Powerful scenes fill Jesus’ final week: riding into Jerusalem on a colt, cleansing the Temple, cursing the fig tree, the Last Supper, etc... The event that stands out to me the most is found in John 13; where Jesus washes His disciple’s feet.
Many paintings and images portray this as a sublime and picturesque event. But look at the text and notice clues to the degradation of this act. John 13.4 tells us that Jesus took off His outer robe, leaving only His loin cloth. The image of Jesus in His underwear offends our sensibilities (offending at least our preconceived image of Jesus).
He washes His disciples feet and proceeds to also wash Judas’ feet. Judas is still present though he will soon leave to betray Jesus. This is a profound act of love! Jesus washes the feet of the one who is actively working against Him! Think about that for a moment. As humbling as it is to wash another’s feet, I can at least see myself doing it to my family, to those I love. But when I think about those who I hate, or who hate me and to think about washing their feet, never!
Jesus does this act of love as both a model of service for us and as a way of showing us what the Cross is all about. The Cross is God’s humbling and humiliating act of love on behalf of those who could care less.
Who are those in your life who are fighting against you? Maybe instead of fighting back, we should look for ways to wash their feet....
4 comments:
You mean wash the feet of Osama bin Laden (oops, to late)? How about Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Or President Obama, or former President Bush, or Gov. Scott Walker or a public employee union member? Wait a second, are you crazy???
That is quite a challenge, Jesus is like that you know.
It is easier to model Christ to those who are kind to us, right? Jesus explicitly tells us to pray for our enemies, to turn the other cheek, to love those who curse us, to be willing to go the extra mile, etc...
Viewing people through the lens of Christ makes it harder to demonize; which maybe is why I prefer to view others through my own eyes...
I have found that the problems I have with ohters really, truly lie with me....not the person I am upset with, dislike, ...hate! When Christ demands compassion..... crazy love happens! Before, I used to think that humbling myself was always an admittance of wrongdoing. Now, I know that it is not about me, the other person, the problem.... it is about bringing Christ glory!
I like the way you said to pray for ways to wash someone else's feet. I've often prayed that God would give me ways to honor someone, however this is specifically emphasizing serving someone else despite our circumstances and not dependent on how the other person treats us. Thanks.
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