The Call To Serve

Introduction

I want to take you back to when you were a child, your dad was washing the car, your mom was cooking dinner, your grandpa was painting the dinning room, your grandmother was watering her flowers and you here the words “Come help”

Do you remember the excitement that you felt? When you were finally brought in and your services were needed?

Do you remember the feeling of pride that you had? That you could contribute to grand project. That you could get your hands wet with soap, messy with eggs, filthy with dirt? We have a God given desire to serve. To use our skills and abilities to serve one another but also to serve the one who made us!

Today we are going to examine the discipline of service, more specifically we are going to answer the question of “Why” we are called to serve.

Read with me John 13:12-17

John 13:1–17 CSB

Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. Now when it was time for supper, the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son, to betray him. Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into his hands, that he had come from God, and that he was going back to God. So he got up from supper, laid aside his outer clothing, took a towel, and tied it around himself. Next, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel tied around him. He came to Simon Peter, who asked him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I’m doing you don’t realize now, but afterward you will understand.” “You will never wash my feet,” Peter said. Jesus replied, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.” “One who has bathed,” Jesus told him, “doesn’t need to wash anything except his feet, but he is completely clean. You are clean, but not all of you.” For he knew who would betray him. This is why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” When Jesus had washed their feet and put on his outer clothing, he reclined again and said to them, “Do you know what I have done for you? You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are speaking rightly, since that is what I am. So if I, 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 for you. “Truly I tell you, a servant is not greater than his master, and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

1. I Serve To Be Obedient (v. 14)

We don’t have to read between the lines for Jesus’s instructions here. He clearly tells the disciples, he clearly lays out for you and me “You ought to wash one another’s feet” You go serve how I am serving!

This call to service is not one that should be foreign to us, God has formed us this way. Genesis 2:15 before sin has entered this world we see that God calls man to serve him, to work with his hands to bring God glory.

There is benefit in knowing how best to serve but I am afraid that we have boxed serving God into the walls here at CMBC or going on mission. Serving God is a discipline just like the rest that is best practiced both in and out of the church. If only practiced here you have a skewed view of what Jesus is calling you to when he calls you to serve.

When Jesus calls us to serve and we become obedient I want you to note 3 things.

Service is not easy

This is a call however, that comes with a cost. We would be silly to believe that the discipline of serving is easy. Many of us desire a life of ease however God never called us to that. Look at how Jesus is serving? In a way that no other would. Doing a job, no one wanted to do. Serving is not easy and I warn you to not fall into the lie of obedience if your service is casual.

Service is never ending.

Jesus is literally serving up unto his death. There is no retirement for serving the Lord, there is no “I have done my service!” attitude. No God made us to serve and this discipline is to be practiced until the day our earthly bodies give way and our role shifts to serving him eternally

Service is dependent

How many of you have ever been serving the Lord and you throw your hands up and say, Lord I cannot keep going. I have no strength, I have no wisdom, I have no more to give?

This my friends is how we know that the discipline of serving is not made to be an independent task. We must look to the Father for help in our serving.

In order to be obedient we must be dependent on our father.

2. I Serve to Be Humble (v. 16)

Let’s sit right here. This act to us, is lowly correct. No one if we asked want to go out and sign up to wash the people’s here feet right?

In this culture, no one who was a jew would do this. This act was lower than anyone of these disciples family members. It was set aside for non jew slaves.

Jesus was doing more than just washing the disciples feet. He was showing them, following me, being on my team, it gets you a badge of honor and that badge, is being this low! Being on my team means we are not the master, no no no! Being on my team means we are going to hold everyone else above us! We, this room, we are going to serve others without a prideful heart, for NO REWARD! To be judged, to be mocked, but we are going to do it to show love!

Two Obstacles to over come pride in serving

Who am I serving

Colossians 3:22–23 CSB

Slaves, obey your human masters in everything. Don’t work only while being watched, as people-pleasers, but work wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people,

When the recipient of our service becomes people and not God, our service is not adequate.

Think about who Jesus is serving.

Someone who is about to deny every knowing him “I’ll wash his feet”! One who is going to trade Jesus’s very life for 30 pieces of silver, “I’ll was his feet”. One who doubted he was who he said he was “I’ll wash his feet”

Folks, we must overcome the obstacle of who we serve. We do not serve those below but rather he who is above!

What credit do I receive?

Look where Jesus is. He’s in a room during a festival in which many people would be coming into town to celebrate. I am sure there were parties going on, parades were happening and where is Jesus? He’s snuck away into an upper room with just these 12.

He is serving just these 12.

Knowing what Jesus knew wouldn’t you want to be amongst “em? Wouldn’t you want to show, “Look I’m no threat! I’m loving! I am washing feet!”

Not Jesus. He is serving to give us an example that we serve to bring God Glory not boost our ego!

We want credit. We want to be acknowledged. We want rewards. We want to keep score. Look what Jesus said, “There is no score”

Pride is natural. Even washing feet can be prideful and stem from a cold dead heart. However, we must look to the father today and say “Lord perform heart surgery, change me. Change my pride in serving. Create in my heart a humility to serve you” and when we have that attitude we will be blessed.

3. I Serve to Be Blessed (v. 17)

If you know these things. If you have recieved this message about feet washing. If you know that what I am doing now is not so much about the filth on your feet but rather the scum in your heart, then you, then you will be blessed.

Once we grasp the idea that service is about self sacrifice, bringing God glory, being agents of change then and only then will we receive the blessing that accompanies it.

The blessing that comes from the adopted discipline of serving is one that is unending joy.

I am afraid we miss our blessing most often because we work for the blessing. The blessing in serving is the process not the final result.

Serving can only be seen as a blessing if we personally know the one in which we serve. For some today you have been serving to please, to boast in self, out of bitterness. Let me encourage you today church, you will only be blessed in serving if you know the one your service is for.

Conclusion

When your a young child and your mom, dad, grandparent ask for your help. Today when you ask little ones around you for help? Do you need it or rather when you ask you fulfil a need in them not a need in you. Folks God does not need us to serve yet he invites us to serve to fulfill a need in us