Sermons 

“If I Do Not Wash You, You Have No Share With Me”

 

Scripture Readings: Exodus 30:17-21; Psalm 51:2, 7; John 13:1-20, 31-35
April 17, 2016 • Download this sermon (PDF)

Dear congregation of Christ: Every Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday, some evangelical churches include a footwashing ceremony in their Holy Communion service. Benedictine monks used to practice footwashing as a part of welcoming guests. In the Greek Orthodox tradition in Jerusalem, the archbishop washes and kisses the feet of 12 of his priests. In England, Catholic kings used the wash the feet of 12 poor men. Most recently, last Maundy Thursday, Pope Francis went to a refugee center just outside of Rome to wash and kiss the feet of Muslim, Orthodox, Hindu and Catholic refugees.

foot washing.jpg
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Did Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, really command us to perform an annual footwashing ceremony? Or as John Calvin wrote, is this footwashing ceremony done by churches an “idle and unmeaning,” “a display of buffoonery,” and “a shameful mockery of Christ”? Why did Calvin believe so?

Most Christians are familiar with this event on the night before Jesus was arrested and crucified. On this night before the Passover, Jesus “knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father.” So after eating the Passover meal with his twelve disciples, he took of his outer garments, tied a towel around his waist, poured water into a basin, and proceeded to wash his disciples’ feet. When he came to Peter, he asked Jesus, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Then Peter objected to the washing, saying, “You shall never wash my feet.” But Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.”

So this is our theme today, “If I Do Not Wash You, You Have No Share With Me,” under two headings: first, “You are Clean”; and second, “Love One Another.”

You Are Clean”

In the ancient Near East, a person welcomes a guest or a traveler by offering water to wash his feet, a cup of water to drink, and food to eat. This is to show hospitality and respect to the visitor. Abraham welcomed three strangers in his tent with this kind of hospitality (Gen 18:4; see also Gen 19:2; 24:32; 43:24; Jgs 19:21; 1 Sam 25:41; 2 Sam 11:8; Psa 58:10). In the New Testament, we also find washing of a visitor’s feet as a form of hospitality. Jesus rebuked Simon the Pharisee for not offering to wash his feet when he visited him, while a woman washed his feet with her tears (Luke 7:44). Paul says that widows who deserve the help of the church are to show hospitality by washing the feet of her brothers and sisters in Christ (1 Tim 5:10).

Often, washing visitors’ feet is the humble task of slaves. In 1 Samuel 25, we read about a man named Nabal who insulted King David by not providing food for his hungry men. So David set out to kill Nabal, but Nabal’s wife Abigail interceded for her husband, giving them food and drink. After Nabal died, David asked Abigail to be his wife, and she bowed with her face to the ground, saying, “Behold, your handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord” (1 Sam 25:41). So washing someone’s feet is the menial and humble job of servants and slaves. This is why Peter objected to Jesus washing his feet. He considers Jesus as his Master and Teacher, not a slave who would wash his feet.

To read the whole sermon, click here.

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