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Further Thought:

A great example of the servant leadership of Jesus is found in His behavior at the Last Supper. At that time, Jesus was fully conscious of who He was (the Son of God) and that He was about to return to His Father (John 13:1). After the meal He washed the feet of the disciples. He then said, “If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you” (John 13:14, 15). Each time the followers of Jesus wash one another’s feet, they not only re-enact this scene; they remind each other that to be a leader in Jesus’ kingdom one must become as a servant. No doubt, for the rest of their lives, especially after they better understood just who Jesus really was, the disciples remembered this act of humility on the part of their Master. No doubt, too, it was in Peter’s mind when he called on church elders not to lord it over others but to be “clothed in humility.”

“In consenting to become man, Christ manifested a humility that is the marvel of the heavenly intelligences. The act of consenting to be a man would be no humiliation were it not for the fact of Christ’s exalted pre-existence. We must open our understanding to realize that Christ laid aside His royal robe, His kingly crown, His high command, and clothed His divinity with humanity, that He might meet man where he was, and bring to the human family moral power to become the sons and daughters of God.

“The meekness and humility that characterized the life of Christ will be made manifest in the life and character of those who ‘walk even as he walked.’” - Ellen G. White, Sons and Daughters of God, p. 81.

Discussion Questions:

1- Jesus began His ministry by confronting the devil. Weakened by 40 days of fasting, He was able to resist the devil’s temptations by quoting Scripture (Matt. 4:1-11; Mark 1:12, 13; Luke 4:1-13). 2- 2- What does this tell us about how we, too, can resist the devil in our own lives?

What are examples you have seen of what appeared to be true humility in others? What can you learn from those examples?

3- In class, answer this question: Besides what Peter taught in the verses for this week, what are the qualities of a good Christian leader? How might those qualities overlap with good qualities in secular leaders? How might they differ?

4- How would you answer the claim that Satan is not real but just a symbol of the evil found in human nature?