"Divine Servant"® in wax

The Composition

Conceived in the spring of 1986, “Divine Servant” ® is Max’s first Christian composition. It is historically unique in the world of art, and considered a masterpiece by many. The poignant composition is now recognized around the world, and has become an international symbol of Christ’s humility and servanthood.

“Divine Servant” ® depicts Jesus Christ in the “upper room” on the night before His crucifixion, when He tried to distill the essence of His entire ministry on earth. First, He explained His life, death and resurrection through the “Lord’s Supper.” Then, Christ began to wash the disciples’ feet, starting with Simon Peter, to teach them about living lives of humility and service to others. Max’s art captures the exact moment when Peter finally submits and allows Jesus to wash his feet (Jn 13: 1 – 17).

Max’s depiction of the men is based on prayer, Scripture, archeology and reference to the ancient, authentic drawings of Jesus and Peter. Crude portraits of the men, made by a first century Christian artist, were found scratched into the walls of the catacombs beneath Rome. The foot-washing bowl, used in Max’s sculpture, has a foot stand patterned after a ceramic basin unearthed in Jerusalem, which dates back to the time of Jesus.

Max depicted Peter as a strong, muscular man, who is tense and uncomfortable, as Jesus begins to wash his feet. Jesus, by contrast, is depicted strong and lean, totally in control of the situation, determined to complete His earthly mission. He knows that He must endure the cross in a few hours. The face of Christ is hidden by his hair in Max’s composition, adding to the mystery of the work. To see the face of Christ, one must first kneel down. The world has never known a greater example of love and humility, than when God knelt down and washed the dirty feet of His creation.

The Commission

God told Max to create the “Divine Servant” ® sculpture during the most difficult and humbling time of his life. In the spring of 1986, Max’s wife, Sherry was struggling with a life-threatening illness, the Texas economy had crashed, 95% of Max’s art collectors had gone bankrupt, the Greiners were losing their home and beautiful land in Kerrville, and their marriage was stretched to the breaking point. Unable to fix any of these problems, Max desperately cried out to God.

It was on a clear April afternoon in 1986, as Max drove onto his property, that God spoke into his mind using His “still, small voice. ” God said, “Max, I want you to make a sculpture of Jesus washing Peter’s feet.” Max immediately responded out loud, “But God, what about all these things I’m doing?” God said nothing else. Max disobeyed, not seeing how creating a sculpture of Jesus could solve all of their problems. However, he did promise God that he would someday do the sculpture; realizing God was trying to teach him about humility and servanthood. As a result, their lives continued to spiral downward. Despite the repeated prompting of the Holy Spirit and Sherry, Max continued to disobey. (Click here to continue.)