At the men's breakfast last week, someone asked me, what's the plan for Meadow Creek in 2025? And I had thought about that. The answer is one that may surprise you because it's what most people will consider ordinary things. What we call the ordinary means of grace. We teach and preach the word at Meadow Creek. We do that as faithfully as we can. We partake of the sacraments in a God-honoring way, in faith. We gather together in fellowship, breaking bread together. We also serve each other as Christ served the church. And we gather to pray often, and we have much prayer in the midst of our services. And by this, you are equipped to go out and do ministry. That's how we reach the community. You are equipped. You become the ambassadors for Christ in this community. Every one of you are probably here because someone has invited you or told you about the worship at Meadow Creek, which is unique. So, you might ask, well, I don't know what I can do. If you're a child, you might ask, I don't know what I can do. My mom and dad are the ones that are supposed to do all that. No, it's all of us, young and old, We invite people into the church. Yes, we share the gospel, but we invite them to this place so they can experience this worship service with the saints of God. They can see the power of God moving among us. They can see the love that we have for each other. Christ said, and this is part of our message today, is that by the love we have for each other, one for another, all will know that we are his disciples. So what's our plan for 2025? It's to preach the Word of God. To teach the Word of God. To pray to the God Almighty in heaven. Pray for His mercy. To break bread together in fellowship and to partake of the sacraments. And then to go out and to tell others. And glorify Him in prayer in all of it. That's our mission. That's our focus. To glorify God. To be salt and light in this world. Well, Jesus certainly sets a good example for us. We're going to talk about His example as seen in John chapter 13. That's going to be the text, John 13, 1-17. Remember, in John 13, we begin this 4-5 chapter chunk of the gospel of John where he's alone with his apostles. The context is the Last Supper. His public ministry is over. He's not preaching in cities and synagogues around Israel any longer. He's alone with His apostles, with His disciples, the night that He was betrayed. This is a meal that He is eating with them. And it's interesting that what we see in the Gospel of John, as I've told you many times before, John feels like he's giving us information that are not in the synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. He's telling us things that maybe he feels left out. They fill in the gaps of the narrative. And really, these chapters, 13 through 17, are precious in that light, because almost all of it is completely new material from the Synoptic Gospels. So in this history of the events of the Last Supper that we see beginning in chapter 13, Our Lord is encouraging his apostles. Remember, he's going to the Garden of Gethsemane after this supper. He's going to sweat drops of blood and prayer. He's going to be arrested and eventually crucified. All this is happening right after this. So the Lord is encouraging his apostles. He knows what's going to come. They don't know exactly what's coming, but he's trying to prepare them the best he can. for what comes. He shows them a lot more about God maybe than they understood before. Especially Himself. The purpose of His coming. And they in turn, I think, learn a lot about their own behavior and what it should look like in light of Christ's servanthood. So I'll be reading verses 1-17 from John chapter 13. I would ask you as you are able, please stand for the reading of God's holy and inspired word. It's perfectly true and all that it says. Now, before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it in the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments and, taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, Lord, do you wash my feet? Jesus answered him, what I'm doing, you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand. Peter said to him, you shall never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, if I do not wash you, you have no share with me. Simon Peter said to him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said to him, The one who has bathed does not need to wash except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you. For he knew who was to betray him. That was why he said, Not all of you are clean. When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. Amen. Please be seated. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Let us pray. Almighty God, we humbly come before your throne once again asking that you would give us wisdom by your Holy Spirit. Open our hearts, open our eyes. Soften us to receive your word. May we be changed and you glorified in Jesus name, Amen. from the late 1700s to the early 1800s, there was a man named Charles Simeon who pastored Trinity Church in Cambridge. He was a pastor there for 52 years. That's a long time. He commented on this passage that how the church would be so different if everywhere this word were read, in all the churches on the globe, if people actually took the words of Christ seriously. If they lived out the commands of Jesus, who set an example and served each other. He said what a different world this would be. Certainly any of the commands that we would remember as a church would have a huge impact on the earth, but especially the command to love and serve each other as Christ served his apostles. The title of the sermon is Servant Leadership. The Servant Leadership of Christ. First, we'll look at the spiritual meaning of this act of service that Christ performed to his disciples. Because there is a spiritual lesson to be learned as he spoke to Peter, but also there's just a practical example of servanthood that God gives to all of us. Remembering that. The servant of God came to Earth. This is Jesus came to Earth Not to be served, but to serve others. It's astounding. I thought it was as I was considering an illustration to maybe begin the sermon. How many of these biblical truths are embraced by the world? A pagan world, maybe a secular world that doesn't even believe or know God at all. But various organizations embrace biblical truths because they work. They're true. They're just true for the world. And they work, and maybe pragmatically they embrace some truths. The servant leadership of Christ is something that's been embraced by the business culture 10-20 years ago. Servant leadership became something in business because, well, for secular people, it just works. People like to serve. or work for someone who is seen to commiserate with them, to work with them, to serve them, and yet still lead them. I thought in the Air Force, the Air Force core values, again, the Air Force isn't a religious organization at all. They would say that all religions probably have equal worth officially, but their core values are still integrity first, Service before self and excellence in all we do. Service before self. That's servant leadership. Officers would embrace this and say, I need to put the service and my men before myself. Even the US Air Force Fighter Weapons School, which is the school of all schools. It's where your fighter pilots who are going to become weapons officers, the top of the top, the top gun pilots in the squadron, they go to the school. And there was a problem in this school for a long time because people would graduate and they were just so prideful. No one could really approach them. They knew all the answers and they acted like it. So 30 years ago, they established a new unofficial motto, and it's written over the door of the building where people go to train for this school. Humble, approachable, incredible. So how did servant leadership wiggle its way into an organization like that? filled with prideful men who are definitely credible, but not approachable. Well, there's a problem, and it turns out that the best kind of leader is a servant leader. The best kind of leader is a leader like Christ, even though they don't know that He's their example. So we're going to talk about servant leadership. Servant leadership, for us who understand Christ and what He's done, certainly is more than just something that works. Servant leadership is our duty, and it's our great joy to serve each other as Christ served the church. Well, let's look at verse 1. Remembering that this is a transition from the public ministry of Christ to maybe this private prayer time around the Lord's table with His apostles. Verse 1 of chapter 13 is kind of a transition sentence. It's an introduction to this new section of the gospel. And he says that Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart out of the world to the Father. In this discussion that's following this verse with His apostles, we are meant to know that Jesus knows what is coming. He's not surprised by any of the events that follow. The hour had finally come. Remember before this in John, they would try to kill Him, And they were unable to, they were unsuccessful. Why? Because His hour had not yet come. And now John's telling us His hour had come. Now it's time. He's going to finish His mission. He would soon be dead. His body in the ground and His soul with His Father in heaven, where that would remain for three days. He wants to prepare His disciples for this shocking event. They were dismayed by the events that followed, and yet Jesus wanted to prepare them He knew that they would be bewildered by His death. And yet, He wanted them to know His love for them. He was doing this for them. The verse continues, having loved His own who were in the world. He loved them to the end. He loved His own. He loved His own who were in the world. Remember in John, the world is this unregenerate humanity. And He loved His own who were in the world, who He pulled out of the world and made His own. He loved them. This is also kind of a key to understanding the book of the Revelation. When you read the book of the Revelation and you see the world, most often it's talking about the unregenerate, rebellious part of the world against God. So John is consistent in that. He loved His own who were in the world and He loved them to the end. He fully loved them to the uttermost is another translation. To the uttermost. To His very last breath. He died loving His own. He died loving you. If you have faith in Him, you are His own. His own children that have been called out of the world. So, that's the transition to what follows. Knowing that the time had come and desiring that they know the depth of His love, before the meal, or during the meal, Jesus washes their feet. This is verse 2. During the supper, when the devil had already put it in the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. One of the points John's making here is that Jesus knew about Judas Iscariot. He knew that this man had made a deal with the devil, and yet he's still going to serve him. The devil had already put it into Judas' heart to betray him, and yet Jesus is still going to serve him. This shows, of course, the love of Christ. The all-pervasive love and condescension of Jesus. The service of Jesus. He knew Judas was evil. And he still washed his feet in love. How was he able to continue on with this divine task, knowing that this man would bring about his own death and the scattering of his people who would betray him, knowing that a traitor was conspiring with Satan? How would he continue? Well, he was confident in the mission God had given him. He was troubled in spirit, we read later. He was troubled in spirit, but he was still confident in the mission that God had given him. He knew that God had given all things into his hands. He knows the end. He knows the things that are coming. So we see throughout the Gospel of John this confidence and this power. And this really is part of how he's able to show love to the unlovable. and to love even as apostles. He knew everything that was coming. And he knew that Judas was in league with the devil. And yet he laid aside his outer garment, verse 4, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. And he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. Jesus washes their feet. The dynamics of this act of service are pretty clear. Feet are dirty. He washed their feet. Today, sometimes you see, I mean, this is why I quit social media a long time ago. I told my wife maybe four years ago, if I see another picture of painted toenails, I'm canceling Facebook forever. And that very day, I saw more feet. I was like, not more feet. I don't mind a few. put pictures of your feet on Facebook. I don't care. I don't have Facebook anymore. But today, most people still don't want to see anyone else's feet. They don't want to see their own feet. Feet are dirty. In fact, in the East today, it's still very, very poor form. It's considered rude to show someone the bottom of your foot. I remember when we moved to the Middle East and when we were training to be over in the Middle East, they had to tell us, now when you're sitting, keep your feet firmly planted on the ground. Don't cross your legs like men like to do because then you might expose the bottom of your feet to someone, and that is considered a grave insult. It's very rude. So you keep your feet down. Back then it was no different. It was probably even more of an insult. Feet were dirty. Feet were stinky. They were worn and hardened by life in the desert. There was no sidewalk. There's no concrete to walk on. They're walking through dirt and mud and muck. There were animals, animal manure. I mean, it's just a dirty thing to walk in dirt. And for that reason, Most homes, and large homes for sure, there was a slave, and the slave's whole purpose as you entered the house was to pause, to unstrap your sandals, to wash your feet off. The lowest or the youngest slave was given that duty. It was the worst job to have. It was the most menial job to have. It was considered something below most people. You remember when Jesus was baptized, John said, I'm not worthy to untie the sandal of Jesus. He's talking about this. He's talking about the work of a slave. He's saying, I'm not even unworthy to untie His sandal and wash His feet. The slave would take off the sandals and wash the feet. And John's like, I can't even do that. He's so far above me. He's so far worthier than I. So it appears that they're coming to this final supper, and none of the apostles had taken on the duty to wash feet. None of them. They all just sat down. Or they reclined. They reclined and nobody had their feet washed before this Passover meal. They had just been fighting about who was the greatest. These were prideful men. So washing the feet of an equal, you're trying to have a power play over these other men around the table. You're not going to bend over and wash their feet. You're not going to do that. And yet Jesus gets up and he performs the work of a house slave. He takes off his outer garment, his long robe, wraps a towel around his waist, and he begins to wash his disciples' feet. the disciples are reclining, just so you know, it's kind of a low table, maybe this high off the ground. And they're kind of reclining on pillows around the table, maybe on the left elbow, all kind of going the same direction with their feet kind of pointed out behind them. And they eat with their right hands. That's how they would eat in that time. So Jesus walks around behind each one of them and takes their feet and washes them. And he comes to Simon Peter. And says, Lord, do you wash my feet? And Jesus says, what I'm doing you don't understand now, but afterward you will understand. You see, Peter objects. He says, I don't really like this. And Jesus' answer to him is probably his answer to us many times in our lives. What I'm doing you do not understand now. But someday you will. Just trust me. We don't have to understand what God's doing. Sometimes in your life you feel this way. Even now maybe some of you are feeling like this. Lord, I don't understand what you are doing. And he speaks the same word to you that he did to Peter. You do not understand it now, but afterward you will. Just trust me. Just trust me. Someday it's going to be more clear. And Peter is doubling down. He says, no, you will never wash my feet. You will not do this. Again, Jesus is doing something that a slave, they've seen their whole lives, the lowest, youngest slaves doing this work. And now he sees Jesus, his Lord, washing feet, doing this work. And he says, no, no. But Jesus tells him, if I do not wash you, you have no share with me. And Peter says, Lord, not my feet, but my hands and my head also. See, Jesus is showing that this practical act of service and it is that and it's an example for us. That's the primary point is that we should serve each other as Christ serves us. But there's also a spiritual lesson here that Christ is our representative and he must wash each one of us for us to be clean, spiritually, spiritually clean. We must partake. in the washing done by Christ. So for Peter to refuse this physical washing, Jesus says, this is part of it. Jesus says, you have no share with Me. So Peter must submit to the work of Christ. Just as we all must submit to the cleansing work of Christ, our great High Priest. Jesus says, you don't have to have your whole body bathed, Peter. That's not the point. The one who is bathed does not need to wash except his feet because he's completely clean. John Calvin makes the point that when Jesus cleanses you, you are completely clean forever, but your feet still come in contact with the world and must be clean daily. We confess our sins daily. The disciples were clean except one, the one who would betray Him. And he says in verse 10, and you are clean." This is a y'all. You all are clean, but not every one of you. For He knew who was to betray Him. That's why I said not all of you are clean. He knew Judas was to betray Him. You know what strikes me about this? Jesus knew that Judas was the one who was to betray Him. You would think if it were me, like if I was in a group of men and I knew one was going to betray me the whole unit, the whole group to be scattered, that there would be great destruction, and I knew that this man was the one, and I had an opportunity, I might just crush him right then. I might call him out and say, get out. You're the one who's to betray. We don't see Jesus doing that at this point. He knew who was to betray Him, and He doesn't slam the door on the gate of repentance, if you will. He knew that Judas was conspiring with Satan, and yet, instead of applying a crushing blow in that moment, he remains the humble servant and washes the feet of even Judas. And this is an example for all of us, I believe. This is part of our lesson. Because we all have people like this in our lives, who may call themselves our friends, but then betray us in big ways or small ways. Maybe they're gossiping. Maybe they're stealing from you. Maybe they actually, in your face, disparage you. And yet Jesus, knowing the ultimate betrayal, He loves this man. Christ tells us to turn the other cheek with such people. We entrust our lives, our name, our reputation to the Almighty God, to our faithful Savior. We love these people and we pray for those who persecute us. That we might be sons of our Father in heaven. This kind of love is the result of experiencing the cleansing of Jesus. When He washes us, when He cleanses us, we act differently. Even toward those who hate us. We're washed in the blood. We're spiritually clean. So, what is the outworking of that spiritual washing? Well, Jesus shows us. He acts the part of a slave. This is the second point. The practical example of Christ. He serves those He came to save. It's crazy. The king serves the subjects. The master serves his slaves. He did this as an example for the church. Showing us how we are to act towards each other. You see, the people of His kingdom are different. We act like children. We trust. We love. We keep short accounts. We're humble. And this isn't a new message of His ministry. In Matthew 18, He tells the disciples that the greatest in heaven will be the one who's like a little child. A child. Here at the end of His ministry, in this Last Supper, we know from Luke 22 that His disciples were just fighting about who's the greatest. Imagine the scene. I'm the smartest. I've memorized so many of Jesus' sermons in these three years. I'm the oldest. Certainly, I've earned this place of leadership. I'm the only one who's ever walked on the water to Jesus. Y'all stayed in the boat. I was the first one to be called. That means I've served Him the longest. I should be the leader. I'm one of the three that Jesus took up to the Mount of Transfiguration. Certainly, I'm one of the leaders. No one's cast out as many demons as I have. I must be among the greatest. And Jesus tells them, no, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger. He who governs as he who serves. For who is greater? He who sits at the table or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? And yet, I am among you as one who serves. See, this is the lesson Jesus has been teaching them for quite a bit. This explains really the main reason for this act of service. The spiritual nature of the washing of their feet, of course, was part of the lesson. Jesus must wash us. But the main point of the lesson is that we might see and experience the real love of Christ, the servant love of Christ, the servant love of the gospel, that we will be showing each other in Christ. He says in verse 12, do you understand what I've done to you? You call me Lord and teacher. Lord and Teacher. This word Lord is akin to Master. You call me Master. You call me Teacher. And I am. And if I, your Master, your Lord, your Teacher, I, the Son of God, rule over you in every way and hold the universe together by the word of my power, if I serve you in this way, then what does that say about your desire to prove your own greatness? You've just been arguing about who's the best. What does that say about your arguments? To assert your rights and your superiority over others. Your foolish pride, your petty disagreements. Jesus says, basically, I reject pride and embrace humility. I, the King of kings. What does that say about your own duty to reject pride and to embrace humility? and thought, word, and deed. Paul tells the same lesson to the church in Philippians 2. He takes from Christ the same exact lesson and example. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, pride, if you will, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. having this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the very form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped. In other words, he came willingly. He wasn't grasping to stay in heaven. But emptied himself, he left his glory by taking the form of a slave, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself. by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Christ is our example. Well, he concludes like a good pastor with an exhortation to do the same. This is the conclusion of the sermon as well. Verses 15 through 17. Jesus says, I have given you an example that you should do just as I have done to you. Jesus clearly teaches us that those who love Him will do what He did to each other. It's a simple point. It's easy to understand. Later in verse 35, He says, all will know that you are Christians by your love, one for another. Unfortunately, from the time Jesus left heaven, or left earth and went back to heaven, ascended back to heaven, The church has been filled with people who are still learning the same lessons the apostles learned. They're putting themselves forward rather than serving others. They're more interested in their own abilities. Their own prideful examples. Serving as rebukes. Christ calls us to the exact opposite. Charles Simeon is right. Imagine what the universal church would look like if we all took this seriously. If we all put ourselves below everyone else. If we all just took the hurt, the insults, the slights, the difficulties that you feel and just gave them to God and said, Oh God, this is in your hands. I commit to love and serve and pursue these people in your church. Imagine if we all embraced this servant leadership in loving the brothers, denying yourself, taking up your cross and following our Lord. considering others more significant than yourself. Doing what you can with your words to put your brother ahead. Doing what you can with your thoughts not to despise, but to love and pray for them. Doing what you can with your life to do unto them what you would have them do unto you. But it's hard to do this. Why? Because of the great enemy of the church. Pride. It's the great enemy of every family. It's the great enemy of every marriage. It's pride. Pride reverses all of this. It puts you ahead of your neighbor. It puts your needs ahead of the needs of the brothers. It puts offense and unforgiveness and bitterness into your soul. Pride brings anger and hostility. It brings gossip and false witness. All manner of sinful words. Pride is an evil fire to the soul. This is why a prideful man cannot be a Christian man. much less a godly man. And Jesus experiences the worst behavior from His own people, and He still serves them and loves. That's why the first thing the Holy Spirit destroys and begins to destroy when He comes into your life is pride. He must. You might think, well, that's the end of Jesus' sermon, His teaching, and it's not. He hammers this home again in verse 16. He says, truly, truly. Amen. Amen. He's just going to keep swinging at this one. A slave is not greater than a master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. The apostles are all slaves and messengers of Jesus. In fact, when you read Peter and Paul and James and Timothy and Jude, When you read their letters, they all introduce themselves as slave of Christ. They were completely impacted by this gospel of Jesus, this serving heart that Jesus had and that they now had as well. They realized they were bought with a price. They were Christ's slaves. And they must act as their master acted. Truly, truly, they must. They must lovingly and patiently serve the brothers. even backbiters and betrayers and thieves and all of the other things that plague churches and always have. We respond as brothers in love. In verse 17, Jesus tells us, if you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. It's not enough just to know this is right. You need to actually do it. Doing is the hard part, isn't it? You might be intelligent and know a lot about the Bible. If you don't do what the Bible says, it does nothing. Serving doesn't come very natural to us. Pride is always at the door. Pride is very natural. But serving is not. So let me conclude by just saying this. Make this the year of service. Make this 2025 the year where the body of Christ serves. puts everyone else above yourself and serves as Christ did. This is humility. All of you have been brought to Christ by the Holy Spirit for a reason. And it's not for your own glory. It's for God's glory. So commit to serving your family, your husband, your wife, your children, your church as a servant, as a slave for God. Speaking of this church, God has brought each person here as a specific part of the body with a specific gift to bless the body. Each of you has been given a gift to serve the body of Christ. And you should be using your gift to serve. If you don't serve the body of Christ, I would ask, why are you here? Just coming to soak up as much as you can and go home? The expectation of Christ, the expectation of this church and of your membership, is not only that you're present when the doors are open, but that you find ways to serve the body. That might be different than anything we can imagine. But you have been given a very special gift. And think of it this way. If you aren't serving the body of Christ in some way, then that gift is being withheld by the body. You've been brought here for a purpose. I'm not saying any of this because I need people to start doing more stuff. This is a spiritual truth. God has brought you to serve, to serve the body of Christ. Christ came as a slave and he calls us to give our lives. For him. As a slave of Christ, to humbly lay down your life and love for the saints of God, for your spouse, for your family, but for your church. And if you know this, blessed are you if you do it. Let us pray. Almighty God, we thank You that You have set such a wonderful example for us. Lord, apart from You, we can do nothing. Lord, we pray that this seed that has been now planted in our souls would bring forth fruit, even a hundredfold. Lord, that Your Holy Spirit would cause it to take deep roots, so that no afflictions or temptations would make it unfruitful, Lord, but that You would be glorified. Our heart's desire is to serve You. Our heart's desire is to serve the body of Christ. Please, help us, Lord. Help us to tamp down the pride that is always welling up in our souls. To see others as more significant than ourselves. To love with the love of Christ, who loved even the worst of those around Him. Thank you, Lord. Thank you for your spirit. Thank you for this time of the Lord's Supper that we're about to partake in Jesus name.