Be Like Jesus: Radical, Sacrificial Love and Service

Devotional

Day 1: Flawed Heroes Pointing to Perfect Faith

The Bible’s heroes weren’t moral superstars but broken people who kept returning to God. Their stories aren’t about their greatness but their relentless trust in divine mercy. David’s adultery, Peter’s denial, and Paul’s violent past didn’t disqualify them—their repentance and reliance on Christ’s forgiveness did. True heroes don’t hide their cracks but let God’s light shine through them. Their legacy isn’t perfection but persistent faith that redirects attention to the only flawless Savior. [50:49]

“Imitate me, as I imitate Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1, ESV)

Reflection: Which “flawed hero” in Scripture most resonates with your spiritual journey? How does their reliance on God’s grace challenge you to stop hiding imperfections and point others to Christ?

Day 2: When Following Feels Like Facing Lions

Jesus warned His disciples that obedience would mean conflict, not comfort. Following Him requires embracing hardship as part of the mission, not a sign of failure. Just as sheep among wolves stay focused on the Shepherd, believers walk through opposition anchored in His promise: “I am with you.” Fearlessness isn’t the absence of danger but the presence of trust. The path may be treacherous, but the destination is certain. [54:51]

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.” (Matthew 10:24-25, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you hesitated to obey Jesus because you feared pushback? How might His warning prepare you to face resistance with courage instead of surprise?

Day 3: Towels Over Titles in Servant Leadership

Jesus redefined greatness by washing feet before instituting Communion. He prioritized dirty work over dignities, modeling that true authority kneels. Servant leadership isn’t about position but posture—the willingness to do unseen, messy tasks that honor others. When we resent “beneath us” work, we forget the King who scrubbed calluses and callous hearts alike. [01:06:33]

“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.” (John 13:14-15, ESV)

Reflection: What “foot-washing task” have you avoided because it feels beneath your skills or status? How might doing it reflect Christ’s heart more than any title ever could?

Day 4: Radical Forgiveness in Unforgivable Moments

From the cross, Jesus prayed for His torturers’ forgiveness—not after they apologized, but as they gambled for His clothes. This wasn’t weakness but weaponized grace that disarms hatred. Forgiving the “unforgivable” doesn’t excuse evil but entrusts justice to God while freeing us from bitterness. It’s the hardest imitation of Christ, and the most liberating. [01:06:15]

“And Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’” (Luke 23:34, ESV)

Reflection: Who feels “unforgivable” in your story? How might praying Christ’s cross words over them begin to untangle your pain from their poison?

Day 5: Unshakable Work in a Shaking World

Jesus sent His disciples into storms with one assurance: “I’ve already conquered this.” Like farmers planting in famine or builders working during earthquakes, believers labor with eternity’s certainty. The world’s chaos isn’t a distraction from the mission but the context for it. Our work isn’t to prevent the shaking but to keep building the Kingdom within it. [58:14]

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10, ESV)

Reflection: What Kingdom work have you paused because current events feel too unstable? How does God’s promise to uphold you change your next step?

Sermon Summary

Jesus calls his disciples to be like their teacher and to live under their master, not above him. The word about heroes starts with real people, not superheroes, people whose lives have truly impacted others. Faithful fathers, grandfathers, pastors, and saints in hard circumstances stand out because they did not always pick the easy thing. Heroes choose the right path, and they do the right thing for the right reason.

Scripture gives plenty of heroes of the faith, but Scripture never pretends they were perfect. Apart from Jesus, every one of them was flawed, and some were deeply, deeply flawed. Their sin is not the thing to imitate. Their faith is. Their returning to God, confessing sin, repenting, and trusting the promise is the pattern worth following. Paul says, “Be imitators of me as I am of Christ,” and Paul knows better than most that nobody should imitate the chief of sinners except where that sinner points to Jesus.

Matthew’s Gospel sends the apostles out with authority, but Jesus warns them that the work will not be a picnic. Conflict, persecution, rejection, and people who just do not want to hear are all part of the road. Right in the middle of that warning, Jesus says that a disciple is not above his teacher and a servant is not above his master. The disciple is called to be like Jesus, which means trusting his promise and going without fear.

Revelation gives the same basic word: God is not surprised, God knows exactly what is happening, Jesus wins, and fear does not get to drive the people of God. Jesus himself knew every step that led to the cross. Gethsemane shows real agony, but “not my will, but thy will be done” leads him to stand up and get to work saving sinners.

Matthew 25 shows what being like Jesus looks like among the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, and imprisoned. The goats are not just outsiders who never heard of Jesus. They know who he is, but they are unwilling to see him in the neighbor. They are stingy with the grace of God. Jesus calls his people to love and serve radically, sacrificially, and with no asterisks.

Jesus calls sinners to live like him, forgive like him, and serve like him. He hangs out with sinners, gives himself so the gospel might be heard, forgives from the cross, and washes feet before giving his body and blood. By his blood, sinners are forgiven, renewed, and reborn. The world desperately needs Jesus, and the way many will see him is in those who belong to him.

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Key Takeaways

1. Heroes choose the right path [50:26] The easy thing and the right thing are not always the same thing. Faithful examples matter because they show that Christian strength is not swagger, control, or comfort, but obedience that holds steady when the road gets hard. The church learns from heroes not by pretending they were flawless, but by noticing where faith chose God over self. [50:26]
2. Imitate faith, not failure [52:48] Scripture does not hide the deep flaws of the saints, and that honesty matters. Their sins are warnings, not patterns, but their repentance is worth watching closely. A mature faith can honor what God did through broken people without excusing what broke trust, wounded others, or dishonored the Lord. [52:48]
3. Go like Jesus, without fear [58:56] Jesus does not send his disciples into an easy world and then act surprised when trouble comes. God already knows what is happening, and fear does not get the final word because Jesus wins. Courage grows when the call is not measured by comfort, but by the promise of the Master who sends. [58:56]
4. The neighbor reveals faithfulness [01:01:55] Matthew 25 presses hard because the goats recognize Jesus as Lord, yet fail to recognize him in the needy. That is not ignorance as much as a refusal to let grace become costly. Faithfulness shows up where love serves the hungry, the stranger, the sick, and the imprisoned without waiting for the neighbor to look deserving. [61:55]
5. Forgiveness looks like the cross [01:06:15] Jesus forgives while hanging under the weight of real evil, not after the pain has been made small. Christian forgiveness does not pretend wounds never happened, but it refuses to let vengeance become lord. The cross gives forgiveness its shape: costly, undeserved, and rooted in the mercy God has already given.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[47:43] - Real Heroes In Real Lives
[49:36] - Fathers And Strong Christian Men
[50:26] - Choosing The Right Path
[51:36] - Flawed Saints And Real Faith
[52:48] - Imitate Me As Imitate Christ
[53:31] - Jesus Warns His Disciples
[54:29] - A Disciple Is Not Above His Teacher
[56:31] - Trust The Promise Without Fear
[57:54] - God Is Not Surprised
[59:11] - Jesus Gets To Work Saving Sinners
[60:21] - Matthew 25 And The Least Of These
[62:17] - Stingy With The Grace Of God
[64:46] - Be Like Jesus
[66:15] - Forgive And Serve Like Jesus

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Matthew 10:24-25
“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.” [37:37] [54:44]

Matthew 25:31-46
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’”

1 Corinthians 11:1
“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” [52:41]

Luke 23:34
“And Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’” [01:06:18]

Observation questions

In Matthew 10:24-25, what two relationships does Jesus use to describe his followers, and what does he say is “enough” for them? [54:44]
What kinds of difficulties does Jesus say his disciples should expect when he sends them out? [54:04]
In Matthew 25, which kinds of needy neighbors are specifically named by Jesus? [01:00:42]
When Scripture speaks about heroes of the faith, what are believers encouraged to imitate, and what are they not encouraged to imitate? [51:48]

Interpretation questions

Jesus says it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher. What does that suggest about the shape of the Christian life when hardship, rejection, or conflict shows up? [55:12]
Paul says, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” How can believers learn from faithful examples without excusing the real sins and failures of those examples? [52:48]
In Matthew 25, the goats know who Jesus is, yet fail to recognize him in their neighbor. What does that reveal about the danger of having right words about Jesus while refusing costly love? [01:01:55]
Jesus forgives from the cross in Luke 23:34. What does that show about the difference between Christian forgiveness and simply pretending evil did not happen? [01:06:15]

Application questions

Who has been a real example of faithful Christian living in hard circumstances for you, and what is one specific part of that person’s faith worth imitating right now? [48:44]
The easy path and the right path are not always the same. Where is that tension showing up in your life at the moment: at home, at work, in a friendship, or in the church? What would it look like to do the right thing for the right reason there? [50:18]
Broken people in Scripture return to God, confess sin, repent, and trust his promise. When you fail, are you more likely to hide, excuse yourself, or return to God honestly? What would repentance look like in a concrete way this week? [52:02]
Jesus sends his people forward without fear because God is not surprised and Jesus wins. What fear has been shaping your choices lately, and how might trust in Christ change one next step? [57:58]
Jesus identifies himself with the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, and imprisoned. Which of those neighbors is easiest for you to notice, and which is easiest for you to avoid? Why do you think that is? [01:01:14]
Being stingy with the grace of God can show up when someone knows Jesus but does not want to love a difficult neighbor. Is there a person or group you are tempted to put an asterisk next to when it comes to love and service? What would it mean to love that neighbor without an asterisk? [01:02:17]
Jesus forgave from the cross and served by washing feet. Is there a relationship that needs forgiveness, or a person who needs quiet, practical service from you right now? What might one faithful action look like in the next few days? [01:06:26]

Sermon Clips

81s

“We are called to serve like Jesus. On the night he was betrayed, before he served the disciples, his body and blood given and shed for them, Jesus washed their feet. It wasn't glamorous by any stretch of the imagination. It was not looked upon by favor of the by the rest of the disciples, And yet Jesus served them, just like he serves you and me today, his body and blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness, the remission of all of your sins. By the blood of Jesus Christ, my brothers and sisters, you have been forgiven, you have been renewed, you have been reborn. So let's go go out from here and be like Jesus because Lord only knows the world desperately needs him. And their only way of seeing Jesus is in you.”

67s

“Now my brothers and sisters, I wanna make sure you know this. Right? The goats were not objectively worse than the sheep. The context here is not that the goats were unbelievers and heathens. The context is that they were unfaithful followers of Jesus. They knew who Jesus was, but they were unwilling to see Jesus in their neighbor. And how does the context point us to that? Their answer to Jesus. Well, Lord, if we only knew it was you, we'd have done it. That's not an unbeliever. That's not a heathen. That's not a pagan, whatever terminology you wanna use. That's somebody who knew who Jesus was but was being stingy with the grace of God.”

44s

“Maybe you remember a couple years ago when we studied through the book of Revelation. Right? And the main teachings, the main things that we need to be aware of. Right? God is not surprised. God knows exactly everything that's going on. Right? We need to trust him and not be afraid. And at the end, Jesus wins. Right? That is really the entire lesson of the book of Revelation narrowed down into less than a paragraph. God's not surprised. Don't be afraid. Jesus wins.”

64s

“But being a follower of Jesus is not about doing the easy thing. It's about doing the right things for the right reasons. It is about loving our neighbor, truly loving them as ourselves. No asterisks. No, well, I don't know if you really belong. But it's about truly loving our neighbors, all of our neighbors, regardless of how we feel about them as an individual, about whether or not we like them. Let me tell you, there are a lot of people I don't like. But it is about loving them, whether they look like us or talk like us or boat like us or whatever it might be. But it's about loving our neighbor as ourself sacrificially, radically.”

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