John 13:4-5,12-17
4 so he ( Jesus) got up from the Passover table, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
12 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.
4 so he ( Jesus) got up from the Passover table, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
12 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.
There is so much that happens on this fateful night of coming together and separation. Jesus talks about betrayal, the disciples argue about who is the greatest, Peter’s denial of even knowing Jesus is foretold. The story unfolds so quickly that you don’t know what to focus on.
I am captivated by the question Jesus asks in the scripture from John (John 13:12) after he has finished washing the disciples feet: “Do you understand what I have done for you?” Do we understand what Jesus did?
There is a verse that comes a little later John 13:34: “And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” I don’t know if it is meant to be a clear statement of what the disciples should understand by Jesus’ actions but I believe that Jesus’ actions clarify what he means by love.
We are always a little lost when it comes to love, we think we know what we mean but then the love part gets a little tricky, it’s a little elusive. We like to put boundaries on it, give it definitions - in Greek there are at least eight different types of love. [Eros (romantic, passionate love) Philia (affectionate love) Agape (selfless, universal love) Storge (familiar love) Mania (obsessive love) (playful love) Pragma (enduring love) Philautia (self love)]. That’s a lot of definition.
There’s one kind of love in that list which we as Christians are familiar with, the kind of love that Jesus is talking about: Agape; what we would call Godly love. A universal love that binds each of us to the other, that opens our hearts, even when we do not know the person standing before us, and says: You are my brother! You are my sister!
The act of washing someone’s feet is not pleasant - especially someone who has walked on dusty roads all day in sandals. Today we have honourific foot washing and I bet the people chosen have already taken a bath or showered before the ritual takes place. But Jesus wasn’t re-enacting a ritual, he was washing the feet of his disciples, people who looked up to him at their teacher, their leader, their Messiah. Peter’s reaction in the story is to be horrified, he doesn’t want Jesus to wash his feet, he protests but Jesus is adamant. Jesus knows who he is and he wants the disciples to know who they are, who they are to be. Leaders who are servants, God lovers who are loving, friends who are family.
I am captivated by the question Jesus asks in the scripture from John (John 13:12) after he has finished washing the disciples feet: “Do you understand what I have done for you?” Do we understand what Jesus did?
There is a verse that comes a little later John 13:34: “And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” I don’t know if it is meant to be a clear statement of what the disciples should understand by Jesus’ actions but I believe that Jesus’ actions clarify what he means by love.
We are always a little lost when it comes to love, we think we know what we mean but then the love part gets a little tricky, it’s a little elusive. We like to put boundaries on it, give it definitions - in Greek there are at least eight different types of love. [Eros (romantic, passionate love) Philia (affectionate love) Agape (selfless, universal love) Storge (familiar love) Mania (obsessive love) (playful love) Pragma (enduring love) Philautia (self love)]. That’s a lot of definition.
There’s one kind of love in that list which we as Christians are familiar with, the kind of love that Jesus is talking about: Agape; what we would call Godly love. A universal love that binds each of us to the other, that opens our hearts, even when we do not know the person standing before us, and says: You are my brother! You are my sister!
The act of washing someone’s feet is not pleasant - especially someone who has walked on dusty roads all day in sandals. Today we have honourific foot washing and I bet the people chosen have already taken a bath or showered before the ritual takes place. But Jesus wasn’t re-enacting a ritual, he was washing the feet of his disciples, people who looked up to him at their teacher, their leader, their Messiah. Peter’s reaction in the story is to be horrified, he doesn’t want Jesus to wash his feet, he protests but Jesus is adamant. Jesus knows who he is and he wants the disciples to know who they are, who they are to be. Leaders who are servants, God lovers who are loving, friends who are family.
Luke 22:14-20 (NIV)
14 When the hour came, Jesus took his place at the table with the apostles.
15 He said to them, “I have wanted so much to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer!
16 For I tell you, I will never eat it until it is given its full meaning in the Kingdom of God.”
17 Then Jesus took a cup, gave thanks to God, and said, “Take this and share it among yourselves.
18 I tell you that from now on I will not drink this wine until the Kingdom of God comes.”
19-20 Then he took a piece of bread, gave thanks to God, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.” In the same way, he gave them the cup after the supper, saying, “This cup is God's new covenant sealed with my blood, which is poured out for you.
When the table is set, when the people are gathered, when the wine is poured and the bread is broken, when the word is shared and love is shown, then we understand what Jesus struggled to help the disciples understand one night long ago during Passover in Jerusalem.
Bread of Life, Feed My Soul MV #194
Youtube version can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGLt99hIr0o
“Bread of life, feed my soul,
As the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.
Bread of life, fill my heart
With the grace and mercy you impart.
I have heard your voice calling,
“Come, my friend, and share
In the feast that is laid out for you
To show how much I care.”
Bread of life, help me live
A life as pure and true as Jesus did.
Bread of life, help me see
The boundless love of Christ for you and me…
I have heard your voice calling,
“Come, my friend, and share
In the feast that is laid out for you
To show how much I care.”
“Bread of life, feed my soul,
As the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.
Bread of life, fill my heart
With the grace and mercy you impart.
14 When the hour came, Jesus took his place at the table with the apostles.
15 He said to them, “I have wanted so much to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer!
16 For I tell you, I will never eat it until it is given its full meaning in the Kingdom of God.”
17 Then Jesus took a cup, gave thanks to God, and said, “Take this and share it among yourselves.
18 I tell you that from now on I will not drink this wine until the Kingdom of God comes.”
19-20 Then he took a piece of bread, gave thanks to God, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.” In the same way, he gave them the cup after the supper, saying, “This cup is God's new covenant sealed with my blood, which is poured out for you.
When the table is set, when the people are gathered, when the wine is poured and the bread is broken, when the word is shared and love is shown, then we understand what Jesus struggled to help the disciples understand one night long ago during Passover in Jerusalem.
Bread of Life, Feed My Soul MV #194
Youtube version can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGLt99hIr0o
“Bread of life, feed my soul,
As the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.
Bread of life, fill my heart
With the grace and mercy you impart.
I have heard your voice calling,
“Come, my friend, and share
In the feast that is laid out for you
To show how much I care.”
Bread of life, help me live
A life as pure and true as Jesus did.
Bread of life, help me see
The boundless love of Christ for you and me…
I have heard your voice calling,
“Come, my friend, and share
In the feast that is laid out for you
To show how much I care.”
“Bread of life, feed my soul,
As the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.
Bread of life, fill my heart
With the grace and mercy you impart.
