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Holy Wednesday – Surprised by Love

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments 
A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. Luke 22:24 ESV

Earlier this year, I was surprised by a beautiful flower that suddenly appeared on a large rather ugly cactus, alongside the road where I sometimes walked. I discovered that, with just the right combination of rainfall and temperature, this awkward plant could put on a show with spectacular white blossoms covering its scarred and twisted trunk. On Holy Wednesday, an even greater surprise awaited the disciples. In the middle of an ugly argument, they were having about who was the greatest, and right after Jesus finished serving them the bread and the wine, Jesus got up from the tabIe, and went into a side room. I can almost imagine Jesus striking his forehead and crying out “Oy Vey! These disciples are making me crazy!”

We may chuckle at the absurdity of that scene, but that night, Jesus gave us a surprising example as He returned to the room with a basin and a towel and interrupted their argument by washing their feet. Shame and gratitude replaced pride and anger, as Christ surprised them with love. Then He left an unforgettable command for us to do the same. Though, we don’t do much foot washing in the 21st century, the kind of service that this humble task represents is all around us. As Easter approaches, we need to each ask God how He could use us to serve someone who is as awkward, twisted and scarred as that old cactus. You just might be amazed by the beauty of the flowers God can produce through them, given just the right amount of His mercy and a little bit of His surprising, foot-washing love.

 So He got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. John 13:4-6 ESV

Wash Them Anyway

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So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him. John 13:4-5 NLT

“Anymore dirty dishes?” my wife often asks, rolling her eyes after closing the dishwasher, walking away from the sink, and then spotting my forgotten coffee cup in the office. Her tone tells me, that she doesn’t mind so much doing the dishes as she just wishes they could be finally done for the night! That is a bit like the washing of feet was for people in Jesus’ day. While the other three gospels detail the institution of communion at the Last Supper, John gives us the story of what happened next. And while, depending on our faith community, we take communion once a day, once a week or even a month, washing feet, like washing the dishes is a something that is a constant chore. Think of the world of Jesus’ day, with horses, donkeys, and sheep wandering the city streets, and it doesn’t take much imagination to know what people’s feet looked and smelled like. Leaving their sandals at the door that night definitely helped, but the bare feet of the disciples certainly couldn’t have been squeaky clean. Maybe as they had come into the upper room that night, they wondered who should wash their feet. Luke’s gospel tells us that they argued over who was the most important, so it is easy to see why no one wanted to wash anyone’s feet. At the end of the meal, when Jesus disappeared into a side room for a moment, nobody noticed, until He suddenly appeared in the doorway, with a towel wrapped around his waist and a basin of water in his hands. Next, he knelt, and, one by one, began to wash their feet. The same men who had gladly received the bread that Jesus had broken and drank the cup He had blessed were shocked as Jesus humbly washed the grime from their feet and then dried them with a towel. After Jesus finished, he stood up and said,

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.” John 13:14

Though our world is vastly different from theirs, feet still get dirty and washing them is still menial and seemingly pointless because feet just get dirty again! But Jesus tells us, “I did it so you can do it too!” When dirty feet show up at our doorstep, again and again, we may sigh, like my wife does at finding my forgotten coffee cups, but Jesus calls us to just go get a basin and towel and wash them anyway!

Peace Talks

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I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 ESV

I am old enough to remember the Paris Peace talks, which preceded the end of the Vietnam War. Those meetings gave the illusion that peace was at hand, but the reality was that, for the first week, they argued over what shape of table they were going to meet at! Then, after years of painful negotiations and millions of words exchanged, a document was signed that ensured nothing at all. Not long after the U.S. withdrawal, North Vietnam, invaded and conquered all of South Vietnam in record time. That is the way peace is in this world. But in today’s verse, Jesus assures us that He wasn’t leaving us a peace like that and thank God He didn’t! Instead, Jesus left us His peace: an amazing and eternal one. Unlike the Paris Accords, the peace Jesus gives has nothing to do with the absence of trouble, rather the presence of a power to overcome it. In fact, Jesus tells us, “In this world you will have tribulation.” There’s no doubt about it. Everyone battles for their tiny piece of turf, but when we put our faith and our lives in the hands of Jesus the battle is over, and He has already won! Now, He offers us His peace plan. The peace that Jesus gives is not false, weak or temporary, but it will last forever. But this peace of Jesus also comes to us only on the terms of unconditional surrender. Instead of trying to negotiate what kind of table we are going to sit at, we can trust Him and joyfully sit down wherever He decides. Jesus won the war for our souls when He gave His life for ours and we belong to Him. So, let’s sit down with Him, not at a negotiating table, but at a banquet table, and celebrate with the Prince of Peace and worship Him forever!

“Father, let me loose my clutch on everything temporal. My life, my reputation, my possessions, Lord, let me loose the tension of the grasping hand. Open my hand to receive the nail of Calvary, as Christ’s was opened. He thought Heaven, yea, equality with God, not a thing to be clutched at. So let me release my grasp.” – Jim Elliot

In the light of the sadness and tragedy of the ongoing wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan, it is precious breath of fresh air to hear the voices of these young people, blending together in four languages. May God bless you with His peace wherever you are this morning and may He guide your steps into His ways of peace today.