BIG POINT
Let’s serve with all our heart
GOD’S WORD
2 They were having their evening meal. The devil had already tempted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. He had urged Judas to hand Jesus over to his enemies. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had put everything under his power. He also knew he had come from God and was returning to God. 4 So he got up from the meal and took off his outer clothes. He wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a large bowl. Then he began to wash his disciples’ feet. He dried them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
John 13:2-5 (NIRV)
God’s gifts of grace come in many forms. Each of you has received a gift in order to serve others. You should use it faithfully.
1 Peter 4:10 (NIRV)
| PRAISE | TBC |
| WORSHIP | Heart of a Servant |
| HEART PREP | TBC |
TEACHING
Props:
4 small chairs
1 low table (optional)
toy plates, forks, spoons, glasses (optional)
long white towel or cloth
large bowl
wet wipes, alcohol based
spray alcohol, from first aid (optional)
Our big point for today is all about serving with all of our heart. To help us understand, we turn to the Bible in John 13:2-5. This is the story about Jesus washing the discipe’s feet. Some of you might heard of it, but to recap, why don’t we do a reenactment.
They were having their evening meal.
John 13:2a
(Setup the 4 chairs and table in a dinner table position.) So, this was the Last Supper, so called because because it was the last meal that Jesus had before being crucified. Of course we know that now, but the disciples didn’t know it back then.
Jesus knew that the Father had put everything under his power. He also knew that He had come from God.
John 13:3a
(Call on one quiet and older kid to be Jesus in this story, set Him in the middle of the chairs.) . Jesus is God, so He knew everything. Also, He is very powerful. I want you to remember that — Jesus was and is the King of Kings, the Lord of All. And He knew that very well at that time, because He was and is God.
So he got up from the meal and took off his outer clothes. He wrapped a towel around his waist.
John 13:4
(Put the cloth around the kid’s waist.) In olden times, washing and cleaning were always jobs for the lowliest servants. And they usually had these utilitarian cloths with them, for many purposes.
Also in olden times, they didn’t have the technology for the kind of footwear that we have now. Look at your shoes for a moment. Those are modern, heavy duty shoes, and they protect your feet from dirt and damage. There was no such thing back then. All people had was sandals, which made it so that people’s feet were dirty almost all the time. When you came in someone’s house as a guest, the owner would have a servant ready to wash your feet, as a courtesy, or as a sign of hospitality.
Before we continue, I need two more volunteers to be the disciples. You might already know where we’re going with this.
He began to wash his disciples’ feet. He dried them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
John 13:5b
And Jesus, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Creator of Mankind, Alpha and Omega, powerful beyond compare, redeemer of mankind, salvation of all sinners, hope of the world… knelt down and washed His disciples feet.
(Ask the “disciples” to take off their shoes and socks. Ask “Jesus” to wash their feet with the alcholol/water spray and with the wet wipes. If he doesn’t want to, replace him as “Jesus”, and wash his feet too.)
Our lesson for today is all about serving. Once again, Jesus is the greatest example of this. He shows us that it doesn’t matter who you are, or where you’re from, or who you think are, or what you think you’re worth. All of us should have the heart to serve.
1 Worship God by serving His people
Our first keypoint reminds us that serving is act of worship. God is good, right? God is great, right? Then He should be worshippped! And serving is one of the great ways that we can do that.
Faith without action is dead.
James 2:17
We can’t say that we love God if we don’t serve others. We can’t say that we follow Jesus, that we are obedient sons and daughters of our Lord, if we don’t show it from the works of our hands.
The words of the Bible doesn’t end in the pages of the book; they are extended in our lives, in our speech and in our actions. That’s what it means when we say, “The Word of God is alive in us.” You are actually saying that you are using the beautiful words to guard and guide your life, and let them inform the way that you decide things and do things.
SERVING OTHERS = OBEYING JESUS
When we serve others, it’s like we are serving God Himself, and we are obeying Jesus. We are being mirrors that reflect God’s love, and make it shine for all to see.
2 Serve people with your gifts from God
God asked us to serve, and He made it so that we all have the capacity to serve. We have it in us. He has blessed us with so much, all with the intention of it being shared to others.
Each of you has received a gift in order to serve others. You should use it faithfully.
1 Peter 4:10b (NIRV)
You can’t say that you can’t serve because you can’t do anything. God is bigger than that! Each one of us has special gifts that we can use to serve in God’s kingdom.
Who here can sing, play instruments? Join the worship team! Make someone happy by singing to them!
Who can write, or speak well? Look into leading discussions in your lifegroup, ask your leaders what else you can do!
Whatever gifting or talent or ability you have, for sure, there is a way to use it for God’s kingdom.
Someone once told me that the only thing they can do well is to cut hair. I told him, then cut hair for the Kingdom of God! Be a vessel of blessing to others, or do it for free, or do it to make someone beautiful — however it is that you decide to serve, for sure God will be pleased with you because it comes from your heart.
You will discuss in your LG in more detail the different ways you can serve in your home, school, community, and church. Right now, let’s all stand to worship, and seal all the things we have been saying, in song.
Teaching here
DISCUSSION
Read the entire story during the lifegroup. It’s short, so distribute the verses to each kid, and consider going through more than once so that everyone can have a chance.
1. Jesus used washing feet to show something that is distasteful or not comfortable to do, but He did it anyway. What things can you think of that are difficult to do (like boring stuff, or hard stuff) that you still have to do so that you can serve others?
2. Can you tell of a time when you served others in your home/school/community/church?
3. What do you think is something that you can do really well, that you can use to serve others? (I.e. cooking, cleaning, dancing, etc.)
4. Make a plan for this coming week on how you can serve in your home/school/community/church.