Ditch the Crown, Grab the Towel: Servant Leadership or Bust
John 13—the Leadership of Jesus was to Stoop Down and Wash Even the Feet of His Betrayer.
In a world drunk on power, where leaders strut like peacocks, demanding worship and craving control, the words of Jesus in John 13 and Luke 9 cut like a blade. They expose the rot of self-exaltation and require a radical return to the greatness of the least. This is not a gentle suggestion—it is a divine mandate. Servant leadership, as modeled by Jesus Christ, is not about photo-ops or hollow gestures. It is about getting on your knees, washing filthy feet, and choosing the lowest place, even when it costs you everything.
John 13 does not pull punches. Jesus, the King of kings, the Son of God, and God himself in the flesh, knew His hour was near. He could have demanded a throne, but instead, He grabbed a towel. While the devil stirred Judas’ betrayal, Jesus knelt before His disciples—even Judas—and washed their grime-caked feet. God himself washed the feet of his created man who betrayed him. This was more than humility; it was a deliberate act of subversion. In a culture where foot-washing was for slaves, Jesus redefined leadership. He did not just serve; He embodied service, proving that true authority bows low, not high.
Peter’s reaction—shock, refusal, then over zealousness—mirrors our own. We are uncomfortable with a Lord who stoops. We would rather keep Him lofty, untouchable. But Jesus shuts that down: “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.” No service, no share in His kingdom. It is that stark. Leadership is not about titles or applause; it is about doing the work no one else wants for people who might not even thank you. Jesus’ example is not optional—it is the blueprint.
Luke 9 exposes the disciples’ petty squabble over greatness, a scene embarrassingly familiar to anyone who has seen leaders jostle—stepping over anyone and everything—for the spotlight, including using anyone as a footstool to stand on, if necessary. In today’s vernacular, PHOTO-OPS. Jesus does not lecture; He acts. He pulls a child—powerless, insignificant in their world—close and says, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me.” The least among us are not just equal; they are the measure of greatness. To lead is to embrace those society ignores, to value the overlooked, and to serve without expecting a reward.
This is not fluffy idealism. It is a gut check. The disciples wanted thrones; Jesus pointed to a kid. We want influence; He demands we champion the powerless. Greatness is not climbing the ladder—it is dismantling it—a ladder with bloodied bodies below it from leaders stampeding to the top stepping all over their subordinates. Greatness is servant leadership. Extending a hand to those below us and propping them up putting the spotlight on them.
John the Baptist ties this together. Jesus called him the greatest born of women (Matthew 11:11), yet John lived in the wilderness, wore camel hair, and pointed everyone to Christ, not himself. He did not build a brand; he built a path for the Savior. “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30) was not humble bragging—it was his life’s mission. John’s greatness lay in his refusal to seek it. He washed no one’s feet but prepared the way for the One who would.
Today’s leaders—whether in churches, businesses, or politics—too often chase worship. They crave likes, followers, and legacies. But Jesus’ model obliterates that. Servant leadership is not a strategy to win loyalty but a surrender of ego. Washing feet means doing the dirty and unseen work—listening to the broken, serving the ungrateful, and lifting up the forgotten. It is not glamorous. It is not trending. But it is what Jesus Christ commands.
Enough with the platforms and pedestals. If you call yourself a leader, get down in the dirt. Serve the least—the addict, the outcast, the child no one sees, the oppressed, the marginalized, those who have suffered reprisals for speaking up for the downtrodden, and the like. Do not wait for applause; you will not get it. Do not expect loyalty; Judas was at that table, too. Do it because Jesus did, and He says, “Blessed are you if you do them.”
This path is not cheap. It will cost you pride, comfort, and maybe even your reputation. But it is the only way to true greatness. John 13 ends with a promise: “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.” Not if you admire them. Not if you tweet about them. Not if you do viral social media clips about it. No! It is if you do them! The blessing comes in the doing—humbling, serving, sacrificing.
Return to the greatness of the least. Wash feet, not for show, clips, or photo-ops, but because it is who we are called to be. Anything less is a betrayal of the One who knelt first. Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords modeled the way for us. Be like disciples, not hypocrites, and follow the King who knelt first.
