Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. 2 And supper being ended, the devil having now put 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 was come from God, and went to God; 4 he riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. 5 After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. 6 Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? 7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. 8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. 9 Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. 10 Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. 11 For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. 12 So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? 13 Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. 16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. 17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. John 13:1-17 AKJV
Sermon Central runs this story that I wish to share: In 1818 one out of six women who had children died of something called "childbirth fever." A doctor’s daily routine back then started in the dissecting room, where he performed autopsies, and from there he made his rounds to examine expectant mothers. No one even thought to wash his hands...at least not until a doctor named Ignaz Semmelweis began to practice strict hand washing. He was the very first doctor to associate a lack of hand washing with the huge fatality rate. Dr. Semmelweis only lost one in fifty, yet his colleagues laughed at him. Once he said, "Childbirth fever is caused by decomposed material conveyed to a wound...I have shown how it can be prevented. I have proven all that I’ve said. But while we talk, talk, talk, women are dying. I’m not asking for anything world-shaking, only that you wash your hands." Yet virtually no one believed him.
And Jesus is not asking anything earth shaking from us. John writes, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We only need to confess our sins, to regularly wash our souls before God. It’s essential. The failure to confess our sins will result in a spiritual infection that will hinder our ability in the spiritual journey.
There is one great lesson on servanthood in this particular event in the life of Jesus. Jesus Christ demonstrated two of his godly characters when he washed the feet of His disciples. First, he demonstrated the laying down of life in humble service. Next, He demonstrated the laying down of life at the crucifixion.
The Jews practice the washing of feet. Since Israelites wore sandals instead of shoes and since they walk barefoot at home, it is necessary for the frequent washing of feet.
Among the Israelites, the feet are washed as the first act upon entering a house or upon arriving from a journey (Genesis 19:2). It was also the first duty of the host to give the guest water for the washing of his feet (Genesis 18:1-5; Judges 19:20-21). If a host fails to provide water to his guest, it is to him a sign of marked unfriendliness. It is also customary to wash the feet and before meals and before going to bed. The only time Israelites do not wash their feet is when they are in deep mourning (2 Samuel 19:24).
There were no laws for laymen regarding the washing of feet. But there were laws for priests (Exodus 30:19-21). In Jewish literature, we can find hints that washing of the feet is one personal attention that wife is expected to render to her husband. The wife is also expected to wash her husband’s face and feet.
In the case of ordinary people, the host provides the water and the guests wash their own feet. In the home of the rich and the dignitaries, the slaves wash the feet of the guests. Washing the feet of another person is considered to be the lowliest of all services rendered to another person (1 Samuel 25:41).
The washing of feet has become a perpetual ordinance, even a practice, and a sacrament. Many churches have adopted this practice of washing of feet. The Mennonites encourage the practice of foot washing as one way of representing Christ to each other in acts of hospitality, service, and love. Bernard Clairvaux who founded the Benedictine monasticism advocated making foot washing a sacrament. The Pope, the Czar, and the Patriarchs of Constantinople washed the feet of 12 poor men on Maundy Thursday. The English kings until James II washed the feet of their constituents. There are also overwhelming objections to such interpretation of Jesus’ words: "Mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos.", in John 13:34.
There are some churches that have foot washing as a part of their regular practice. Some churches even call it a Third Ordinance —Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and the Washing of Feet. The congregation is directed to come for worship on Thursday night a foot washing ceremony.” Everybody comes out on Maundy Thursday night but before they come to church, they first wash their feet because no one wants anybody touching one’s dirty feet. Just to have somebody messing around with your feet is simply embarrassing. But washing one’s feet clean before the ceremony misses the point since only dirty feet need washing!
When we read John 13:12-17, we find this Scriptural truth:
When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Notice what Jesus Christ said in verses 15-16. This is his message of humility in obedience to the will of the Father. In verse 17, furthermore, Jesus Christ promised blessings if we do them. In the context of verse 15-17, Jesus Christ promised blessings not for washing the feet, but for obeying the will of the Father by humbly serving others. For what is the significance of washing the feet of the poor on Maundy Thursday and then leave their needs out the rest of the year? We would rather provide the needs of the poor according to our capacity than wash their feet. We would rather provide shoes to the needy than wash their feet.
The washing of the feet, in fact, was not referred to in the gospel, or in the book of Acts or the epistle. Washing of the feet, therefore, is not a requirement for salvation. When Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, He demonstrated it as an act of love and willingness to sacrifice. Making this as a ritual absolutely destroys its meaning.
The focus of this lesson is on verses 8-10:
“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” 9 “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!” 10 Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.”
There is an enthusiasm to touch on Peter’s response here for it is another lesson to discuss. Peter here was in his strongest element of the self when he exclaimed, “Lord, wash all of me, then!” But of course, Peter later denied Jesus Christ so his intention for a total bath did not help at all.
Jesus corrected Peter here when He answered him in verse 10. “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” Jewish people would take a bath whenever they go to special meals. But their feet would get dirty from their home to their host’s home. Jesus Christ considered His disciples as both physically and spiritually clean. Physically, because they already took a bath and just needed to wash their feet. Spiritually, because of their relationship with Him (John 15:1-4). As the disciples already took a bath, they need not take it on the same day. The disciples are already justified, they do not need to be justified again.
The washing of the feet in terms of physical cleansing is simply a reminder that sin and lust are in human nature. Jesus reminds those disciples that while they are in the world, sin ensnares their lives in the same way as the dust and dirt contaminate their feet.
Our justification and redemption are complete in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has demonstrated in this event of His life that this washing of feet is the road to the cross. Jesus Christ knew His job that is about to be completed (John 13:30-31). He is sure of His place in the plan of salvation that He spoke of the crucifixion and resurrection as done deal!
The bathing of the body for cleansing is the cleansing of the soul from sin on the cross. When Jesus told Peter that unless He washes his feet, Peter will not have any part of Jesus, Jesus is teaching us two things:
Jesus washing the feet of His disciples would refer to becoming part of the eternal plan of Jesus Christ. In verse 8, Jesus told Peter that unless He washed him, he would have no part in Jesus. The word part here is meros, which means one’s portion in an inheritance (Luke 15:12). Jesus wants His disciples to have their portion of His eternal inheritance. Jesus wants His disciples to partake the inheritance of eternal life that comes only through faith in Jesus Christ.
Jesus washing the feet of His disciples would refer to forgiveness of one’s daily sin. For believers, the washing of Jesus Christ of His disciples’ feet did not only teach us about humility and service, of unconditional love and sacrifice, but it also teaches us that we are part of Jesus Christ’s plan and that His word constantly cleanses us from the filth of the world (Ephesians 5:26; Titus 3:4-7).
Do you ever wonder why we do not wash someone’s feet in our church? An unknown
Pastor shared this true story of himself while he was in the seminary in one his online sermons:
“We were a couple of weeks into the class and we came to this passage in John 13. We were all sitting around a table and he had a box next to him. The professor started to talk about the Greek text, about participles and adverbs and conjunctions and pluperfects, and suddenly he said, “Take off your shoes, men.” I don’t like it when somebody says that. We all looked at him. “Go on,” he said, “Take off your shoes.” So we reluctantly took off our shoes. He opened up his box and said, “Give me your shoes.” He started polishing our shoes. He said, “I could have washed your feet, but you would have thought that was bizarre. But shoe shining is something you pay people to do. That is the closest I can come.” When he came to me, it bothered me. I didn’t want to give him my shoes because my shoes were old. My shoes were dirty. My shoes had a hole in the bottom. Because my shoes had been on my feet, they stunk. With my shoes off, my feet were stinking. I didn’t feel comfortable. That was 17 years ago, but when I came to this passage, that is exactly what came back to my mind, because any time people start messing around with your feet and you don’t expect them to, it’s uncomfortable. It’s dirty; it’s humiliating. It makes you vulnerable”.
A couple of years ago, somebody came up with a list called “Fifty ways to wash feet.” Here are some of them: Running errands for a friend; Baking a cake for a shut in; opening your home for international students; Giving $20 with a note of encouragement to a single mom; Confronting a friend who has strayed from the Lord; Driving car pool to Awana; Making tape recordings for the blind; Hugging your children every day; Refusing to repeat gossip; Sending flowers to a friend; Meeting a new Christian at 6:30 a.m. for discipleship; Picking up your own dirty underwear; Giving anonymously so a single Mom can go to Snow Camp; Intervening in a quarrel to bring two friends back together; Buying food for the food pantry; Tutoring at Circle Urban Ministries; Helping a friend light the pilot in their boiler; Writing your parents a love note; Cleaning up the kitchen so your wife can read the paper; Complimenting your boss; Keeping a secret you’d really like to share; Spending Saturday helping a friend move; Raking leaves for a senior citizen; Changing the oil on a friend’s car; Making supper for a new mom; Baking an extra loaf of bread for your child’s teacher; Visiting a nursing home; Typing a term paper for a Moody student; Counseling at the Crisis Pregnancy Center; Inviting college students over for Sunday dinner; Volunteering to serve in the nursery; Washing windows at the church; Reading books to children.
These are just suggestions. The heart is what matters. The servant’s heart will always find plenty of dirty feet to wash. If you have the right kind of heart, you will find 10,000 times 10,000 opportunities this week to wash dirty feet.
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