Christian leadership is servant leadership.  If you are a Christian then Christ calls you to serve, and if you are a Christian leader then Christ calls you to lead through serving.  John 13 tells the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet.  It was Passover time (a high holiday for the Jews), and Jesus and His disciples were gathered to eat the traditional Passover meal.  At one point during the meal Jesus rose from supper; wrapped a towel around his waste; and began to wash His disciples’ feet.  Washing feet was the job for a servant.  Dignitaries don’t wash peoples’ feet, dignitaries have their feet washed by the servants that they hire.  Jesus is the Son of God and beyond any earthly dignitary.  By all means this task was below Jesus, and yet he did it.  And he tells us why he did it.

Jhn 13:12-15 ESV – 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? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.

We probably all agree that Christian leaders should serve people, but what motivates the Christian leader to serve?  John 13:3-4.

3 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, rose from supper. 4 He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist.

Jesus rose from supper.  That’s the main point of verse 3, but he did it “knowing” something.  What Jesus knew had everything to do with him getting up and washing the disciples feet.  Let’s look the two things that Jesus knew.

Jesus knew that the Father had given all things into his hands

It was not an embarrassing thing for Jesus to perform the job of a servant because His identity wasn’t riding on other people’s perception.  His authority was given to Him by the Father.  Jesus rested in it, and it enabled Him to serve people.  It is a crippling thing to look for one’s worth in other people’s opinions.  This more than many things will hinder a leader’s ability to set aside their outer garments and serve.

Although God has built all of us to need encouragement be careful when you derive your value through other people’s opinions.  This is a dangerous place for a leader to be in.  In cases like this leadership often times becomes a game for people who are insecure about their authority.  The game is played by positioning for power.

Luke 22:24-30 shares an insightful event that happened one day in the life of the disciples.

Luke 22:24 ESV – A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest.

Can you imagine?  An actual argument among the disciples about who is the greatest.  Unreal!  It sounds like something that children do and yet it happens.  People all over the place are arguing about who is better.  Maybe not in the same way.  We are Americans.  We don’t come right and say that we think we are better.  No, we do it by tearing others down.  In other words, we think they’re worse.  Isn’t this just the same thing?  Aren’t we deep down arguing that we are better than others.

The mind-blowing thing about this story is what Jesus said to counteract their wrong attitude.

Luk 22:29-30 ESV – …I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

In other words Jesus is saying, “If you understood what I have given you there would be nothing to argue about”.  Our relationship with Christ frees us up from a life of positioning for authority, prestige, and honor from men.  Freedom is realized when I understand that what I have is a gift from the Lord.  John the baptist said in John 3 that a man has nothing unless he receives it from heaven.  James 1 says that every good and perfect gifts come down from the Father.  Paul asks in Corinthians 1, “What do you have that you did not receive?”.  God is the ultimate giver.  We are the beneficiaries.

Many things in life we have absolutely no control over – where we were born, the parents that we have, and our natural abilities.  Matthew 25 Jesus tells a parable about talents (a type of coin).  The master gave one servant five talents, another servant two talents, and yet another servant one talent.  The amount of talents that each servant received was up to the master, but what each servant did with their talent was up to them.  Some leaders may possess five talents of natural abilities, others ten, others two, and still others only one.  Trust that God has given you what he wants you to have.  This will free you up to serve people.

Jesus knew that he had come from God and was going back to God

It was not an embarrassing thing for Jesus to perform the job of a servant because He knew who He was and where He was headed.  Jesus was God, and was heading back to the Father.  He had no felt need to prove himself superficially.  We might not have come from God in the same sense that Jesus did, but we are all headed back to God.  Each of us has an appointment before the Judgment Seat of Christ.  Jesus knew where he was going and we should keep this in mind as well.

The Judgment Seat of Christ gives us clarity to serve.  It puts all else into its proper perspective.  This world is passing and soon I will appear before Christ to give an account of things done while in the body whether good or evil (2Cor 5:9-10).

1Pe 5:4 ESV – And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Jesus is the chief Shepherd.  We are merely stewards caring for the Lord’s sheep.  We will one day give an account for how we handled his sheep.

May we give a good account for how we handled what truly belongs to the Lord.  Being helped along by:

1. knowing that everything we have has been given to us by the Father
2. keeping in mind the judgment Seat of Christ