Worship

Please say or sing the words of this beautiful song by Graham Kendrick, which speaks of God’s great sacrifice of love, for the sake of us all.

From heaven You came, helpless babe,
Entered our world, Your glory veiled,
Not to be served but to serve,
And give Your life that we might live.

This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow Him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

There in the garden of tears
My heavy load He chose to bear;
His heart with sorrow was torn,
‘Yet not my will but Yours,’ He said.

This is our God ……..

Come see His hands & His feet,
The scars that speak of sacrifice,
Hands that flung stars into space
To cruel nails surrendered.

This is our God ……

So let us learn how to serve
And in our lives enthrone Him,
Each other’s needs to prefer,
For it is Christ we’re serving.

This is our God ……

Sermon on the Mat: ‘Your turn to serve.’

If possible, read John 13:1-17.

“So He (Jesus) got up from the table, took off His robe, wrapped a towel around His waist & poured water into a basin. Then He began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel He had around Him.” (John 13:4-5 NLT).

Would you describe yourself as a servant of the Lord in the making? I trust that you would. I trust that we all would! Nb. Not according to our understanding of service but as it relates to the teachings of Jesus & the example He has set before us. Remember His counsel to His disciples, as they strained life & limb for fame & recognition in the Kingdom of Heaven? ‘Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant & whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve & to give His life as a ransom for many.’ Mark 10:43-45. Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant! What in practice does that mean? I believe it means that in order to truly serve & therefore to be deemed truly great (by God’s standards, not ours) we need from the very outset to be, totally secure in who we are!

Jesus was totally secure in who He was, wasn’t He? (v 2). I.e. His limitless capability in God. God’s limitless love for Him. The glory of heaven that awaited His sure & certain return. Small wonder the power & nature of true Christian service, in all it’s self giving beauty & loveliness, sat readily & easily upon His broad & tender shoulders. Can the same be said about us? That we’re as free to serve as Jesus was because, like Him, we know in whom our confidence ultimately rests. I.e. He, by whose strength we are empowered to do ‘all things!’ (Philippians 4:13). He, in whose love, we are graced to be uniquely & unapologetically ourselves. (Jeremiah 1:4-5). He, through whose kind & open hearted bidding, our future rests secure. (Jeremiah 29:11). As Dieter F. Uchtdorf helpfully puts it – ‘Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost & without a compass, God’s love encompasses us completely ……. He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward, sorrowful or broken.’

The apostle John tells us that Jesus, knowing exactly who He was, how deeply He was loved & how convinced He was about where He was going, took off His outer clothing, wrapped a towel around His waist, poured water into a basin & washed the grubby, soil ridden feet of His disciples. Nb. Putting as much time, love & effort into the washing of the feet of Judas, his friend, turned betrayer, as He did the others. The mark, not only of His humility but also the lengths to which He is prepared to go in order to save us. In like manner, let us then also serve, secure in the knowledge of who we are, all that we have & all that we are becoming, in Him as well as through Him.

‘Intense love does not measure, it just gives!’ Mother Teresa.

Prayer

Gracious God, let the Light of Your face shine upon us.
Your peace rule in our hearts and Your strength be our song.
By the gift of Your grace let us take up the cross &
Follow in the steps of our Lord & Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Matthew Henry (1662 – 1714).

Please pray that –

• God’s higher purposes will be out worked through the course of this pandemic & that many people will turn to Jesus for salvation, not in spite of Covid 19, but because of it!

• Through a fresh move of the Holy Spirit, the Church would find herself newly equipped to win lost souls for Him, in accordance with the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20.