John 13:1-5 (NIV)
It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 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.
Jesus knew many things at this point. He knew that the time had come for Him to leave the world. He knew that before the sun rose in the morning, He would be in chains, standing beaten and bloody before the high priest. Before noon, He would be hanging nailed to a cross in excruciating agony. And before sunset, His body would be lying hastily buried in a borrowed tomb.
Jesus knew that satan had already moved Judas Iscariot to set up a betrayal that would unfold that very night, and that Peter would deny even knowing Him three times before the sun rose. And He knew that He had come from God and would soon be returning to Him.
With all those things on His mind and heart, it would be very understandable if Jesus was preoccupied that evening, lost in though and focused on Himself. But it was precisely all those things that He knew that moved Him to give His closest followers one final lesson.
The upper room where He was meeting with the disciples to share the Passover meal was comfortable, but there was no servant available to wash the dusty feet of those reclining at the table. Washing feet was a humiliating task, and none of the disicples, all focused on what exalted positions they would have in Jesus’ administration once He became king, were going to volunteer to do it. They felt that to intentionally lower themselves would make them look weak to Jesus and the rest and might keep them from gaining the most desirable positions.
But then Jesus suddenly rose and moved away from the table. He stripped off His cloak and wrapped a towel around His waist, filled the basin that had been made available for foot washing with water, and brought it back to the table and began to wash and dry the feet of His disicples.
Oddly enough, it was Jesus’ sure knowledge of who He was and the exalted state that He already had in God’s economy that enabled Him to humble Himself in this way. He had nothing to prove, and He knew that He would lose nothing important in the process of serving even those below Him, a lesson that the disicples vitally needed to learn.
Father, it is interesting but true that those who are truly great have no need to prove their greatness to others. They can serve others without it damaging their self-image, and they don’t have to care what others think. We can see it so easily in Jesus, but sometimes we have a hard time with it ourselves. But we are known by You, loved by You, and have been given a vital role to play in Your work of transforming the world by showing all of those around us how they can be redeemed. So, we don’t have to “keep up appearances.” We can serve everyone, knowing that any self-abasement will never lower our value in Your eyes. Thank you! Amen.
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