John 13-17 covers the farewell discourse of Jesus and His final prayer. It probably took place in the upper room and here Jesus was interacting with the inner circle, His disciples. He was preparing His disciples for His return to the Father, for He knew that the hour had come for Him to leave the world and to go back to the Father through the cross.
We focus now on John 13:1-20. Jesus had set His love on His disciples in a special way and here in the ministry in the upper room, His love for them was manifested in words and action, loving them fully and to the end. We are reminded of His love for His people and it is indeed a great privilege and blessing to know that He loves us to the point of death on the cross.
Jesus knew that the Father had given Him the position of supreme power, and He knew that Satan had prompted Judas, yet He proceeded with God’s plan of action because He knew that this was the way for Satan to be driven out and giving up His life would accomplish God’s supreme purpose.
Jesus then did something most unexpected and stunning; He dressed Himself like a household servant and performed a servant’s task – He proceeded to wash the disciples’ feet and wipe them with the towel which was tied round Him. The form of God was not exchanged for the form of a servant; it was revealed in the form of a servant. We would remember Him saying, “I am among you as one who serves” (Luke 22:24-27). His act of humility is simultaneously a display of love, a symbol of saving cleansing, and a model of Christian conduct. And the matchless self- emptying of the eternal Son, the eternal Word reaches its climax on the cross.
The disciples were probably embarrassed to have their Master washing their feet; Peter however was the one who objected to Jesus washing his feet. Jesus’ reply that unless He washed him, Peter would have no part with Him and this caused Peter to request the washing of his whole body instead of his feet only. Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you”.
The theme of cleansing pointed to the spiritual cleansing based on Christ’s death; the foot washing and the crucifixion are truly of a piece and the foot washing pointed so effectively to the cross. The foot washing symbolises the cleansing that is the result of Christ’s impending cross-work; the initial and fundamental cleansing that Christ provides it a once-for-all act. Individuals who have been cleansed by Christ’s atoning work will doubtless need to have subsequent sins washed away, but the fundamental cleansing can never be repeated.
When Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, He included the feet of Judas Iscariot. It shows the love and forbearance of the Master; although Judas may have been washed, he was not cleansed. No rite can ensure spiritual cleansing if the heart has not responded to the cleansing effected through Jesus’ revelatory word and the atoning sacrifice to which the foot washing pointed. Hence, the keeping of the foot washing as a sacrament should be rejected.
After He had finished washing their feet, Jesus said, “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord’, and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet..” Jesus has set an example and pattern for His disciples and us. If the Lord had not thought it beneath His dignity to perform a menial task for them, why should they think it beneath theirs to do the like for one another. He is so great, yet He stoops so low. His disciples should humbly follow His example and lower themselves in order to serve others. If Jesus has lowered Himself to the point of death on a cross, His disciples must follow His example, however hard they may find it to love their brother or sister. One of the ways human pride manifests itself is the refusal to take a lower role. We do not mind being addressed as servants of God but it is a different thing when we are asked to serve as a servant and treated as such. The words of D. A. Carson ring a relevant warning:
Christian zeal divorced from transparent humility sounds hollow, even pathetic.