Winning Ways -- Hillcrest Baptist Church

Accepting and Copying the Sacrifice of Christ
by Tom Goodman
June 19, 2013

Christ's sacrificial service to us is something to accept and copy. We miss the fullness of the Christian life if we ignore either of these actions.

This is what Jesus taught the night before he went to the cross. We read in John 13 that Jesus knelt down before each of his twelve men, removed their sandals, and washed their feet. You wouldn't come to the dinner table with dirty feet in that culture any more than you would come to the dinner table with dirty hands in our culture. So, washing feet was a menial but necessary task often assigned to the lowest servant in the household. In this instance, though, it was the Lord Jesus who took the towel and basin and served his men.

Afterward he asked in verse 12, "Do you understand what I have done for you?"

Well, do you?

Here's what he has done for us: He has served us in a way we must accept and copy.

First, accept the way he has served you. Jesus' act of foot-washing was a symbol of the coming cross. He dealt with dirty feet one day and with dirty souls the next day. The Holy One accepted the penalty for our unholiness to save us. "If I do not wash you," Jesus said to a reluctant Simon Peter, "you have no share with me" (verse 8). He says the same thing to us. We are accepted by God not by what we do for him but by what he has done for us in Christ.

Second, copy the way he has served you. He said in verse 14, "If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." How do you serve others? Through forbearance and forgiveness. Through sacrificing your time and resources to meet their needs. The Christian life is a foot-washing life in imitation of our Lord.

Join us this Sunday @ 10am as we find ways to put John 13 into action.

And don't forget: After the 10 a.m. service there will be no Sunday School or Common Ground. Instead, we'll dismiss in time for you to get a lunch and bring it to our churchwide picnic at City Park! We're going to baptize some people at this event, so let me know if you're ready to take this step of Christian obedience. Find out more here.

--Tom

Beacon Articles Available Online: The staff newsletters that appear each week in the Beacon are also available on our website. You can find them here.

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Winning Ways - from Hillcrest Baptist Church, Austin, Texas	Contact Tom Goodman, Pastor
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Accepting and Copying the Sacrifice of Christ by Tom Goodman June 19, 2013 Christ's sacrificial service to us is something to accept and copy. We miss the fullness of the Christian life if we ignore either of these actions. This is what Jesus taught the night before he went to the cross. We read in John 13 that Jesus knelt down before each of his twelve men, removed their sandals, and washed their feet. You wouldn't come to the dinner table with dirty feet in that culture any more than you would come to the dinner table with dirty hands in our culture. So, washing feet was a menial but necessary task often assigned to the lowest servant in the household. In this instance, though, it was the Lord Jesus who took the towel and basin and served his men. Afterward he asked in verse 12, "Do you understand what I have done for you?" Well, do you? Here's what he has done for us: He has served us in a way we must accept and copy. First, accept the way he has served you. Jesus' act of foot-washing was a symbol of the coming cross. He dealt with dirty feet one day and with dirty souls the next day. The Holy One accepted the penalty for our unholiness to save us. "If I do not wash you," Jesus said to a reluctant Simon Peter, "you have no share with me" (verse 8). He says the same thing to us. We are accepted by God not by what we do for him but by what he has done for us in Christ. Second, copy the way he has served you. He said in verse 14, "If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." How do you serve others? Through forbearance and forgiveness. Through sacrificing your time and resources to meet their needs. The Christian life is a foot-washing life in imitation of our Lord. Join us this Sunday @ 10am as we find ways to put John 13 into action. And don't forget: After the 10 a.m. service there will be no Sunday School or Common Ground. Instead, we'll dismiss in time for you to get a lunch and bring it to our churchwide picnic at City Park! We're going to baptize some people at this event, so let me know if you're ready to take this step of Christian obedience. Find out more here. --Tom Beacon Articles Available Online: The staff newsletters that appear each week in the Beacon are also available on our website. You can find them here. Check out my weblog here. Do you know friends who would appreciate Winning Ways? Just forward this e-mail to them! Have you subscribed to Winning Ways? You can subscribe by clicking here and following the instructions. Your e-mail address will not be sold or given away to anyone, and you can automatically change your subscription or drop it by following the easy steps provided with each e-mail. FRESH NEWS AT HILLCREST UPDATED WEEKLY: www.hillcrestaustin.org LISTEN TO RECENT SERMONS: Click here. MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS TO OUR EMAIL NEWSLETTERS: Click here. If you do not have access to the web, please send a note to newsmaster@hbcaustin.org to tell us of any changes you would like to make.