But… well… feet are dirty!
John 13:1-17 Aug 22, 2010
Intro:
The week had been stressful. Full of tension, danger, confrontation. The small band of men had been challenged, and though they hadn’t won they also hadn’t been destroyed. Yet. The opposition was strong and gaining momentum, and on more than a few occasions this past week they had barely made it out intact.
What was worse, their leader was showing signs of cracking. He was still functioning, still engaging, but privately some of the things He was saying were starting to sound like maybe He was giving up, like maybe He’d had enough. Some stuff was characteristically brilliant, but other stuff was making some of them wonder if He’d actually lost it.
Tonight was a night off. They were eagerly looking forward to letting their guard down, sharing a good meal, relaxing in relative safety, maybe re-group and get re-focused and re-engaged. After all, a lot was at stake.
They arrived for the meal, each consumed with their own thoughts, their own agenda, their own hopes for this evening. Maybe an exit strategy – slip quietly away for a while before picking up the fight; maybe a pep-talk where their leader could once again rise and inspire them and get them fired up again and feeling great. Maybe He’d even tell them what was really going on. Each had their own ideas, but they all hoped for both a brief respite and a strong reconnection to each other and their mission. And as they wandered in and took their places, each was eager to get to the heart of the evening.
Perhaps that was why they all missed it. Too self-absorbed I guess, too focused on their own agenda and ideas, and too full of pride and self-importance. But they missed it all right…
On top of it all, this was no ordinary meal. Tonight was a special celebration, one full of tradition and symbolism. The meal was about the past, about the glory days, remembering “the good old days”, and, well, there were just certain ways it was supposed to be done if it was going to be done properly. Like turkey or ham at thanksgiving, or presents at Christmas – that is just how it is supposed to be. It’s just how it has always been. It’s how we do it around here…
But wait. Something is different here. Why is He… Doesn’t He understand? He is the leader, He is supposed to be in charge, He is supposed to take the position of honor and lead the meal, He should be above the mundane tasks and attend to the important stuff, what does He think He is doing? Where are the servants – that is their job! Maybe He has lost it, maybe He doesn’t want to lead anymore, maybe this is His way of resigning and wanting someone else to take over. But no one else could… there is just no way…
This isn’t right! This is offensive!! He’s not even properly dressed anymore, He just stripped down to His underwear, He looks like a common slave. He has a towel, and a basin of water – He should be at the head of the table reading the Scriptures, doing the prayers, reminding us of the great symbols of the past and helping us connect to them. Leave the serving to the slaves.
An awkward silence. No one really knows what to do, how to respond. One does, tries to resist, tries to protest, but it does not go well and the Master washes his feet, just as He had done to each of the others in the band.
Then He comes to me. He kneels by my feet. He slips my dirty foot out of my sandal, places it in the basin, and begins to wash. I know my feet, this is not a pleasant task. Part of me wants to pull away, because this just isn’t right, but I am stunned, and so just watch. I feel the cool water, feel the scrubbing, and then the towel that wipes them dry. My throat has a lump, my eyes fill with tears, and He moves on.
John 13:1-17 (NLT)
1 Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. 2 It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. 4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him.
6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now what I am doing, but someday you will.”
8 “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
9 Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!”
10 Jesus replied, “A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet, to be entirely clean. And you disciples are clean, but not all of you.” 11 For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. 17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.
Fundamentals:
This summer we’ve been talking about the fundamentals of living as Christians. Last week we considered God from a different perspective – not only the mighty King, not only the Friend who has power to meet every need, but also a God who right after Adam and Eve rejected Him, went out and made them some clothing to cover their nakedness. Following that message last week, Pierre-Charles shared with me a profound insight out of the passage: he noticed that earlier in the passage, immediately after their sin, Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together as clothing for themselves, but later at the end of the passage God makes them clothing out of animal skins. The insight was this: as people we tend to try to fix things ourselves, find ways to cope, put temporary measures in place. Like fig leaves – how long are those going to last? How well will they stay together? We need God – God is the only one with the real, lasting, effective cure for the things that really are wrong, like the animal skins. The point being that as we reach out to others as Christians and as a church, we need to go beyond coping mechanisms and introduce people to a God who can identify and deal with the root causes, almost always sin and/or the results of sin, and let God get to the root and deal with the real issues and provide the lasting, real solution. That is worthy of keeping in mind!
Now, in today’s story, this image of God as servant is present once again. When we immerse ourselves in the text, it is powerful, dramatic, surprising, offensive, intimate, gentle, and when we really become aware of what is happening, and who is doing it, it should break us. Who is it that sees the need, humiliates Himself, takes the posture and role of a slave to a group who will all desert Him in the next 36-48 hours? It is Jesus – the Word Made Flesh. Jesus – through whom everything was created: that water? the cloth for that towel, the wood for that bowl, even the dirt and the feet themselves? all created through the one who now holds them. Jesus – whom the book of Revelation portrays as the mighty warrior on the white horse, the all-powerful King to whom every living creature bows down in worship. The eternal Son of God, second person of the Trinity, from everlasting to everlasting. And here He is, stripped down, kneeling, washing the dirty feet of disciples who will soon run and hide rather than be identified as Jesus’ followers.
Understanding:
The Bible says, “12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. 17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.”
Jesus asks a great question: “do you understand? do you get it?? do you really see what is going on here???” The point could not be clearer: this is how we are to live. Jesus set the example and gave the command: “do it.”
At the core of it is two things: the attitude in the heart and the actions in daily living that are to characterize those of us who call ourselves people of God. This is fundamental – our posture towards everyone around us is to be one of humble service. This is what it means to be in power – to serve others. To take the most necessary job at the moment, no matter how base, how disgusting, or how “beneath us” it may be, and simply do it because that is what Jesus did and then commanded us to do also.
Attitude:
I want to challenge you with the attitude part of the fundamental first: do you have a servant heart? Do you delight in being able to do what needs to be done, no matter how low a job it is, because your Lord Jesus washed your sins away and modeled a heart glad to pick up a basin and a towel and wash dirty feet as an example for how we must live? Or would you rather only do things for others that are “important” or recognized and appreciated? Or maybe even worse, you spend your time serving yourself and your own desires and pleasures – if that one is true then I’m going to guess you often feel lonely, unappreciated, and a little bit insignificant and maybe hurt because your needs don’t feel met. That may be because the reality of life, especially as a follower of Jesus, is that we experience the deepest joy and satisfaction in life when we serve others. What is in your heart? When you look at the actions of Jesus, would you say that your attitude reflects His attitude?
Action:
What about the action that flows out of the attitude. Verse 15 makes it perfectly clear: “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.” This isn’t something to learn in our heads, and have a deep theological understanding of the nature of service and its place in the Kingdom of God, though that may help. The point of Jesus washing the disciples feet is that they – we – go and do likewise. This is action based, rooted in concrete activity, it must be done. If you and I hear this story, see what Jesus has done, listen to what He says (“go do it!”), and then don’t do anything about it, well that is just completely missing the point. In fact, it is the opposite of the point and it is very quickly the road towards sins of omission!
So what can we do about it? Well first we must cultivate the Christ-like attitude – the attitude of service. Choosing to serve is immediately undercut when it is done with grumpy, forced reluctance. Let’s put this in the domestic context with a concrete example: taking out the garbage. Maybe that is a sore point in your home, maybe it sat in the garbage can outside for weeks in the heat and moisture and the food waste rotted and bred thousands of maggots right in your garbage can and nobody wants to take it to the curb on pick-up day. Well if you do it, but then go in and gripe and complain about it, it turns what could be a beautiful act of service and expression of love (which, yes, maybe only Jesus actually sees and recognize as such, and then of course Jesus would delight in that offering of worship as a perfect example of being a “living sacrifice”), but griping turns it instead into a miserable complaint based in selfishness. Then maybe you have to apologize: sorry Joanne, I shouldn’t have complained. To change that attitude, I challenge you to immerse yourself in this story in John 13. Over and over. Every day. Look at Jesus, imagine yourself there, imagine the look in Jesus’ eyes, and allow that love demonstrated to break through your self-centered attitude and create within you a heart like Jesus’.
Now what about the action? I gave a domestic example, no doubt there are more specifics in your place of residence. How can you serve those closest to you in daily life, in ways that mirror Jesus and obey Him? This is not a rhetorical question! I want you each to answer it, right now – turn to your neighbor, share with them one specific thing in your home that you can do to serve (and if you live alone, one way you can serve others out of your home).
We could do the same exercise with our schools or workplaces or other spots you spend the majority of your time outside your home, and that is especially important as it is in these places that we have the opportunity to concretely demonstrate the character of Jesus to people who might not know about the servant heart of God. Reflect that same attitude in your workplace.
And finally, how do we obey Jesus’ command as a church? We must go as the gathered people of God, eager to find the needs and serve others in the Name of Jesus, and that is why we’ve set Wednesday nights aside starting in September. We are planning to gather for a meal every Wednesday and then get out of here to serve like Jesus. Now we aren’t going to go to Second Cup and try to wash feet. That might turn into prison ministry when we get arrested. But what are the needs around us that we can serve? What are the jobs and issues that no one wants to address? We are going to find them and act on them. We’ll keep talking about details, but the details are not as important right now as the conviction that we actually, really, tangibly want to be like Jesus. We actually, really, tangibly want to obey Jesus. And when He shows us a heart of service that strips off the fancy clothes, kneels in the dirt, becomes like a slave, and washed stinky feet, we respond by saying “yes, Lord, yes.” We will go, we will obey, we will gladly follow you example, as You have commanded.”
