Humility and serving others

9 Then Yeshua (Jesus; Grk. Yesus) also told this parable to some who felt that they were guiltless before God because of their own goodness, and so they scorned others: 10 “Once two men went into the temple to pray—one was a Farisaios party member and the other was a tax-collector. 11 The Farisaios stood there praying quietly, ‘I thank you, God, that I’m not like the rest of the people: swindlers, sinners, adulterers, and even that tax-collector. 12 I fast twice a week and I give a tenth of everything I get.’ 13 But the tax-collector stood at a distance, not even willing to raise his head, instead beating his chest and saying, ‘God, I’m a sinner, take away my guilt.’ 14 I’m telling you all that this man went home after being declared guiltless, not the other one, because all those who praise themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be praised.”[ref]

2 So if you all feel that Messiah is encouraging you on and if his love brings comfort and the spirit brings fellowship, if anyone feels compassion, 2 then complete my happiness by being in agreement in your thinking and being united in the same love.[fn] 3 Don’t do anything from selfish ambition or in vain conceit, but show humility and consider others to be more important than yourselves, 4 not just looking out for your own advantage, but for what others need. 5 This is how you all who are also in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus; Grk. Yesus) should be thinking: 6 Yeshua, though he was in the form of God, didn’t take advantage of being considered equal with God, 7 but emptied himself and becoming like a human, took on the form of a slave. Then in that human form, 8 he humbled himself and became obedient all the way to death, even death on the stake. 9 That’s why God highly praised him and gave him authority over every other authority, 10 so that every being in heaven and earthly and underwater realms will bow when Yeshua is announced[ref] 11 ⇔and will honour God the father by testifying that Yeshua Messiah is Yahweh.

13 Even before the actual feast part of the Passover celebrations, Yeshua (Jesus; Grk. Yesus) knew that his time had come—the time when he would leave this world and return to the father. He loved his followers who were in the world right through to the end.

2 And now it was getting near time for the dinner and the devil had already put into Yehudah (Judas; Grk. Yudas) Iskariot’s mind the idea of handing Yeshua over to the authorities. 3 Yeshua knew that the father had given everything to him, putting it under his control, and he knew that he had come from God and would return to God. 4 So he got up from the dinner table, changed out of his clothes, and wrapped a linen towel around himself. 5 Then he put water into the wash bowl and started washing the feet of his apprentices, wiping them dry with the linen towel that he was wearing wrapped around him. 6 After he’d washed a few, he got to Shim’on (Simon) Kefa (Peter; Grk. Petros) who asked him, “Master, are you going to wash my feet?”

7 “What I’m doing now,” Yeshua answered, “you won’t really understand, but in the future you will.”

8 Kefa responded, “Well I’m never ever going to let you wash my feet!”

“If I don’t wash them,” Yeshua answered, “then you won’t be included in my group.”

9 “Well, if that’s so,” Kefa said, “don’t just wash my feet but my hands and my head as well.”

10 Yeshua responded, “Any person who’s already washed themselves only needs to wash their feet now to be clean. And so you’re clean, but not every one of you.” 11 He said this last bit because he already knew who was going to hand him over.

12 So when he’d finished washing their feet,[ref] he got dressed again and sat down and asked, “Do you know what I just did to you all? 13 You call me teacher and master, and so you should, because I am. 14 So if the master and teacher of you all washed your feet, then you also ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given this to you all as an example that you can also do to others. 16 I can assure you that a slave isn’t greater than his master, and a missionary isn’t greater than the king who sends him.[ref] 17 If you can figure all this out and then do it, you will be blessed by God.

7 Then he told a parable to all the invited guests after he’d noticed them choosing the best places around the table, telling them, 8 “Whenever you’re invited to a wedding celebration, don’t go and sit in the best place, in case someone more important than you might be called over by the host,[ref] 9 and then your host might come over to you and ask you to let the other guest sit where you were, and then you might end up humiliated at the bottom of the table. 10 Rather, when you’re invited, sit down at the end so that the host might come and tell you, ‘Friend, move up here to a better spot.’ Then you’ll be honoured in front of all the other guests, 11 because the person who thinks a lot of themself will be humbled, and the person who humbles themself will be honoured.”[ref]

12 Then Yeshua (Jesus; Grk. Yesus) also spoke to the man who had invited him, “Whenever you host a brunch or dinner, don’t invite your friends or siblings, or your other relatives or your wealthy neighbours, because they can invite you back and so repay you. 13 Instead when you’re celebrating, invite the poor and the crippled, the lame and the blind, 14 and then you’ll be rewarded by God because those people won’t be able to repay you, hence you’ll be repaid instead when those who please God come back to life.”