Washing the Saints' FeetPosted by: Stephen E. Smith on 2008-05-16
Washing the Saints' Feet
Stephen E. Smith: General Overseer of The Church of God
"He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded...after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you and example, that ye should do as I have to you" (John 13:4, 5, 12-15)
"You must be kidding! No one really does that, do they? I mean, well of course I know Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, but that was just to "illustrate" humility and servanthood. He doesn't expect us today, in these modern times, to actually wash each others' feet. All that matters is that we fulfill what Jesus symbolized, and that we maintain the spirit of servants and be faithful in ministering to the needs of others."
Comments like the ones above are commonly heard when the subject of "washing the saints' feet" is brought up. Certainly Jesus intended to teach humility and servanthood when he engaged in washing the diciples' feet, but was this all He intended to do? Did He do this as a "one time illustration" or was He instituting an ordinance for the Church to continue practicing? A study of the Scriptures reveals that Jesus was clearly establishing an ordinance that was to be continued in The Church of God.
The event of Jesus washing the feet of His disciples occured on the night of His betrayal, and we may be sure that every word and deed performed in these final hours before His crucifixion were extremely important ot our Lord. This same night, He ate the final Passover meal with the disciples saying, "...With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer" (Lk. 22:15). The Passover meal required the slaying of a lamb as a sacrifice for sin, then eating it. For 1,500 years this ordinance had pointed to the day the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ Himself, would be offered as the one, all sufficient sacrifice for sin. Jesus had eaten many passover meals, but this was the one He anticipated above all others, for it would end the dispensation of the law and, with the shedding of His own blood on the cross, fully usher in the dispensation of grace.
With the final Passover meal, Jesus instituted a new meal, the Lord's Supper. Breaking bread and distributing it, He said, "...Take, eat; this is my body" (Matt. 26:26). Serving the cup of grape juice, He said, "For this is my blood of the new testament..." (Matt.26:28). With the serving of the supper, Jesus stated, "...this do in remembrance of me" (Lk. 22:19). Thus, the new ordinance was set in order and virtually all Christians practice it to this day and will continue to do so until Jesus returns to resurrect the dead saints and rapture the living Church and take them to heaven.
But what about feet washing? Most churches fail to even mention this, even though it occured the same solemn night that Jesus instituted Communion. He was not being frivolous when He rose from supper, laid aside His garment, girded Himself with a towel, poured water into a basin, then washed and dried the disciples' feet.
Some believe that Jesus was merely fulfilling a custom commonly practiced at that time. Upon entering a house, one's feet would be dirty from walking, and a servant would provide a basin of water and wash the feet of incoming guests. But it is obvious that was not merely carrying out the common custom. If this were the case, He would have washed the disciples' feet as they entered the house, according to custom and good manners. But Jesus waited until after supper to perform this act. In addition, when Peter protested the washing of his feet by His Master, Jesus replied, "...If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me" (Jn. 13:8). This statement alone should convince any sincere reader that Jesus was engaging in something much more important than just cleansing the feet of someone who had soiled them on the dusty road.
Jesus was probably speaking primarily about spiritual cleansing in His statement to Peter, but He was illustrating this through washing Peter's feet. Some would say that we should remember the message of cleansing illustrated in feet washing, but we need not perform the act. If this is true, we would not also say, "Let's just remember when Jesus broke bread and served grape juice to His disciples. Remember that He said the bread represented His body which was broken for us, and the wine symbolized His blood that was shed for us. Let's remember, but it is not necessary that we participate in actually eating and drinking, ourselves. That was a one time ceremony to illustrate a spiritual truth. Let's remember the message, but we need not to continue the ceremony."
If the same reasoning people use for rejecting feet washing were applied to the Lord's Supper, Christians would be obligated to cease partaking of the Communion. But some might say, "Yes, but Jesus gave us instructions to continue the Lord's Supper saying, '...this do in remembrance of me' (Lk. 22:19)." This is true, but after washing the disciples' feet Jesus also said, "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you" (Jn. 13:14, 15). Could Jesus have been any clearer? He does not say that we should merely remember that He washed the disciples' feet, but He expressly stated that just as He had performed this, we should do the same--wash one another's feet.
This direct command from our Lord should be sufficient for any sincere child of God to see that Jesus was indeed instituting an ordinance to be kept, right along with the Lord's Supper, by His followers. Further, we have evidence that the early Church continued to practice feet washing. When instructing Timothy in properly honoring widows in the Church, the apostle gave the criteria necessary for a woman to be recognized as a widow worthy of receiving help from the Church. He said the widow must have a record of good works and that she has lodged strangers and "...if she have washed the saints' feet..." (1 Tim. 5:10). Again, some would say that this is referring only to the common practice of washing feet of guests as they entered one's house. But this cannot be the case, for this practice would have been offered to all who come into the widow's home, saint or sinner. But Paul's instructions were that she "lodge strangers" and "wash the saints' feet." Strangers would have included both Christians and non-Christians. To both she would have offered the common hospitality of cleansing their feet as they entered her home. Since Paul commanded that she wash the saints' feet, but did not command that she wash the strangers feet, it is clear that he was reffereing to the special ordinance of feet washing Jesus instituted on the night of His betrayal.
The Scriptures are conclusive. On the night of His betrayal Jesus instituted not one, but two ordinances--The Lord's Supper and Washing of the Saints' Feet. The Church of God, committed to obeying Christ in everything, still practices both ordinances. The Lord's Supper is generally received first, then men and women separate and, for modesty sake, men wash men's feet and women wash women's feet.
The Feet Washing service does indeed illustrate humility and servanthood. At the conclusion of the Feet Washing service, Jesus said, "...For the servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him" (Jn. 13:16). Jesus was simply saying, "Are you, my servant, greater than me, your Master and Lord? Of course not. Therefore if your Master made Himself a servant, even stooping to the meanest task of washing feet, should you not also humble yourselves and become servants to one another?"
After Jesus ascended to heaven and the power of the Holy Ghost came upon the disciples, they would preach the Word with great power and see multitudes accepting the message. They would heal the sick, cast out devils, and even reaise the dead. These accomplishments, along with the people sometimes exalting them above measure-- "...The gods are come down to us..." (Acts 14:11), could easily tempt the disciples to think more highly of themselves than they should. The reglular practice of "washing the saint's feet" served as a constant reminder that they were called to be servants.
Do we not need the same reminder today? In our world there is no lack of pride, no shortage of self-exaltation. Envy, jealousy and covetousness are evident among those who are called Christians. Even preachers are in competition to see who is the greatest in the kingdom of God, or at least in the eyes of people. How the Christian world today needs the practice of feet washing and the spirit of servanthood it represents!
A certain formal church decided to emulate Jesus' act of washing the saints' feet. But instead of washing one another's feet, they passed a wet wash cloth to one another and "washed hands." They did not even condescend to washing each other's hands, but each person merely washed his own hands. The thought it was humiliating enough that they all used the same wash cloth. How far removed this is from the One who rose from His throne in heaven, girded Himself in the likeness of human flesh and came down to this sin filled earth to wash humanity from the filth of our sins. And how very distant washing one's own hands is, compared to our God and Creator stooping to wash the feet of His own servants.
Washing the saints' feet may be ignored by prideful religionists, but for those who truly love the Lord, it is still necessary. It is necessary because our Lord commanded that it be done. It is necessary because we need the message it gives--cleansing, humility and servanthood.
Dear Church of God member, have you been faithful to attend and participate in the Lord's Supper and Feet washing service at your local church? If not, you are being disobedient to your Lord and Savior, and you are missing out on the special blessing that comes with practicing these ordinances. Every local church is encouraged to have these services quarterly (four times a year). Those who are faithful will no doubt experience God's blessings and the local church will become more spiritual. God always blesses obedience. In fact, Jesus declares, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them" (Jn. 13:17). Couldn't you use a little more happiness in your life?
(This article was orginally published in the March 2004 issue of The Evening Light.) |
