Transformative Power of Serving in Christ's Love
Summary
In the days leading up to Easter, we find ourselves reflecting on the final hours of Jesus with his disciples. In these moments, Jesus imparts a profound lesson on the importance of serving others. He knows that the next 48 hours will be a nightmare for his disciples, followed by a whirlwind of events that will change their lives forever. Despite the impending challenges, Jesus focuses on equipping his disciples for the journey ahead, emphasizing that serving is the counterintuitive path to blessing. This path shapes us into the people God created us to be, reflecting His goodness, truth, and grace in the world.
Serving is not just an action but a transformative process that molds our character. It is through serving that we become more resilient, patient, bold, and humble. Jesus demonstrates this by washing the feet of his disciples, an act of humility and love. This act is not just a lesson in servitude but a call to embody the character of Christ. Jesus, with all power and authority, chooses to serve, illustrating that true power is found in humility and service.
The world desperately needs people who reflect God's goodness, and serving is the way to cultivate such character. It is not about what we do but who we become. Jesus' love is relentless, and He invites us to make our home in His love, allowing it to wash over us and transform us. This love is not just for us to receive but to extend to others through acts of service.
As followers of Jesus, we are called to serve, to wash the feet of others, and to embody the love of Christ in our communities. This is the DNA of the church, and when we serve, we reflect the heart of Jesus. Serving is not always easy, and for some, it may not come naturally. However, it is through serving that we find true blessing and fulfillment. Jesus invites us into a virtuous cycle of serving and blessing, where as we serve others, we are blessed, and in turn, we bless others.
Key Takeaways:
- Serving is a transformative process that shapes our character to reflect God's goodness, truth, and grace. It is not about achieving status or wealth but about becoming the people God created us to be. [07:03]
- Jesus, with all power and authority, chose to serve, demonstrating that true power is found in humility and service. This is a call for us to follow His example and serve others, even when it is counterintuitive. [12:01]
- The love of Jesus is relentless and pursues us to our final hours. We are invited to make our home in His love, allowing it to transform us and extend to others through acts of service. [15:39]
- Serving is the default posture of a Jesus follower. It is through serving that the church is at its best, reflecting the heart of Jesus and making a significant impact in the world. [18:54]
- We must learn to receive as well as serve. Pride can hinder us from accepting help and grace, but Jesus teaches that we must be willing to receive in order to have a part with Him. [22:36]
Youtube Chapters:
[00:00] - Welcome
[07:03] - The Counterintuitive Path to Blessing
[12:01] - Jesus' Act of Service
[15:39] - The Relentless Love of Jesus
[18:54] - Serving as a Jesus Follower
[22:36] - Learning to Receive
[25:49] - The Church at Its Best
[29:10] - Power and Influence in Service
[34:37] - Prayer and Closing
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide: The Transformative Power of Serving
Bible Reading:
- John 13:1-17
Observation Questions:
1. What significant act does Jesus perform for His disciples in John 13, and what does this symbolize? [12:01]
2. How does Jesus demonstrate His love for His disciples during His final hours, according to the sermon? [07:03]
3. What does the sermon suggest about the relationship between serving and character formation? [15:39]
4. How does Jesus' understanding of power differ from the world's view, as illustrated in the sermon? [29:10]
Interpretation Questions:
1. Why might Jesus choose to wash His disciples' feet as a demonstration of His love and service? What does this teach about humility and leadership? [12:01]
2. How does the sermon describe the impact of serving on personal character development? Why is this significant for followers of Jesus? [15:39]
3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that serving others can lead to personal blessing and fulfillment? [22:36]
4. How does the concept of receiving help relate to the Christian understanding of grace, as discussed in the sermon? [18:54]
Application Questions:
1. Reflect on a time when you served someone else. How did that experience shape your character or perspective? How can you seek similar opportunities this week? [15:39]
2. Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, including Judas, who would betray Him. How can you serve someone in your life who may be difficult to love or serve? [12:01]
3. The sermon emphasizes the importance of receiving help and grace. Is there an area in your life where pride might be preventing you from accepting help? How can you work on this? [18:54]
4. Consider the ways you currently use your influence or power. How can you align your actions more closely with Jesus' example of serving others? [29:10]
5. Serving is described as a counterintuitive path to blessing. What specific steps can you take to make serving a more integral part of your daily life? [22:36]
6. The sermon mentions the importance of rest and healthy boundaries. How can you ensure that you are balancing serving others with taking care of your own well-being? [25:49]
7. As Easter approaches, how can you prepare your heart to receive the love and grace of Jesus more fully, and how might this impact your willingness to serve others? [34:37]
Devotional
Day 1: Serving Transforms Character to Reflect God's Goodness
Serving is a transformative process that shapes our character to reflect God's goodness, truth, and grace. It is not about achieving status or wealth but about becoming the people God created us to be. Serving others allows us to develop qualities such as resilience, patience, boldness, and humility. As we serve, we are molded into the image of Christ, who exemplified the ultimate act of service by washing the feet of His disciples. This act of humility and love is a call for us to embody the character of Christ in our daily lives. [07:03]
"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10, ESV)
Reflection: Identify one area in your life where you can serve others this week. How can this act of service help you grow in a specific character trait that reflects God's goodness?
Day 2: True Power is Found in Humility and Service
Jesus, with all power and authority, chose to serve, demonstrating that true power is found in humility and service. This is a call for us to follow His example and serve others, even when it is counterintuitive. In a world that often equates power with dominance and control, Jesus shows us that real strength lies in serving others selflessly. By choosing to serve, we align ourselves with the heart of Jesus and discover a deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment. [12:01]
"But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all." (Mark 10:43-44, ESV)
Reflection: Think of a situation where you have the opportunity to lead. How can you approach this situation with a mindset of humility and service, following Jesus' example?
Day 3: Make Your Home in the Relentless Love of Jesus
The love of Jesus is relentless and pursues us to our final hours. We are invited to make our home in His love, allowing it to transform us and extend to others through acts of service. This love is not just for us to receive but to share with those around us. As we dwell in His love, we are empowered to serve others with the same compassion and grace that Jesus has shown us. [15:39]
"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God." (1 John 4:7, ESV)
Reflection: Reflect on how you can make your home in Jesus' love today. What is one way you can extend this love to someone in your community through an act of service?
Day 4: Serving as the Default Posture of a Jesus Follower
Serving is the default posture of a Jesus follower. It is through serving that the church is at its best, reflecting the heart of Jesus and making a significant impact in the world. When we serve, we embody the love and compassion of Christ, becoming a living testimony of His grace. Serving may not always come naturally, but it is through these acts that we find true blessing and fulfillment. [18:54]
"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45, ESV)
Reflection: Consider your role within your church or community. How can you adopt a posture of service in your interactions and responsibilities this week?
Day 5: Learning to Receive as Well as Serve
We must learn to receive as well as serve. Pride can hinder us from accepting help and grace, but Jesus teaches that we must be willing to receive in order to have a part with Him. Receiving is an act of humility that allows us to experience the fullness of God's love and grace. As we learn to receive, we are better equipped to serve others with a heart of gratitude and compassion. [22:36]
"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2, ESV)
Reflection: Reflect on a time when you found it difficult to receive help or grace. How can you practice humility by allowing others to serve you, and how might this experience enhance your ability to serve others?
Quotes
Now today, today's passage, we're looking at sort of Jesus giving his disciples an awkward lesson in what matters most to him and what's really important. And here's the sort of the lesson that Jesus is inviting his disciples into in the first century and you and I into as well. And that is this, that serving is the counterintuitive path to blessing because it shapes us like nothing else can to become the people God created us to be. This is the big idea, right? This is kind of where we're going today. That serving is this counterintuitive path to blessing because it shapes us like nothing else can or will to become the kind of people God created us to be. [00:01:34] (35 seconds)
Like serving, going and serving someone else. It shapes you. Listen, you can't buy what serving will do for your character. You can't achieve your way to higher and higher status or more money. or kind of higher kind of degrees of whatever and have that shape your character, the way that serving will shape your character. You can't vacation your way into what serving will do for your character. [00:03:00] (26 seconds)
You can't get enough likes or followers or approval to have your character be shaped the way that serving will shape your character. I love this. I love corporate worship. I love the music and the songs, but you can't sing your way into what serving will do for your character. I love scripture. I love prayer. I do those things all the time, every day. But you can't scripture read or pray your way to what serving will do for your character. [00:03:26] (26 seconds)
And so if we don't serve, we don't become those people. There's these flat sides. There's these depths in who we are and how we sort of show up in the world. And the world desperately needs God's people to be people who live out the people that God created us to be. Serving is a counterintuitive path to blessing because it shapes your character the way that nothing else can. That's what Jesus is sort of ingraining here with his disciples as we're in this room. [00:05:20] (24 seconds)
That's why people all over the world are gathered in his name. Like almost every language, almost every culture, people gather around. Because Jesus has this enormous, relentless, beautiful, generous love that you were created for. And this morning, if you'll at all hear it, if you have any ears to hear it, if you're at all open to this, I've got some really good news. The same Jesus that loved his disciples to his last hour will love you to your last hours, your last minutes, your last seconds. [00:06:26] (29 seconds)
Jesus will never stop pursuing you with his never-ending, relentless, bounteous love. And if you are willing to slow down long enough to let him catch you, open up your heart and your life to his enormous love, you make that your home, that's when you come alive. That's when you begin to experience grace, mercy, beauty, the love of God. [00:06:55] (31 seconds)
I'm here to tell you this morning, listen, no matter what your week's been like or your year's been like or your decade's been like or your life's been like, if you feel worthless or have a lot of shame, a lot of guilt, or you like don't care about God or spiritual stuff at all, you're just busy doing your own life and doing your own thing, and maybe you're chasing after this or that or whatever, and God's like super far in the background. I've been sitting here to tell you some really, really good news. It doesn't matter what you think about the Lord. It matters what the Lord thinks about you. That's the first and foremost thing. And his love is relentless. It's insistent. It's persistent. [00:07:26] (30 seconds)
If you knew that God put all things under your power, all things, all power, all authority, you have every possible option. Here's the scenario. Someone there around the table with you is going to betray you. You're going to be arrested, flogged, and then you're going to be strung up on a cross with one of the cruelest forms of execution ever invented on purpose. It was cruel and embarrassing, shameful, horrible way to die. You have all power. You have every option on the table. You can even wish for more wishes if you want to. Take that, take that, Aladdin. [00:08:47] (33 seconds)
All the wishes you want, anything you want to do, anything, anywhere, all power. You have every possible option. How would you complete that sentence if you could do anything in your worst hour, your most intense moment? Jesus knew. Father put all things under his power. He'd come from God, was returned to God, so he vanished to Fiji. Where else would you go? Fiji is lovely this time of year. I hear it's lovely every time of year. It's such a great place, beautiful beaches, beautiful sea. Listen, you can always die for the sins of the world later. Kick the can. Jerusalem's not going anywhere. Crosses aren't going anywhere. You've got a few decades before Jerusalem gets conquered. You could come back 20 years from now and then die. Right? You can do anything you want. Or maybe you're more of like a stand your ground and stand up and fight. So maybe you've watched too many Marvel movies, and you're like, you know what I want to do? I want to take out the bad guys. [00:09:32] (51 seconds)
Jesus, I got all power. I got every option. And this is frankly what almost everyone around him wanted him to do. Get rid of the Romans. Take out the bad guys. Give us our land back. Make us a nation. Listen, all power. Every possible option. What Jesus does is maybe the most unlikely so in the whole Bible. What do you do when you are the most powerful person in the room, the most powerful person in the world, with every possible option, and with a freight train coming at you, and the worst night of your life ahead of you? What do you do? Here's what Jesus did. Jesus knew the Father put all things under his power. Come from God. Return to God. [00:10:11] (45 seconds)
So he got up for the meal, took off his outer clothing, wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin, began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with a towel that was wrapped around him. With the stress of the worst night of his life ahead, with the freight train coming at him, with every possible option in front of him, Jesus takes up the position. of a servant. And doesn't just pretend to be a servant. He serves. If you're not super familiar with the first century, everyone's wearing sandals, dry, dusty, desert climate. And everyone's just kind of walking these roads and walking these paths. Humans, animals, camels, sheep. And camels and sheep, in case you haven't checked recently, they don't have bathrooms. [00:10:47] (44 seconds)
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