The New Commandment
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John 13:1-17
1. Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2. And during supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, 3. Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4. rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and girded himself with a towel. 5. Then he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded. 6. He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, "Lord, do you wash my feet?" 7. Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand." 8. Peter said to him, "You shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part in me." 9. Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" 10. Jesus said to him, "He who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but he is clean all over; and you are clean, but not every one of you." 11. For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, "You are not all clean." 12. When he had washed their feet, and taken his garments, and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13. You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. 14. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15. For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
“having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” Jesus simply cannot express how much he loves us—except when he goes to the cross. Even then, in human terms, that expression even falls short of demonstrating a love so deep and so strong, so pure and so complete. In “The Purpose-Driven Life” Rick Warren says that Jesus hung on the cross, arms outstretched, telling us to his last breath, “I love you this much.”
So what does foot washing have to do with all of that? In the Middle East, sandaled feet got filthy and dusty, just in the course of a day. Traditionally, the lowliest servant in the household was given the task of washing the feet of dinner guests. This night, none were apparently available. Jesus took this opportunity to demonstrate and summarize his message. He took on the role of the lowest ranking servant. He knelt at the feet of his friends. And he washed the dust from their feet.
This imagery is important. Because Jesus was adored by his disciples. They loved him deeply, passionately. And though they did believe he was who he said he was, they didn’t fully understand him or his message—until the resurrection.
This scripture applies to us, because it goes counter to what our natural instincts tell us. And it certainly goes against everything that advertisers tell us. Our survival instinct kicks in here – survival of the fittest – look out for myself, because no one else will. We still have the internalized instincts of the cave men! And advertisers will tell us to grab for everything in this world we can get our hands on. We deserve it. We’re worth it. We want it, we should have it.
Here we are back to, “What’s the point?” Jesus offers us so much more than any advertiser could ever sell us! He offers us His life! Which gives
us eternal life! How could you market that during the Super bowl? How could you sell that in a glitzy package? How can that pull up in your driveway? How can you wear that on your finger? How can you consume that?
Jesus is the source and the reason for everything in our lives. He should be, anyway. He wants us to forego the excesses of this generation. The only competition we should enter into is the competition to do more for God’s world. To serve more, to help more, to love more, to do more to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. Unless one of those corporate CEO’s has more to offer me than Jesus did, I’m not buying into it!
We are to do everything we can for others. And it may mean taking a long hard look at how we spend our time, our money, our energy—our lives. And we may need to adjust some of those. Our worth is because of our value to God. He created us and loves us beyond imagining. Our value is in being His. We deserve nothing. He offers us everything. We need nothing but Him. And he waits for us to find Him. Put that on the evening news! I dare you!
I hope you spend your day washing the feet of even the most difficult people in your life. Practicing servanthood as an art form.
Mary
