Teacher

Have you ever thought, really thought, about Jesus washing His disciples’ stinky feet? Have you seriously applied His words in John 13:14 to yourself? “If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”

Lord and Teacher – meditate on Jesus putting those two titles for Himself in one command. The Lord is on His knees washing dirty feet. Messy. Time-consuming. Dirty. Unpleasant. Didn’t He have better things to do? Yet, His act demonstrated more than the simple act of washing feet. Jesus was teaching us the importance of humility toward one another. He was teaching us about servanthood and, yes, even forgiveness.

Our Lord and Teacher physically illustrated what He would do spiritually through His substitutionary death on the cross. It would be messy (a bloody mess). He would wash our filth and sins from our inner man. As His disciples, He instructs us to go and do as He did. Take the time to humbly forgive, to humbly serve one person at a time. And hopefully, prayerfully, it will gain us an opportunity to share with the person why we are doing it, and in whose Name we are serving.

Jesus, Lord and TEACHER, thank You for washing and cleansing us of our sins. Make us increasingly mindful of following Your example. 

Have you ever thought, really thought, about Jesus washing His disciples’ stinky feet? Have you seriously applied His words in John 13:14 to yourself?

If I then, the LORD and the TEACHER, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 

LORD and TEACHER – meditate on Jesus putting those two titles for Himself in one command. The Lord is on His knees washing dirty feet. Messy. Time-consuming. Dirty. Unpleasant. Didn’t He have better things to do?  Yet, His act demonstrated more than the simple act of washing feet. Jesus was teaching us the importance of humility toward one another. He was teaching us about servanthood and yes, even forgiveness. Our Lord and TEACHER physically illustrated what He would do spiritually through His substitutionary death on the cross. It would be messy (a bloody mess).  He would wash our filth and sins from our inner man.  As His disciples, He instructs us to go and do as He did. Take the time to humbly forgive, to humbly serve one person at a time. And hopefully, prayerfully, it will gain us an opportunity to share with the person why we are doing it, in whose name we are serving.

Jesus, Lord, and Teacher, thank You for washing us and cleansing us of our sins. Make us increasingly mindful of following Your example. 

Have you ever thought, really thought, about Jesus washing His disciples’ stinky feet? Or, about His words in John 13:14?  “If I then, the Lord and the TEACHER, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Lord and TEACHER on His knees washing feet? Messy. Time-consuming. Dirty. Unpleasant. The act had to do with more than simply washing feet, though. It was about humility, servanthood, forgiveness. Our Lord and TEACHER physically illustrated what He would do spiritually through His substitutionary death on the cross for us. It would be messy (a bloody mess).  He would wash our filth and sins from us – no longer counting them against us.  Now He tells us, in turn, to go and do as He did. Take the time. Humbly forgive. One person at a time.

Jesus, Lord, and Teacher, thank You for washing us and cleansing us of our sins. Make us increasingly mindful of following Your example. 

LISTEN

Have you ever thought, really thought, about Jesus washing His disciples’ stinky feet? Or, about His words in John 13:14?  “If I then, the Lord and the TEACHER, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Lord and TEACHER on His knees washing feet? Messy. Time consuming. Dirty. Unpleasant. The act had to do with more than simply washing feet, though. It was about humility, servanthood, forgiveness. Our Lord and TEACHER physically illustrated what He would spiritually do by His substitutionary death on the cross for us. It would be messy (a bloody mess).  He would wash away our filth and sins. Cleansed, we are to humbly serve others and tell them about Jesus.

Jesus, Lord and Teacher, thank You for washing us and cleansing us of our sins. Make us increasingly mindful of following Your example. 

LISTEN

Jesus’s words in John 13:14 and stinky feet and a bowl of water don’t make sense to us at first. He said, “If I then, the Lord and the TEACHER, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Lord and TEACHER on His knees washing feet? Messy. A lot of trouble. Dirty. The moment had to do with more than simply washing feet, though. It was about humility, servanthood, forgiveness. Our Lord and TEACHER physically illustrated what He would spiritually do on the cross for us. It would be messy (a bloody mess).  He would wash away not just dirt but filthy sins. Jesus taught us we’re to do as He demonstrated: humbly serve one another.  Are we?

Jesus, Lord and Teacher, thank You for humbly washing us with Your pure blood so we’d be cleansed of our sins. Help us humbly serve one another as You did.

“If I then, the Lord and the TEACHER, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”

John 13:14

“We proclaim Him (Jesus), admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom,…”

Colossians 1:28 

Do you think of teaching others about Jesus as only the job of a pastor or person who leads a Bible study? If so, you’re in for a joyful surprise: every Christian is a teacher.  Matthew 28:18-19  Some of us may be actively engaged. Others of us may have fallen behind. Some of us may be good examples of what we teach. Others of us may speak one thing but live differently from our message. Those we teach are family. They’re neighbors and co-workers. What does it mean to “teach”? It means to “impart instruction, instill doctrine, explain, and expound.” To admonish means “to warn and exhort.” Teachers – preachers, parents, spouses, and friends – both warn and instruct others about Christ and His ways.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the privilege of teaching others about Jesus. Help me teach not only in words but by example.  

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case?

NAS Bible Verses, Bible Gateway, #bgbg2

“If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” 

John 13:14

Friends,

There is no greater joy than knowing God and serving Him. If you’ve heard me speak or teach you know a significant time in my life was when God directed my heart to understand that there is nothing in and of my old self that He can use. All that is good and glorious pours from HIS Holy nature. Since that time, my prayer and life mission has been to increasingly know God and the power of His resurrection. (Phil 3:7-8)

Whether you recently received your journal or have been journaling for years, I’d like to encourage you to use the first column in the Week at a Glance section for the Lord. Yes, title the first column “Lord.” Then, each day when you pray, select a different attribute for which to praise Him. For those of you who also ordered the 200 A-Z Names, Attributes, and Titles of God, you may be checking the boxes beside each attribute on which you focus. Others of you may simply be prayerfully focusing on different attributes of God for which you praise Him. I have already added 20 more attributes to the 200! The list keeps growing and it is such a delight to increasingly know and love my Lord!

Here’s how to do it. This morning, when I rose, I went to my study and knelt as I always do. Truly, as Isaiah 39:15b says, “In quietness and trust is your strength.” I find that beginning each day in quietness before God is the key to walking by His Spirit the rest of the day. In addition to beginning each day on my knees, God’s Word is the powerful sword that clears the clutter from my mind and sharpens me to His Words and ways. Lately I’ve been reading through Isaiah. Today, I read Isaiah 30. And, guess what? I added to my list of 200 Names, 3 more names. It’s so much fun! I pray you have your Bible open beside your journal every day. I pray as God reveals Himself to you through the Word, that becomes a springboard from which you broaden your prayers for others and yourself.

The 3 names I added and you can add?
Isaiah 30:20 Teacher. Yes…can you believe I left “Teacher” off the 200 Names list? What was I thinking???
Isaiah 30:29 Rock of Israel. We already have “Rock,” but I like the addition of “of Israel.”
Isaiah 30:30 Voice of Authority. Oh, friends, if we ever need to be reminded of this attritubute of God, it is now. HE is the Voice of Authority. When other voices in our heads tell us to turn to the right or left, we need to remember God is our Teacher. We need to heed HIS VOICE of AUTHORITY in all areas of our lives.

Consider Isaiah 30:20-21 in conjunction with verse 30 as the springboard for your prayers today. “Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. Your ears will hear a word behind you, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left.”

Although these verses are a reference to the glories of the Millennium, they hold true for believers today. God speaks to us the way, the right and left, through the Bible and through the voice of His Holy Spirit. The question is, are we listening?

Today, dear one, focus your prayers by beginning your prayer time praising God as your Teacher, Rock, and Voice of Authority. Then repent. Yes, too often we forget this part. However, it’s an important part of P.R.A.Y. (praise, repent, ask, yield) We need to repent where we’ve fallen away from the image of the One who created us and called us into conformity with Him.

“Father, forgive me. You are my Teacher, yet I’ve ignored your teaching in this area: ______. You are the Rock of Israel and my Rock, yet I’ve chosen to totter in this sin, _____________.
You are the Voice of Authority, yet I’ve listened to other voices that have lured me from pure devotion to You. Forgive me.”

Yes, friends. Let us praise God each morning for who He is. But let us not forget to repent where we have sinned. Praising God should not only direct our hearts to the glory of who God is, but should also serve as a reminder of ways in which He wants to conform us to His beloved Son.

Rejoice with me today, loved one. We have a Teacher. We have a Rock. We have a Voice of Authority. And, as you rejoice, remember to pray for others that they will learn from the Teacher, stand on the Rock, and heed the Voice of Authority.

Love,
Debbie