I wanted to share this.. I needed to read this!
JESUS WASHES THE DISCIPLES FEET
Jesus Washes the Disciples Feet
by Max Lucado
It has been a long day. Jerusalem is packed with Passover guests, most of whom
clamor for a glimpse of the Teacher. The spring sun is warm. The streets are
dry. And the disciples are a long way from home. A splash of cool water would be
refreshing.
The disciples enter [the room], one by one, and take their places around the
table. On the wall hangs a towel, and on the floor sits a pitcher and a basin.
Any one of the disciples could volunteer for the job, but not one does.
After a few moments, Jesus stands and removes his outer garment. He wraps a
servant’s girdle around his waist, takes up the basin, and kneels before one of
the disciples. He unlaces a sandal and gently lifts the foot and places it in
the basin, covers it with water, and begins to bathe it. One by one, one grimy
foot after another, Jesus works his way down the row.
In Jesus’ day the washing of feet was a task reserved not just for servants but
for the lowest of servants…The servant at the bottom of the totem pole was
expected to be the one on his knees with the towel and basin.
In this case the one with the towel and basin is the king of the universe. Hands
that shaped the stars now wash away filth. Fingers that formed mountains now
massage toes. And the one before whom all nations will one day kneel now kneels
before his disciples. Hours before his own death, Jesus’ concern is singular. He
wants his disciples to know how much he loves them...
You can be sure Jesus knows the future of these feet he is washing. These
twenty-four feet will not spend the next day following their master, defending
his cause. These feet will dash for cover at the flash of a Roman sword. Only
one pair of feet won’t abandon him in the garden. One disciple won’t desert him
at Gethsemane—Judas won’t even make it that far! He will abandon Jesus that very
night at the table…
What a passionate moment when Jesus silently lifts the feet of his betrayer and
washes them in the basin!
Jesus knows what these men are about to do. He knows they are about to perform
the vilest act of their lives. By morning they will bury their heads in shame
and look down at their feet in disgust. And when they do, he wants them to
remember how his knees knelt before them and he washed their feet…
He forgave their sin before they even committed it. He offered mercy before they
even sought it.
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