Jesus, the Living Word, took a towel and a basin and washed the feet of every disciple at the last supper. The King of glory dunking a cloth in water and squeezing the water out of it so it ran down and rinsed off the feet of common people like you and I. Taking care with each person. What a picture.
The Word became a servant but remained a judge.
"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." John 1:14
"Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you." John 15:3
"But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men" Phil 2:7
"And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." John 12:47-48
Yet, this same one who is pictured as a servant now sits on a throne at the right hand of the Father. But look how He side stepped in John 12 "...I came not to judge the world... But..."
It says this about us in the epistles...
"Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?" 1 Cor 6:2-3
The word for judge here is the same word used in John 12. It is 'Krino' (Strong's G2919) and it is a broad meaning. It refers to an ability and authority to separate... like going through fruit at the market a choosing the right produce to discard and what to buy. It also means that judicial decisions are made and forensic analysis as well.
Is the servant part linked to the judgment role? I'd say it is. That is very practical for us to know. It applies to us. A term has been coined 'Servant Leader' but who can span that great chasm of the High, Holy and Heavenly and the lowly, humble and many times grimy... only Christ can... only the Word can... the Word washes... the Word judges.
That graceful little sidestep is so important, "...I came not to judge you... But, there are some Words you need to hear... It is your decision but these words will last forever..." it is like the graceful execution of a turn in a ballroom dance.
The servant who discerns has the foot work of a boxer in warfare if that service is really Christ's life being lived out. The written Word mixed with faith and centered in and through Christ Himself comes alive in a believer and Jesus' divine mind and nature are imparted by that communion.
We can dunk the cloth and rinse the feet and it won't 'bring us down'. Christ spans the gulf of the Earthy and the Heavenly. Christ trains us to reign while we serve.
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