Sermon 10 - John 13 - I'm Not Touching Your Stinkin Feet
INTRODUCTION:
1. ((illus)) Conference speaker and author, former pastor Warren Wiersbe writes about those times in his ministry as a pastor when he had to deliver “farewell messages” to the congregations he had served, and it he says that it was not an easy thing to do.
a. He says they would call a new pastor and enter into a new phase of ministry, and he wanted them to be at their best.
b. This included warning as well as instruction
c. He says that he may not have succeeded, but his purpose was always to prepare them for the future.
2. Today we are in John 13
a. John 13–17 is our LORD’S “FAREWELL MESSAGE” to His beloved disciples, climaxing with His intercessory prayer for them and for us.
b. Other farewell addresses in Scripture were delivered by Moses (Deut. 31–33), Joshua (Josh. 23–24), and Paul (Acts 20).
c. However, Jesus added a significant “ACTION SECTION” to His message when He WASHED HIS DISCIPLES’ FEET.
d. It was an object lesson they would never forget.
3. John 13:1-17 (page 908)
1 Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He now showed the disciples the full extent of his love.
2 It was time for supper, and the Devil had already enticed Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to carry out his plan to betray Jesus.
3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God.
4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist,
5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel he had around him.
6 When he came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, why are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now why I am doing it; someday you will.”
8 “No,” Peter protested, “you will never wash my feet!” Jesus replied, “But if I don’t wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
9 Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!
10 Jesus replied, “A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet, to be entirely clean. And you are clean, but that isn’t true of everyone here.
11 For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he meant when he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing?
13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because it is true.
14 And since I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet.
15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.
16 How true it is that a servant is not greater than the master. Nor are messengers more important than the one who sends them.
17 You know these things—now do them! That is the path of blessing.
34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.
35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
4. ((illus)) It’s interesting that this chapter is the next one we look at in our survey of John because
a. with Lila Wallasky’s home-going this week, I’ve been thinking about servants.
b. I found myself making a mental list of great servants I have known, going all the way back to my childhood days.
c. I let my memory run free and started thinking of people who over the years have impressed me by their servant heart and servant spirit:
i) Bob Roles
ii) Pastor Wegner
iii) John & Joani Rynders
iv) Ned & Sharon Donaldson
v) Otis Braswell
vi) Fred Petty
d. And the list goes on and on – some I’ve lost names to, but they served me in the spirit of Christ as described in the text we just read.
5. You know what I discovered as I made that list?
a. It is hard to get a good definition of what servant hood is, but you sure know what it is when you experience it.
i) Some of them were very quiet, almost retiring, in their service.
ii) Others simply did what needed to be done.
b. None of them are famous as the world counts fame.
6. And we are challenged this morning with the command of our Lord from this passage:
a. 16 How true it is that a servant is not greater than the master. Nor are messengers more important than the one who sends them. 17 You know these things—now do them! That is the path of blessing.
7. As I thought about those who had served me and read this passage I drew some conclusions.
I’M NOT TOUCHING YOUR STINKIN’ FEET
John 13:1-17, 34-35 (page 908)
1. BEING A SERVANT STARTS WITH AN ATTITUDE, NOT AN ACTION
a. Now, it will certainly be seen in actions, that’s part of the point of this chapter, but that’s not where it starts.
b. :1 – Jesus showed the disciples the full extent of his love.
i) Here was a heart of love and humility.
ii) In the only personal description of Himself, Jesus referred to this.
iii) Matthew 11:29 - “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
c. So many of us think, “Tell me what I need to do if I’m going to be a servant.”
i) But here is a heart that is listening to the hearts of others.
ii) There has been a connection with God’s love and his service to you that you begin to pass on to others.
d. In our Scripture lesson for today, Jesus’ servant-hood was unannounced.
i) He imply did what needed to be done.
ii) I’ve been touched over the years by those who served and asked not to be mentioned.
iii) There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes of Grace that many know nothing about.
¨ That’s why I bristle when someone is caustic about Grace and its lack of involvement.
¨ One’s judgment is not better than the facts they might have and there’s a lot of servant hearts ministering – from the heart.
BEING A SERVANT STARTS WITH AN ATTITUDE, NOT AN ACTION
2. BEING A SERVANT MEANS HAVING A WILLINGNESS TO RECEIVE WITHOUT EMBARRASEMENT - :8
a. “No,” Peter protested, “you will never wash my feet!”
i) It takes more grace to receive than to give.
b. TRUE SERVANTS OF JESUS CAN ONLY GIVE WHAT THEY HAVE FIRST RECEIVED.
i) And you have to be ready to receive.
ii) Receiving is a very humbling experience but it reveals a servant’s heart by the person on the receiving end.
iii) And it, in turn, is a ministry back to the person who initiated the serving.
c. Peter received a sharp rebuke from Jesus and responded correctly.
i) “But if I don’t wash you, you won’t belong to me.” 9 Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!
BEING A SERVANT STARTS WITH AN ATTITUDE, NOT AN ACTION
BEING A SERVANT MEANS HAVING A WILLINGNESS TO RECEIVE WITHOUT EMBARRASEMENT - :8
3. BEING A SERVANT MEANS NOT BEING SELECTIVE OR EXCLUSIVE :11
a. For Jesus knew who would betray him.
b. Jesus washes each foot - even that of Judas.
i) If Jesus were only human, I think he would have been tempted to use boiling water to wash Peter’s feet and ice water to wash Judas’s.
ii) But he did not come to scold or to shun - he came to serve - gently and humbly
4. ANYONE CAN BE A SERVANT IF THEY HAVE A SERVANT’S HEART
a. A person does not have to have been a Christian for many years.
i) That was evident by this scene.
ii) :15 - I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.
iii) New disciples, still arguing over who was the greatest.
b. A servant is not defined by age.
i) Children can be servants in many appropriate roles.
ii) Often they aren’t aware of their ministry.
iii) ((illus)) I still remember one five year old boy who marched into the sanctuary one morning, raised his hands and shouted, “Let the party begin!”
5. THE ULTIMATE MODEL OF SERVANT-HOOD IS JESUS CHRIST
a. Two verses which ought to be tattooed on each Christian’s soul are :
i) Mark 10:45 - For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many.”
ii) Philippians 2:5 - Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had.
b. What was Jesus and why did He come?
i) He was a servant, He came to serve.
ii) And continues to serve us as our High Priest and only mediator between God and man.
c. You can go almost anywhere in the four Gospel and you see Him serving.
i) And then you come to this passage
ii) They gather for observance of the Passover meal.
iii) Later the Lord’s supper will be instituted.
iv) In the middle of all of this, all the disciples are gathered and talking in nervous tones. Things aren’t going well. The men know that something is up. Jesus seems pensive and quiet. He doesn’t seem his usual gregarious self. He talks, but it seems as if he has something on his mind and indeed he does. Jesus, as he eats that meal, knows that before long Judas will come with a kiss, the Roman soldiers will come to arrest him, and soon he will stand before Herod and Annas and Caiphas and Pilate. Soon, in just a matter of hours, he will be hanging on a cross. The chatter goes on back and forth and Jesus listens.
v) Suddenly, without a word, he stands up.
¨ Without any explanation, he takes off his tunic and wraps the towel of a slave around his waist.
¨ Taking a pitcher of water, he goes to the end of the table and kneels down.
¨ Without a word he takes the feet of the disciple. He brushes the dirt off and begins to splash the water on the feet. He massages it. When it is clean, he takes the towel and wipes the feet dry.
¨ He goes to the next one and does the same thing.
d. In the room there is silence, total silence. No one dares to speak. They cannot believe what Jesus is doing.
4 Facts about foot washing:
1. FOOTWASHING WAS CONSIDERED AN ORDINARY SIGN OF COMMON COURTESY
a. Foot washing was something you did when a guest came to your house.
i) The roads in Palestine were dry and dusty, except when it rained they turned into a quagmire of mud.
ii) So even if your feet were clean when you left your house, by the time you got wherever you were going, your feet would be covered with dust and dirt and grime and grit.
iii) So it was common in those days that if you came to my house for the evening, when you arrived I would greet you with a kiss on the cheek, I would offer you oil to rub on your face, then I would call my servant, who would kneel down and take off your sandals and he would wash your feet.
iv) That was a sign of common courtesy.
b. Foot washing was the work of slaves.
i) It was the mark of a rich man that he never had to wash anybody’s feet because he had enough servants to handle the feet of anybody who came to see him.
ii) But Jesus broke the rules and that’s why they were so shocked—not that somebody would wash their feet, but that Jesus was the one doing it.
iii) That broke all the customs of the day.
2. FOOT WASHING BY DEFINITION IS DIRTY, SMELLY AND HUMILIATING.
a. Have you ever tried to wash somebody’s feet at the end of a long, hard day?
i) Have you ever tried to wash somebody‘s feet covered with grime, perspiration, somebody’s feet when the feet really stink?
ii) Have you ever put your face right down next to an ingrown toenail?
iii) It’s not as much fun as you think it is.
b. There are some churches that will have foot washing as a part of their regular practice.
i) Some churches even call it a Third Ordinance —Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and the Washing of Feet.
ii) They will say, “On Thursday night we’re going to have a foot washing ceremony.”
iii) So everybody will come out on Thursday night.
iv) Only what do they do before they come to church?
¨ They wash their feet.
¨ Because you don’t want anybody touching your dirty feet.
c. But that misses the point.
i) The only feet that need washing are dirty feet.
ii) Just to have somebody messing around with your feet is vulnerable and embarrassing.
d. But why didn’t the disciples wash each other’s feet?
i) Because at that moment, they were arguing about who was the greatest among themselves in God’s kingdom.
¨ Jesus was about to be crucified, and they were arguing about who would be on his left and right.
ii) Listen, as long as you’re arguing about who’s the greatest, you’re not going to have any time to do foot washing, because foot washing and looking out for number one are mutually exclusive.
iii) In that room you had a bunch of proud hearts and dirty feet.
iv) They would fight over a throne, but they wouldn’t fight over a towel and a basin.
e. Not only that, the story of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet is meant to be A PICTURE OF HIS WORK ON THE CROSS.
i) The disciples didn’t understand that.
ii) It is meant to picture the cleansing that his death can provide.
iii) The dirt on the feet is just a symbol of the dirt that’s inside the soul.
iv) The dirt on the outside is just a picture of the dirt of sin, and the water that washes away the dirt of the feet is a symbol of the blood of Christ which washes away the dirt of sin.
v) Coming to Christ is having his blood wash away the dirt of your sin.
vi) Therefore, having your feet washed is like coming to Christ because all you do is sit there and Jesus does it all.
vii) That is what salvation is like.
viii) You’re dirty and he comes and cleans you up.
f. I heard somebody say a few months ago that coming to Christ is like taking a shower on the inside.
i) There are some of us this morning who need a shower on the inside.
ii) You are clean on the outside but you’re dirty on the inside.
iii) What you need is inner cleansing.
3. FOOT WASHING WILL NEVER GO OUT OF STYLE BECAUSE WE’LL NEVER RUN OUT OF DIRTY FEET.
a. Everybody has dirty feet.
b. That’s one good thing about foot washing.
i) Everybody around you has dirty feet.
ii) Wouldn’t it be great if we would take a few minutes now to prove that, to take our shoes off and check everybody out?
iii) That would be the end of the service.
c. Even to think about it is frightening because underneath all the exterior, we’ve all got dirty feet.
i) Jesus came to a world of dirty feet.
ii) He came to clean the dirty feet, which means he came for you because your feet are dirty too.
CONCLUSION:
1. That brings me to the end of the message from Jesus Christ to you.
2. He got to the end of the foot washing and said what is in :12-15,17 - 12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because it is true. 14 And since I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 17 You know these things—now do them! That is the path of blessing.
3. Jesus Christ expects his followers to wash feet.
a. Maybe not literally, because from a cultural standpoint it would not mean much.
b. But we are commanded to serve one another in love and humility.
4. Brothers and sisters, I have good news and I have bad news.
a. The bad news is feet stink.
i) If you’re going to wash feet, you’re going to do some humbling things and some humiliating things and you’re going to be involved in some situations that aren’t very nice or popular or that aren’t going to be seen by the masses.
ii) You aren’t necessarily going to be applauded for doing it.
b. The good news is there is a great reward for foot washers.
i) You’re blessed if you do these things.
5. Why we ought to wash dirty feet:
a. #1 Because Jesus did it.
b. #2 Because dirty feet need washing.
c. #3 Because we’re blessed when we do it.
6. Only one question is left this morning:
a. WHO’S FEET ARE YOU GOING TO WASH THIS WEEK?
b. Remember, it all starts in the heart, allowing God to first wash your feet.
c. Here’s a few suggestions:
i) Running errands for a friend.
ii) Baking a cake for a shut in.
iii) Giving $20 with a note of encouragement to a single mom.
iv) Confronting a friend who has strayed from the Lord.
v) Hugging your children every day.
vi) Refusing to repeat gossip.
vii) Sending flowers to a friend.
viii) Meeting a new Christian at 6:30 a.m. for discipleship.
ix) Picking up your own dirty underwear.
x) Intervening in a quarrel to bring two friends back together.
xi) Buying food Englewood Helping Hand.
xii) Writing your parents a love note.
xiii) Cleaning up the kitchen so your wife can have a few quiet moments for herself.
xiv) Complimenting your boss.
xv) Keeping a secret you’d really like to share.
xvi) Visiting a nursing home.
xvii) Reading books to children.
7. A servant’s heart will find 10,000 ways to serve.
8. I want you to pray a prayer right now.
a. The prayer is, “LORD, WHOSE FEET SHOULD I WASH THIS WEEK?”
b. Don’t pray for ten names.
c. Start with just one, your husband, your wife, your children, your family, your friends, people across the street, your co-workers, somebody you barely know.
d. Ask the Lord for one name right now.
9. PRAYER
a. Do you need to be washed on the inside this morning?
b. Would you let Jesus wash your feet as you trust Him to be your Savior and Lord?
c. Lord Jesus, for too long we have overlooked your words and we wonder why the world has overlooked us. Forgive us for our disobedience. Send the Holy Spirit to do a deep work of repentance within us. Grant that we might leave this place determined to become foot washers for you. As you were not ashamed to kneel before your brothers, may we not be ashamed to do as you have done, and so prove ourselves worthy to bear your holy name in the world. Amen.