One tradition that becomes a key issue is arranged marriages. The thought that people might actually marry for love appears to be new. The wish of the younger generation to marry for love - without reference to financial advantage or racial origin - was an unthinkable barrier.
In spite of traditional wisdom, these marriages go ahead and even bring a strong challenge to the older generation. We hear Tevye asking Golda, his wife of many years, "Do you love me?" For her part, she seems uncertain. She hasn’t thought in such terms. She has been a faithful wife and mother, has cooked, washed, cleaned... but love?
In today’s culture it seems to go the other way around. We are saturated with sentimentality, romance and sensuality. We are overloaded with talk and professions of love. Yet we have an extraordinarily high rate of "relationship breakdown" - what we mean by "love" is too often shallow and self-centred. In any home establishment there are always jobs to be done, but we haven’t seen serving as an integral part of loving.
In recording Jesus’ last night with his disciples, John focuses, not on the meal itself, but on Jesus’ teaching by word and example. He had come because "God so loved the world..." (Jn 3.16).
Right now the time of his death was at hand. That would be a sacrifice for all humankind. Yet its effect would operate for "whoever believes in him". In chapter 10 when Jesus spoke about his own sheep, he made it clear that he had "other sheep" yet to be called (10.16). But now in chapter 13 we are told, "Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love" (13.1b).
Already betrayal was in Judas’ heart - yet he was present (v. 2). "Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God" (v. 3). The Son of God would be going through everything that was involved in betrayal, trial, scourging and crucifixion as the one who chose the will of the Father.
He chose to wash his disciples’ feet. The streets were dusty. They wore open sandals - no socks. Foot-washing was necessary. As a matter of honour, a host would provide a servant to wash his guests’ feet.
They had no servant. As the disciples began to recline at table, their uncomfortable thought must have been, "I suppose one of us should be doing it, but who? Certainly not me!" And then the shock - Jesus chose to wash their feet!
Peter protested, "are you going to wash my feet?... No, you shall never wash my feet" (vv. 6,8a). I mean to say, it’s just not right. After all, Jesus is our Teacher and Lord!
Peter, you don’t understand just now. "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me" (v. 8b).
"Then, Lord, not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!" (v. 9) Peter doesn’t understand, but he certainly wants to be wholly committed to Jesus.
But you don’t need a bath every time your feet are dirty - just a wash (v. 10). All except Judas are already clean - made clean by believing in Jesus.
Jesus is "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (1.29), as the Baptist had said. In his first letter, John wrote, "if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin" (1 Jn 1.7). We have had our "bath", but need a daily "wash".
Serving and loving. We become a Christian by accepting Christ’s service - he died for me, for my sins. That’s our "bath", but we also need his regular "wash" as we confess our daily sins to him. Our lives as Christians involves us in humble service - love in action.
| Prayer: Servant Lord, we don’t particularly like washing feet ourselves, but we didn’t expect to find you doing it! You humbled yourself and were obedient to death, even death on a cross. You did it for us - to make us clean. Wash us from our daily sins and give us your humble servant love for others. We ask this in your name, Amen. |
His feet
had trod
the dusty streets
and roads
to bring him near
to human need.
His hands
touched
the sick,
the blind,
the leper,
adulterer,
tax-collector,
outcast...
His blessing
reached
the little children -
the Kingdom
belongs
to such
as these!
And in the room
where no one
saw
his dusty feet,
he stooped
and with his hands
he washed
their feet.
Ere long
those hands
of love
were nailed
to bloody cross,
raised,
stretched out
in dying agony
to bless
sinners
far and near.
Not just raised
but risen,
he reaches still
to give and give,
to bless and heal,
to offer life
and love.
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