Bible Studies

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Maundy Thursday
John 13:1-17, 31b-35 – The Model Servant

Key Verses: (NRSV)

• 1: "…Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end." – Jesus had worked closely with His disciples for three years. He knew all of their idiosyncrasies, weaknesses and failings. He knew what was to become of them…the betrayal of Judah, the denial of Peter…yet, "He loved them to the end."
  
  
• 3-4: "And during supper, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands…took off His outer robe, and tied a towel around himself." – At a time where Jesus could have been thinking about the things He had accomplished in His ministry or focused on the events to come, He, instead, donned a servant's towel and knelt to meet the needs of His disciples.
  
  
• 8: "Peter said to Him, 'You will never wash my feet.' Jesus answered, 'Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.'" – Peter found it difficult to understand. Accepting the humble servanthood of Jesus was not an easy task but, without this step, true knowledge and comprehension of Jesus' ministry would not be revealed.
  
  
• 12: "After He had washed their feet, had put on His robe, and had returned to the table, He said to them, 'Do you know what I have done to you?'" – Teacher to the end, Jesus takes time to insure that His message was understood and that the lesson was learned.
  
  
• 14: "So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.'" – Modeling the importance of servanthood, Jesus demonstrated that if He, Lord and Teacher, could humble Himself then everyone is expected to live a life of serving others.
  
  
• 20: "Very truly, I tell you, whoever receives one whom I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives Him who sent me." – This is a call to "Be Ready." When we serve those who Jesus sends us, then we serve Him. When we serve Him, we serve God. Our failing comes when we do not recognize when to serve.
  
  
• 34-35: "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." – Three times He says to "love one another." Do we get the point? We are to be known and recognized by our love.
  

Points to Contemplate:

• Are you a humble servant? When you think about the events on that last Thursday evening with Christ and His disciples, do you tend to overlook these verses in John regarding Jesus' washing of the disciple's feet? Understanding that Jesus used this last evening to underscore the lessons of His ministry, does it give added importance to our calling as servants? When following in His footsteps are we simply to don a servant's towel and get our hands dirty, or is there more to it than that? Is the importance of a servant's attitude to alleviate suffering in the world or is it about denying our selves so that we are better attuned to God plans in our life? Jesus taught to us deny our selves and to love one another…can you see that these are intimately tied together as the same issue – love of God?
  
  
• Have you been washed by Jesus? What does it mean when Jesus says: "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me?" Before you can be an effective servant for Christ, is there something He needs to do for you first? Do you need to be cleansed of some specific sin? Are you carrying with you the baggage of a past hurt? Are you holding onto an element of your life that you should let go? Does your ego or your selfish needs dominate your life to the point that you truly worship yourself more than God? Are you like Peter finding it difficult to allow Jesus to wash away your uncleanliness?
  
  
• Are you "Ready" for those who God sends you? Jesus said that when we serve those He sends we serve God. Do you look for opportunities in your life to serve God? Or do you have difficulty seeing the Holy among the mundane and tragic lives before us? Is it not obvious that if God's Kingdom is to be built here on earth that it must take place one life at a time and must be built by those who are being called to serve? Following this Lenten season, what steps are you planning to take in order to avail yourself more to kingdom building and servanthood?
  

Promises of the Gospel:

Jesus would soon be leaving His disciples and they would have to carry on His ministry without His leadership. There were still important lessons to share even just a few short hours away from His arrest. "I have told you to love one another," Jesus says, "but now I am going to show you what I mean. Humble yourself, deny yourself, pick up the towel of servanthood, and meet the needs of those I send you. This is who you must become but I recognize one more important lesson…you can not do this without first receiving my grace. Be washed, be cleansed, and then, humbly go forth serving God."

FUMC Devotionals

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