150 --> 00:26:28.529 same chapter, just a few verses down, that Peter 00:26:28.529 --> 00:26:34.329 was going to deny him three times. And later 00:26:34.329 --> 00:26:39.329 in John, we see Peter reconciled back to Jesus. 00:26:40.299 --> 00:26:46.910 and in a way gets his feet washed again. I have 00:26:46.910 --> 00:26:49.430 a story, I think, that illustrates this pretty 00:26:49.430 --> 00:26:54.759 well, and it's about my son Luke, who I absolutely 00:26:54.759 --> 00:26:57.900 love, like with all my heart. He's full throttle 00:26:57.900 --> 00:27:01.380 and all boy all the time, but he can be really 00:27:01.380 --> 00:27:07.079 sweet, and God gave us a moment that this summer 00:27:07.079 --> 00:27:12.849 that has really impacted me. Yeah, we can go 00:27:12.849 --> 00:27:15.490 ahead and put the picture up there. I don't know 00:27:15.490 --> 00:27:19.470 if Yeah, so from the right to the left, on the 00:27:19.470 --> 00:27:21.509 right, that's my youngest son, Luke, and then 00:27:21.509 --> 00:27:24.630 his buddy, Daniel, and Dottie, and then Alan. 00:27:25.519 --> 00:27:29.420 So Kayla and I were at the church campout watching 00:27:29.769 --> 00:27:33.390 these hooligans play in this mud hole. And they 00:27:33.390 --> 00:27:36.210 were jumping in it and pushing each other down 00:27:36.210 --> 00:27:38.609 and getting running starts and barreling right 00:27:38.609 --> 00:27:41.390 through the middle of it. And it was super cute. 00:27:41.509 --> 00:27:44.549 Like, I'm not going to lie. It was awesome. But 00:27:44.549 --> 00:27:46.769 when they were finally done, my son Luke was 00:27:46.769 --> 00:27:50.349 covered from head to toe in mud. It was in his 00:27:50.349 --> 00:27:52.930 ears. It was packed into his eye sockets. It 00:27:52.930 --> 00:27:55.589 was under his fingernails, you know, packed into 00:27:55.589 --> 00:28:00.119 his clothes. It was everywhere. So I picked him 00:28:00.119 --> 00:28:02.220 up and I sat him on the tailgate of my truck 00:28:02.220 --> 00:28:05.900 and I took his shoes off, poured out what felt 00:28:05.900 --> 00:28:08.059 like gallons and gallons of water out of his 00:28:08.059 --> 00:28:12.269 shoes. And Luke finally, like he got a good look 00:28:12.269 --> 00:28:16.609 at himself. He was like looking at himself. realizing 00:28:16.609 --> 00:28:21.809 that he's really dirty, and he looks down, and 00:28:21.910 --> 00:28:25.759 then he looks at me, and he said, Daddy, wash 00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:34.259 it away. And we did. Him and all his buddies 00:28:34.259 --> 00:28:38.359 got stripped of their clothes and hosed down 00:28:38.359 --> 00:28:41.200 right there where we were all camping. And if 00:28:41.200 --> 00:28:47.740 you were there, you heard the screaming. Our 00:28:47.740 --> 00:28:49.680 walk with Christ really isn't much different. 00:28:50.400 --> 00:28:52.880 When we put our faith in him, we are clean. We 00:28:52.880 --> 00:28:56.009 don't need another bath. But then we go out into 00:28:56.009 --> 00:28:59.609 the world, we get dirty, we mess up, we sin, 00:28:59.710 --> 00:29:01.670 and sometimes we run through puddles we know 00:29:01.670 --> 00:29:06.950 we shouldn't. So we go back to our Savior. We 00:29:06.950 --> 00:29:10.390 have a life of continual repentance and come 00:29:10.390 --> 00:29:17.049 before Jesus and say, Jesus, wash it away. Now 00:29:17.049 --> 00:29:19.369 here's the thing I really love about that story 00:29:19.369 --> 00:29:25.980 with Luke. Luke didn't clean himself up before 00:29:25.980 --> 00:29:32.230 coming to me. He didn't say, Dad, give me five 00:29:32.230 --> 00:29:34.170 minutes, let me get cleaned up, and then I'll 00:29:34.170 --> 00:29:42.890 come to you. No, he came to me filthy. He knew 00:29:42.890 --> 00:29:45.890 he was dirty and that I can clean him. And you 00:29:45.890 --> 00:29:49.960 might say, yeah, Josh, he's three. So what? He 00:29:49.960 --> 00:29:55.309 was dirty and he knew he needed his dad. And 00:29:55.309 --> 00:29:57.509 I think we can come to Jesus in the exact same 00:29:57.509 --> 00:30:01.180 way. Because like a toddler, we are prone to 00:30:01.180 --> 00:30:04.359 mess up again and again and again and again. 00:30:08.779 --> 00:30:10.660 Do you know what we spent the rest of the weekend 00:30:10.660 --> 00:30:15.150 doing after we got Luke cleaned up? He's three. 00:30:16.759 --> 00:30:21.880 Keeping him out of the mud hole. Any chance he 00:30:21.880 --> 00:30:24.619 got after that, he would dart for it. Or if Luke 00:30:24.619 --> 00:30:27.160 was missing from our campsite, we knew exactly 00:30:27.160 --> 00:30:29.710 where he was going. He was going for the mud. 00:30:31.680 --> 00:30:35.869 Don't we do that? Don't we get cleaned up from 00:30:35.869 --> 00:30:41.019 one mess only to run right to another one? Keep 00:30:41.019 --> 00:30:43.059 thinking of that video of the sheep that Caleb 00:30:43.059 --> 00:30:45.740 showed. Gets rescued out of the ditch and then... 00:30:45.940 --> 00:30:47.660 runs, and then two seconds, hops right back into 00:30:47.660 --> 00:30:54.970 the same ditch. Or sometimes we get stuck in 00:30:54.970 --> 00:30:58.950 this never -ending hamster wheel of sin, this 00:30:58.950 --> 00:31:07.660 cycle that we can't get out of. We can come to 00:31:07.660 --> 00:31:12.410 Jesus with all of that. We don't have to clean 00:31:12.410 --> 00:31:17.180 ourselves up first. It's tempting to, though. 00:31:19.049 --> 00:31:25.619 It's tempting to keep the mask on or be like, 00:31:25.700 --> 00:31:28.720 after I take care of X, Y, and Z, once my life 00:31:28.720 --> 00:31:34.019 looks okay, then I'll come to Jesus. But that's 00:31:34.019 --> 00:31:37.880 not how it works. You see, Jesus didn't come 00:31:37.880 --> 00:31:40.099 to the disciples at that table and tell them 00:31:40.099 --> 00:31:46.599 to get up and go clean their feet and come back 00:31:46.599 --> 00:31:49.059 and sit down so that he could wash clean feet. 00:31:54.470 --> 00:32:00.220 He accepted them with all of their filth. But 00:32:00.220 --> 00:32:02.279 here's the kicker, and this is how we know Jesus 00:32:02.279 --> 00:32:06.759 truly loves us. He'll accept us with all of our 00:32:06.759 --> 00:32:10.000 filth, but he is not going to let us stay dirty. 00:32:13.160 --> 00:32:15.640 He gets down into our hearts and he cleans us 00:32:15.640 --> 00:32:21.559 over and over and over again. And we see in the 00:32:21.559 --> 00:32:26.730 next verse that not everyone there getting their 00:32:26.730 --> 00:32:35.740 feet washed was clean. Let's read verse 11. For 00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:37.980 he knew who would betray him. This is why he 00:32:37.980 --> 00:32:43.069 said, not all of you are clean. Judas is there 00:32:43.069 --> 00:32:45.809 having his feet washed and listening and watching 00:32:45.809 --> 00:32:51.069 this conversation between Peter and Jesus. And 00:32:51.069 --> 00:32:53.589 I imagine when Jesus said, Not all of you are 00:32:53.589 --> 00:32:55.869 clean. I always imagine Jesus turning the volume 00:32:55.869 --> 00:32:58.859 up just a little bit so that Judas could hear 00:32:58.859 --> 00:33:02.809 that. Not out of being a jerk, but a warning 00:33:02.809 --> 00:33:08.990 and a reminder. Because what Jesus is reminding 00:33:08.990 --> 00:33:13.579 us here of, and this isn't popular to say, but 00:33:14.569 --> 00:33:19.849 Jesus is the only way to get clean. Jesus is 00:33:19.849 --> 00:33:24.059 the only means of salvation. And without placing 00:33:24.059 --> 00:33:26.500 your faith in him and his work on the cross, 00:33:26.740 --> 00:33:35.140 you are not clean. If he does not wash you, you 00:33:35.140 --> 00:33:41.789 have no part in him. And some of us, like Judas, 00:33:42.509 --> 00:33:50.220 won't let go of our sin. Like Judas traded Jesus 00:33:50.220 --> 00:33:53.460 for 30 pieces of silver, we would rather trade 00:33:53.460 --> 00:33:55.660 Jesus for whatever brings us pleasure in the 00:33:55.660 --> 00:34:03.210 moment. I know because I've been there. For years, 00:34:03.329 --> 00:34:07.539 I struggled with pornography. And if you would 00:34:07.539 --> 00:34:09.559 have asked me back then, I would have told you, 00:34:09.599 --> 00:34:13.250 oh man, it's an addiction. I can't. help but 00:34:13.250 --> 00:34:16.469 give in to this, but looking back, I know what 00:34:16.469 --> 00:34:22.179 my actual heart posture was then. My actual heart 00:34:22.179 --> 00:34:26.480 posture was, no, God, I do not want you. I know 00:34:26.480 --> 00:34:28.920 what's best for me, and I'd rather sit here in 00:34:28.920 --> 00:34:31.860 this puddle of filth. I stand with the enemy, 00:34:32.000 --> 00:34:34.739 and I'm going to stay in this darkness, and I'm 00:34:34.739 --> 00:34:38.010 not coming to the light. That was my heart posture. 00:34:42.210 --> 00:34:45.949 Meanwhile, there is Jesus, towel, and water in 00:34:45.949 --> 00:34:52.280 hand. ready to wash us. Will you let him clean 00:34:52.280 --> 00:35:01.309 you? Okay, so Jesus washes the feet of the disciples, 00:35:01.590 --> 00:35:04.570 has his conversation with Peter, and then in 00:35:04.570 --> 00:35:12.000 verse 12, he sits back down. Let's read it. When 00:35:12.000 --> 00:35:14.679 Jesus had washed their feet and put on his outer 00:35:14.679 --> 00:35:17.599 clothing, he reclined again and said to them, 00:35:18.079 --> 00:35:22.989 do you know what I have done for you? Family, 00:35:23.050 --> 00:35:28.400 do you know what's been done for you? Do you 00:35:28.400 --> 00:35:30.840 understand that the creator gave himself up to 00:35:30.840 --> 00:35:37.400 save you? Do you know that Jesus loves you and 00:35:37.400 --> 00:35:40.159 willingly shed his blood and died so that you 00:35:40.159 --> 00:35:45.969 and I could be made clean? You guys remember 00:35:45.969 --> 00:35:48.210 our imaginary table over here and the disciples 00:35:48.210 --> 00:35:51.929 sitting here? Jesus made them clean and he made 00:35:51.929 --> 00:35:56.010 them new. And they went on from being doubters 00:35:56.010 --> 00:35:59.769 and deniers and deserters to leading his church 00:35:59.769 --> 00:36:03.659 and spreading the gospel across the world. Do 00:36:03.659 --> 00:36:06.789 you know why? Because they knew what had been 00:36:06.789 --> 00:36:15.230 done for them. And here in the next few verses, 00:36:16.039 --> 00:36:18.500 Jesus is going to show us how we need to live 00:36:18.500 --> 00:36:21.659 once we've been made clean and how we live when 00:36:21.659 --> 00:36:25.760 we know what's been done for us. Let's read verses 00:36:25.760 --> 00:36:32.110 13 through 17. You call me teacher and Lord, 00:36:32.250 --> 00:36:34.869 and you are speaking rightly since that is what 00:36:34.869 --> 00:36:38.860 I am. So if I, your Lord and teacher, have washed 00:36:38.860 --> 00:36:42.840 your feet, you also ought to wash one another's 00:36:42.840 --> 00:36:46.920 feet. For I have given you an example that you 00:36:46.920 --> 00:36:51.190 also should do just as I have done for you. Truly 00:36:51.190 --> 00:36:53.269 I tell you, a servant is not greater than his 00:36:53.269 --> 00:36:56.230 master, and a messenger is not greater than the 00:36:56.230 --> 00:36:59.679 one who sent him. If you know these things, you 00:36:59.679 --> 00:37:04.389 are blessed if you do them. I love that Jesus 00:37:04.389 --> 00:37:08.250 doesn't just do what he did and then leave the 00:37:08.250 --> 00:37:11.349 disciples there wondering what's going on with 00:37:11.349 --> 00:37:14.679 their jaws to the floor. That he loves them and 00:37:14.679 --> 00:37:18.269 is teaching them and instructing them. And I 00:37:18.269 --> 00:37:20.670 think there are three things we can pull from 00:37:20.670 --> 00:37:25.659 what Jesus is saying here. Let's look at 13 and 00:37:25.659 --> 00:37:31.780 14 again. You call me teacher and Lord, and you 00:37:31.780 --> 00:37:33.760 are speaking rightly, since that is what I am. 00:37:34.119 --> 00:37:36.719 So if I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your 00:37:36.719 --> 00:37:39.860 feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 00:37:42.940 --> 00:37:45.280 Jesus states the obvious to start things off 00:37:45.280 --> 00:37:49.579 here. You're right. I am your Lord and teacher, 00:37:49.659 --> 00:37:53.699 and I hold all the authority. Then he keeps going. 00:37:54.199 --> 00:37:56.920 So if I, your Lord and teacher, am willing to 00:37:56.920 --> 00:38:02.909 wash your feet, you should too. And this brings 00:38:02.909 --> 00:38:07.489 us to the first point. We should serve like Jesus. 00:38:10.190 --> 00:38:13.329 And just to clarify, Jesus isn't saying that 00:38:13.329 --> 00:38:15.590 we all need to leave this sermon this morning 00:38:15.590 --> 00:38:17.909 and go out under the streets of Wasilla and Palmer 00:38:17.909 --> 00:38:20.820 and wash everybody's feet. That's not what he's 00:38:20.820 --> 00:38:23.860 saying here. What Jesus is saying is we need 00:38:23.860 --> 00:38:27.099 to be willing to lower ourselves, just like he 00:38:27.099 --> 00:38:35.260 did. Jesus was willing to strip himself of his 00:38:35.260 --> 00:38:39.420 dignity and wash someone else's mess. We need 00:38:39.420 --> 00:38:42.329 to do the same. We should be willing to lower 00:38:42.329 --> 00:38:45.030 ourselves and get into the messiness of someone 00:38:45.030 --> 00:38:55.420 else's life and serve them. To put it in really 00:38:55.420 --> 00:38:59.630 simple terms, if no one was below being served 00:38:59.630 --> 00:39:05.369 for Jesus, in his kingdom, no one is above serving. 00:39:11.690 --> 00:39:15.010 Jesus keeps going, and in verse 15, he gives 00:39:15.010 --> 00:39:19.300 us the reason why we should serve. For I have 00:39:19.300 --> 00:39:23.010 given you an example that you also should do 00:39:23.010 --> 00:39:28.110 just as I have done for you. And I think that's 00:39:28.309 --> 00:39:32.269 the key. For I have given you an example. Jesus 00:39:32.269 --> 00:39:34.769 is saying, serve others because I have served 00:39:34.769 --> 00:39:38.980 you already. We don't serve because we're trying 00:39:38.980 --> 00:39:41.880 to earn favor from God. We don't serve because 00:39:41.880 --> 00:39:44.960 we're trying to tally up a few extra Jesus points. 00:39:45.469 --> 00:39:47.809 Jesus won that game on the cross. There's no 00:39:47.809 --> 00:39:54.449 more points to be had. And that's my second point. 00:39:54.550 --> 00:40:00.909 We serve because Jesus served us. And any act 00:40:00.909 --> 00:40:03.809 of service we do, whether that's set up and tear 00:40:03.809 --> 00:40:07.489 down, serving in the kids' ministry, on the worship 00:40:07.489 --> 00:40:11.230 team, making coffee, or cooking barbecue at a 00:40:11.230 --> 00:40:14.880 football game, needs to be rooted in what's already 00:40:14.880 --> 00:40:18.119 been done for us. His death on the cross gives 00:40:18.119 --> 00:40:21.420 us the reason why we serve. and the ability to 00:40:21.420 --> 00:40:30.610 do it. We serve because the vertical relationship 00:40:30.610 --> 00:40:33.429 we have with Jesus, we do this a lot, we show 00:40:33.429 --> 00:40:36.420 this a lot, the vertical relationship we have 00:40:36.420 --> 00:40:40.579 with Jesus starts to spill out horizontally to 00:40:40.579 --> 00:40:48.019 everyone in our lives. Let's look again at verse 00:40:48.019 --> 00:40:52.420 16 and 17, and Jesus tells us what happens when 00:40:52.420 --> 00:40:57.239 we live this way. Truly, I tell you, a servant 00:40:57.239 --> 00:40:59.500 is not greater than his master, and a messenger 00:40:59.500 --> 00:41:02.710 is not greater than the one who sent him. If 00:41:02.710 --> 00:41:04.750 you know these things, you are blessed if you 00:41:04.750 --> 00:41:09.739 do them. What Jesus is saying here is really 00:41:09.739 --> 00:41:14.059 simple. If you get what I'm saying, if you understand 00:41:14.059 --> 00:41:16.840 that you aren't greater than me, and you do it, 00:41:16.900 --> 00:41:19.099 you do what I'm telling you to do, you'll be 00:41:19.099 --> 00:41:24.489 blessed. Jesus isn't saying we will be blessed 00:41:24.489 --> 00:41:28.809 if we feel like we really want to serve, but 00:41:28.809 --> 00:41:33.440 then we don't. Or that we will be blessed if 00:41:33.440 --> 00:41:37.090 we plan on serving in this way or that, but end 00:41:37.090 --> 00:41:40.360 up not having the time. Jesus isn't talking about 00:41:40.360 --> 00:41:43.420 good intentions here. It says do for a reason. 00:41:47.610 --> 00:41:51.340 And what's the blessing? That's really simple 00:41:51.340 --> 00:41:55.000 too. And this brings me to the third point. When 00:41:55.000 --> 00:42:01.780 we serve, we get to be like Jesus. We get to 00:42:01.780 --> 00:42:04.139 give him the glory. We get to go and be like 00:42:04.139 --> 00:42:08.730 our Savior in a dark and broken world. We get 00:42:08.730 --> 00:42:11.969 to be radiant reflections of Jesus to those around 00:42:11.969 --> 00:42:16.769 us. The blessing isn't material reward. It's 00:42:16.769 --> 00:42:19.750 not a higher position in the church or the praise 00:42:19.750 --> 00:42:24.550 of man. The blessing we receive when we lower 00:42:24.550 --> 00:42:28.429 ourselves and we serve with a heart fixated on 00:42:28.429 --> 00:42:32.750 Jesus is being more like him. That's the blessing. 00:42:39.030 --> 00:42:41.210 If you're like me, this is really tough to swallow. 00:42:44.519 --> 00:42:47.019 As I was studying this, I found that the hardest 00:42:47.019 --> 00:42:50.519 people for me to be like this for was my family. 00:42:53.019 --> 00:42:57.010 Not out of any fault of their own. I kept asking 00:42:57.010 --> 00:42:59.650 myself, like, why? Why do I have such a hard 00:42:59.650 --> 00:43:02.429 time lowering myself for the people I say that 00:43:02.429 --> 00:43:11.659 I love? It shouldn't be that way. And I can tell 00:43:11.659 --> 00:43:14.139 you why. It's because I don't want to deny myself, 00:43:14.360 --> 00:43:20.460 pick up my cross, and follow him deep down. I 00:43:20.460 --> 00:43:23.869 don't want to let go of my life. I want to be 00:43:23.869 --> 00:43:27.480 the one with all the authority, call all the 00:43:27.480 --> 00:43:30.699 shots. I kept thinking of, you know, Caleb's 00:43:30.699 --> 00:43:33.820 bicycle wheel analogy. Jesus is the hub, right? 00:43:34.469 --> 00:43:36.789 and all the spokes are the area of our life. 00:43:37.659 --> 00:43:41.400 My problem is, is pull out Jesus, insert Josh, 00:43:41.559 --> 00:43:44.019 and all the spokes become me, me, me, me, me, 00:43:44.139 --> 00:43:50.969 me, me, me. And I was just confronted with that 00:43:50.969 --> 00:43:57.340 as I studied this. And the words that Jesus said 00:43:57.340 --> 00:44:00.380 in verse 12 kept coming back to me. Do you know 00:44:00.380 --> 00:44:06.190 what I have done for you? Do you really understand 00:44:06.190 --> 00:44:09.230 at the heart level how I have served you? How 00:44:09.230 --> 00:44:14.099 Jesus has served us? That is why as a church 00:44:14.099 --> 00:44:17.260 we constantly come back to who Jesus is and what 00:44:17.260 --> 00:44:22.679 he has done defines who I am and what I do. That 00:44:22.679 --> 00:44:26.019 is why we say we are a family of servant missionaries 00:44:26.019 --> 00:44:34.079 because of what he has done. Imagine if we lived 00:44:34.079 --> 00:44:38.679 that way. What would our church, our valley, 00:44:38.820 --> 00:44:42.019 our workplaces, and our homes look like with 00:44:42.849 --> 00:44:49.400 that kind of love? Husbands and wives, what would 00:44:49.400 --> 00:44:51.159 your home look like if you served each other 00:44:51.159 --> 00:44:59.099 and your families the way Jesus served you? What 00:44:59.099 --> 00:45:02.400 if we, you know, at our places of work did the 00:45:02.400 --> 00:45:06.639 job nobody wanted to do? Not for praise, but 00:45:06.639 --> 00:45:11.760 to be radiant reflections of Jesus. What if we 00:45:11.760 --> 00:45:14.760 served our friends and our neighbors, even the 00:45:14.760 --> 00:45:21.539 ones who have wronged us? Church, we can start 00:45:21.539 --> 00:45:23.780 living that way with each other, with the people 00:45:23.780 --> 00:45:28.769 in this room. You can start there first. What 00:45:28.769 --> 00:45:30.849 would our GCs look like if we always brought 00:45:30.849 --> 00:45:33.889 the best meal we could and stayed behind to help 00:45:33.889 --> 00:45:37.039 clean up after? everything was said and done. 00:45:38.039 --> 00:45:40.579 Or if we were able to lay aside our preferences, 00:45:40.699 --> 00:45:44.409 our political views, and our pride so that others 00:45:44.409 --> 00:45:49.550 can know Jesus better. What if we as a church 00:45:49.550 --> 00:45:55.619 took serving our kids seriously? We have a whole 00:45:55.619 --> 00:45:58.019 mission field going on in the back back there. 00:46:00.050 --> 00:46:03.130 It's not a babysitting service. They are discipling 00:46:03.130 --> 00:46:07.659 kids back there. What if we all took responsibility 00:46:07.659 --> 00:46:15.590 for the kids in this family? What if we made 00:46:15.590 --> 00:46:18.349 it a priority to be loving and welcoming and 00:46:18.349 --> 00:46:21.329 inviting on Sunday mornings and in our homes 00:46:21.329 --> 00:46:24.590 throughout the week, lowering ourselves and getting 00:46:24.590 --> 00:46:27.389 out of our comfort zones because Jesus didn't 00:46:27.389 --> 00:46:35.289 prioritize his comfort? I can tell you what would 00:46:35.289 --> 00:46:40.960 happen. Jesus would take center stage, and our 00:46:40.960 --> 00:46:45.940 church would be like a city on a hill, and those 00:46:45.940 --> 00:46:48.440 around us would begin to know and see the love 00:46:48.440 --> 00:46:55.230 of Jesus. As we close, I want to leave you with 00:46:55.230 --> 00:46:57.369 the greatest act of serving you and I will ever 00:46:57.369 --> 00:47:02.670 know. In this passage, Jesus got up from the 00:47:02.670 --> 00:47:06.119 table, took off his clothes, and took on the 00:47:06.119 --> 00:47:08.960 role of the servant. He poured water into a bowl, 00:47:09.179 --> 00:47:13.349 washed the feet of the disciples, dressed himself 00:47:13.349 --> 00:47:15.349 again, and then took his place at the table. 00:47:17.969 --> 00:47:21.269 Don't miss this. This is a picture of the gospel. 00:47:21.429 --> 00:47:27.750 This is a picture of what he came to do. Jesus 00:47:27.750 --> 00:47:30.869 left his place with God. He lived a perfect life 00:47:30.869 --> 00:47:33.750 that you and I couldn't live and took a position 00:47:33.750 --> 00:47:36.550 lower than a servant. He took the position of 00:47:36.550 --> 00:47:42.840 a sinner. And having all the authority and holding 00:47:42.840 --> 00:47:45.760 everything in his hands, he allowed himself to 00:47:45.760 --> 00:47:50.969 be nailed to that cross. There was no one else 00:47:50.969 --> 00:47:55.329 willing or able to take our place to pay for 00:47:55.329 --> 00:48:01.889 our sins. He took our place. If he didn't do 00:48:01.889 --> 00:48:11.269 that, we would have no part with him. And when 00:48:11.269 --> 00:48:13.250 he hung on that cross, it wouldn't be to pour 00:48:13.250 --> 00:48:16.730 water into a bowl and wash dirty feet, but blood 00:48:16.730 --> 00:48:22.559 poured out to wash dirty sinners. Then he rose 00:48:22.559 --> 00:48:25.179 again and took his place at the right hand of 00:48:25.179 --> 00:48:29.769 the Father, defeating sin, Satan, and death, 00:48:30.860 --> 00:48:39.949 making us clean, making us new. As we move into 00:48:39.949 --> 00:48:43.710 a time of response, the band can go ahead and 00:48:43.710 --> 00:48:47.860 come up. I don't know where you're at with Jesus. 00:48:50.280 --> 00:48:52.559 Maybe you're hearing the good news for the first 00:48:52.559 --> 00:48:55.119 time, or maybe you've heard it a hundred times 00:48:55.119 --> 00:48:58.760 before, but that's what we need to respond to 00:48:58.760 --> 00:49:06.050 this morning. Maybe you need to be bathed. You've 00:49:06.050 --> 00:49:09.849 never placed your faith in Jesus and his work 00:49:09.849 --> 00:49:13.099 on the cross. Maybe you're like Luke, and you're 00:49:13.099 --> 00:49:15.280 seeing yourself for the first time how dirty 00:49:15.280 --> 00:49:18.449 you are, and that you need Jesus to wash it away. 00:49:23.730 --> 00:49:27.130 And if you need to talk, someone, myself, Caleb, 00:49:27.369 --> 00:49:31.230 will be in the back. and you can grab us, and 00:49:31.230 --> 00:49:36.829 we'll pray with you and talk with you. Maybe 00:49:36.829 --> 00:49:41.380 you've been running through mud holes. You need 00:49:41.380 --> 00:49:46.539 your feet washed. You need to come before Jesus 00:49:46.539 --> 00:49:50.039 in repentance and let go of your sin. Maybe your 00:49:50.039 --> 00:49:52.199 heart posture right now is like what I was talking 00:49:52.199 --> 00:49:54.239 about earlier. I'm going to stay in the dark. 00:49:54.340 --> 00:50:04.349 I do not need you right now. Communion is set 00:50:04.349 --> 00:50:06.989 up in the back, and as you dip, as you pick up 00:50:06.989 --> 00:50:11.320 that bread representing his broken body and dip 00:50:11.320 --> 00:50:14.840 it in the juice, representing his blood that 00:50:14.840 --> 00:50:19.469 cleans us, remember what's been done for you. 00:50:20.239 --> 00:50:22.980 Remember that your sins are paid for and you 00:50:22.980 --> 00:50:29.380 are clean. Go to him, repent, and ask him to 00:50:29.380 --> 00:50:34.519 wash it away. Then come back and praise him for 00:50:34.519 --> 00:50:42.099 what he's done. Let's pray. Father, thank you 00:50:42.099 --> 00:50:44.820 for sending your son to lower himself and take 00:50:44.820 --> 00:50:50.360 our place on the cross. I pray that your spirit 00:50:50.360 --> 00:50:52.980 would move in our hearts right now. and that 00:50:52.980 --> 00:50:55.099 we would come to you with a heart of repentance 00:50:55.099 --> 00:51:00.019 and be made clean by the blood of your Son. And 00:51:00.019 --> 00:51:02.659 from that, we would respond by being radiant 00:51:02.659 --> 00:51:05.340 reflections of Jesus to those around us.