Holy Thursday or Maundy Thursday (2023)

John 13:1-15

My brothers and sisters tonight in our Gospel Lesson John records what he saw, and witnessed with his own eyes as the hour has come for Christ to depart. Jesus had warned them that they would there would come a time that He would depart, and even the means by which He would die, but they did not yet believe it. So Jesus on this night shows them once again what He will do for them.

Jesus lays aside his outer garments and takes the wash basin and began to wash his disciples feet. Now this was meant to show the disciples what he would be doing for their sake. For here is Jesus the Christ, the SOn of the Living God, and He is setting aside his outer garments to take up the role reserved for slaves.

He does this during the supper, now we don’t know if this happens before or after the Lord’s Supper is instituted. For John doesn’t include that detail, but Jesus rises during the supper and begins to wash their feet. Even today feet are something that we keep at a distance, feet smell, they are dirty, and can be misshapen, they are not something that we typically praise. We live in an age when feet are well tended to, we bathe them daily, they are cushioned in socks, and have shoes to keep them protected.

This is not the case for the disciples and Christ, the roads of their time are dirty and dusty, they have animals that walk the roads as well with everything that animals do on the streets. They lack all of the things that we do to keep feet clean, and they are on them constantly. They don’t have cars, they have access to horses and donkeys, but if you want to go somewhere or do something you were often walking.

So this job is dirty job, and one that you would not expect Christ to do. For Jesus’ hands are the ones that healed the sick, raised the dead. These hands are the ones that lifted Peter out of the water when the waves became too much and peter began to sink, they are the hands that gave thanks to God and broke bread that fed thousands, the hands that turned over tables as they turned God’s house into a den of robbers. These holy and sacred hands are now covered with dirt, the sweat of feet and the filth of the world.

John even tells us that this happens after the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas to betray Jesus. Jesus knew what Judas was going to do, that it was already in his heart to betray Him, but Jesus sits there washing the filth from Judas’ feet. The same feet that would hasten to go and betray him and bring about his death.

When Jesus comes to Peter, Peter says no, for how could He let the Messiah, the Son of God, the Holy one of Israel wash his feet? Peter is quite emphatic that Jesus will never wash his feet and what does Jesus say? Then Peter would have no share, that is no part with Him.

Peter tries to reclaim some dignity for Jesus tries to say that He should wash his hands and his head if he is also going to wash Peter’s feet, but Christ refuses, and says that it is only the feet that he needs to be cleaned.

But what does this mean? They don’t understand in the moment, but there is something greater going on here. For Jesus has cleaned the feet of the disciples, but he says that not all of them are clean even though, He just washed all their feet. So what is going on?

This foreshadows what Jesus is going to do for them at the Cross. For there He will become the lowest of slaves, even lower than a slave that cleans feet. His outer garments will not be laid aside, but they will be stripped from Him, and He will fall to His knees but this time he will be bearing his own cross on his back. The soldiers who handle his feet tomorrow won’t wash or clean them, but will hold them in place to drive nails through them to the cross along with those holy hands.

For those hands that took upon the dust of the road and filth of the world will instead be covered in your sins. Jesus became the lowest of slaves by the work He was given to do, atone for the sins of the world. We might be like Peter and tempted to say that we do not want the holy one of God, the pure and the righteous one who performed all of these miracles, that we don’t want Him touching the filth of our feet, but that filth is nothing compared to the sins of our soul, rather let him look to the strength of our hands, or sharpness of our mind.

What needs to be washed away is our sins, and that is the filth that needs to be removed. We try to hide our sins from Christ, and try to glorify other parts of our life, but that is not why Christ came. There are some who let Christ wash their sins away, but all the while still intend to betray him, like Judas.

For make no mistake that Jesus cleansed Judas, but Judas lacked faith that would look to Christ for forgiveness and still had evil in his heart, and that is why even though Christ washed Him, that He had no part with Him. We ought to be on guard against this as well. Lest we be like Judas at the table, but in our hearts think only evil of Christ, for those who act like Judas it would be better for them to not be born.

I pray that is not you my dear saints who have been washed in the waters of Baptism and have your sins taken from yourselves now rest upon Jesus do not let this washing go to waste, like Judas, but treasure it in your hearts.

For Christ has instructions for His disciples after washing their feet, and they are words that we need to be reminded of as well. That Jesus says He has done this as an example, that just as He has washed their feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. What does this mean? As Jesus has forgiven your sins and suffered for you, you too ought to forgive and suffer for one another. For if that is what our Lord and Master has done for us, becoming our slave, then we who are his disciples ought to follow the example he has set for us.

For the devil will attempt to enter our hearts, and to dissuade us from this, but look at Jesus this night. See him kneeling on the ground as He takes in his hands the foot of the man who will betray him with a kiss. We are called not just to love those who love us, but even those who are against us.

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ, let us learn like the disciples tonight that Christ has come to serve not be served. He has come to take upon himself your sins and the punishment that was meant for you. Tomorrow night we will see our Lord and Savior, stricken, smitten, and afflicted as He is crushed for our iniquities and He sheds His blood to wash away our sins. In Jesus name. Amen.