Who Is the Greatest? Jesus Teaches Humility in Leadership (Luke 22:24-30)

Learn how Jesus redefines greatness through humility and service in this sermon on Luke 22:24–30. Explore the surprising moment when the disciples begin to argue over who is the greatest only moments after Jesus washed their feet and revealed His betrayal and coming death. Instead of rebuking them harshly, Jesus offers a life-changing teaching on true greatness, humility, and servant leadership. Instead of rebuking them harshly, Jesus offers a life-changing teaching on true greatness, humility, and servant leadership. https://youtu.be/uyI4wm01DZQ Table of contentsThe Importance of Foot WashingJesus’s Passover PreparationsJesus Washes the Disciples’ FeetJesus Was Teaching Service and HumilityThe Disciples Wouldn’t Wash Each Other’s Feet Because of PrideHumility Is Thinking of Ourselves Less Versus Less of OurselvesPhilippians 2: The Humility ChapterThe Disciples’ Sad Response to Jesus’s Statement About His Betrayal and DeathThree Things Making the Disciples’ Argument Even WorseHow Could This Argument Happen?Jesus Used the Moment to Teach The Disciples About LeadershipLeaders Should Be HumbleLeaders Should Be ServantsThe Greatest Are ServantsPursue Rewards in God’s Kingdom The Top Tens lists the top 10 of many things, such as songs, movies, albums, cell phones, workout programs, and mountain bikes. Here’s their list of the Top 10 Greatest People of All Time: Jesus Martin Luther King Jr. Albert Einstein Muhammad Buddha Gandhi Abraham Lincoln Moses Nelson Mandela Isaac Newton If the disciples read this list, they would be upset because they thought they should be on it! They argued about who was the greatest, not once but at least twice, first in Luke 9 and again in Luke 22. These are just the recorded instances; maybe it happened more than this! Context is always important, but sometimes it is especially important, and this is one of those instances. We will never fully appreciate this account without considering what occurred before it: Jesus washed their feet! The Importance of Foot Washing To understand Jesus washing the disciples' feet, let’s first look at a few verses in Luke 7. Beginning at Luke 7:36, we have the account of Jesus going to eat at the home of one of the Pharisees. During the meal, a woman, probably a prostitute, approached Jesus, wept, and washed His feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. Then she anointed His feet with ointment. This would’ve been a dramatic and moving scene to witness. Unless you are the Pharisee, in which case it makes you mad: Luke 7:39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” The Pharisee only thought this to himself, but you must be careful around Jesus because He can read people’s thoughts. He rebukes the Pharisee and contrasts the woman’s actions toward Him after entering the Pharisee’s home with the Pharisee’s actions when Jesus entered his home. Consider what He said about the situation: Luke 7:44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Jesus commended the women for washing His feet and rebuked the Pharisees for failing to do so. This reveals how big of a deal it was in Jesus’s day to wash your feet before meals because dust, mud, and other filth accumulated on people’s feet as they walked on unpaved roads. Jesus’s Passover Preparations Notice Jesus’s attention to detail as He tells Peter and John how to prepare for the Last Supper: Luke 22:8 So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” 9 They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” 10 He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters 11 and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 12 And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” Jesus went to great lengths to ensure everything was perfect for the most important meal in human history: His Last Supper with His disciples. But despite all Jesus’s preparation, one important detail is missing: someone to wash everyone’s feet. For a formal meal like this in a hired banquet room, you don’t just provide water and a bucket for people. Instead, you provide an attendant to wash everyone’s feet. Overlooking this detail was considered a gross discourtesy. Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet Picture the disciples entering the room and looking for someone to wash their feet. The servant isn’t there, so they take their seats. John 21:20 tells us John rested his head on Jesus’ chest, helping us picture how the meal was observed: they reclined with their feet toward the middle. So, they would have to eat with each other’s dirty feet in their faces. Considering how well Jesus prepared for this meal, and considering He’s God in the flesh and doesn’t make mistakes, He planned for the servant to be absent, because He had something else in mind that nobody expected: John 13:4 [Jesus] rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. This served as a subtle rebuke to the disciples. They all had to watch their Lord on His hands and knees doing something they all thought was beneath them. He expects all His disciples, including us, to follow His example: John 13:15 For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. 16 Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Jesus begins verse 16 with the phrase, “Truly, truly.” This is like behold, or verily, verily. Everything Jesus said was important, but there are those special times He wants to ensure we pay special attention, and this is one of those times. There are two lessons to take away from Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Jesus Was Teaching Service and Humility First, Jesus served the disciples, and as He said in verse 15, He was giving us an example, so we should also serve others. Second, think briefly about why the disciples wouldn’t wash each other’s feet. Is it because they were being lazy? Did it require so much work that they didn’t want to? Not at all. The disciples had weaknesses, but laziness wasn’t one of them. Jesus rebuked the disciples for many things, but unless I am missing something, I don’t think He ever rebuked them for laziness. We don’t know all of their professions, but we know the most common profession was fishing. People fish in our day for fun, which I don’t understand, but I digress. Being a fisherman in Jesus’s day wasn’t like fishing in our day. It was an exhausting profession, throwing out the net, bringing it back in, gathering the fish, and repeating this for hours. In other words, the disciples were used to working hard. The Disciples Wouldn’t Wash Each Other’s Feet Because of Pride So what was the reason they wouldn’t wash each other’s feet? Pride. They lacked humility. Typically, the lowest servant, or slave, washed everyone’s feet. None of the disciples were going to take that role. It would have been an admission of inferiority. It would have communicated, “I am your servant and lower than you. You are superior or greater than me.” Essentially, they would rather eat their food with filthy feet in their face than act like one of the disciples is better than them. Humility Is Thinking of Ourselves Less Versus Less of Ourselves Luke 22:19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. Jesus predicted His death multiple times, at least three times recorded in Luke’s gospel. But now Jesus told the disciples why He would die: for them. This is why Jesus is the premier example of humility. Because humility means thinking of ourselves less and others more, there is no better example than Jesus, who said, “I will die for you.” Being willing to die for others is as humble as you can get. Some people think humility is thinking poorly of yourself. I don’t want to sound crass, but these people think humility is thinking you’re a big loser. Two points about this. First, I’m not discounting the importance of self-examination or recognizing our weaknesses, but sometimes, when people say things like, “I’m so horrible,” it is manipulative. They are trying to get others to feel sorry for them or praise them. For example, imagine a school classroom, and a student says, “My picture is so bad.” Of course, the student says this very loudly so other students hear and respond, “No, no, your picture is great.” When I was a school teacher and students would say this, I would say, “Then you better keep working on it!” You could see the student’s disgust: “You’re my teacher. You’re not supposed to say that. You’re supposed to tell me how great my picture is.” I would not tell them their picture was good because maybe it wasn’t, and I didn’t want to be a liar. But more importantly, I didn’t want to feed that manipulative attitude.