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Teaching podcast from the Eagle Community Church of Christ in Mont Belvieu, TX.
I think she preached a sermon to me, Kendra. I got a sermon after y'all got a sermon. So just a lovely family and just for all of you guys, so thankful. Not just that you're here, but the people that are coming are coming to be involved. And so that's why I want to do this little mini series Made to Serve.
John Gunter:I am a person who wants to be involved. If I was not preaching, if I was doing something else and attending church, I would be involved in that church. That's what we did. When I was an IT guy, I was a deacon as well. I believe we were made to serve.
John Gunter:Now, one thing I need to throw out there, first of all, Heath did not know that my sermon was over John 13 today, and so he's already read it and maybe would just say amen. But this is a section of scripture where Jesus kind of flips on its head our idea of what it means to to lead. Because you remember, it's been a while now, but we went over a leadership series, and we talked in that series about how it for some reason, it always comes back to we wanna know who's in charge, and by extension, I wanna be in charge. Right? But Jesus shows us within scripture what it what true leadership means, and that is John 13.
John Gunter:And so, we begin there, this morning, John 13 starting in verse one. Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus knowing that the father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God. Now, we begin here with an idea of alright, we know the story. Right?
John Gunter:We are the the insiders to the story. As Luke tells this, we already know the end. It's already ruined for us. And so what that means for us is that we understand what this what this is saying. Jesus, knowing that the father had given all things into his hand, that he had come from God and was going back to God.
John Gunter:Remember, Jesus is is praying gonna pray that if this cup can pass for me, I want it to pass for me, but he is still giving all things into God's hand. And knowing that his end is coming very soon, his decision is, I'm going to get up, and we know that he's going to serve. Now, how many of you have ever done the I've got a bucket list, or if I had three days to live, I would do x y and z? Have you ever done that before? I don't want to think about that part of my life either, do you?
John Gunter:But how many times, if you have done that, how many times have you thought, if I only had a week to live, what I wanna do is wash people's feet? And if somebody said that today, and you knew that, you would probably avoid that person, wouldn't you? Like, I hear something going on, something's wrong with that person, they won't wash my feet. But Jesus shows, alright, I only have a few days left, I understand, I am going back to God, and his decision is, I'm going to get up from the table and serve. That is leadership.
John Gunter:You wanna ask who's in charge, the person doing this. First John four ten, in in this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sin. That God is going to show us his love by what he does for us, that he serves us in this way. We are all about serving. Colossians three three, for you have died.
John Gunter:For you have died, if you have been raised with Christ, if you've been baptized into Christ's name, you have died, and your life is hidden in with Christ in God. And so, what this is about is we are now his. And Jesus, through John 13, is showing you what that should look like. That we get out, and what we do is we live to serve others. Now, I am as selfish as anybody in here, I would imagine.
John Gunter:I know what I like, I want to pursue that, I want to make sure that John Guenter feels good, and I'm cared for, and all those things. Can you say that about yourself? Yes. Say amen. Yes.
John Gunter:We are good at that for the most part. You you might you know, some things can alter that, but for the most part, we care about ourselves, we're gonna take care of ourselves. The hard part is putting that aside and saying, I care not only about me, but I also care about you, and I want the best for you. And so what I'm going to do is, even in the most important, most impactful time of my life, what I want to do is be there for you. Now, what do you think a church would look like if that's how we live?
John Gunter:What do you think that would look like? Can you imagine it? Like, we are just trying to to outdo each other with love and good works. You know, scripture says that. We ought to be striving to do that, that we care for each other so much.
John Gunter:That is that is a unified church, isn't it? That we care for each other. I wanna be there for you. I wanna serve you. We are now his is what it says.
John Gunter:And so, I think saved hearts, saved people are serving people. In verse back to verse three, Jesus, knowing that the father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going back to God, he rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. Now, we in 2025 may not even want to do this, and we all have clean socks and clean shoes on, don't you?
John Gunter:Except probably my kids, watch out for those. Right? But think about the time in in which this was. This was a position of the lowliest of people. It wasn't the person in charge, it wasn't the teacher, it wasn't the rabbi, it was the lowest of the people who wiped feet and washed feet.
John Gunter:And so, as I've said before, if anyone had a reason to kind of put themselves up and above everyone, wasn't it Jesus? I mean, what do you have on a man who says, I've never sinned? Right? I'd like to think I haven't, but I know I know better. Right?
John Gunter:But if anybody had a reason not to do this, it was Jesus. Yet, he humbles himself to this point of, what I'm gonna do is I'm going to wash people's feet. James four ten that we read here just a couple of weeks ago, Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he will lift you up. Because what we do in our lives is we spend way too much time trying to exalt ourselves.
John Gunter:Try to lift myself up and tell you how good I am and how you should look at me in a certain way instead of serving. Because that's what Jesus showed. And because what that is, is as we pursue exalting ourselves, that usually is not a clean road of of Christian living, is it? Because what I wanna do and what I may need to do is I may need to make you a little lower. I may need to step on you to exalt myself.
John Gunter:And Jesus shows us the way up is down. Mark nine thirty five, and he sat down and called the 12 and he said to them, if anyone would be first, he must be, what church? Last and servant of all. The word servant is deacon. Deacon is servant.
John Gunter:If you want to be first, you be last. Now, what does that look like? Again, that looks maybe it's not washing feet, but maybe it is. I need to spend some time in conversation with this person. I've already got my lunch planned out, I know where I'm going, I know who I'm going with, but there's a conversation that needs to be had.
John Gunter:I need to serve, I need to be here for this person right now. Maybe it is, I need to take some time, I need to visit that person, I need to send them text message. I need to call. We need to be present in each other's lives. I want to be servant.
John Gunter:In John 13, starting in verse six, he came to Simon Peter, who said to him, Lord, do you wash my feet? Jesus answered him, what I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand. I think he he understood Peter very well. Peter is very kinda he's kinda hard headed and slow like I am sometimes. I need to to chew on the the message a little bit before it it hits.
John Gunter:Later, you will understand. Peter said to him, you shall never wash my feet. Why would he say that? Why would Peter say that? That that his teacher and rabbi, he knew was doing this lowly position.
John Gunter:He was putting himself in this lowly position. I can't have that happen. And Jesus answered him, if I do not wash you, you have no share with me. Jesus was pretty blunt, wasn't he? If I don't wash you, you have no share with me.
John Gunter:Simon Peter said to him, alright, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Light bulb went on there for a second, didn't it? Not my feet only, but also my hands let's wash it all. If that's what you need to do, let's do I'm all in. I hear Peter Peter is just one of those guys, isn't he?
John Gunter:Mouth never never stops. I'm in. Let's do it. But Jesus said to him, the one who has bathed does not need to wash except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you, for he knew who was to betray him.
John Gunter:That was why he said, not all of you are clean. And so it's kind of an interesting thing that he tells Peter here, but what he's saying is, Peter is already a follower of Christ, wasn't he? But what he's saying is, there has to be this this idea of a continual cleansing. We get this in first John, if you walk in the light as he is in the light, the blood of Christ cleanses you continually. Well, why does somebody who's clean need a continual cleansing?
John Gunter:God knows that you are imperfect. You know that? That ought to make your day a little bit easier. God knows you are not going to be perfect. He sent his one and only son, Jesus, to cleanse you of those sins, not just once, but continually.
John Gunter:And that's what he's talking about, that you've been clean, but as you go, that blood is going to continually cleanse you. Jesus said, I I need to clean your feet. And so he's he's kinda doing two things in one as he as he talks about this, but he also understands that Judas is not with them. In Titus three, he saved us not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the holy spirit. And so what we need to remember in all of this as we think about service is what God did for us.
John Gunter:That what we can't do is offer what we have not received. We need to serve because God, Jesus, served us. In first John one nine, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Now, perfect people don't need cleansing, do we? Anybody got it worked out in here and you're just perfect?
John Gunter:You walked in here and you thought, man, room full of sinners. I'm here to save the day. No, I hope not. I hope that we understand that as a church, we come here as sinners in need of a savior. We come here as people needing others.
John Gunter:That we draw encouragement not only from God and what he has done for us, but also people walking the walk with us. You know, that's why, God sent Jesus. Jesus, he what he got was the the whole human life, that he understands us. He understands how we're tempted. Think about, as soon as Jesus was baptized, he went out into the wilderness, for what reason?
John Gunter:To be tempted. He spent forty days in the wilderness, you know, temptation under the perfect circumstance. Right? Because I'm really good right here as we meet together. My mind is clear, I'm all about God, I see all of your faces, I'm encouraged, I'm not thinking about sinning at all.
John Gunter:Well, maybe some of you are. But once we go out and we're and the conditions are no longer ideal, then things change. Right? I've got to go to work tomorrow with somebody who does this or speaks this way, or I have to go into a situation that I know is going to be tough and I've got to okay. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
John Gunter:This ought to be on your on your fridge, on your door, all of that stuff, because God knows what you're going through and he sent Jesus to take care of all of it, if you will confess. Don't walk around saying, I'm perfect and I don't need anything. If we confess our sins, he is faithful. Thank you, God, for that. In verse 12, when he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, do you understand what I have done to you?
John Gunter:Moment of reflection. Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me teacher and Lord, and you're right, for so I am. I hold those those titles. If I then, your lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet.
John Gunter:And we're going do that this morning. And everybody got real uncomfortable. They're like, bring the buckets forward? No. We wouldn't know how to how to react, would we?
John Gunter:We wouldn't know what to do, there'd be a whole lot of uncomfortable people in here. What? You know, I took my shower last night. Would've taken it this morning, but all the things going through your head. Right?
John Gunter:But Jesus said, I am your Lord and teacher. That is right. That is correct. You were saying that correctly. If I then, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet.
John Gunter:Now, I'm fine if we wanna take that as as literal as it says that we need to have a foot wash. I'm fine. I don't have a problem with that. I got ugly feet. I'll tell you just right now, ugly feet.
John Gunter:But I'm fine with that, but what Jesus is showing is you ought to be serving one another. I said that wrong, I said you. We ought to be serving one another. Right? If Jesus is going to be our example, that's what he's saying, if I am your Lord and teacher, if I'm the one teaching, and this is what I do, what should you be doing?
John Gunter:Serving one another. For I have given you an example that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you, if you what? If you do them.
John Gunter:That's sometimes the catch, isn't it? I like it, I agree with it, I think it's a good thing, but working it out is sometimes hard, isn't it? Because life gets in the way or my wants or my desires get in the way. I would serve you, but I have a full calendar, and I have a full calendar. And what I don't want to do is is to bring out this sense of guilt that I can't serve everyone I want to serve because you'll never do that.
John Gunter:Right? You have to serve where God has put you. Do you understand? I cannot serve the same people you serve because I'm not in that environment. You cannot serve all the people that I can serve because you're not in my environment.
John Gunter:What we should be doing because of Jesus' example is looking around in the space that God has put us and saying, how can I serve him right here? Because all of that service is gonna look very different from person to person. And that's what it that's what when scripture talks about being the hands and feet or being part of the body, that's what we're talking about. Because we all have different gifts, we all have different things that that God has put different people God has put in our lives, different situations, different places, and that's how we serve him. Don't don't get down because you don't serve in a way that somebody else serves.
John Gunter:Right? When we talk about spiritual gifts and the way some people have this gift and some sometimes we spend way too much time thinking, boy, wish I had that. Right? I wish I had that, not this. I don't like mine, I like yours.
John Gunter:No. Serve God where God has put you right now. In Philippians two verse five that we read last week, have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. If you are in Jesus, you have this same mindset, and we talked about the humility that he lowered himself. Galatians five thirteen, for you were called to freedom, brothers.
John Gunter:Well, I like this. I don't know that I felt free when I was growing up in church. I felt like everything I did was really on the edge of right or wrong, and whether I was in or out. He says, for you are called to freedom, brother, Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. You have an opportunity.
John Gunter:You are free because of what Christ did for you. Now, that freedom is yours to use. He says, alright, well, don't use that as an opportunity for the flesh for yourself, but as an opportunity through love to serve one another. We read this last week, but Mark ten forty five, for even the son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. I hope and pray that as we think about what I want this church to be, that I don't put that weight on everyone else, I know that's easy to do, but I say, alright, how can I serve in this place?
John Gunter:I love people that come to serve and we've got some new people here, I won't embarrass them right now, but we had conversations before they came or as they visited, that's what they said, I want a place to serve. And I'll tell you, church, if we get a group of people like that, it's over with. You're gonna see growth, you're gonna see the love of God spread in this area in Mont Belvieu and we're in Dayton, Texas right now, all over this area of Southeast Texas because of the love we have for one another, if we will just serve. Find a way to serve. We shared with you here a few weeks ago that I had a conversation with the elders and I said, know, as we grow and as we bring people in, what we've got to be ready to do is when people say I want to come in and serve, you let them serve, you let them go after.
John Gunter:And every one of them said, absolutely. And you heard Terry a week or two ago say, it's kind of awkward for him when you're asking for permission to serve God. You don't have to ask permission to serve God. We want, as a minister, as elders, they're behind this. You serve God in this place.
John Gunter:You need a bible study, start a bible study. You need something, you see a need that you can fill, fill it and praise God for that. We are not here to pull the reins on anybody but to go after it. You start serving God in this place because Jesus served God. He humbled himself even down to the form of a servant.
John Gunter:He was our rabbi, our teacher, our messiah. So who are we and what are we to do? I just wanna encourage you this morning to be people who serve, who love God in a way that says, I'm gonna put myself to the side, I'm gonna serve. And I'll tell you, you will be blessed. Because those times where you think, oh, I don't have any anything left in the tank to give.
John Gunter:I'll tell you, God's gonna bless you in a way that you thought, boy, I I didn't think I could do it and God just blessed me through. And he will. You want God to show up? Do something in faith when you don't think you got the the ability or the time or the funds or whatever it is And watch God show up in your life in a way that you'll you'll be amazed. So I just wanna encourage you, if you want the prayers of this church, we'd love to pray with you this morning.
John Gunter:We'd love to wrap our arms around you and encourage you. If that's not your thing, you're too shy to come down publicly, grab somebody, grab me after service, grab one of the elders, deacon, whoever. Somebody that'll hold you accountable, that'll walk side by side with you. Let's pray together. Let's get closer to God as a whole church.
John Gunter:Can we do that? If you haven't put on Jesus in baptism, we'd love to see that as well this morning. Would you come as we stand or as we sing?