Bible Studies

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John 13:3-5 Jesus knew (1)that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up (2) from the meal, took off (3) his outter clothing, and wrapped (4) a towel around his waist. After that, he poured (5) water into a basin and began to wash (6) his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

1) KNOW - Jesus knew - he realized who He was, who He belonged to, and what His responsibility was. If we are going to serve, this must be the first step. We must first realize who we are (nothing without Him), Who we belong to (we are sons and daughters of the King), and what our responsibility is (Do nothing out of selfishness or vain conceit, but consider others better than yourself. Do not look out only for your own interests, but for the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus Phil. 2:3-5)

2) GET UP - The next step is an action step - Jesus Got Up. After realizing what it was he needed to do, he decided to do it. He took the first step to accomplishing the task. When we see a need and realize our responsibility toward it, our first step should be to decide that we are going to do something about it and get up off our proverbial rear ends and take that first step to doing something about that responsibility.

3) TAKE OFF - Serving others can be a humbling experience. Where pride is, humility cannot exist. So Jesus stripped off his outter clothing. (But made Himself nothing. Phil 2:7a) First, removing that outer garment demonstrated that He was revealing his humanness, He was showing these men a piece of Him they may have never seen. Secondly, outer garments were not typically worn during washing of the feet. They tended to become a burden and merely got in the way. In the same way, our pride and selfishness get in the way of our serving others. So before we begin to serve, we must throw off that which hinders us!

4) PUT ON - Not only did Jesus take off His outer garments, but He put on a towel. (taking the very nature of a servant . . . He humbled Himself. Phil 2:7-8) The act of putting on this towel was, in essense, placing Him on the level of a servant or a bondslave. He took up the servant's towel and took that responsibility upon Himself - even though, as a guest, it typically wouldn't be His responsibility - His was an act of love, an act of service, an act of sacrifice. It probably wasn't popular - initially, the disciples probably looked at Him and whispered, "What does He think He's doing?" Serving others can require sacrifice on our part, and therefore, humility. At times, others may not look on us favorably; being a servant is not the most popular job. So we must make sure to put on the cloth of humility and willingness to sacrifice.

5) POUR - Jesus poured water into a bowl in preparation for washing the disciples' feet. What physicall preparation is needed for us to serve another? Think of several ways you can esteem others higher than yourself. What would it require? Maybe arriving to school ten minutes earlier to encourage a friend that may be lonely. Maybe it's taking a bit of extra money to lunch so you can buy "homeless joe" a cup of coffee on a cold day. Maybe it's scheduling your time in such a way to include your siblings in your daily activities. It could be the simplest thing, but serving takes planning!

6) DO IT - finally, after all this preparation has been accomplished, go out with joy and do it. Serve the Lord gladly, do it all for His glory, and realize that your are bringing Him joy by serving others (Whatever you've done unto the least of these, you've done unto Me).

"Be imitators of God, therfore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Ephesians 5:1-2

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