BreadCom Worship Band Devotion Worship Team Attitudes (Part 2) Selfless-Servant John 13:1-17 Abet Almanza We normally define

a worshipper is someone who passionate sings Christian every time, lifts up his/her hands during corporate worship, and Hallelujah, Amen, Glory is part of his/her vocabulary. In that line, we normally define a worship leader as someone who takes the center stage and sings in front of a congregation. In this familiar passage of Jesus washing his disciples feet, I hope we can discover fresh insights about worship. Jesus never picked up a guitar or a microphone and encouraged everyone to sing their hearts out. But maybe we can learn from Him about what it means to be true worshipper.

I.

What should be our motivation for the ministry? Love [v. 1] It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. Love for God and His people should be the core of our ministry Love is meant to be expressed

Are we doing the ministry because we love God and we love the church? How do we express this love in our ministry? II. What is our method in expressing this love in the ministry? Be a Selfless-Servant [vv 3-10] Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

The worship or music ministry is a unique ministry because its always in the limelight and receives a lot of attention. Because of that we encounter unique challenges as well. Notice the reaction of Peter in the story, he is the opposite example of a selfless-servant Most of the time we are like Peter.

A. The challenge of selflessness Because we are in front of people its easy to be too self-conscious. (Peters reaction) Luke 9:23 Then he said to them all: If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. The problem of self-centeredness is essentially taking the focus from God and putting it to ourselves. Are we willing to surrender our rights so God can get the glory? Are we ready to lay down our pride? Are we willing to say more of God and less of me We exercise selflessness in our team when 1. 2. 3. 4. We We We We consider others needs and concerns open ourselves to constructive criticism dont view opinions as personal attacks think of others first before our selves

B. The challenge of serving Unlike other ministries, its more difficult to see that being involved in corporate worship as an act service. Worship teams share the stage with the Preacher, Elders and other leaders of the church. Thus its very easy to get that Rockstar Mentality Our goal during Worship Sundays is to serve the church We cannot please everyone, but we can serve everyone

Extreme #1 I dont care what you say, Im just gonna worship the Lord the way I want to! Extreme #2 We need to put up a show! Everything should be perfect, and you will see what how talented I am Both extremes are NOT serving the church.

Serving the church may mean different things at different time, but its ultimately about leading them to reflect of Gods greatness, Gods sovereignty, Gods love. We serve the church when we depend on the Holy Spirit to move. Will the words I will say/sing serve the church? Will the parts I will play serve the church?

Questions to ask:

We exercise being a servant when we III. Avoid becoming a distraction (importance of rehearsals) Coming to rehearsals on time (is also serving each other) Pulling back from what you can do or stepping up to what you can contribute Use new arrangements to help the congregation to reflect a familiar song freshly Improve our craft in our own free time Jesus

Who is our model for being a selfless servant?

A worshipper is someone who lives his/her whole life with a conscious effort to please God. A worshipper adjusts her/his according to what will Glory to God the most. A lead-worshipper inspires/encourages and leads other to do the same. There is no better person I can think of that fits this profile than Jesus. He best exemplifies the selfless servant. Come to think of it Jesus had all the right to be the Rock star He knew had he only a few days to live He could at least enjoy it and at least think of Himself for a change.

But He did not, instead thought of His disciples and He served them. He thought of us, and he served on through the cross. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45) The Gospel After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

Did Jesus know Judas would betray Him? Yes Did he exclude Judas in the washing of the feet? No

Gods love is dependent on what we did and or what we will do. He sees the depth of our hearts and loves us the same. We worship an amazing God!