James Meehan - Serving Like Jesus
- Watch
- Audio
- Get involved
Kaitlyn Caffery: Hello, everybody, and welcome.
James Meehan: Hello and welcome.
Kaitlyn Caffery: Gosh, to this weeks...
James Meehan: Gosh, to this weeks...
Kaitlyn Caffery: I, okay.
James Meehan: Wait, oh, do I need to...
Kaitlyn Caffery: Yes, if you're gonna mimic me, that was...
James Meehan: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Imitation is the highest form of flattery.
Kaitlyn Caffery: That's what my mom used to tell me.
James Meehan: Take that to the bank. Yeah, mine too.
Kaitlyn Caffery: Because I'm the oldest child.
James Meehan: I'm second oldest, so I understand. I think it's a lie.
Kaitlyn Caffery: I think it's a lie too.
James Meehan: That's what we're talking about today.
Kaitlyn Caffery: Never felt good.
James Meehan: Right, lying?
Kaitlyn Caffery: Lying, sin, everything bad.
James Meehan: Come on.
Kaitlyn Caffery: Actually, what we're gonna talk about...
James Meehan: Ooh, okay, something different?
Kaitlyn Caffery: Is, so we've been in this series called What Difference Do I Make?
James Meehan: Come on.
Kaitlyn Caffery: And this past week we looked at the idea that our king has called us to serve.
James Meehan: Come on.
Kaitlyn Caffery: And we worked our way through Philippians two. And what we're gonna do today is look at a passage, John 13, where it's Jesus like tangibly living and walking out everything that Philippians two describes about him.
James Meehan: Come on.
Kaitlyn Caffery: So I'm pretty excited.
James Meehan: Yeah, John's really good. And John 13, extra good.
Kaitlyn Caffery: Right. So the big idea for today is, if you wanna know your calling, look at the example of your king, 'cause Jesus says something really cool in this passage, and I'm excited to read it. So we're gonna start in verse three, and could you read three through five.
James Meehan: John 13:3. Jesus knew that the Father had put all all things under his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God. So he got up from the meal, he 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 disciple's feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
— Yep. So this is a pretty famous passage, but before we dive into it, I wanna answer some of those context questions that we usually do.
— Great.
— So we talk about, where this passage kind of fits into the larger story of the Bible.
— Yep.
— Who's writing it, who they're writing it to, and what the purpose is of sharing what it is they're writing.
— Absolutely.
— So, you mentioned how great John is. Can you tell us a little bit about what John is doing in his gospel and where this scene kind of falls in the story of Jesus' life?
— Yeah, absolutely. So John is the author.
— Yeah.
— He was one of Jesus' disciples, one of the original 12. And he is writing this gospel, this good news, to tell people in his time and generations afterwards, people like us.
— Yeah.
— About who Jesus is, what he did, and what that means for us. Now, this is 13, John 13. So it's about maybe 2/3 of the way through John's gospel account, and it's in this scene where we get Jesus at the last supper with his disciples. Shortly before, Jesus is going to go to the garden of Gethsemane where he'll be arrested, he'll be put on trial, and then he will be convicted of crimes he didn't commit and executed on a cross.
— Yeah.
— And so this is like one of the last moments that Jesus gets to share...
— Right.
— With his disciples as this scene takes place.
— Yeah, super powerful. And with that context, I think what is so cool to observe about the passage that we're reading is that Jesus sets this example of service.
— Come on.
— Because he is so secure in who he was.
— Come on.
— Like he, this verse, verse three starts off with Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God.
— That's so good.
— So in light of that, he gets up from the meal, takes off his outer clothing, and starts washing his disciple's feet. And so again, the thing that's standing out to me is Jesus knew.
— Right.
— Jesus knew who he was. And that's why we have kinda taken the journey that we've taken and switched this semester. Like it starts with knowing God.
— Yeah.
— And then trickles into knowing who we are.
— Right.
— And when we are secure in our identity in Jesus and who God says that we are, then we understand what it is we're called to do.
— Dang, that's good. So literally one verse, John 13:3.
— Yeah. Jesus knew who?
— Yeah.
— The father had done what? Put all things under his power.
— Yep.
— And he had come from God, and he was returning to God.
— Yep.
— That's good.
— So, good dude. So Jesus didn't have to assert his own status or authority because he knew that those things actually come from living out God's story.
— Right.
— And when we aren't concerned with our own status and authority, that's when we can really truly serve others out of a genuine posture of humility. And I think the last thing that's really cool to note in this first section is how it talks about like Jesus got up from the meal and took off his outer clothing.
— Yeah.
— And back then, like rabbis would wear these particular outer clothing that represented their status as like a teacher, leader, rabbi, whatever.
— Yeah.
— And Jesus takes off the thing which symbolized his status as a rabbi.
— Interesting, yeah, yeah.
— In order to like really show his disciples what he was doing.
— Right.
— And so, I don't know. I just think that example is really cool, and it kind of challenges me to ask some questions to myself.
— Right.
— Of what things am I clinging to...
— Right.
— That I think represent my own status or authority.
— Yeah, yeah.
— That Jesus is actually asking me to take off...
— Interesting.
— In order to follow his example.
— Yeah, I mean, I think what's so, like, so interesting about that point is the fact that some things never change.
— Right.
— And like how many of us in our world today put on...
— Yeah.
— Something like clothes.
— Sure.
— Or shoes.
— Sure.
— Or whatever, to symbolize how cool, or legit, or noteworthy we are. But what happens when that's taken away?
— Right.
— And so Jesus, he had his rabbi's outfit.
— Yep.
— And when he took it off, he was still Jesus.
— Yep.
— If you didn't have those things, I don't know what that is for you. Maybe it's the sport you play. Maybe it's the clothes you wear. Maybe it's the group of friends you hang out with, the person you're dating. If you didn't have that...
— That's good.
— Who would you be?
— Right.
— Well, we believe that you would still be a child of God.
— Right.
— You'd still be made in his image.
— Right.
— You'd be a sinner saved by grace. You'd be a citizen of heaven. You would be a disciple of Jesus. You would be the temple of the living God. And I think that's the kind of thing that's really important to remember is, the outward things aren't necessarily a bad thing.
— Right.
— As long as they don't get in the way of the main thing.
— Right, so good. And that's why it starts with security in his identity.
— Come on.
— He doesn't have to cling to the things that give him like status in other people's eyes because he knows who he is in God's eyes.
— Come on, Jesus. Just always doing the things.
— So good. So anyways, after this Jesus says some really interesting stuff starting in verse 12. Would you be able to read that?
— Yep, so picking up in John 13:12, we're gonna read through verse 17. What we're told is that 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 rightly so, for that is what I am. But now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also 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".
— Yeah, so starting to move through this passage, the first thing that catches my attention is in verse 12, he puts back on his clothes and returns to his place.
— Yeah.
— And what we kind of hit on in our, in the previous section is this idea that serving doesn't strip us of our authority or our calling. It actually strengthens those things.
— Yeah.
— Jesus, after he washed the disciples feet, like it didn't change the fact that he was still Jesus.
— Right, yeah, yeah.
— He was still their rabbi. He was still their teacher. What he did was kind of flip the paradigm about what it meant to be a leader, and a teacher, and their king.
— Right.
— And he did that by setting the example of service.
— That's so good. It's so funny how often we can fall into the trap of assuming that being a great leader means telling everybody else what to do.
— Right, right.
— And Jesus is saying, hey, like. Jesus here, the son of God shows us...
— No big deal.
— That being a great leader means serving others.
— Yep.
— I think that's a really big deal.
— Yeah, absolutely. And that is the next thing that kinda stands out to me. In verse 15 it says, "I have set you an example".
— Come on.
— That you should to do as I have done for you.
— Right.
— And again, being a great leader, being someone who is called by God doesn't mean that we just sit there and tell their people what to do.
— Yeah.
— We actually do what Jesus did.
— Yeah.
— And that is the example that Jesus set. He didn't just say, hey, you guys should probably serve each other.
— Right.
— He actually got up and he did it.
— Yeah.
— And that's what we're called to do is to imitate Jesus.
— Yeah.
— We've been going on this entire journey of becoming like Jesus for the sake of others.
— Right.
— And really simply put, that means we like be with Jesus.
— Yep.
— We become like Jesus, and we do what Jesus did.
— Right.
— That's what it looks like to be his follower.
— Yeah.
— And the really cool thing is that this comes with a blessing. He says, "I've set you in an example that you should do as I have done for you". And then in verse 17, he says, "Now that you know these things, you'll be blessed if you do them". And that's pretty cool to me when Jesus kind of couples a command with a promise.
— Yeah.
— That as we become more like Jesus, we will actually see that that's where life is, like that's what it's really all about.
— That's so good. I mean, I love it too, because I think there's often times where we can think like, oh man, if I'm a celebrity, then I can make a difference. If I'm a CEO, I can make a difference. If I'm an influencer on the internet, I can make a difference because those are the people that are blessed.
— Right.
— And yet here Jesus flips that upside down and says, "Actually, if you wanna make a difference, follow my example".
— Yep.
— "And serve other people".
— Yep.
— That could be as simple as washing feet.
— Yeah. Okay, so that's what leads to the like obvious question that we have to answer, right?
— Yeah, yeah.
— Does does doing what Jesus did mean I literally have to start washing people's feet wherever I go?
— Yeah, 100% There's no way there could be any other interpretation...
— Excellent.
— Literally washing...
— Yeah, pause the video.
— And it's easier for us because we have like shoes, and socks, and people bathe regularly. In Jesus' day, they didn't have socks. They mostly had sandals.
— Right.
— And...
— Yep. So we're just gonna stop right there.
— Wait, was I wrong? Is that not true? Caitlin, save us! What do we do? I don't know.
— You, like more power to you, if you wanna wash someone's feet.
— Hear that? More power, you'll be blessed.
— Don't do it if it's creepy.
— Don't be stressed.
— But I think what Jesus is saying is we're to actually like do what he did in the sense that we are to be willing to let go of the things that we cling to.
— Yep.
— That we think give us status, authority, position, power.
— Yep.
— And actually lower ourselves to a position that most people would look at and say, whoa, what are you doing?
— Yeah, yeah.
— Because that's what Jesus was doing.
— Yeah.
— Is he was taking on the posture and the position of one of the like lowliest servants in a household at that time.
— Right, right.
— Like that was the person who got tasked with the job of washing people's feet was like the like servants in training.
— Yeah, yeah.
— You get to wash the feet today.
— Yeah.
— And Jesus, what he was doing, it wasn't about the act of washing their feet. It was about the position that he was choosing to take.
— Right, right.
— And that's what he's inviting us to.
— Right.
— Is to take the position of the lowest of the low as far as servants go.
— Yeah, yeah.
— And trust that we are secure in who Jesus has called us to be and the difference that we can make when we follow his example and aren't concerned with the status that we hold.
— Yeah, and I think what you just illustrated for us is a really important thing to keep in mind when we read the Bible.
— Yeah.
— Is the Bible is God's word for us, but it wasn't originally written to us.
— Right.
— And so what Jesus is modeling here is a very real job...
— Right.
— That existed in the time that he walked on the earth.
— Right.
— Now there's not people who regularly wash other people's feet.
— Right.
— But there are things...
— Right.
— That some people would see as a job that is beneath them. And what Jesus is inviting us to do is to follow his example.
— Right.
— And see that nothing is beneath us.
— Right.
— That actually, if you think serving in that way is beneath you, then I would suggest that maybe leading is beyond you.
— That's good.
— That maybe until we can actually humble ourselves, we will not be able to make the difference that God's called us to.
— That's so good.
— And so like for me, super practically, one of the ways I try to remember this and embody the principle is if I see trash, I pick it up.
— Yep.
— If I see trash on the ground, I'm gonna pick it up. I'm gonna throw it away. And the place that is my least favorite to do this is in the bathroom, because oftentimes people will miss the trash can with their paper towels. If there's toilet paper, I don't touch that. Okay?
— That's probably sanitary.
— I'm not that Christ like yet. Maybe someday. But if there's like paper towels that people tried to get in the trash can but they missed, I will grab a paper towel, use that to grab that paper towel, and I'll throw it away.
— That's good.
— Because that to me is a really practical way that I can put myself in the shoes of Jesus.
— Right.
— And maybe I'm not washing somebody's feet, but I'm picking up trash.
— Right.
— Because unfortunately, that is something that a lot of people would say is beneath them.
— Right.
— It's like, ah, like that's not my problem. That's not my job. And I really think the heart of service comes back to asking the question, what do people need?
— Right.
— And then how can I meet that need?
— That's so good.
— And so it's a super simple way for me. So I'm not saying that's what you need to do, but it'd be really helpful if you did. Then there'd be less trash for me.
— Yes, one. And that's Jesus' point in verse 16, right?
— Yeah.
— Is like, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. So if Jesus is my king...
— Come on.
— And he lowered himself to that position...
— Yep.
— Then there is literally nothing that is beneath me.
— That's good.
— So as we've read this passage, as we have watched Jesus's example unfold before our eyes, what are some of the other things that are standing out to you and that the holy Spirit's kind of challenging you with?
— Yeah, I mean, I think for me, I'm always challenged and reminded that humility is really close to the heart of God.
— That's so good.
— That if we aren't able to see ourselves as we really are, not as how we maybe want to see ourselves as better than other people, but as we really are, all united because of our sinfulness, and all united because of God's grace...
— Yeah.
— I think that's a really important starting place. And that reminds me all the time that even though I get to do really incredible things as a part of our church, I've got an amazing family, I've got a great job...
— Yeah.
— That none of that makes me better than anybody else.
— Right.
— And so if I ever allow that stuff to get to my head, then I think I'm missing the heart of who God's called me to be.
— That's good.
— And that's somebody who serves others the same way that Jesus has served me.
— Right.
— And so it's just like a constant reminder. And that's why like I mentioned the whole picking up trash thing.
— Yeah.
— 'Cause that's like a super practical way...
— Yeah.
— For me to remember, no, like this is what it means to follow Jesus.
— Yep.
— And so that's the thing for me.
— Yeah. So for me, the question that I'm asking myself is, in what ways am I not trusting God to establish me and instead trying to assert my own authority? I think...
— That's good.
— Temptation that exists for me is to just say yes to any like leadership opportunity that's placed in front of me because like, why would I not? But the holy spirit has been convicting me recently of like, hey, maybe you should ask me. Before you say yes to the thing, if that's something that I'm calling you into, or if you need to do an ego check right now.
— Come on.
— Because being trusted with opportunities feels really good.
— Sure, absolutely.
— And if I'm not careful, what you just talked about, I can allow my decisions to be based on my pride instead of humility.
— Right.
— And I actually recently had to like confess that I made a decision based on the fact that there was a leadership opportunity, and there was space to step into that gap, and I just went for it. I didn't ask Jesus. I didn't assess if I had the margin to do it.
— Right.
— And all of a sudden I'm like super overwhelmed.
— Yep.
— Like all this other stuff is like not going as great because I'm like focusing on this thing that isn't actually mine to do.
— Right.
— And so I had to confess, had to have a couple of conversations of like, hey, I'm really sorry. I let this get pretty far down the road before I realized that this is an opportunity that I took because I wanted the authority and the status.
— Yeah.
— And not because God had called me into that space.
— Right.
— So help.
— And what I think what's so powerful about that example is how often we will chase the opportunities...
— Yeah.
— That will maybe make us look good, or maybe make us feel good.
— Right.
— Because it's like, oh, I'm making a difference. I'm significant.
— Right.
— And how quick we are to ignore the opportunities...
— Right.
— To actually humble ourselves and serve.
— Right.
— And I think that's the thing that I think a great question to ask is, am I doing this because it's gonna make me look better?
— Yep.
— Or am I doing this because this is what Jesus has called me to do?
— Right.
— And it's such a simple question, but it's not asked as nearly as much as it probably should.
— It is not.
— And so thank you for sharing your story 'cause now I'm convicted. So great. What an episode.
— I love this episode. Oh man, we would love to know what the holy spirit is challenging you with, what questions you're asking, and the ways that you are practically living out the call to follow the example of your king.
— Come on.
— Whatever little or big ways that you're doing that, we wanna encourage you, and we wanna be in it with you. So let us know in the comments how this passage is speaking to you today.
— Yeah, absolutely. Just remember, don't be chasing clout. Instead, go washing feet. See you next week.