So if I, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example, so that you also would do just as I did for you. Truly, truly I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him.
A school classroom is typically comprised of many different personalities. One of these may be the “know-it-all.” This is someone who has an answer for everything and often acts as if he or she knows more than even the teacher. It can be amusing to hear the answers of children who believe they know more than the teacher, but over time, this behavior gets irritating and inhibits their ability to learn. The design of a classroom is for the teacher to guide the students, teaching them the things they do not know. But if students believe they have an answer for everything, they don’t have a reason to listen. If you believe you know it all already, there is no need to learn.
If we have surrendered our lives and made Jesus our Lord, He is our teacher and guide. He has given His life as an example of sacrificial service. Are we trusting Him or are we acting like a know-it-all? Do view His example of service as beneath us, as if we have found a better way to live? When we put our trust in Him, we are committing to trust not only in the sacrifice He made for our sins but also in His way of life as far greater than our own. Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” As Christ’s followers, the life we live is by faith in the One that saved us. We do this by following His example of love and service.
- When have you acted like a “know-it-all” in your faith?
- Where do you find following Christ’s example of service particularly difficult?
- Pray and thank God for Christ’s example of service.
