1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:07,760 The mission of the Law Scat is Christian Church is to develop passionate followers of Jesus 2 00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:13,360 Christ. That raises a question to me and perhaps to you too, and that is, what do we mean by 3 00:00:13,360 --> 00:00:22,600 followers of Christ? What do we mean by followers of Christ? George Barney in his surveys has 4 00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:30,520 found that four out of ten Americans identify with these two statements. Here are the statements 5 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:37,280 that four out of ten Americans identify with. Number one, I have made a personal commitment 6 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:47,200 to Jesus Christ that is still important in my life today. And after I die, I will go 7 00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:56,040 to heaven because I have confessed my sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior. 8 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:02,400 Four out of ten Americans identify with those statements. And yet as we look at our nation 9 00:01:02,400 --> 00:01:09,360 today and the state of our culture, as we look at the state of the church, does it really 10 00:01:09,360 --> 00:01:19,120 seem possible that 40% of Americans are followers of Jesus Christ? It probably depends upon how 11 00:01:19,120 --> 00:01:25,920 you interpret personal commitment to Jesus Christ, or what you mean by confess my sins 12 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:32,120 and accepted Christ. There are some people, for example, who think that they are followers 13 00:01:32,120 --> 00:01:39,960 of Jesus because they wear a bracelet or some other jewelry that says WWJD on it. Others 14 00:01:39,960 --> 00:01:44,800 put the cross around their neck on a necklace and say by that that they are followers of 15 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:52,760 Jesus. Then there are those who do good works in the name of Jesus, or who are involved 16 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:58,960 in doing good things in religious service for Jesus' sake. And because of that, they 17 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:06,440 consider themselves to be followers of Jesus. Others seem to think that because they have 18 00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:15,440 a sentimental attachment to the name of Jesus, or because they even pray to Jesus sometimes, 19 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:25,640 they must then surely be followers of Jesus. Jesus had some very sobering words at the 20 00:02:25,640 --> 00:02:34,560 end of the sermon on the mount. He says in Matthew chapter 7 of verse 21, not everyone 21 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:43,120 who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now it is true the 22 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:50,280 word Lord can be used as a polite term of addressing someone, but that's not the context 23 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:57,600 here. It was also the word that was used by the Jews in speaking of God, of Yahweh, their 24 00:02:57,600 --> 00:03:04,400 God, Lord. And that's the sense of what Jesus is using it. He says, not everyone who calls 25 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:13,520 me God, in fact, who has such intense devotion to me that they say Lord, Lord, not everyone 26 00:03:13,520 --> 00:03:22,120 who uses that kind of terminology Jesus says is going to go to heaven. He goes on to say, 27 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:30,000 many will say to me, many, many will say to me in that day, that is the day of judgment, 28 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:41,000 Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name? He emphasizes that. In Your name we prophesied. 29 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:52,160 But in Your name we drove out demons and we performed miracles in Your name. And Jesus 30 00:03:52,160 --> 00:04:00,760 says, then I will tell them plainly, forthrightly, I'll just lay it on the line. I never knew 31 00:04:00,760 --> 00:04:11,800 You, away from me, you evil doers. I don't mean to upset anyone's assurance of salvation 32 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:18,080 who's genuinely saved, but I think it's time for us to understand what the followers of 33 00:04:18,080 --> 00:04:26,520 Jesus really are and who they are. What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus? Well, who 34 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:32,880 better to consult about that than Jesus himself? I think he ought to know, don't you? In the 35 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:40,680 Gospel of John, Jesus said some very difficult things to His followers, people who were coming 36 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:50,360 after Him. John calls them His disciples in the broadest sense. They were so offended 37 00:04:50,360 --> 00:04:58,400 by what Jesus said to them that John says many of them went away and did not follow 38 00:04:58,400 --> 00:05:07,640 Him anymore. If you measure Jesus against the way that some people like to measure success 39 00:05:07,640 --> 00:05:19,200 in Christianity today, you would have to say Jesus was a failure because His crowd diminished. 40 00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:23,520 When He taught them the hard things, they said, we don't want to hear this. You're not 41 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:32,640 meeting our needs. We're going away. And they did. In John chapter 8 and verse 31, Jesus 42 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:43,080 said to the Jews who had believed on Him, if you hold to my teaching, then you are really 43 00:05:43,080 --> 00:05:55,640 my disciples. If you hold to my teachings, then are you really my disciples. But for 44 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:58,960 the major text I want us to look at today, I'd like you to turn your Bible with me to 45 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:10,360 John chapter 13. John chapter 13, as Jesus prepares to go to the cross, Jesus describes 46 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:18,800 in this chapter who His followers are. This is an important message for all of us who 47 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:23,120 are seeking to be followers of Jesus and who are involved in a church that seeks to develop 48 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:30,640 passionate followers of Jesus Christ. Who are followers of Jesus? Let's allow Jesus 49 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:38,400 and the Word of God to tell us who the followers of Jesus really are. The chapter begins by 50 00:06:38,400 --> 00:06:44,040 saying it was just before the Passover feast, and Jesus knew that the time had come for 51 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:53,920 Him to leave this world and to go to His Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, 52 00:06:53,920 --> 00:07:01,960 He now showed them the full extent of His love, or He loved them to the uttermost, another 53 00:07:01,960 --> 00:07:08,840 translation says. In the very first verse of the chapter, as John is writing about the 54 00:07:08,840 --> 00:07:16,440 event, He gives us a hint as to who the followers of Jesus are. His followers, number one, 55 00:07:16,440 --> 00:07:29,800 belong to Him. They are His own. Notice that phrase? They are uniquely His. Now Jesus, 56 00:07:29,800 --> 00:07:35,160 or rather John, is referring to those who are in the room with Jesus on that occasion. 57 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:41,760 But of course it goes far beyond that by way of application to His followers, His disciples 58 00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:49,640 in every generation. In the first place, those who are His followers today as then are those 59 00:07:49,640 --> 00:07:56,360 who belong to Him. You see, being a follower of Jesus is not some superficial thing like 60 00:07:56,360 --> 00:08:05,000 wearing jewelry or going to a seminar or doing good works. It's far more than being merely 61 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:16,680 a student of someone or a fan. Jesus' followers are not groupies. They are not simply admirers 62 00:08:16,680 --> 00:08:26,440 of Him. Jesus' followers are not like the followers of R.E.M., for example, or the Beatles, 63 00:08:26,440 --> 00:08:37,600 or some sports star. His followers are not devotees of an Eastern guru. His followers 64 00:08:37,600 --> 00:08:46,880 are more than that. The followers of Jesus have far more than interest in Jesus, in who 65 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:55,240 He was. They have far more than just an appreciation for His ethics and His example. There are 66 00:08:55,240 --> 00:09:03,560 more than students, mere students of what He said. On our recent tour to Israel, we 67 00:09:03,560 --> 00:09:11,440 had a wonderful guide. His name is David Jacobs. He's done this for 30 years. And you 68 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:18,080 know, after 30 years, these guides who are well trained know what to say to please your 69 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:24,480 ear. They know that you, coming as a Christian, and not a Catholic Christian perhaps, but 70 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:30,760 an evangelical Christian, as in our case, that you want to hear and see certain things. 71 00:09:30,760 --> 00:09:39,680 And so they tailor their presentations to fit their group. David did that for us. It 72 00:09:39,680 --> 00:09:44,000 was very clear that he was doing that for us. But there was something different about 73 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:51,480 this guide than any other guide that I've had in Israel. David not only had an appreciation 74 00:09:51,480 --> 00:10:03,200 for the Bible and for the person of Jesus, but David had a reverence for the Bible. In 75 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:11,960 many respects, he believes the Bible as much as you and I believe the Bible to be true. 76 00:10:11,960 --> 00:10:17,640 And therefore it was easy for us to assume, because of the way he was talking about Jesus, 77 00:10:17,640 --> 00:10:24,080 that really he must be a completed Jew, a Messianic Jew. And so we approached him about 78 00:10:24,080 --> 00:10:33,680 that and in fact, David is not yet. We're praying that he will be. It was interesting 79 00:10:33,680 --> 00:10:41,960 one day, in fact several days of the tour, David referenced his experience several years 80 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:48,720 ago being the guide to the corral from the Moody Bible Institute and what an impact that 81 00:10:48,720 --> 00:10:53,080 it had upon his life. He still remembered it, talked about their music and the quality 82 00:10:53,080 --> 00:10:59,960 of the young people he had met on that tour. I thought that was quite interesting. And 83 00:10:59,960 --> 00:11:04,120 so we asked David about Jesus. What do you believe about Jesus? Do you believe that he 84 00:11:04,120 --> 00:11:16,960 was God? No. Do you believe that Jesus rose again from the dead? No, I don't. You see, 85 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:23,760 one can have an appreciation for Jesus. One can believe that he was a historical figure, 86 00:11:23,760 --> 00:11:31,960 that he was a very important religious leader and prophet, but come short of being a true 87 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:40,480 follower of Jesus. Because you see, true followers of Jesus have a personal relationship with 88 00:11:40,480 --> 00:11:51,200 Jesus. That's what his own means. Having loved his own who were in the world. It refers 89 00:11:51,200 --> 00:12:01,160 to those who have been separated to him, those who are private to him. In John chapter 6, 90 00:12:01,160 --> 00:12:08,000 Jesus says, all that the Father gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me, I 91 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:15,280 will never cast away. There's a wonderful balance there between the sovereignty of God 92 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:22,120 in giving us to Jesus so that we belong to him. But then our responsibility also to come 93 00:12:22,120 --> 00:12:29,360 to him. All that the Father gives to me will come to me, says Jesus. And the one who comes 94 00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:38,160 to me, that's my responsibility, he says, I will never cast away. We belong to Jesus. 95 00:12:38,160 --> 00:12:45,280 It's also illustrated in John chapter 10 when Jesus uses the language of a shepherd and sheep. 96 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:49,880 He begins the chapter by saying, I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the 97 00:12:49,880 --> 00:12:56,560 sheep pen by the gate but climbs in by some other way is a thief and a robber. The man 98 00:12:56,560 --> 00:13:04,360 who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. Notice what he says. The watchman 99 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:16,880 opens the gate for him and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls for the next words. 100 00:13:16,880 --> 00:13:25,800 His own, his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all of them, 101 00:13:25,800 --> 00:13:32,480 excuse me, when he has brought out his own, he goes on ahead of them and his sheep follow 102 00:13:32,480 --> 00:13:40,400 him because they know his voice. The picture Jesus is using here is of a community sheep 103 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:47,360 pen. There's been a guard overnight who has watched the flock and now a shepherd comes 104 00:13:47,360 --> 00:13:55,440 in the morning to get his sheep out of this large pen. And so he begins to call his sheep 105 00:13:55,440 --> 00:14:01,320 by their names and each of them knows the voice of the shepherd and they come immediately 106 00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:07,720 to the gate and they leave the pen and they follow the shepherd because they are his own 107 00:14:07,720 --> 00:14:16,680 sheep. They have a relationship with that shepherd and so it is with the sheep of Jesus. 108 00:14:16,680 --> 00:14:22,360 There's a relationship at the end, toward the end of the chapter. Jesus says in verse 109 00:14:22,360 --> 00:14:32,840 27, My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life 110 00:14:32,840 --> 00:14:42,320 and they shall never perish. No one can snatch them out of my hand. Personal relationship. 111 00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:49,480 You see, there is an invisible bond between Jesus and his followers. 112 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:58,160 Here in verse 8, Jesus uses the word part to describe that relationship. He says, If 113 00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:04,320 you don't allow me to wash you, you have no part with me. The idea is you have no share 114 00:15:04,320 --> 00:15:12,920 in me. And so to be a follower of Jesus means to have a share in him. It means to have a 115 00:15:12,920 --> 00:15:22,520 partnership with him, a connection to Jesus. If you are a follower of Jesus today, you 116 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:31,400 are his possession. You have a real time link with Jesus. You have been purchased by Jesus 117 00:15:31,400 --> 00:15:41,480 to be his own sheep. For example, we see Paul talking about this in Titus 2.14. He says, 118 00:15:41,480 --> 00:15:47,720 Our great God and Savior Jesus Christ gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness 119 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:57,640 to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good. That phrase, 120 00:15:57,640 --> 00:16:05,400 His very own, can be illustrated with a point, a dot, and a circle around it. That is, a 121 00:16:05,400 --> 00:16:14,120 people that are encompassed by Jesus Himself. We belong to Jesus. And as he says later in 122 00:16:14,120 --> 00:16:21,560 Romans 14.8, So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Now there are those who 123 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:28,320 say, Well, how in the world is it possible to have a personal relationship with someone 124 00:16:28,320 --> 00:16:36,480 who is a historical figure, with someone who is dead? How do you have a personal relationship 125 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:44,280 with Napoleon? How do you have a personal relationship with Roosevelt? Well, obviously 126 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:51,440 you can't have a personal relationship with someone who lived in history and who is dead. 127 00:16:51,440 --> 00:17:00,840 That's the very point. Jesus is more than historical. He is eternal. He is alive because 128 00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:09,720 He was raised from the dead. He is a living presence, a live person, although invisible 129 00:17:09,720 --> 00:17:16,000 to our eyes. There are skeptics who say, Oh, that's just you Christians wishing He were 130 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:23,360 alive. You're just manipulating your mind so that you're imagining that He is alive. 131 00:17:23,360 --> 00:17:31,560 Oh, no, my friend, that is not true. The reality of a personal relationship with Jesus is experienced 132 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:40,760 by faith in what God has said about Him. Who is a follower of Jesus? It is someone who 133 00:17:40,760 --> 00:17:49,200 is one of His own, who has that personal relationship with Him. I ask you, is Jesus real to you? 134 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:58,160 Yes. Good, amen. Or is He, as He is too far too many, who even called themselves Christians 135 00:17:58,160 --> 00:18:09,400 merely a myth, an epic figure, an impersonal somebody who lived merely in history? To some 136 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:14,320 who called themselves Christians, He's like that flannel graph Jesus that was put on the 137 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:19,960 board. You have this image of what He may have looked like or some artist's conception 138 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:28,680 of Him, but that's all He is to you. He's little more to you really than Santa Claus, 139 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:38,160 this fairy tale, this legend. But the Bible makes it clear that the real follower of Jesus 140 00:18:38,160 --> 00:18:45,400 has a relationship with Jesus as one of His own sheep. It goes far beyond what is between 141 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:53,520 teacher and students, far beyond what exists between an example and His admirers, far beyond 142 00:18:53,520 --> 00:19:02,120 a religious leader and His devotees. It means that we actually belong to Jesus, just as 143 00:19:02,120 --> 00:19:12,640 those who have a family tie belong to each other. Now this is a wonderful idea, a wonderful 144 00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:24,760 idea, especially if in your life you have experienced rejection, if you have been abandoned, 145 00:19:24,760 --> 00:19:32,000 if you wonder about your own personal significance in this world. Because if you are a follower 146 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:44,240 of Jesus, all of those issues are laid aside because you belong to Him. You are His follower. 147 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:47,960 St. Patrick's Day was a couple of days ago, and I'm going to quote now an Irish pastor 148 00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:53,400 who lived in the last century. His name was George Wade Robinson. He died when he was 149 00:19:53,400 --> 00:20:01,760 only 39 years of age. But he left behind one of the most beloved of all devotional hymns. 150 00:20:01,760 --> 00:20:14,480 Loved with everlasting love, led by grace, that love to know. Gracious spirit from above, 151 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:21,880 thou hast taught me this soul. Oh, this full and perfect peace. Oh, this transport, all 152 00:20:21,880 --> 00:20:35,880 divine. In the love which cannot cease, I am His, and He is mine. His, forever His, only 153 00:20:35,880 --> 00:20:43,720 His. Who the Lord and me shall part? Ah, with what a rest of bliss Christ can fill the loving 154 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:50,760 heart. Heaven and earth may fade and flee, first born light in gloom decline. But while 155 00:20:50,760 --> 00:21:01,480 God and I shall be, I am His, and He is mine. That, my friend, is the follower of Jesus. 156 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:07,880 The one who can say from the depths of his heart, I belong to Jesus Christ. 157 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:14,900 But the answer goes on in the chapter. Who is the follower of Jesus? It's the one who 158 00:21:14,900 --> 00:21:20,560 belongs to Him. But secondly, His followers receive recurring cleansing. I'm going to 159 00:21:20,560 --> 00:21:25,200 pick up the reading in John 13 with verse 2 where it says, The evening meal was being 160 00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:31,880 served in the devil had already prompted Judas the Scariest son of Simon to betray Jesus. 161 00:21:31,880 --> 00:21:35,560 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power and that He had come from 162 00:21:35,560 --> 00:21:41,000 God and that was returning to God. So He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, 163 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:47,560 and wrapped a towel around His waist. After that, He poured water into a basin and began 164 00:21:47,560 --> 00:21:53,600 to wash His disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him. 165 00:21:53,600 --> 00:22:01,880 And now what happens is so Peter. I mean, this is Peter at his very best as Peter. 166 00:22:01,880 --> 00:22:15,640 He came to Simon Peter who said to him, Lord, are you going to wash my feet? You do not 167 00:22:15,640 --> 00:22:23,560 realize now what I am doing? Jesus replied. But later you will understand. No, said Peter. 168 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:36,440 You shall never, ever wash my feet. Jesus answered, Unless I wash you, you have no 169 00:22:36,440 --> 00:22:49,760 part with me. You do not belong to me. You are not mine. Peter is broken. He says then, 170 00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:59,200 Lord, not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well. And Jesus answered a person 171 00:22:59,200 --> 00:23:04,560 who has a bath. He needs only to wash his feet. His whole body is clean and you are 172 00:23:04,560 --> 00:23:09,560 clean, though not every one of you, for he knew was going to betray him. And that was 173 00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:17,600 why he said not every one of you was clean. Peter illustrates a point here. As a follower 174 00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:26,160 of Jesus, Peter had already experienced forgiveness of his sin as a matter of his position before 175 00:23:26,160 --> 00:23:35,240 God. As one who had been separated from God by sin, he had been bathed. Given a bath, 176 00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:42,680 his body as it were had been cleansed from the defilement of his sin. And he had been 177 00:23:42,680 --> 00:23:50,880 brought into this relationship with Jesus. The word bath in verse 10 refers to a full 178 00:23:50,880 --> 00:23:56,880 body washing. It's a symbol of getting in the shower, into the bathtub and just cleansing 179 00:23:56,880 --> 00:24:03,520 yourself all over. And it's a symbol here of that once for all cleansing of sin that 180 00:24:03,520 --> 00:24:12,080 happens at that moment that we trust Jesus as our Lord and Savior. But Peter, like all 181 00:24:12,080 --> 00:24:22,080 true followers of Jesus, needed a subsequent forgiveness. It's the forgiveness of sins 182 00:24:22,080 --> 00:24:31,360 in his daily walk so that his fellowship with the Lord would remain unaffected. The washing 183 00:24:31,360 --> 00:24:38,760 of the feet here is a symbolic of the need for a recurring cleansing that the followers 184 00:24:38,760 --> 00:24:46,080 of Jesus need from the defilement of our sins in our daily walk so that our fellowship with 185 00:24:46,080 --> 00:24:54,240 the Lord remains. That defilement in our daily walk does not necessitate that we be saved 186 00:24:54,240 --> 00:25:03,080 all over again. We don't need the bath, but we do need our feet washed. And that requires 187 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:11,320 humility. It requires a humble confession of our sins and agreement with God about our 188 00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:19,240 sins so that the fellowship is not hindered. The followers of Jesus have a nature that 189 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:27,760 inclines them to confess their sins. That is not true of those who are not true followers 190 00:25:27,760 --> 00:25:39,360 of Jesus. The accumulation of sins in their lives does not bother them. They go on from 191 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:47,520 day to day and event to event and become more grossly defiled all the time. And there is 192 00:25:47,520 --> 00:25:53,480 no sense of guilt in their heart. They don't really care because they're not followers 193 00:25:53,480 --> 00:26:02,000 of Jesus. People who call themselves Christians and who live lifestyles of sin are deceiving 194 00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:13,440 themselves. When we are followers of Jesus, we sense the need for cleansing. And Peter 195 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:19,280 was basically saying to Jesus, Jesus, whatever it takes, I want to be in fellowship with 196 00:26:19,280 --> 00:26:29,640 you. You can tell a follower of Jesus because he receives from the Lord this recurring cleansing. 197 00:26:29,640 --> 00:26:35,600 He knows when he is sinned and he comes to the Lord in confession of it and Jesus washes 198 00:26:35,600 --> 00:26:42,460 his feet. 1 John 1. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship 199 00:26:42,460 --> 00:26:49,160 with one another. In the blood of Jesus, his son purifies us from all sin. But then 200 00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:55,680 notice what John says. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is 201 00:26:55,680 --> 00:27:01,760 not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and 202 00:27:01,760 --> 00:27:07,240 purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out 203 00:27:07,240 --> 00:27:13,120 to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. I want you to notice the parallelism 204 00:27:13,120 --> 00:27:23,640 there. Four verses to start with if. The first verse, excuse me, verse 8 and verse 10 are 205 00:27:23,640 --> 00:27:29,760 in parallel. These are the people who have no sense of their sin or who, knowing their 206 00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:37,280 sin, refuse to acknowledge their sins. And Jesus is saying here through the Word of God 207 00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:43,840 that we are not His followers. People who have no sense of their sinfulness are deceiving 208 00:27:43,840 --> 00:27:51,520 themselves. God's Word is not in them. On the other hand, those who are following Jesus, 209 00:27:51,520 --> 00:27:59,040 who are walking in the light, have fellowship with Him and He purifies us continually. He 210 00:27:59,040 --> 00:28:04,360 talks more about that. He says, if we confess our sins, we, His followers, he is faithful 211 00:28:04,360 --> 00:28:10,960 and just, will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. The washing of 212 00:28:10,960 --> 00:28:21,760 the feet. Who are the true followers of Jesus? Those who understand their need for recurring 213 00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:28,120 cleansing and claim it. And who as soon as they are aware that they have failed the Lord 214 00:28:28,120 --> 00:28:35,280 are smitten with guilt and humbly say, Lord, I've blown it here. I acknowledge my sin 215 00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:40,840 there. I agree with you that what I've done is wrong and their feet are washed. Jesus 216 00:28:40,840 --> 00:28:48,720 said if I don't wash you, you have no part with me. You're not one of mine. Who are the 217 00:28:48,720 --> 00:28:55,920 followers of Jesus? Well, in verses 12 to 17 we see another answer. It is His followers 218 00:28:55,920 --> 00:29:02,720 imitate His example. When He had finished washing their feet, He put on His clothes 219 00:29:02,720 --> 00:29:07,720 and returned to His place. Do you understand what I've done for you, He asked them? You 220 00:29:07,720 --> 00:29:14,720 call me teacher and Lord and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and 221 00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:21,400 teacher have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an 222 00:29:21,400 --> 00:29:26,600 example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is 223 00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:31,960 greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that 224 00:29:31,960 --> 00:29:38,680 you know these things, you will be blessed if you what? If you do them. It's one thing 225 00:29:38,680 --> 00:29:47,560 to know, it's another to do. We often think of the symbols of Christianity as the fish, 226 00:29:47,560 --> 00:29:54,600 it's true, or the cross, and that's true. But let me tell you, a towel and a basin are 227 00:29:54,600 --> 00:30:02,880 just as fitting a symbol of Christianity as any other symbol. Jesus sanctified these instruments 228 00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:12,920 of servanthood. He girded himself with a towel, took a basin of water, and went around the 229 00:30:12,920 --> 00:30:19,800 table washing the feet of his disciples. Most of you undoubtedly are familiar with the picture, 230 00:30:19,800 --> 00:30:26,320 as the disciples would have reclined on couches to eat, reclining on their left side with 231 00:30:26,320 --> 00:30:31,360 their feet behind them, another person would be here, another behind, and they would reach 232 00:30:31,360 --> 00:30:36,800 out and take the food with their hand. The feet would be sticking out at the end of the 233 00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:43,080 couch. Customarily a servant would come and wash the feet. You see a person would get 234 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:50,480 a bath before coming to a meal like this, but in walking to the place they would get 235 00:30:50,480 --> 00:30:57,240 their feet dirty. And so it was appropriate for a servant to come and just to rinse off 236 00:30:57,240 --> 00:31:04,200 their feet so that they would be clean as they ate their meal. In this case, Jesus takes 237 00:31:04,200 --> 00:31:10,720 the place of the servant and he goes around the table washing the dirt off the feet of 238 00:31:10,720 --> 00:31:17,120 the disciples. And he says, you've seen what I've done. Now I've left you an example that 239 00:31:17,120 --> 00:31:22,960 you should wash one another's feet. Now there are some denominations that take this so seriously 240 00:31:22,960 --> 00:31:30,080 that they incorporate this as a third ordinance of the church. Did you know that? Just as we 241 00:31:30,080 --> 00:31:36,040 baptize and take communion, there are some churches such as the Grace Brethren Denomination 242 00:31:36,040 --> 00:31:42,360 that includes the ordinance, as they put it, of foot washing. And they practice that in 243 00:31:42,360 --> 00:31:50,560 their church. Now we don't understand John 13 that same way, but what Jesus does here 244 00:31:50,560 --> 00:31:57,280 is very important because he gives us an illustration and an example that we are to serve one another 245 00:31:57,280 --> 00:32:04,480 at the point of need. The disciples needed to have their feet washed. Jesus did it for 246 00:32:04,480 --> 00:32:10,840 them. And what the towel in the basin say to you and to me is this, that we need to find 247 00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:18,960 the place of need where someone else needs us and go to that point and serve them. Be 248 00:32:18,960 --> 00:32:27,840 a servant to them. We should never think ourselves greater than our Lord, who himself washed 249 00:32:27,840 --> 00:32:35,720 the feet and thus served his disciples. And what motivated him to do this? It was his 250 00:32:35,720 --> 00:32:42,120 love. He loved them to the very end, to the uttermost. He showed them, says John, how 251 00:32:42,120 --> 00:32:49,560 much he loved them by serving them. Toward the end of this chapter in verse 33, Jesus 252 00:32:49,560 --> 00:32:59,480 says, my children, I want verse 34, rather, a new command I give you. Love one another 253 00:32:59,480 --> 00:33:05,800 as I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you 254 00:33:05,800 --> 00:33:11,840 are my followers, my disciples, if you love one another. What does loving one another 255 00:33:11,840 --> 00:33:21,040 mean in the context of John 13? It means to take the place of humble service in the life 256 00:33:21,040 --> 00:33:34,000 of another person and to be a servant to them, even to wash their feet in some respect. 257 00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:41,200 Who are the followers of Jesus? His followers imitate His example. That's how you know 258 00:33:41,200 --> 00:33:51,200 who a follower of Jesus is. I guess we could ask the question to all of us who say we 259 00:33:51,200 --> 00:34:03,880 are followers of Jesus, whose feet does Jesus ask that you wash for Him today? He can't 260 00:34:03,880 --> 00:34:12,240 be there to do it, but He is sending you. Finally, and very quickly, let me say that 261 00:34:12,240 --> 00:34:16,080 when we answer the question, who are the followers of Jesus, we need to look at what He does 262 00:34:16,080 --> 00:34:25,680 at the end of the chapter, verses 31 to 33. His followers, says Jesus, go where He has 263 00:34:25,680 --> 00:34:33,120 now gone. When Judas was gone, and the intervening verses here deal with Judas, not for a subject 264 00:34:33,120 --> 00:34:38,800 for this morning. When Judas was gone, Jesus said, now is the Son of man glorified and 265 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:45,480 God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself 266 00:34:45,480 --> 00:34:52,480 and will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You 267 00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:58,680 will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now where I am going, you cannot 268 00:34:58,680 --> 00:35:08,160 come. Look at verse 36. Peter says, Lord, where are you going? Jesus replied, where 269 00:35:08,160 --> 00:35:15,920 I am going, you cannot come follow, rather, now, but you will follow later. Some say, 270 00:35:15,920 --> 00:35:22,000 well, He is talking to Peter here about the cross. Peter was crucified later, but I think 271 00:35:22,000 --> 00:35:27,680 the context argues against that particular interpretation. He is talking here about following 272 00:35:27,680 --> 00:35:32,520 him to heaven, because in chapter 14 he goes on to talk about, I am going away, but I will 273 00:35:32,520 --> 00:35:38,320 come back and receive you to myself. You will come and you will follow me at that point. 274 00:35:38,320 --> 00:35:48,240 Who are the followers of Jesus? Those who will go where He has gone, back to the Father. 275 00:35:48,240 --> 00:35:54,960 Jesus knew that His hour had come to go back to the Father. Notice He has not panicked. 276 00:35:54,960 --> 00:36:02,080 He is not confused. He doesn't have second thoughts here, rather, He is filled with confidence. 277 00:36:02,080 --> 00:36:07,480 In verse 1 it tells us that He knew that the time had come for Him to leave this world 278 00:36:07,480 --> 00:36:14,080 and go to the Father. Verse 3 tells us that He knew that the Father had put all things 279 00:36:14,080 --> 00:36:21,680 under His power. It tells us that He had come from God. He knew that. He was returning to 280 00:36:21,680 --> 00:36:28,680 God. There is no self-doubt in Jesus. There is no internal agony at this point, as He 281 00:36:28,680 --> 00:36:36,400 is so often portrayed in Hollywood as wondering who He was and what He was doing. He absolutely 282 00:36:36,400 --> 00:36:42,000 is in control here and He knows these things. He assures Peter and his followers, including 283 00:36:42,000 --> 00:36:51,480 us today, that though we could not go with Him at that point, someday our time will come. 284 00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:57,760 Today our hour will come when we too will go to the Father. 285 00:36:57,760 --> 00:37:01,320 Now this morning in these minutes I have tried to answer that question, who are the followers 286 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:07,600 of Jesus? The key question though is not who is the follower of Jesus, as important as 287 00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:14,720 that is, but it is for each one of us to ask ourselves what demonstrates that I am a follower 288 00:37:14,720 --> 00:37:23,760 of Jesus. What demonstrates that I am a follower of Jesus? You see, being a follower of Jesus 289 00:37:23,760 --> 00:37:30,520 is more than words you say. It is more than going to church once a week or going because 290 00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:35,480 you have to go or being raised in a Christian family or going through some motions or being 291 00:37:35,480 --> 00:37:40,920 baptized. It is more than going forward into church and it is more than saying a prayer 292 00:37:40,920 --> 00:37:51,360 of repentance. Being a follower of Jesus has some evidence in the life and all of eternity 293 00:37:51,360 --> 00:37:59,680 hangs in the balance when we ask this question. What demonstrates that I am a follower of 294 00:37:59,680 --> 00:38:08,800 Jesus? You see, being a follower of Jesus is not a safe and acceptable role in our world. 295 00:38:08,800 --> 00:38:13,800 Being a follower of Jesus does not mean that you fit in with the majority. It does not 296 00:38:13,800 --> 00:38:17,400 mean that you are going to be popular and that others are going to like you. Being a 297 00:38:17,400 --> 00:38:25,440 follower of Jesus is revolutionary. Being a follower of Jesus is dangerous because it 298 00:38:25,440 --> 00:38:32,280 means that you lay everything on the line. One writer said, nothing is more controversial 299 00:38:32,280 --> 00:38:37,280 than to be a follower of Jesus Christ. Nothing is more dangerous than to live out the will 300 00:38:37,280 --> 00:38:46,040 of God in today's contemporary world. I close with a cute little story that was passed along 301 00:38:46,040 --> 00:38:52,280 by Irwin McManus, a pastor in Los Angeles about his son Aaron. He says that one summer 302 00:38:52,280 --> 00:38:58,440 his son Aaron went to a youth camp when he was just a little guy. He said, I was kind 303 00:38:58,440 --> 00:39:04,000 of glad that he went to this camp because it was a church camp. He said, I figured he 304 00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:08,080 wasn't going to hear all those ghost stories because ghost stories can really cause a kid 305 00:39:08,080 --> 00:39:12,520 to have nightmares. But unfortunately, since it was a Christian camp and they didn't tell 306 00:39:12,520 --> 00:39:19,320 ghost stories because we don't believe in ghosts, they told demon stories. And so when 307 00:39:19,320 --> 00:39:25,360 Aaron got home, he was terrified. Dad, don't turn off the light, he said before going to 308 00:39:25,360 --> 00:39:32,520 bed. No, daddy, could you stay here with me? Daddy, I'm afraid. They told all these stories 309 00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:42,400 about demons. He says, I wanted to say they're not real. That's not true. He goes, daddy, 310 00:39:42,400 --> 00:39:48,760 daddy, would you pray for me that I would be safe? Irwin said, I could feel it. I could 311 00:39:48,760 --> 00:39:55,520 feel warm blanket Christianity beginning to wrap around him. A life of safety, safety, 312 00:39:55,520 --> 00:40:05,280 safety. And I said, Aaron, I will not pray for you to be safe. I will pray that God will 313 00:40:05,280 --> 00:40:12,600 make you dangerous, so dangerous that demons will flee when you enter the room. And he 314 00:40:12,600 --> 00:40:22,120 goes, all right, but pray I'll be really, really dangerous, daddy. And then MacManus 315 00:40:22,120 --> 00:40:27,800 closes by asking, have you come to that place in your own life where you stop asking God 316 00:40:27,800 --> 00:40:36,720 to give you a safe life and to make you a dangerous follower of Jesus Christ? Let's 317 00:40:36,720 --> 00:40:45,560 pray. Lord Jesus, as we have entered into the upper room with you in this text today, 318 00:40:45,560 --> 00:40:51,920 we've been confronted with this question about who your real followers are. And I fear for 319 00:40:51,920 --> 00:40:59,080 this generation, I fear for the church of today, I fear for that 40% of Americans that 320 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:05,920 think they're followers. But in fact, there's very little to no evidence that they really 321 00:41:05,920 --> 00:41:12,480 are following you. And I pray that this message today will define for us clearly who your 322 00:41:12,480 --> 00:41:18,360 followers are and that we can answer that question in the affirmative, that we know 323 00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:24,440 that we are your followers. And I pray there may be even those right now or in the coming 324 00:41:24,440 --> 00:41:30,480 moments as we sing who will receive you as Lord and Savior and truly commit themselves 325 00:41:30,480 --> 00:41:36,960 to be your followers. And we pray that you will not keep us safe, but that you will make 326 00:41:36,960 --> 00:41:46,760 us dangerous and filled with the Holy Spirit to live out our lives as fully in love and 327 00:41:46,760 --> 00:41:55,120 humble service in this world as you did when you met with the disciples and then went to 328 00:41:55,120 --> 00:42:03,640 the cross. And I pray this in Jesus' name, amen. The ushers come with the elements that 329 00:42:03,640 --> 00:42:14,720 symbolize Jesus' death. If you are a follower of Jesus, take the elements, remembering for 330 00:42:14,720 --> 00:42:21,280 whom they stand and what they represent for us who are His followers.