Forming Faith Blog

Serve One Another (John 13)

Posted on February 17 2026 by Gregory Rawn
  • Date: March 1, 2026
  • Bible Reading: John 13:1-17
  • The Point: Jesus demonstrates how we should love and serve one another.
  • Unit Theme (February 18—March 8): Following Jesus

Jesus instructs us to serve one another, even at the cost of our dignity. How will you teach this to your faith formation participants? Check out this post for some of our ideas!

Note: For the rest of Lent, I’m trying something new. Let me know what you think!

Three volunteers serve others.
Photo by RDNE Stock project
About the Story: Serve One Another

Last week, the first Sunday of Lent, we encountered Jesus’ seventh and ultimate sign (miracle): the raising of Lazarus from the dead. This miracle of life eventually led, somewhat paradoxically, to Jesus’ death (John 11:45-53) and a threat to Lazarus (John 12:9-11). The Narrative Lectionary now skips the triumphal entry (which we will come back to on Palm Sunday) and moves to the time of Passover in Jerusalem. 

In our passage today, Jesus prepares for Passover with his disciples by doing something odd when they gather to eat: Jesus gets on his knees and washes his disciples’ feet. 

The custom of foot washing was common in the first century. People wore open sandals and walked from place to place on dirty roads. Upon a guest’s arrival, the host would provide water so the guest could wash their filthy feet before entering the home. Washing someone’s feet was a menial task for a slave or servant, though sometimes a wife might wash her husband’s feet or a student would do so for their teacher out of respect and devotion. The reverse would never happen: a person would never wash the feet of someone of a lower status. Imagine how strange it must have been for Jesus’ disciples to have their master and teacher break with tradition by putting himself in the role of the servant, slave, or student by washing the feet of his disciples. 

The story does not end there. Jesus then commands his disciples to go into the world and do the same—to serve others, the way he has served them. As followers of Jesus, we are called to do the same—to serve others, even at risk of our reputations. (Adapted from Living the Word: Small Groups)

Context Insights

The following are a few insights found in our background resource Living the Word: Contexts & Connections.

  • Linguistics: The word “example” (Gk.  hypodeigma) (v. 15) emphasizes the reason Jesus washes the feet of the disciples: to provide a pattern for ministry for them. 
  • Literature/Genre: By using a set of comparisons in verse 15, Jesus sets himself up as an example of how to live in service and love with one another. He is teaching the disciples that no one is greater than another. These comparisons include teacher and student (vv. 13-14), master and servant (v. 16), and messenger and sender (v. 16). 
  • Audience: John records the events of the Last Supper differently than the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) do. John was addressing the community of Jewish Christians who were caught between faithfulness to Judaism and following Jesus. John wants his readers to realize that following Jesus is not just about knowing the words of Jesus but also putting them into practice. 
Connections and Suggestions

We have Narrative Lectionary curriculum resources for all age groups. Here are a few activity summaries you can use. The full activity descriptions and much more are available in the product noted.

  • Kids: Students place their shoes in a pile on one side of an empty play space. Two teams line up for a relay race, but (in a servant twist), the student at the front of the line runs to grab the shoes of the person behind them, communicating as needed. (From Living the Word: Kids (3rd-6th))
  • Youth: Working in groups of four to six people, youth create two or three digital photographs that tell the day’s story. Youth have ten minutes before they must show their photographs to the large group. (From Living the Word: Youth)
  • Intergenerational: Peter demonstrated that he was “all in” as a follower of Jesus. In this activity, a leader calls out various body parts (mouth, feet, brain, etc.). Small groups must brainstorm an act of service related to that body part and then pantomime that action for the other groups to guess. (From Living the Word: Cross+Gen Education)

I hope you find this useful! If you have any questions or feedback on this blog post (or anything else), comment on this post below or on Facebook, or send me a message.

In Christ,

Gregory Rawn (Publisher)

Order Faith Formation Resources

Lent is here, but it’s not too late! Order the Spring Quarters of our various resources and download them immediately. Our Narrative Lectionary (Year 4, 2025-2026) and Revised Common Lectionary (Years C & A, 2025-2026) resources are online, ready to order, and available for immediate download! If you don’t have much time for full-length children’s Christian education, then check out our Kids Mini Lessons for the NL and RCL. If you don’t use a lectionary, check out our non-lectionary Living the Word: Classroom (PK-2nd, 3rd-6th).

Brand new RCL faith-at-home resource!

I’m excited to announce a new product series for Spirit & Truth Publishing: Taking Faith Home. Taking Faith Home is a set of weekly devotional resources (often distributed as worship bulletin inserts) that follows the Revised Common Lectionary. Originally published by Milestones Ministry, they handed it off to us as of January 1, 2026. We offer it as a Church Year (Dec. 2025 to Nov. 2026) and a Program Year (Spring & Summer 2026 and Sept. 2026 to May 2027). You can also purchase by quarter (Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall). Learn more here!

Lent, VBS, and More!

Are you looking for resources for Lent, VBS, topical Sunday school, family/intergenerational events, retreats, and more?

Learning Together is a series of five-lesson units on a variety of topics. Our faith formation resources are easy to use, theologically sound, and inclusive. Each unit can be used at any time in many different settings, but here are a few suggestions:

+ Lent: The I AM Statements of Jesus (free!), Travelers (Immigrants and Refugees), Do Justice
+ VBS: Paul’s Adventures (NEW!), Celebrations, Created to Care, God’s Gift of Water, Heroes of the Bible
+ Education/Events: Women of the Old Testament, Bible 101

Our unit Celebrations is a recommended VBS curriculum by Building Faith (and the only curriculum they reviewed from a small, independent publisher)!!! You can read outside reviews on both our Do Justice and Created to Care units!

I am very honored to announce that I was a guest on the premiere episode of season 3 of the Around the Table podcast! The topic: how faith formation is different than Christian education. Check it out at Around the Table S03E01.

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