Well, it’s the day before Christmas. Tomorrow we celebrate the birth of God’s only Son who came to live among us. As the first chapter of John tells us: (John 1:14 NRSV) "the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth."
But what is it that we’re celebrating? What is the full significance of the incarnation, of God becoming flesh and dwelling among us? Today I want us to look at John 13 with that question in mind. Strange as it may seem to be looking at the last supper on Christmas Eve, I think we find here one of the great expositions of the significance of the incarnation.
So with that in mind, let’s have a look at the text.
The first thing we need to understand is the situation. Look at v3: "Jesus [knew] that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God." Jesus understands who he is. He knows the position he has before the Father. But of course what he is at this moment is only a pale reflection of what Jesus had been, even more perfectly, before he came to earth in the form of a human being. This is a theme taken up by Paul in his letter to the Colossians: (Col 1:15-17 NRSV) "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; 16for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers -- all things have been created through him and for him. 17He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together." Jesus was there at creation, bringing this world into being. He is the one in whom all things hold together. Without him life couldn’t go on. He’s pre-eminent in the whole creation.
But there’s more. Listen to what the writer to the Hebrews has to say along the same lines: (Heb 1:2-3 NRSV) "but in these last days [God] has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. 3He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word." Jesus is God’s only Son. He bears the exact imprint of God’s very being. He is God incarnate, God made flesh.
So what Jesus is about to do has to be seen against that background. John wants us to recognise that the action that’s about to take place is carried out by one who is in every way equal with God and that he knows it.
So what is the action that takes place? "Jesus got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him." Jesus first takes off his robe. Now, you’ve probably heard that ’clothes make the man.’ In every society I can think of, clothes are used to demonstrate or to create status. For example, you can always tell when someone’s going for a job interview, because of the way they dress up for the occasion. At university ceremonies, the staff always put on their academic hoods to show the type of degree they have. In the 70s & 80s when women started to move into the business world they developed what was known as ’Power Dressing.’ And so forth. So what Jesus does here in taking off his outer robe, signifies a change in status. He takes off the clothing of the teacher and puts on the clothing of a servant. He ties a towel around his waste so that when he’s washed the disciples feet he can more easily wipe them dry. Never mind the fact that his makeshift apron is going to be soiled by the grime he wipes from their feet. That’s the lot of a servant.
The significance of all this isn’t lost on the disciples. Peter, always the impetuous one, always the spokesperson, stops him. There’s no way he’s going to let Jesus demean himself by washing his feet. He understands Jesus status. He knows where he fits in the order of things. So he naturally recoils from the idea of Jesus becoming his servant. But the trouble is, he hasn’t understood the significance, the meaning behind what Jesus is doing. Jesus replies with this warning: "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." This simple act of washing contains within it such meaning that for them to refuse to partake, will rule them out of the blessings of being part of Jesus Kingdom. There’s something of a parallel here with the Pharisees who refused to accept the type of Messiah that Jesus was. They didn’t like the unseemly way he behaved, the sorts of people he associated with. But their rejection of his lifestyle and teaching resulted in them missing out on the blessings he came to provide. [Just as an aside, this might be a warning to us as well. Are there activities that we recoil from because they appear to be unseemly to our conservative Protestant cultural mindset, but which in fact might lead to the growth of God’s kingdom? Do we miss out on something when we fail to take up opportunities that Jesus would have availed himself of if he’d been here? It’s worth asking ourselves that question whenever we find ourselves worried about some activity that’s being proposed for St Theodore’s. But let’s move on.] So Jesus warns Peter and the others to accept his humble service of them even if it does make them feel uncomfortable. Why? Because of what lies behind his actions.
Well, let’s think about the meaning, the significance, of what Jesus does?
First of all, this service of them is an expression of his love (v1:) "Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end" or as the NIV paraphrases it, " he now showed them the full extent of his love." His washing their feet is a symbolic act that shows the extent of his love for them. In fact it shows the extent of his love for all those who are in the world. Jesus love is such that he was willing to humble himself, to put off the glory he had with the Father, and come in the form of a servant to die for us all.
Secondly what he’s doing is symbolic of the cleansing that he’s about to provide by his death on the cross. And so his reply to Peter is "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." Unless we’re washed by Jesus, unless the Lamb of God takes away our sin, we can have no part in him. The cleansing from sin that Jesus supplies is the only means by which we can enter freely into God’s presence. And how do we avail ourselves of that cleansing? This is something that you may have noticed I emphasise fairly regularly. We can only avail ourselves of that cleansing through faith in Jesus Christ. Too many people think they avail themselves of that cleansing by living more righteous lives, by ridding themselves of sin. But what does Jesus say? "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you." What does he mean by ’One who has bathed?’ I take it he means one who has believed in Jesus, who has put all their trust in him. This is a recurring theme throughout John’s gospel. It’s faith in Jesus Christ that brings cleansing from sin, that leads to salvation.
But if that’s the case then what’s the significance of this washing of their feet. Why does he say "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet?" It seems to me there are 2 possible explanations, both of which are worth us taking notice of. The first is that having received forgiveness of our sins once for all through faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection, all we need do is to come regularly to him to confess our sins and ask again for forgiveness. Not for the sort of cleansing that we received at conversion, but as a sort of top-up, a cleaning out of the cupboards, to keep us walking in faith.
But the second way to look at the importance for the disciples of this washing of their feet, is to see it as demonstrating their solidarity with Jesus in his act of self-giving. If they want to be part of him, they need to accept his act of self-giving to the point of wanting to identify with it.
This is in fact the third thing of significance in this act. Jesus washing their feet is meant as a model of Christian conduct (v12ff). "After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13You call me Teacher and Lord--and you are right, for that is what I am. 14So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you."
Now its interesting that in the other three gospels, at this point we have the institution of the Lord’s Supper, with the command to do this in remembrance of me, but here in John’s gospel we find this command "if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet." It’s as though John wants to remind his readers that as important as the remembrance of Jesus’ death and resurrection that we have through the Lord’s Supper may be, there is something essential about the nature of Jesus’ self-giving that we as disciples of Jesus need to keep before ourselves at all times. There’s almost something sacramental in this act of service which we need to take on as part of our worldview.
Finally, the significance of what Jesus does here is that it sets up a new paradigm of what it means to be a subject of God’s Kingdom. In God’s Kingdom, status comes from being a servant. "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." (Mk9:35) "15For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them." Later on in the chapter, he gives them a new commandment that defines this new paradigm: "34I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." To be part of God’s Kingdom, to be one of Jesus disciples, implies loving each other with the same sort of self-giving love that Jesus had. It means that the Church is the one institution in the world where those at the top should be the greatest servants of all. I always get a bit worried, in fact, when someone jokingly calls me the boss, not because I don’t want to be seen as a leader of the congregation, but because to be the boss in the Christian context means you should be more of a servant than those you lead.
So here in this simple action of washing the disciples feet, Jesus demonstrates the significance of the Incarnation. In becoming a human being and dwelling among us he’s shown his great love for us by giving up all he had in order to provide the means by which we might be cleansed from sin. In washing the disciples’ feet he symbolises that act of self-giving in a concrete way that has a great impact on them, and at the same time gives them a model for living out their faith in their relationships with one another.
I wonder how much this aspect of the incarnation impacts on us as we approach the Christmas celebrations tomorrow. Will we be conscious as we open our presents, as we sit down to our Christmas dinner, as we lie around recovering afterwards, of the great gift of self-sacrifice revealed in Jesus’ coming to earth? Will we think of the model he gave us of how to live? Will we be seeking to follow that example in the way we give ourselves to one another? Let me encourage you to recommit yourself today as a disciple of Jesus Christ to being a servant of those Christ came to save and so to partake in all the blessings of God’s Kingdom.
"I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them."
