Humility Personified
Jesus took the role of a servant and washed the disciples’ feet. He who displayed the highest form of humility was not self-exalting but always seeking the best for others.
Jesus took the role of a servant and washed the disciples’ feet. He who displayed the highest form of humility was not self-exalting but always seeking the best for others.
The quality that distinctively sets apart believers as followers of Jesus is not a pithy bumper sticker or a fish emblem dangling from a necklace or a gilded dove pinned on the lapel. These are only symbols of our faith. The true mark of a Christian is love.
Jesus revealed a high Acceptance Quotient with Judas, His betrayer. Even though Jesus knew Judas’ evil plan, He gave Judas the seat of honour and loved him. Acceptance doesn’t nullify discernment or deny depravity but seeks peace. To accept others without partiality or prejudice is the highest form of love.
Jesus loved others to the utmost and mandated His disciples to love each other as He did. Not knowledge but our authentic agape-love marks us as Christ followers. This love seeks the highest good for others; it is unconditional, unselfish, and unlimited.
So far, Jesus has served up sombre topics of death, trials, and Peter’s denials. To calm troubled hearts, He taught His disciples about personal faith, preparation for heaven, God’s sovereign hand, and answered prayer.
In our new coronavirus world, being together has become a rare and treasured experience. As the “invisible enemy” named COVID-19 continues its relentless march around our world, we remain apart to curb its spread.
Although I understand how to get physical rest—by going to bed earlier, taking more time to relax, and slowing my pace—the concept of finding spiritual rest is difficult to wrap my head around.
Jesus urged His disciples, who were still shaken by His talk of death, to overcome their fear by depending on the Holy Spirit, claiming Christ’s peace, accepting God’s plan for the future, and following His pattern of obedience to the Father.
All of us need encouragement. We need somebody to believe in us. To reassure and reinforce us. To help us pick up the pieces and go on. To fuel our flame of determination as we face the odds against us.
Since heaven will be our ultimate destination, we need to spend less time complaining about our struggles and trials on earth, where we temporarily live, and more time learning as much as possible about heaven, where we will live forever.