Jesus Washes The Disciples' Feet JOHN 13: 1-11
JESUS WASHES THE DISCIPLES’ FEET
In the earlier chapters Jesus had given His ministry to the people of Galilee and Jerusalem.
In chapters 13 and following Jesus turns from an unbelieving world to minister the Father’s love to His inner circle of disciples. He gives these lasts days of love and instruction in the upper room to those who had devotedly opened their hearts to Him and His revelation.
Before the continuous address begins our Lord performs two significant actions.
The first is the washing of the disciples feet. This humble service is poured out upon His companions and friends. God loves the world but displays it in special ways upon His close followers.
These Disciples who experience the fullness of His love are requested to show it to others also.
This parable in action sets out the principle of lowly service and asks the followers of Jesus to be like Him, not like the world.
THE LOVE OF THE SOVEREIGN, 1-4.
V 1 setting the time for the event. Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
To John we owe this priceless teaching on the humble nature of our Lord. Jesus is in complete command of the situation. He knows that His hour had come. It did not take Him by surprise.
The hour for Jesus to complete the supreme task and reason He came into the world was at hand.
The cross marks the end of Jesus’ visible earthly ministry. The way back to His Father was the way of the cross. Knowing His time is short Jesus chooses to concentrate on those He loves intimately.
Jesus “loved His own” refers to those disciples given Him by the Father (10 v 29). He had accepted responsibility for them and not only taught them and protected them (17 v 6-12), He loved them.
“He loved them to the end” Jesus would go to the cross for them as the full and deepest possible expression of His love for them, and us. He said He "loved His own," NOW He started washing their dirty feet.
Why? For His own pleasure? A more Christian understanding of love is "Love is, above all,
That definition for Jesus includes the washing of feet, the touching of lepers, and the acceptance of death on a cross. That is the kind of love you can count on.
The devil was at work during the meal to ruin the fellowship by stirring up treachery against Jesus as verse 2 reveals. During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Judas had already determined to betray Jesus.
In His rebellion against God, he has opened himself up to greater and greater influence by the devil.
Later, in verse 27 he will become possessed by the devil and come under his control.
How often, in our daily lives, are the orders of God interrupted and changed by the voice of the devil, the author of temptation! How often, if we are not extremely prayerful, are our lives easily lured off course and God’s purposes confused. We must Pray for an alertness to be able to distinguish between the voice of God and the voice of the devil. The devil cannot destroy the work of God but he often weakens it.
Satan may be working but as verse 3 states Jesus is still in command of the situation.
Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, Jesus is fully aware of His heavenly origin and destiny.
He is conscious that His Father has bestowed on Him universal sovereignty. Neither Jesus’ divinity or authority change Him. ….He remained humble to the end.
The language depicting Jesus as the sovereign prepares us for something majestic, what we have is Jesus’ act in V 4. got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself.
Sometime during the meal Jesus removed His outer cloak, tied a towel around His waist and began to perform the menial task of a servant. None of the disciples would have volunteered for the for such a task as it would have been like an admission of inferiority to the others.
THE ACT OF A SERVANT, 5-11.
Jesus moves into action in verse 5. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.
Foot-washing was needed in Palestine.
The streets were dusty and people wore sandals without socks or stockings. It was a mark of honour for a host to provide a servant to wash a guest’s feet; it was a breach of hospitality not to provide for it (1 Sam. 25:41; Luke 7:40-50; 1 Tim. 5:10). In spite of the fact that washing the feet of guests at a feast was the work of a slave; Jesus willingly performed the service. Serving others was characteristic of our Saviour throughout His ministry. He could forcefully say, And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
When we read the story of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet, we may think we understand why He was doing that for them. John, for instance, was a close friend. Then there were Peter and Andrew, who had been so faithful in following the Master. Each of the disciples must have had something that endeared him to Jesus. But why did He wash the feet of Judas? Jesus knew that He was stooping down to serve the one who would soon stoop to perform history’s worst act of treachery.
Jesus was performing the most menial of tasks for a person who treated the Creator" of the universe as being someone worth no more than 30 pieces of silver.
Doesn’t Jesus’ example tell us something special about service?
Doesn’t it remind us that we are not called to serve only those who are like us, or even those who care for us? We are called to serve all people - the lovely and the unlovely, the friendly and the not-so-friendly.
When Jesus took a servant’s towel His honour set aside
He humbly showed us how to serve, And how to conquer pride.
News from the Church New dates
1st April..…..Friendship Group, (this covers all ages and the lonely people)
15th April…. Knit and natter is a time to finish old projects or learn new skills
if you just want to talk well that’s OK too
ANSWERS TO 15th March QUESTIONS
1) No 2) A collection of books 3) Hebrew 4) 39 5) About 30 6) 929 7) The Scriptures, The word of God, or The Word 8) The Pentateuch 9) Moses 10) Birth or Beginning 11) Let there be light
12) Six 13) God gave light 14) The division of waters on Earth and waters of Heaven
15) Dry land appeared, the seas were formed and plant life started 16) The Sun, Moon and Stars appeared
Bible Quiz this week’s Quiz is about Genesis
1 What happened on the 5th day of creation?
2 What happened on the 6th day ?
3 What happened on the 7th day?
4 Who were the first people on Earth?
5 Where did they live?
6 What was the Forbidden fruit?
7 Who gave the animals their names?
8 Why were Adam and Eve put out of the garden?
9 How did they hide themselves after they had sinned?
10 Why did they hide from the Lord?
11 What is the first prophecy in the bible?
12 And where can we find it?
13 What was the curse that was placed on the ground.?
14 What was the curse placed on man?
15 How did the Lord cloth Adam and Eve?
16 Who were the first children?
God Bless