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. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. John 13:12-14 NIV
John 13:12-14 NIV
The Washing of Feet is an act of humble service. By taking on the role of a slave and washing his disciples feet, Jesus demonstrated what it really means to serve.
After Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet He put on his robe and proceeded to engage them in a conversation as to why He did what He did. Previously, in verse 4, we see that after supper, Jesus took off his robe and wrapped a towel around His waist in preparation for the foot washing. This gesture of wearing a towel around the waist meant Jesus took on the role of a slave. This would have baffled the disciples. In biblical times, slaves washed the feet of their master, but not even Jewish slaves were allowed to wash their masters’ feet.
Jesus wanted the disciples to understand what being humble, loving, and serving others meant. Jesus knew a mere parable would not do, so he went out of his way to actively demonstrate what humble service meant by using the foot-washing ceremony. This act of humility was an entirely new concept for the disciples. Jesus wanted his disciples to become humble servants, and the only way for that to happen was for them to follow his example. To fully understand, they had to do the same.
Jesus Calls Us to Humbly Serve
The command to wash one another’s feet in humble service extends to us also. Jesus was the epitome of humility, and we are called to be just like him (Romans 8:29). It does not matter who we are whether the CEO of a company or a janitor.
I remember a friend telling me once that one day, while he was at the bank, he observed the CEO walking the floor. There was a piece of paper on the ground. The CEO without thinking twice picked it up, threw it away and continued walking the floor. My friend was amazed at that because, in his mind, the CEO could have easily called the janitor or some other employee to pick up the paper. But he didn’t; he did it himself. This showed his humility. It was not beneath him to pick up that paper. I could think of a few CEO’s who would not do that.
Other people are more important than us, and our job as Christians is to humbly serve them. Philippians 2:3 states:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves”.
If Jesus did it, so should we.
Who are you going to serve today?
This is an excerpt of Digging Deeper: Do As I Do, found on gracefullytruthful.com
