THE ART OF SERVANTHOOD

Howdy-do all of you SERVANTS. What do these two people have in common?
Well....(1) they both have hoary heads of white hair.
(2) Both are older than me, but not by much (3) They both...don't look like ministers. (4) They both are ministers. The main thing that they both have in common...they are SERVANTS. Welcome to the Ruminator Rambling blog site...Bruce Coble (Missions Pastor at Smyrna Assembly) and John Key (Director/Coordinator of Community Servants at Wherry Housing in Smyrna TN). These two men are examples to me...of what it means to be a follower of Jesus...not just in some religious, theoretical principle...but in practical, fleshed out, nitty gritty Christianity. I would be amiss if I failed to mention their two RIBMATES...Jill Coble...and Shirley Key.

NOTE: At creation...Adam's wife Eve was called a HELPMEET (Helper). In the New Testament...the Holy Spirit is called the HELPER. Men...if you would realize that your wives are like the Holy Spirit...and if you would listen to her...you might avoid some of the pain of your decisions. Just a thought from someone who is married to a goddess...name Brenda Sue Boyd. I am the HEAD of the house...but Brenda is the NECK...and the neck turns the head anywhere she wants it.

Bruce introduced me to a book by a guy named Gayle D. Erwin called THE JESUS STYLE. The book lays out the principle of following Jesus by serving others. As some on you know...periodically I will send out a TOP TEN LIST. I give the top ten reasons it's OK for me to cuss...or the top ten reasons its OK for me not to trust God...or the top ten reasons I can get drunk. The # 1 reason is always...IT'S ALL ABOUT ME BABY...IT'S ALL ABOUT ME. Of course my tongue is placed firmly in cheek...because IT'S ALL ABOUT JESUS...and if I choose to align myself with Jesus...I choose to die to myself...live to Him and server others. Jesus pointed to the greates commandment in the Law when He quoted from Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18 "And He said to him...you shall love the Lord you God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and formeost commandment. And a second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself." Love is manifested as it is expressed towards others.

Jesus not only taught servanthood... he exemplified it by washing the feet of His disciples...and later by allowing Himself to be nailed to a cross. In John 13:1-20...we see Jesus and the boys before the Feast of the Passover (a Jewish celebration of the angel of death passing over the households where the blood of a Lamb was on the doorposts)...sitting down for some supper...it was SUPPER TIME.

At this point in time...Jesus knew that He was getting ready to depart out of the world to the Father. He loved His own who were in the world...to the END...and the end was near.

Jesus...(1) rose from supper (2) laid aside His garments (3) took a towel (4) girded Himself about (5) poured water into a basin (6) began to wash the disciples feet (7) wiped them with the towel that He was girded.

The Creator of the universe and all that was in it...was LOWERING Himself to serve the creation.

When He came to Peter....Peter's question was , "Lord, do You wash my feet." Jesus responded, "What I do you do not realize now, but you shall understand hereafter." Little did Peter know that Jesus was giving them insight into His death, burial and resurrection. Little did they know that Jesus was giving them a picture of the ATTITUDE OF A SERVANT.

"Have this ATTITUDE in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed IN THE FORM OF GOD...did not reqard EQUALITY WITH GOD a thing to be GRASPED., but EMPTIED Himself by becoming OBEDIENT to the point of death, even death on a cross." (Phillipians 2:5-8)

QUESTION: What part of your religious wonderfulness are you grasping? What righteous quality do you have that makes you feel superior to someone else. Are you willing to empty that thang...and die to yourself...and be filled up with Him...and live? I'm just asking...because I find my self holding tightly to my pride all of the time. I have an ATTITUDE...it's usually just the wrong one.

The ATTITUDE is listed in Phillipians 2:3-4 (1)Do nothing from selfishness (2) Do nothing form empty conceit (3) Have humility of mind
(4) Regard one another as more important than himself (5) Do not merely look out for your own personal interests (6) Also look out for the interests of others. HAVE THIS ATTITUDE IN YOURSELVES WHICH WAS ALSO IN CHRIST JESUS.

Peter was adament that Jesus would never lower Himself to wash his feet. After all....Jesus was the teacher...Peter was the pupil. On the surface it looked like a righteous statment...but Jesus was never one to just be on the surface...but struck deep at the root of pride...when He told Peter..."If I do not wash you...you have no part with Me." Peter wised up when he declared..."Lord, not my feet only...but also my hands and my head."

Again...Jesus was not talking about rub a dub dub...of the outward man...but a cleaning from the inside out...."He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is COMPLETELY CLEAN...and you ARE CLEAN, but not all of you (Judas)." (John 13:10) QUESTION: Are you one of the clean ones...or one of the NOT ALL OF YOU?

After He did the deed...He came back up to table level...and asked them..."Do you know what I have done to you?" Now that's a teacher.. doing it...and then teaching it.

Jesus then states that what he did as the Lord and Teacher...washing their feet...that they outght to wash one another's feet. He gave this as an EXAMPLE that you should do as I did to you. Again...it more that the physical act...but the Art of Servanthood that was to be taken to heart.

Jesus underscored this when He said..."Truly, truly I (Jesus) say to you (disciples) a slave is not greather than his master; neither is one who is sent greater than the one who sent Him. (John 13:16) Jesus was sent by the Father...we are sent by Jesus. The example...get down where the toe jam is and minister. It's not a pretty ministry...it is not full of glory...it is not prestigious...it is not T.V. worthy....but it is Jesus.

Jesus could lower Himself...open Himself to give of Himself when there was the possiblity of rejection by the ones that He was serving because of three things found in John 13:3. Before He could do John 13:4-12 He had to have John 13:3 deep in His heart.

(1) Jesus KNOWING that the Father had given all things into His hand.
Jesus knew where His authority and power came from...the Father

(2) That He had COME FORTH from God. Jesus knew His point of origin.

(3) And was GOING BACK to God. Jesus knew that He was only passing through...and while He was here...he would be obedient to the Father and serve.

"You know of Jesus of Nazereth how God anointed Him with the Holy Ghost and Power and how He went about DOING GOOD...and HEALING all who were oppressed by the devil...for God was with Him." Acts 10:38

Love and clean kisses
Rod "Toe Jam" Boyd