Episode Transcript
[00:00:03] Speaker A: Morning, church family.
Y' all awake and ready to worship this morning?
Would you stand and sing with us?
[00:00:18] Speaker B: I believe there is one salvation, one doorway that leads to life.
One redemption, One confession. I believe in the name of Jesus Jesus Christ.
I believe in the crucifixion. By his blood I have been set free.
I believe in the resurrection. Hallelujah. His life is death defeated. Amen.
All praise to God the Father.
All praise to Christ the Son all praise to the Holy Spirit How God has overcome the King who was and is ever more will be In Jesus, mighty name I believe, I believe in the hope of heaven he's preparing a place for me Far beyond what hearts imagine ears have her eyes have seen I believe that a day has come he's returning to claim his bride Light the altar keep it burning See the lamb who rose O Roaring Life Christ all praise to God the Father all praise to Christ the Son all praise to the Holy Spirit How God has overcome the King who was and is and ever more will be In Jesus, mighty name I believe I believe in you oh, no, I'll never be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ how could I ever walk away from the one who saved my life?
Oh, no, I'll never be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ how could I ever walk away from the one who saved my life?
Oh, no, I'll never be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ how could I ever walk away from the one who saved my life?
Oh, praise you, God our Father all praise to To Christ the Son all praise to the Holy Spirit How God has overcome the King who was and is and ever more will be In Jesus mighty name I believe and all praise to God our Father all praise to Christ the Son all praise to the Holy Spirit How God has overcome the King who was and is ever more will be In Jesus, mighty name I believe In Jesus, mighty name I believe oh, you know I believe me Amen.
[00:04:51] Speaker A: Amen.
[00:04:57] Speaker C: Good morning, Westgate Chapel. How are you today?
Oh, let's try again. Good morning, Westgate. How are you?
Okay, some of us are awake.
[00:05:09] Speaker A: Good morning.
[00:05:10] Speaker C: My name is Marlena, and I am the director of Kids Ministry here at Westgate Chapel. And I'm so excited to see each and every one of you here worshiping with us. Isn't our worship band amazing?
Like, they lead us every Sunday to the throne of the Lord. And I am always. I just. I love singing and worshiping with them. So, again, thank you for joining us. If it is your first time, we're so glad that you're here. If you look in front of you in the pew, there is a card that says, says connect. And if you take that card, you can fill it out. You can go right outside these doors, and there'll be. We have our guest center back there. There'll be a friendly person waiting to chat with you about what it means to connect here at Westgate Chapel. We have lots of things going on, lots of things to get involved in. So that's a great way to kind of get started to figure out what. What your place could look like here at Westgate. And so we definitely encourage you to do that. Also, we have something super exciting coming up called Westgate at the Ribbon. Who year was it awesome?
It was amazing. It, like, snowed. It was magical. We're praying for the snow to happen again. Not really, but Westgate, the ribbon. We did it last year. And really, it's a time where our whole church family comes together at the Ribbon and we ice skate together. And even if you're like, I'm not an ice skater. I will fall and hurt myself, we still want you to come.
We still want you to come because there's lots of opportunities for community, for connection, and so definitely sign up for that. The spaces are limited. So if you have not signed up and you plan on coming, please sign yourself up. And not only is it an awesome opportunity for us as a church to gather, to have fun together, but it is an awesome opportunity for you to invite someone who doesn't have a church home, who maybe doesn't know the Lord, maybe would never come with you on a Sunday to church. And it's an opportunity. Instead of coming, bringing them to church, you're actually taking them to the church, but at an ice skating rink. So it's a great opportunity.
Invite a friend, invite a coworker, invite a neighbor that might need to know who Christ is or that needs maybe a body of believers to connect with. And we want to see you there. So again, you can sign up on westgatechapel.org events, make sure you look for this picture, or you can go on the app and sign up also.
And the other thing I have to talk to you about, which some of you are gonna not love this because you are the don't talk to me about Christmas before Thanksgiving people. Anybody in here like that? I know, Rob. We've already discussed it, but I can't help it, because, yes, I know it's not Thanksgiving, but when we start to consider Christmas, some of us, we have to plan early, right? We already Have. I'm sorry. We're one of those people. We have our blow ups up like we're the crazy yard with all the Christmas blow ups and the decorations already up. And we just, just. We can't help it. So if you're not like that, it's okay.
But we still love you. And it's, you know, those of anybody like me, we're like, Christmas all the way. Yeah. Thank you. There's. There's some. There's some people out there, but the reason we have to talk about Christmas a little early is because Advent is coming. And if you're like, I don't know what Advent it is. Advent is an opportunity that as we approach the Christmas season, we get to really pause and consider, what does it mean to focus on Christ at Christmas. So I have up here with me, this is a stocking that says my name, Marlena. It has this little guy with one googly eye left. I'm not exactly sure. He looks like a little bug or something, but my parents had this made when I was born, and they hung it every year on our mantel. And stockings were really important to us. We actually got to open stockings on Christmas Eve, which really doesn't make sense, but we did because my mom just couldn't wait. So we did stockings every year, Christmas Eve, my mom's stockings were really important for her family. And so I started thinking, a lot of us do stockings.
Where did the stocking come from? And some of you guys know this, but in the 4th century, it was like, that's the origin, where people say, you know, some guy dropped a coin down a thing and it landed in someone's stocking, and he was trying to help this family. And so it started there. And then starting in the 1800s, was the first time it really showed up in America.
There was a song written about it, and then people started taking the stocking. So you'll see some pictures where it's from the 40s, the 50s, the 60s. This stocking idea has kind of transcended time. It has stuck around because traditions, they're important.
And because they're important, we pass them down and they outlast even the people who started them.
So this stocking, when I'm gone, someday, I hope my son will still have stockings in his family.
And so just like the stocking, and even more importantly than the stocking is our tradition of Advent. And focusing on Christ at Christmas, we get, I love the blow ups, I love the presents, I love the food. But as believers, we know that the True meaning of Christmas is who?
Jesus. And that is very easily lost in the message of Christmas.
And so this year, I encourage each of you, whether you have kids, whether you don't, that as we approach the season of Advent and we approach the season of Christmas, that you would really spend time preparing yourself to consider what a baby being born in a manger meant and how it has changed each of our lives. For our kids ministry, we're actually offering these Advent bags. They're going to be in the atrium. They were so popular this morning that there's only a few left, but we will have more next year or next week. So November 30th is when it starts. So you still have some time to ready yourself. So we'll have these available whether you have grandkids, kids. And this will be an opportunity. It's a little kit where you can just pause each week to think about what Advent means. And then also our sermon series starting in December is also going to be leaning towards Advent and how we can focus on Christ at Christmas. So again, I know it's not Thanksgiving yet, but we can start preparing our hearts and our minds. And as families, we can start passing just like this tradition. How do we get things? We care more about our faith than the stalking, right? And so how can we pass our faith down to our kids? And one way we can do that is to make Advent really important and make focusing on Jesus really important. Okay? So right now, I know it's not Christmas, and Rob was like, I can't believe you did that. But we're going to talk about Christmas. So all of you are going to stand up and you're going to tell someone your favorite Christmas tradition.
And even you Thanksgiving people, you got to do it. You got to do it. So everybody stand up. Tell someone your favorite Christmas tradition.
[00:12:13] Speaker A: It is good to be together.
Will you join me as we pray together?
God, thank you so much. Thank you so much for being with us this morning, Lord. We thank you for the story, God, of you coming down to earth, Lord. I know we're just entering into Thanksgiving here, and we are so thankful we can be here together today. We are so thankful we get to worship you. We are thankful for the sacrifice you paid for each and every one of us.
[00:12:44] Speaker B: Us.
[00:12:45] Speaker A: May we remember that and lean into that this morning, God.
It's in your holy name we pray.
Amen.
[00:13:10] Speaker B: You came from heaven's throne acquainted with our sorrow to trade the debt we owe your suffering for our freedom.
The lamb of God in my place, your blood poured out my sin erased, it was my death you died, I am raised to life.
Hallelujah. The lamb of God.
My name upon your heart, my shame upon your shoulders the power of sin undone. Hallelujah.
The cross for my salvation.
O the lamb of God in my place your blood poured out my sin erased. It was my death you died I am raised to life.
Hallelujah. The lamb of God greater love.
There is no greater love.
My savior lifted up There is no greater love.
There is no greater love.
There is, there's no greater love.
My savior lives.
There is no greater love.
The lamb of God in my place your blood poured out my sin raised it was my death you died, I am raised to life.
Hallelujah. The lamb of God the lamb of God in my place your blood poured out my sin he raised it was my death you died, I am raised to life.
Hallelujah. The lamb of God.
Thank you, Jesus, thank you for your blood.
Hallelujah.
[00:16:59] Speaker A: Amen.
Why don't you bow your heads and close your eyes for a moment?
Use this time, use this moment to get right with God.
I firmly believe he wants to do something in your life today.
I firmly believe that.
I firmly believe that. Just want you to bow to him.
Go to him now in this few moments here before we sing this song, ask him to move in your heart.
[00:17:55] Speaker B: Here is where I lay it down every burden, every crown this is my surrender this is my surrender Here is where I lay it down every lion, every doubt this is my surrender And I will make for you to do whatever you want to to do whatever you want to and I will make room for to do whatever you want to to do whatever you want to here is where I lay it down every burden, every crown this is my surrender this is my surrender Here is where I lay it down every lion every doubt this is my surrender And I will make room for you so do whatever you want to do whatever you want to And I will make room for you to do whatever you want to to do whatever you want to oh, and I will make room for you whatever you want to to do whatever you want to and I will make room for you to do whatever you want to to do whatever you want to Jesus of all my tradition break down the walls of all my religion your way it's better he always better Shake off the ground of all my tradition Break down the walls of all my religion your way is better only your way is better Shake up the ground of all my tradition Break down the walls of all my religion your way is Better.
Oh, your way is better.
Shake up the ground of all my tradition. Break down the walls of all my religion. Your way is better.
Oh, we always better.
I will make room for you to do whatever you want to.
To do whatever you want to.
And I will make room for you, Jesus, to do whatever you want to.
To do whatever you want to.
Here is where I lay it down.
You are all I'm chasing now.
This is my surrender.
This is come on singing church.
Here is where I lay it down.
You are all I'm chasing now.
This is my surrender.
This is my surrender.
Amen.
[00:23:06] Speaker A: Give God praise.
Go ahead and grab a seat and I'm just gonna invite you to close your eyes with me as we come to prayer.
As your eyes are closed, I just want you to pause for a moment and think about the words that we just sang.
I will make room for you to do whatever you want to.
Think about the depth of that prayer of worship that we just sung to the Lord. I will make room for you to do whatever you want to.
Such a prayer of worship of complete and total surrender that says, God, I know that what you have is best for me.
And I'll get out of the way and move all things out of the way just to let you have control, God, may that be the cry of our hearts this morning. And not just words that we sing with our lips.
That, Father, as we come and we approach you, as we do every week, gathering together here in your church, enjoying this church, this fellowship, the relationships that are here, the opportunity, God, to just worship you and to pursue you, to serve you, God, as we go through all of these things on a weekend and week out basis, may the true cry of our hearts be that we'll make room for you to do whatever it is that you want to do in our lives.
That our act of worship would not just be about Sunday morning and what we do when we gather in this room, but our greatest worship will be what happens every moment of every single day of our lives. That you, God, are receiving glory because we're moving ourselves out of the way so that your purposes would take the primary spot in our hearts and lives.
And God, I pray that as we worship you with those words from our mouth that would truly come from the wellspring of our hearts. This morning we surrender and submit to you in all ways. God.
We sing songs of praise and gratitude.
We're going to study your word and ask God that you would help us to see the ways in which you want to shift and change our hearts. This morning, as we approach your word, we're going to worship you in that way and we're going to worship you, God, in our giving an acknowledgement, God, that we just want to be a part of what you are doing so that more people will know your son. And so as we give and worship, Lord, we pray that you would multiply it and that you would use it for your purposes. And we do so in faith and with joy, giving you thanks for what you are doing in our lives. Lives. We love you and we pray, God, that you would speak to us this morning as we continue in this posture of worship together. It's in Jesus name that we pray. Amen.
Amen. As I said, we're going to take our morning offering and so I'd invite you to grab those offering buckets here on the bottom level in the middle. You can pass them out to the sides and they're up in the corners in the balconies and we'll pass those across. We'll just continue in this posture of worship through giving for just a moment before we jump into God's word together.
Well, I am thankful that you are here with us, us this morning and if we haven't had the opportunity to meet, my name is Rob Zimmerman, lead pastor here at Westgate. And especially if you're a guest here with us today, I'm so thankful that you have chosen to worship with us as we dive into God's Word this morning. Hopefully you were able to grab some sermon notes on your way in each week. Those are located at our different entrances on the tables and you can use those to follow along this morning. And if you've got your Bibles with you this morning, you can turn with me to, to Mark chapter nine. That's where we're going to begin.
But if you are new, one important thing for you to know is that we have been in a series together over the last four weeks that is entitled Life Together the Church. And the reason that we began this series is this acknowledgement and recognition that sometimes today when we look at the church in our modern culture is that we recognize that there are ways in which our culture, and sometimes even Christian culture, has distorted the biblical understanding of the church, who it is, what it is and how it is that we are supposed to do life together. And so over the last few weeks and throughout this series, we are taking a look and coming back to God's Word and seeking to understand what does it mean for us to be God's church. What does that look like from God's word. And then. And how is that lived out in our everyday lives? We began in the first week talking about the fact that God created His church. This organism of believers coming together so that we could do life together, not just to find community, but because the way that God designed our relationships with him, it's that we grow best. We grow deepest when we are in community and fellowship with one another, encouraging each other, holding each other accountable, challenging one another and growing together side by side, serving together. This is how God has designed the church, that we would do it together.
We also talked about in week two that as his church, that we are empowered by the Holy Spirit.
There is so much today when you look at the church in our world that can be explained away by good human ideas. You know, you can grow a church and it can have the appearance that things are happening by having good music or good kids programs or youth programs or having a good speaker up front. You can do all sorts of things to have an appearance. But the real question is, is the spirit of God moving through his people and changing hearts and changing lives? And so we looked at the fact that God has designed his church not to live their lives as individuals and collectively together in our own strength, but in the strength of the power of the Holy Spirit Spirit. We also talked about the fact just a few weeks ago that we were designed to celebrate what God is doing. And we were able to celebrate a few weeks ago as we baptized 28 people who made their decision to put their faith in Jesus Christ and wanted to profess that publicly and such an incredible thing to see how God is moving and working.
We also as his church, as we talked about last Sunday, Pastor Adam shared that one of the things that marked God's church is that we worship as individuals, but especially collectively together as the body of Christ. It is the purpose that he has given to us. And this morning, as we continue in this series together, we're going to talk about the fact that as God's church, one of the key priorities that we have and mission that we have from him is to serve one another.
Now, I want to begin by asking you a question this morning. Do you want to be great?
Does anybody here want to be great?
I can feel the tension in the room. There's some of you that are like, yes, but you're like, oh, but if I put my hand up, how's that going to look? Right, Right. Because we're afraid. Like, how do I answer that question? Like, especially in a public place, I've got this idea that I would love to be great, but then maybe I'll look a little bit arrogant or self absorbed. So I don't want to raise my hand. That feels a little prideful. But here's the thing. Think about it. If we say yes, I want to be great, while we might sound arrogant or self absorbed, but if we say no, that doesn't sound very good either. Think about it. If you're a parent in the room, do you want to be a great parent or do you want to be, eh, which one do you want?
Or how about this for all of us in this room who are children, think about it. Do you want to be a great kid or do you want to be the one that people say that is not a great kid, right? No, we want to be great.
Or what about your friendships? How many of you are striving just to be an average friend, huh?
Or do you want to be a great friend?
How about in your profession? Here's the deal. I don't want to be a lame pastor.
I know there's a lot of opinions in this room. I feel the tension. I've grown a thick skin over the years. But think about it. I'm guessing you don't want to be lame at your job either.
We want to be great at the vocation that God has called us to.
Or is that prideful?
I would offer to you this morning that greatness in and of itself is not inherently wrong.
I might even say that God desires that your life would be great.
And in our text, what we're going to look at this morning in Mark, chapter nine is that Jesus is going to define for us just what greatness is, but also where it comes from and the way that he's going to do this. If you're following along in your notes, you can fill this in. Is that Jesus is going to expose the difference between the world's agenda and the agenda of his kingdom. If you have your Bibles, you can look with me at Mark, chapter nine, verse 30 through 37. I'm going to read it this morning, make a little change on you from the niv. Those words will also be up here on the screen. But we're going to take a look again at Mark, chapter nine, verses 30 through 37 as we begin. And again here, Jesus is going to expose the difference between the world's agenda and the agenda of his kingdom. Let's read it together. It begins by saying that they left that place and passed through Galilee.
Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were because he was teaching his disciples.
He said to them, the Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.
They will kill him. And after three days he will rise.
But they. The disciples did not understand what he meant. And they were afraid to ask him about it.
And then they came to Capernaum.
And when he was in the house, Jesus asked them, what were you arguing about on the road?
But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.
And sitting down, Jesus called the twelve and said, anyone who wants to be first must be the very last and the servant of all.
He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, whoever welcomes one of these children in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me does not welcome me, but the one who sent me.
Let's take a look at what's happening, kind of background to this text together for just a moment. You'll see a map that is on the screen. And what we understand is that Jesus is passing through the Galilee region in the northern part of. Of Israel.
The location is. Is nondescript in the text. We don't know exactly where they are. When Jesus begins teaching his disciples, what the text does tell us that as they're passing through this region, Jesus didn't want anyone to know where they were. And the reason for that is because he had some very specific teaching that he wanted to do with them. And a significant part of that is that this was going to be the second time that Jesus would tell and reveal to his disciples that he was going to die and raise to life again.
What we read and understand is that the first time Jesus actually does this is after his interesting interaction with Peter in Caesarea Philippi, which is, if you look at the map is up in kind of the. Straight up to the north and just off to the east of that tiny little.
I don't know what we call lake that is there. And what's interesting is that we know that Jesus, from the time that he first has that conversation with his disciples, they have been traveling back to the Galilee region. And our text tells us that they are coming and arriving to Capernaum, which sits on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. And as they travel along this road, it's the second time that Jesus would tell his disciples he's going to die. But the text says that Jesus disciples understand what he was saying.
They couldn't grasp that Jesus really meant that he was going to die. And that's Revealed by what consumed their conversation while they were on these travels. From somewhere near Caesarea Philippi back down towards the Sea of Galilee and to Capernaum.
Think about it. Have you ever had a moment in your life where you did something that you weren't supposed to to do, and you thought that it was concealed? And then your parents would ask you, what did you do? Anybody here ever have that? I had it almost every single day of my life.
I felt like I would often do something that I shouldn't have done. It usually had to do with torturing my sister. And then I was hopeful that it was concealed, that they wouldn't find out. And my mom or my dad would come and be like, rob, what did you do? And what would I do?
Stay completely silent. Because if they don't know, I ain't telling them. And if I say something wrong, I'm just going to be in more trouble, right? So I would go completely silent. I have the same picture in my mind, like Jesus's disciples. They arrive in the house in Capernaum and Jesus says, what were you guys talking about on the road back there? And they go silent. They're like, nope, not going to say it. We know we're going to get a lecture, right?
[00:38:12] Speaker B: Well.
[00:38:12] Speaker A: Well, they kept quiet because they were arguing about who would be the greatest.
We know that they didn't understand what Jesus meant when he had talked about his death, because on their journey, they weren't talking about that.
They were still trying to figure out who was going to be the top dog in Jesus kingdom when he had run roughshod over Rome.
So Jesus begins here by exposing the difference between the world's agenda and the agenda of God's kingdom.
Letter A. In the kingdom of this world, what we see is that greatness is measured by how high you climb.
Greatness is measured by how high you climb. Think about the Roman culture that the disciples and Jesus lived in in that day. The way that you define greatness was, was strength. It was power and authority over people. It was the accumulation of great wealth.
Oftentimes your greatness would be based on your ancestry or your lineage and where you came from. It was your public reputation. Greatness was all about how you had risen to the top above other people and had power and authority and strength.
But also think about the religious, religious setting that the Jews, the disciples and Jesus lived in.
Even in the religious structures of that day, Greatness was often defined even by the religious leaders, by their adherence to Torah, their knowledge of the Torah, their extreme public, righteousness or the power and position that they held, or the social status, they were constantly looking to one up other people because that is what would make you great.
Sounds pretty familiar, doesn't it? Because we live in a culture today that measures greatness on how high it is that you can climb. Your career status, your material wealth, your fame and influence, how many social media followers you have being the best in your sport. It's why our world hates participation trophies, because you didn't earn that, you didn't do anything great or worthy of notoriety. And so we don't want those, because what do we do? We celebrate people who have achieved something that we deem worthy of praise.
But here's the deal.
The kingdom of this world, its definition of greatness being measured by how high you can climb, produces often one of two things.
It can produce pride, which causes you to put others down at any expense in order to climb yourself higher, and can also be your greatest downfall.
But it also can create in a person a complete place of despair as they begin to feel like they will never match up and never quite achieve what they should.
This is the broken system of the world's definition of greatness. It's measured by how high you can climb. But let her be. In God's kingdom, greatness is measured by humble servanthood. And Jesus in this passage, changes the narrative.
What Jesus does in this moment is that knowing what his disciples had talked about even as they remained silent, it says that he goes and he takes this young child and brings the child into the middle of them and then picks the child up. And as he picks this child up, what is it that he says? He says to them, whoever welcomes one of these children in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me does not welcome me. But who? The one who sent me.
I want you to think about the significance of this moment. Why did Jesus use a child as his illustration of what makes a person great?
Children had no status in this culture in the ancient world. They had no rights, they had no power, they had no honor, and honestly, they had no value.
Greatness would be defined not by achievement or greatness would be defined not by achievement or personal acclaim, is what Jesus is trying to teach. But greatness would be by how one is selfless in serving others, especially the least of these.
And what Jesus wanted his disciples to catch, and that he wanted, wants us to understand is this idea of humble servanthood is not for your sake.
It's not even really truly for the sake of the person that you're serving.
But who is it for? What does he say?
He says, whoever welcomes one of these child or whoever welcomes one of these little children and my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me does not welcome me, but the one who sent me.
Huh?
In other words, our motivation isn't for our sake or for the sake of the person we're serving, but it's for God's sake. We serve others because we want more of God. And he is the one who's what? The greatest.
The greatest.
And so Jesus teaches his disciples and wants them to understand that there is a difference in understanding of what greatness is between the kingdom of this world and God's kingdom. And yet we know as we continue to read through the New Testament, they don't get the message. Like when you continue to read through the New Testament, this seems to be a constant conversation with the disciples. Who's going to be the greatest? You got two brothers who go off and try to sneak up to Jesus and be like, hey, can we, like, sit, you know, on your right and left at your throne in heaven? You know, can we have that seat and that place of honor? It seems as though we're always trying to climb over one another at the expense of. Of each other to be great.
And I don't know if I can blame them. That's the culture that they were coming up in. But Jesus consistently throughout the New Testament, drives this point home.
That in his kingdom, greatness is measured by humble servanthood.
Well, here's what's going to happen as we continue and we look to the very end of Jesus earthly ministry in John, chapter 13. If you have your Bibles, you can turn there. What we're going to see is that Jesus. Jesus is going to drive this point home in an incredibly powerful moment. He has taught it to his disciples over and over and over and over again. And in this moment before his death, before he will leave them, he is going to make the point unmistakably clear.
John, chapter 13, verses 1 through 17.
This is what it says.
It was just before the Passover festival.
Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.
Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
The evening meal was in progress. And the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power.
[00:45:18] Speaker B: Power.
[00:45:18] Speaker A: And that he had come from God and was returning to God.
So he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing and wrapped a towel around his waist.
After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
And he came to Peter, who said to him, lord, are you going to wash my feet?
And Jesus replied, you do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.
No, said Peter, you shall never wash my feet.
But Jesus answered, unless I wash you, you have no part with me.
Then Lord Peter said, not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well.
And Jesus answered, those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet. Their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you. For he knew who was going to betray him. And that was why he said not everyone was clean.
When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place.
Do you understand what I've done for you? He asked them.
You call me teacher and Lord, and rightfully so, for that is what I am.
Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.
Very truly, I tell you, no servant is greater than his master. Nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
I want you to think about this portion of text that we're reading. It's at the very end of Jesus earthly ministry. Jesus has spent three years teaching his disciples, pouring into them an understanding of the kingdom of God, trying to drive home this point of what true greatness really is.
But the passage tells us that as Jesus and his disciples gathered together in this upper room, a very significant and last special moment together. That the time had come.
The time had come that Jesus was was going to give his life.
An important statement even within this text. Because as Jesus is going to help them to understand what true greatness really is through an action that he does, it is the greater action of his death that will happen just hours later that will even more so drive this point home. But the time had come. And so here in this very powerful moment that Jesus had his purpose from God is being fulfilled. And I love what it says.
It says here that having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
Jesus, the one who is God enthroned above all things as we're going to see who is in charge and powerful over all creation, went even to his disciples, sinners Broken, sinning against God.
And he loved them to the end with every ounce of who he was.
And it tells us that as we read in John 13, in the very beginning of verse 3, that Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power.
I want you to think about the depth of what that means. Letter A.
Jesus knew that he was something special.
I want you to think about that. Jesus knew that he was something special. Have you ever met someone famous before? Anybody here ever met a famous person? You know, maybe a movie star, sports person, you know, someone who knows that there's something special about them? Growing up in Southern California, I had the opportunity to meet or run into a number of times, a number of people that were considered to be famous. Mostly people like Hollywood stars, you know, if you were. Or sports stars, you know, if we were down in LA or even at theme parks, you might run into people. And they were often people that even sometimes it was well known pastors, like in the Christian community, that would be considered famous. One of the things that I always noticed that they carried themselves with an air that they were just a little bit better than everyone else. I can remember, even with a pastor nonetheless passing the individual at a conference, thanking them for what they had just shared. And I literally got dead stared and eye rolled and they continued on with their entourage. And I thought to myself, really?
Like, really pastor?
And yet the truth is, is that in our culture, we're kind of conditioned to expect that if someone is famous or popular, that somehow they've risen above us. And that likely they will carry themselves with an air of pride or an air of arrogance, or an attitude that lets off that they're better than everyone else. And the reason for this is because pride often follows power and position. We see it all the time.
That's also why it's so refreshing when you experience something completely different with someone who is seen as great, famous, or special.
I can remember early in my college years, I went to the Life Conference. And this one specific year, it was in Utah.
Our students had just gone to the Life Conference this past summer. And in Utah, the thing that the alliance did that year was they turned it into a music festival. It was literally like the only time they ever did it. They had every famous Christian band that you could possibly ever imagine at this conference. It was incredible, and it cost the Great Commission a lot of money. But aside from that, my youth pastor was actually in charge of booking all the bands for this. And so part of the perk of being his intern, but also for Our group is that he put us in the hotel with all of the bands on the secured floor. It was incredible. We got to rub shoulders with them, kind of say hi to them. And, I mean, we were. We were constantly, like, just starstruck by the people that we were kind of staying on the same floor with. And on this specific secured floor we had, there was this room that was kind of big, right next to the elevators where you could go in. It was a lounge, and they had all sorts of snacks and drinks, and we were allowed to enjoy it. But the people that were in these bands would go in and out, and I'll tell you, like, a lot of them were kind of what you would expect to famous people. They're like, hey, blue. But we got better things to do. You know, you're kind of the lower people. We're not even sure why you're on our floor. But there was one moment that really stood out to me. My favorite band of all time at that time of my life was Audio Adrenaline. Anybody here know who Audio Adrenaline was?
[00:52:31] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:52:32] Speaker A: Look, we're old together. I love it.
So Audio Adrenaline was, like, one of my favorite groups. And they were there performing, and the lead singer, his name's Mark Stewart, walked into the room and sat down. I was literally the only person in there. And I was, like, starstruck. I was like, oh, my goodness, look at this guy. And he's not going to pay any attention to me. But Mark Stewart actually came, sat down next to me and opened up this conversation and was like, hey, tell me about yourself. I want to know who you are. And not only did he want to know about me, he started telling me a little bit about his own life. He asked me about my relationship with Jesus, and, like, he really wanted to know and. And invest in me. And here's the deal. For about 15 minutes before he had to go and run off to another show, there was nothing else that he was focused on except little old me. And it was something that really stood out to me. It was so, like, inviting, like he was down to earth. He didn't see himself as better. He was just another person on a journey with Jesus, just like me. Just this young college guy who was of no significance.
And it stood out to me, and it was attractive. It made me love that band even more because there was something so real about him.
Here's Jesus.
Jesus knows that he's something.
Think about the depth of what this passage tells us. It tells us that he knew that God had put all things under his power.
There was no one greater, there is no one that is higher. Think about the songs that are written in the Christian world that sing about the greatness of God, that there are no thrones or dominions or power positions, that God has given Jesus all power. There is no one greater or more famous in all of the world. He's the Son of God. He was present and involved in creation. He's all powerful, able to heal, able to control nature, to raise the dead to life. He holds all authority over all created things. And yet the most refreshing thing about Jesus is that this greatness didn't go to his head.
In John 13, the beginning of verse three, we read, Jesus knew the Father had put all things under his power. But the verse finishes and says, and he knew that he had come from God and was returning to God.
Letter B.
Jesus knew that his life served a purpose that was greater than his own.
The picture of Jesus life that he is going to paint, that is going to be painted for us. It's painted throughout the whole New Testament. But the picture of Jesus life that's being painted here for us in this context is that the version of greatness that will define your life, whether it's the world's version or the version of the kingdom of God, it will be determined either by pride or by humility.
And I want you to catch this this morning. That pride distorts our understanding of greatness and makes life all about me.
It strives to climb to the highest places of notoriety, of power, of accumulation of riches and status with no regard for who it will trample over on the way it puts people down in order to raise itself up.
And let me tell you, when I read the Bible, if there was anything who ever had a right to be prideful, it would be Jesus. He's the creator of all things.
He is in control of all things. This is the man who has power over everything, even life and death. And yet the glimpse that we get and even the disciples begin to cast catch though he has told it to them many times, is that Jesus life was not marked by pride that was so common to life and their culture, but his life was marked by incredible humility.
And it totally confounded them.
It confused them. They didn't understand it.
What Jesus teaches his disciples and us is this is that when greatness is birthed and cultivated in humility, that puts God's priorities before all other things, it produces a captivating result, an irresistible aroma as it seeks to put the well being of others before itself and selflessly serves Others.
And Jesus is going to make this point with incredible clarity.
John 13, verses 4 through 5 says he got up from the meal, he took off his outer clothing and wrapped a towel around his waist. And after that he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
Let her see. The first thing that I notice in this is that Jesus saw the needs of those that were around him. Foot washing honestly was an, was an incredibly common thing in Jesus day. People would often travel a long time and long distances over roads that had not been paved. They were dirty and they were dusty. And most people when they would travel these roads would be wearing sandals. So their feet would get incredibly dirty and I'm pretty sure disgusting. I can remember when I was a youth pastor in California, we used to love to take kids on this thing called travel camp. And there was one kid in particular, travel camp was like we would go camping off in kind of a wooded area and we would do all sorts of fun things, hiking around and off the oftentimes through dirt. There was this one junior hire in particular. When we were getting ready to go on a hike, I looked at him, I'm like, hey, where are your shoes? He was wearing sandals. He goes, I didn't bring any. I'm like, great, right? He's gonna walk around, he's gonna get his feet incredibly dirty. And here's the great thing about this student. From the beginning of the trip to the end of the trip, all he had to wear the entire time was sandals. And because he was a junior hire, he didn't shower once.
And so when I reached turned him to his parents, he was quite the sight to behold, right?
But if you would have looked at this kid's feet, you would have been dismayed.
It was disgusting looking at how dirty his feet were. Even nicked up by the things that had run into his feet as he was walking around in his sandals on these trails. It was gross.
This is the picture that I have in my own mind of the disciple.
You know, they've been traveling on these roads, feet uncovered, dirt all over, their feet being hit by rocks or whatever might be there.
And then they come inside with Jesus for this special meal.
And what does Jesus do as they gather?
He sees their dirty feet.
And what I notice is that Jesus wants them to enjoy every part of this final moment together and for nothing to get in the way. If you've ever had incredibly dirty feet from walking in sandals, whether it's out in the mountains or Maybe at the beach and it gets all sandy and gross. You know that horrible feeling of having that soot between your toes rubbing and that film that goes over your feet. It's gross.
And here's the disciples reclining at the table. But not only does Jesus see their need letter D, Jesus move to meet the needs of those around him.
If you could have seen the feet of this kid on our travel camp, I know that there is no way that you or I would have wanted to wash his feet. And the same way that we wouldn't want to wash each other's feet. I'm sure that if your neighbor, partner, person sitting in front of you here this morning were to pull off their shoes and socks, you might go, whoo, don't, don't. Not washing those feet, right? Well the disciples wouldn't have wanted to wash each other's feet as well. But that's not because of just the grossness, but because the task of washing feet in that culture was reserved for the lowest of menial servants. It was an act that would be performed only by slaves, but not just by slaves. Like there were many Jews who wouldn't allow their Jewish slaves to wash the feet of other people. That was reserved often in that corporation culture for three people, Gentiles, slaves, women and children. And in that culture all three of them really did not have much standing. They would be the ones to do this menial demeaning task in their eyes, which is what made what Jesus did so unthinkable and shocking.
It shattered their understanding, the disciples understanding of how things should be.
And it would create for them a new paradigm of understanding of what it meant to be great in the kingdom of God. As Jesus displayed this incredible picture. Think about it. Jesus and his disciples have gathered together in this upper room.
They're reclining together on these thin mats around a low table, oftentimes leaning on one arm where their feet would then tuck back around and point away from the table.
And it tells us that here, in this moment, that Jesus himself gets up from his own mat. He takes off his outer clothing and wraps a towel around his waist, taking on the dress of a menial servant.
And one by one he moves around the table, taking time care to wash each of his disciples feet, even the feet of Judas, the one that he knows in just moments will leave and betray him and he will go to his death.
And Jesus, I mean if it were you and I, we would look at Judas and be like, get out of the room, you are not part of it.
Jesus, humbles himself as a servant to wash the feet of the one who would initiate his death.
And so Jesus moves around this table in a way that would have been shocking for his disciples.
And then the passage tells us that he comes to Peter.
And what does Peter do, letter E? Peter would have none of it, nothing to do with it.
In John, chapter 13, verses 6 through 8, it says he came to Peter, who said to him, lord, are you going to wash my feet? And Jesus replied, you do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.
No, said Peter, you shall never wash my feet, you know. The Greek construction of this question reveals Peter's indignation. When he says, lord, are you going to wash my feet? He has this strong displeasure or anger at something that he views as either unjust or offensive.
There's no possible way in his mind that Jesus is going to wash his feet. It breaks all of the rules. Jesus is his rabbi. He is the one with the greatest seat of honor. Not only is he the rabbi, but he's the Messiah, the one they've waited for. He's far too great, has too high a position of honor to do the menial service of a slave.
Great people do great things.
Lowly people do menial things. That's the way it works in the world.
And Jesus answers peter and says, unless I wash you, you have no part with me.
And he wants Peter and his disciples to finally come to the understanding of what true greatness is.
It isn't how high you can climb over other people so that people will lodge you and not lodge them.
It is found in how you selflessly serve other people within the kingdom of God.
And so, as Peter hears these words, unless I wash you, you have no part with me.
His only and immediate response is, well, then, Lord, take it all. My feet, my hands and my head, wash all of it.
And what Jesus does here, letter F is, he models for us a very different paradigm and a much better way.
The way not of the world, but of the kingdom of God.
Something that he wanted his disciples to desperately catch over these three years. And here, in this last moment, he drives it home. But also something that today he wants us to deeply understand. John, chapter 13, verses 12 through 17, says, when he had finished washing their feet, he put on it, he returned to his place and said, do you understand what I've done for you?
He asked them, you call me teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am.
Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set for you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly, I tell you, no sir is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
Now that you know these things, it's made abundantly clear you will be blessed if you do them.
Jesus says, do you understand what I've done for you?
He hadn't merely washed their feet and made them clean.
He taught them an essential truth about himself and about the kingdom of God.
He said, you are right.
I know I am someone special because God has given me that authority.
And see what I have done for you, the humility that I have shown you, the way that I have served you.
You must now do this for each other.
You are not greater than I.
Therefore do as I have done.
Notice that in the very end of this section of Scripture, three times, as this conversation is wrapping up, three times, Jesus says, now go do likewise. When you read the Bible, if it says something three times in a row, you should probably listen.
It's an incredible point.
Go do likewise.
And for the disciples, but also for you and me, it begs us to ask the question, what will our response be to Jesus call to go and to serve others in humility? Because that is the definition of greatness in the kingdom of God.
As we wrap our message together this morning, I could easily be like, let me give you just five points to tell you how to do this, this the right way, and then walk out of here.
But I want to do something very different.
I want to give you a list of questions to reflect on in your own heart, in your own life, as you consider what God's word has been teaching us this morning. What is it that the Holy Spirit is saying to you?
What is it that he wants to do and shape in your own life when it comes to serving others?
What will your response be to Jesus call to go do likewise? Letter A.
I want to ask you this question and ask you to reflect on it. Do you look for and or see the needs of those around you?
And if you don't, what holds you back from seeing?
Have you asked God how it is that he wants to use you?
Have you asked him in prayer seeking him? God, would you open my eyes to see what you want me to see, to see the people that you are placing around me every single day that you want me to serve?
Do you look for and or see the needs of those who are around you? Letter B. Does your love for God move you to compassion for Others.
And when we read compassion, oftentimes we make the mistake of reading it.
We think, oh, yeah, I feel bad for that person in their horrible situation. I hope someone helps them. But the definition of compassion that we see all throughout the New Testament and especially modeled by Jesus, is that compassion isn't just seeing a problem and saying, yeah, that's not good.
It's being moved to action by what you see, a desire to help meet that need. Does your love for God move you to active compassion for other people?
I would ask you this morning, what's your motivation to serve others? Is it your love for God?
Or because you have to?
Because you feel like it's the good Christian thing to you? Do you serve others so that they would know God's love?
Or do you do it out of compulsion?
Does your love for God move you to compassion for others? Letter C. Do you see ways of serving others as beneath you or even a waste of your valuable time? You know, Jesus hits his disciples square between the eyes when he brings that child right in front of them because they looked at that child as nothing. The child was unimportant. They had much better things to do than worry about a little child.
But here's the deal. What I see in our own world and culture today is that one of the greatest hindrances, even in the church to people serving, is that we think we have better options and better things that we need to do.
There are things that we see that we think would be more fulfilling than serving someone. How do I know this? Years of student ministry and running a lot of really crazy, awesome events. I could draw a huge crowd to an event. But the second I ran a serving opportunity, barely a quarter of the students would show up. But I've also found the same thing in the church with adults, is that when we have an opportunity to serve, we might go, you know, someone else will take care of that.
I have better things to do with my time. Maybe something that feels more fulfilling, or maybe we have the mentality that someone else will just take care of it.
Do you see serving as beneath you or maybe even a waste of your time because there are better options? Letter D. Do you understand the giftedness that God has given you?
This is one of the incredible things that we talked about as we've been in this series about the church. And we about talk talked in week number two about the empowering of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It's the understanding that God has uniquely wired you for greatness, not so that you can climb up to some level of greatness and make your name great. But he's wired you for greatness because he's given you His Holy Spirit to do things that were far greater than Jesus ever did in his earthly ministry so that God's name would be made great. And it says that through His Holy Spirit Spirit, he gifts you and he empowers you for works of service throughout the course of your life to humbly serve others so that his name would be made great. This gift of the Holy Spirit, who empowers you to do things beyond human ability, is something in many Christian lives that goes untapped.
Have you taken time to understand how God wants to use you and the giftedness that he has given you through His Spirit?
Letter E. Are you purposefully seeking out how God wants to use you in the building of his church for his glory?
I want to. I want you to think through what steps could you take to search out how God desires to use you and to use your life. Now, be really easy for me to just say here the application is, we've got a really great kids ministry. I would love you to sign up and serve there, by the way. I would. They always need more people that are willing to disciple our young kids or our student ministry or with greeters in all different areas in the church. There are places to serve, but I don't want you just to serve because there's a place that needs to be filled.
I want you to serve because you see a need and God calls you to meet that need.
He's going to empower you to do great things in that space.
Sometimes that's in the church.
But church. Do you know where we often miss this in our everyday life?
With people that he's placing in our circles every single day who have needs.
Sometimes their needs are just someone that will see them and care for them, that will listen to them, that will.
Maybe it's a financial need that someone has, someone just to bring them a meal every single day? God gives us the opportunity and we pass by because we fill our lives with so many things.
But what steps will you take to be a person who not only serves within the church, which is an important thing to do collectively, together, but to allow God to open up your eyes to see that every day there are opportunities where he wants to use your life to make an impact in the lives of others so that they would experience the love and servanthood of Jesus through your life and that they would know Him.
Lastly, letter F. Are you robbing yourself of the blessing of Serving others.
This passage ends with these words, this teaching of Jesus, now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
In this, my friends, you are the conduit of God's love to others.
And there is no greater blessing that we can have or experiencing than being a part of his work.
We tell ourselves sometimes that serving others in a humble way is inconvenient.
But when our priorities are right and our hearts are sold out for God and his kingdom, what we find is the greatest blessing that we can experience in this life is when God uses us as we serve other people.
So I want to close by asking you this question.
Do you want to be great?
Do you want to be great?
Don't be afraid to answer that question.
Yes, I want to be great.
I want to be great for God's kingdom, not so that my name is made great, but so that his is made great in the way that I serve other people in humility, seeing their needs and literally being the hands and the feet of Jesus.
God, would you do this in us today?
Would you speak through the power of your Word and the power of your Holy Spirit into our lives to change what needs to change in our hearts so that we are able to see the needs of others that you are putting around us every single day, whether that be in our homes, in our workplace, in our schools, out in public, here in our churches, wherever. It is God that you take us, that we would have the heart of Jesus, where we're not looking for greatness in the eyes of this world, but we're looking to make your name great.
And great greatness comes when your name is magnified.
And so God, we humble ourselves and we ask and say, I will make room for you to do whatever you want to in my heart.
So God change me today.
In Jesus name, Amen.
[01:17:08] Speaker B: Sa into the world you created.
Trading your crown for a cross you willingly die your innocent life paid the.
[01:17:48] Speaker A: Cost.
[01:17:53] Speaker B: Counting your status as nothing the king of all all kings came to serve.
Washing my feet, covering me with your love.
If more of you means less of me, take everything, yes, all of you is all I need Take everything.
You are my life and my treasure the one that I can live, live without.
Here at your feet my desires and dreams I lay down.
Here at your feet my desires and dreams I lay down, I lay them all down. If more of you means less of me, take everything, yes, all of you is all I need, take everything.
If more of you means less of me, take everything, yes, all of you is all I Need take everything.
Oh Lord, change me like only you can.
Here with my heart in your hands.
Father, I pray, make me more like Jesus.
This world is dying to know who you are.
You've shown us the way to your heart.
So Father I pray, make me more like Jesus. O Lord, change me like only you can.
Here with my heart in your hands, Father I pray, make me more love like Jesus. This world is dying to know who you are.
You showed us the way to your heart.
So Father, I pray, make me more like Jesus.
More like Jesus. Jesus, I pray, make me more like Jesus.
If more of you means less of me.
Take everything.
Yes, all of you is all that I need.
Take everything.
If more of you means less of me, Take everything.
Yes, all of you is all I need.
Take everything.
[01:22:27] Speaker A: And we began by singing the words together this morning.
I will make room for you to do whatever is God that you want to do.
And we end with these words. All of you is all I need.
Take everything.
I think the question that we have to wrestle with in the Christian life is the words that we sing. Do we actually mean them?
God, will you come and change and transform my heart? You can have it all.
Change my understanding of greatness.
Change the things that I'm striving for so that I can make your name great in this world.
You know, sometimes we think that the most important part of our Sunday is being in the service and receiving teaching from the Word. But I would actually argue with you that the most important moment happens is when this service closes, is when we take the things that God is speaking to us and we set aside time to fellowship with him and say, God, I need more.
I need you to really share with me what it is that you want me to do, to wash away the things that are broken and the things that need to be gone and to begin a new work in my heart.
And so I challenge you to take those questions this morning, whether you sit down by yourself or with a friend or a family member or someone later today and throughout this coming week to do business with God and with His Word and to say, God, are you creating within me as an individual, a heart for serving others?
Because when he does, in us as individuals and we collectively come together, the power of the Spirit that moves through his people when their hearts are for serving others in the way that Jesus has served us will radically transform our impact in this world.
But most importantly, it will bring the greatest glory to the one who gave everything for you.
And so, church, family, as we go from here today, my Desire is that for all of us, we would take a moment to reflect, to remember that Jesus gave all and the King of all kings, of whom there is no greater, humbled himself to the lowliest position of being put to death at the hands of his creation, serving us so that we could be with God.
He deserves all of our love, affection. And when he says, go, do as I have done, we're drawn in because of how he has loved us.
So in closing, two things. One, our prayer team is here this morning. They're up front. They're here every single week to serve you, to love you, to meet you in your time of need. If you need prayer for healing or there's something that God has been working in your heart that you've been wrestling with, you want to talk or pray, they're here for you today. I'd invite you to come as we close our service or maybe this morning, as we've read through this passage, man, the Gospel is clear. Of all that Jesus has done and laying down his life for us, he has served us in the greatest way possible. But maybe you've never made that decision to give your life to him today. And I would invite you as our service closes, if you know that today is the day where you want to surrender your heart and your life to the only one who has loved you unconditionally. Our team here this morning would love that opportunity to pray with you, to have a new relationship with Jesus as you say yes to him.
Church, family, as you go out this week, my challenge to you is to be great not in the eyes of the world, but be great in the kingdom of God as you humbly serve others and make his name great in this world. God bless you as you go and you serve him this week. We'll see you next Sunday.
Sa.
