Full
Devotion to Christ & Serving His Cause is the Norm (Philippians 2:1-11)
Today we conclude our
series of studies around our Church’s Ten Distinctive Values. These express how
we ‘do’ Church. How we fulfill our mandate. How we pursue our mission. How we will
achieve our goals. In a sense the other nine values are based on this last and
most important one. Full devotion to
Christ & serving His cause is the norm for every believer. This is the
foundation not only for our other nine values, but I suggest it should be the
foundation principle of everything we do as Christians. Let us explore this concept and unpack
what this means from our Bible readings. Lets begin with John 13 and the
concept of servanthood and then in Philippians the
idea of full devotion. Please turn with me to John 13.
1. The Illustration of Servanthood 13:1-5
Read 13:1-5. He got up
from the meal in the same way he had got up from his eternal throne. He took
off his outer clothing as he had laid aside his glory and took the form of a
servant and wrapped a towel round his waist. Jesus, bent over a
bowl of water and removed the dirt from the feet of his friends. In the silence
of that room the careful, deliberate washing lasted a long time. The breathing
of the kneeling man became heavier as the minutes passed, and his hair fell
over his fore
In the final frame he would dominate us from above, raised, fixed to the cross.
But the first scene was this one: crouching like an animal over our toes, over
our un-poetic nails, over those unattractive odours. Jesus permitted himself the royal joy of
self-humiliation. According to the
Jewish "Midrash Mekicta"
commenting on Exodus 21:2 "Foot
washing" was not even required of a Hebrew slave, it was the task of a
foreign slave.
Indian society is still divided into a series of hierarchical castes. 6% of
Hindus are Brahmans the highest caste. They are well represented in government
jobs, and the men become priests. Another 14% of Hindu's belong to the forward
or upper end of the social scale, the Thakurs, Rajputs, Banias and Kayasths. These are
the landholders, merchants, and shop keepers. About 52% of Hindus belong to the
lower castes classified as backward by the government. They fall into hundreds
of local jatis castes. Their traditional occupations
are as labourers, artisans, carpenters and
servants. Then finally there are the Dalits. The 18% of Hindus who are so low
that they are considered without caste. They do the most demeaning jobs,
including human waste disposal, burning the dead, and working with leather.
Time Magazine recently gave a detailed analysis of the caste system and how it
still dominates Indian society. In an interview a young Dalit
shared how his community became Christians 40 years ago. "Christ's
message that all men are equal appealed to us." Here is the reason why. The Lord of glory was
on his hands and knees cleaning his disciples feet,
even the Dalits. The Lord of glory became a
servant. John Stott says, "For
me there is no clearer or more compelling evidence of the deity of Jesus than
the extraordinary paradox between his lofty claims and his lowly conduct."
The
illustration of servanthood.
The Invitation to Servanthood 13:6-11
Read 13:6-10. Why wash
their feet and not their hands or faces? Think about your feet for a moment.
Our feet are not usually regarded as the most beautiful part of our bodies. At
the level Jesus chose to minister to his disciples, there was no friendship or
agreeable relationship, no eye to eye communication, just a sense of
embarrassment and self consciousness. Feet are miles away from our smiles, they are rough skinned wild dumb animals. Looking at
our feet makes it hard to believe in the human soul. They remind us that life
is transitory. Perhaps that's why the dead are all feet,
they stick them out in front without any shame at all. Perhaps that's why we
feel a kind of instinctive modesty at having to expose them.
As Peter said, "You'll never wash my feet, no way." So emphatic was Peter, he uses a double
negative - "no, never..." Perhaps it was the fisherman's zealous
determination not to be done a service that made him cry out in protest. Maybe
it was just that deep seated insecurity we all feel at having to take off our
shoes. I can only think of two people
who ever wanted to wash my feet. My mother and father. Both wanted to clean me regularly. Only
they would willingly wash my feet. Why? Because they loved
me. That is what Jesus is communicating so graphically here. Through
surrendering our pride to the hands of Christ, by identifying him bent over the
bowl scrubbing us clean like little children, that is how our salvation comes.
"If I don't wash you", said Jesus, "you
have no part of me." What ever
it was for Peter, his feet exposed both his independent pride and his need of
Jesus ministry. Peter would rather wash the feet of Jesus than let Jesus wash
his feet. Peter would rather die for Jesus than let Jesus die for him. And that
was the lesson he was beginning to learn. At its most fundamental then, this
story is speaking about receiving the salvation which Jesus offers.
There can be no substitute. "When I survey the wondrous cross on which
the Prince of glory died, my richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt
on all my pride." The
unregenerate person cannot cope with this humiliating Christ. They like to
pretend they don't need a wash, they're clean enough already. But we can do nothing for the cause of Christ
until we have first been washed by Christ. Read 13:9-10. Its important to
understand what Jesus is saying to Peter. We must not question the Lord's will
or work, or try to change it. He knows what He is doing. Peter had a difficult
time accepting Christ's ministry to him because Peter was not yet ready to
minister to the others. It takes
humility and grace to serve others, and the first step is to allow our pride to
be humiliated to the point that we repent and are broken. Let me ask you, do
you see Jesus as the Suffering Servant? Have you allowed Jesus to wash not just
your feet but your soul? The invitation is there, the choice is before you. Just
remember what Jesus said to Peter, "Unless I wash you, you have no part
with me." (John 13:8) The illustration of servanthood and the
invitation to servanthood.
3. The Instruction on Servanthood 13:12-17
Read
"If I had to chose some relic of the passion I wouldn't pick up a scourge
or a spear but that round bowl of dirty water. To go round the world with that
receptacle under my arm, looking only at people's feet; and for each one I'd
tie a towel round me, bend down, and never raise my eyes higher than their
ankles, so as not to distinguish friends from enemies....and all in silence,
until they understood."
To the unbeliever such an attitude can sound like slavery. Yet to serve the
Servant King is not bondage but perfect freedom. Bondage and
freedom. In Christ the world sees only bondage, we see in Christ perfect
freedom. Without Christ, the world thinks it is free but is in reality in
bondage. The King of the Universe
wrapped a towel around his waist and washed his disciples
feet, even the two that belonged to his betrayer. "I have set you an
example that you should do as I have done." How do we wash one anothers feet? Through our servant teams.
Our church does not
operate through the paid staff and volunteers but through servant teams. My
expectation is that everyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus Christ serves
on one or more of our teams because serving the cause of Christ the norm for
every believer. There are no
backbenchers at
There is no unemployment, only obedient and disobedient servants. My calling is
to ensure everyone becomes a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ by serving
on one of our servant teams - like hospitality, refreshments, sidesman, welcomers, cleaning team, crèche, chipmunks, Sunday school,
Advisory Groups, PCC – they are all servant teams. These are the means by which we use our God
given gifts to serve one another and seekers who are as yet outside our church
family. My expectation is that everyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus
Christ demonstrates it by serving on one of our ministry teams. Let me ask you
- Are you a servant of Jesus Christ?
How are you demonstrating
your servanthood?
How are you washing the feet of others? If you are not yet a member of one of
our servant teams, why not? When Christ returns he will evaluate our faith on
the basis of our service. I want to hear him say of each one of us, “well done
my good and faithful servant.’ Serving the cause of Jesus Christ is the norm
for every believer. For in so doing we are simply following the example of our
Lord. Paul elaborates on this in our
epistle. Please turn to Philippians 2:1-11 with me.
1. An Exhortation to Full
Devotion 2:1-4
2. Christ's Example of Full
Devotion 2:5-11
3. An Explanation of Full
Devotion
1. An Exhortation to Full Devotion
2:1-4
In 2:1 Paul reminds us of
the benefits of being a Christian. United with Christ.
The comfort of his love, fellowship with His Spirit. Then
in verses 2-4 Paul tells us simply to do for others what Jesus has already done
for us. (Read 2:2-4.) How do you treat other people? Worldly values tell us to manipulate
or coerce other people to serve us. Jesus
wants us to do the very reverse. (Re-read verse 3). That's
our starting point on the path to being fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. Paul doesn't only exhort us,
he gives us an example, the example.
2. Christ's Example of Full Devotion
2:5-11
Read 2:5. Notice Paul does not say "be like
Jesus" but "have the same attitude." The same attitude. Lets look for ways we can model ourselves on Jesus. Three
aspects of His character stand out.
2.1 Self Acceptance
2:6
Notice first, that Jesus
humility did not involve pretending to be less than he really was. Pretending
to be less than you are is not humility. "I'm nothing, I'm nothing...." stems from
pride not humility. What is holding you back from serving His cause with full
devotion? Unsure what your gifts are? In the Spring we
shall be running the Network Course again to help everyone discover their God
given gifts so that we can all serve wholeheartedly in the right place for the
right reasons. Jesus was secure in his relationship with the Father. He was
equal with the Father in eternity past. He did not need to grasp at equality,
nor was He afraid of losing it, by becoming a human being. It was His rightful
status, and it always will be. Are you secure in your relationship with God? Do
you know that your sins are forgiven? Do you know that you have eternal life?
Do you know that you are a
child of God, and that heaven is your home? Until you are sure, you will be for
ever grasping at other means of security, always feeling insecure, unsure of
your place in the Body of Christ. Self acceptance verse 6.
2.2 Self Sacrifice 2:7
The eternal Son chose to
"empty himself", he became nothing.
What does that mean? In every other passage in the NT where the word is
used it means "to deprive something of its proper place and use" John Stott says, "Christ Jesus brought
the whole of His divine nature, undiminished, into a new and - had it not been
revealed to us in scripture -
unimaginable state." Does your
faith involve sacrifice? If you support the proposals to enlarge our facilities
so that we can reach and accommodate more people who want to follow Christ what
are you willing to sacrifice to make it a reality?
I heard a story recently about a Christian businessman who was travelling in
2.3 Self Abasement 2:8-11
Jesus humbled himself. He
humbled Himself and became obedient to His Father’s will and died in our place.
He was obedient to death on a cross. That was His passion. That was his
consuming passion. To save you. To
rescue you. To die for you. So that you could share that
love and forgiveness with others. Ultimately full devotion to Christ and serving
his cause is only achieved when we abase ourselves, humble ourselves before his
majesty and recognize that all that we have, all that we are, and all that we do,
must be in full obedience to Jesus Christ before whom every knee will one day
bow. Self acceptance, self sacrifice, self abasement. Your
attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus… The exhortation to full devotion,
the example of full devotion and lastly,
3. An Explanation of Full Devotion
2:12-16
Read verses. Let me read
you
"Do most things without too much complaining or arguing, so that you may
hopefully be reasonably blameless, and relatively pure children of God without
too many faults in what is a rather imperfect generation in which you flicker
like glow worms in the dusk."
That’s a pretty accurate description of some church circles… Which is it to be? "Glow worms flickering
in the dusk" or "Shining bright like stars"? If you were lost which would help you the
most? Imagine what our Church will
be like when we are
fully devoted to Christ, irrevocably committed to each other and relentlessly
dedicated to reaching lost people with the Gospel of Christ. We will be an
unstoppable force for good in our community, an inspiration to other churches, and
a testimony to the world of God’s unfailing grace. A Church against which the
gates of hell cannot prevail. Full
devotion to Christ and serving His cause is the biblical norm – now lets make it a reality. Lets pray.