Sermon Discussion Questions:

1. What was point of the illustration of the treasure map on the wall? Do you find that God's love for you can be difficult to feel significant?
2. If you had one day left to live, what would you be tempted to prioritize? What does Jesus’ choice to wash feet reveal about His priorities?
3. The sermon said perfect love often looks inconvenient, uncomfortable, and humiliating. Where have you seen that proven true?
4. In practical terms, what are “smelly feet” in your world right now? (Specific people or situations that require inconvenient love.)
5. For those who are husbands, parents, leaders, or ministry volunteers: What would it look like to use your authority more intentionally for the good of those under your care?

What wondrous love is this?

And can it be?

How deep the Father’s love for us

All of the church’s most beloved hymns about the love of God strike this note of wonder, surprise.

I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how He could love me, a sinner condemned unclean?

The idea of God’s love for us is somehow both startling and incredible…and something we grow so familiar with, we lose sight of it. We can become like children who have grown up with a treasure map framed on the wall, mistaking it for a fixture of the home that in time becomes invisible, forgetting that if paid attention to and followed, will lead to a vast, glittering fortune. Meanwhile, we sit impoverished, bullied and bruised by the world and the devil who convince us that the Ultimate Reality—the real world—does not have any love for us. You have to fight your way, earn your place, shoehorn your way into friendship and career success. We are suspicious that at the bottom, people only tolerate us, or use us for what is good for them. So we strive and strive and strive to achieve and accomplish and prove, and with every success, we only find a few minutes of security before our latest accomplishment becomes the bare minimum of needed success to not lose our status, our usefulness, our worth. You did a fantastic job this quarter…can’t wait to see what you do next. A compliment that can ominously sound like a threat. And then when we stumble, when we fail—which we will inevitably do—we don’t respond with the flexibility of learning from a mistake. We are devastated. Crushed.

And it is those moments of vulnerability. Of despair. Of weakness…that gives us an opportunity to actually believe that Someone could love us, not just find us useful, like an instrument to be used and discarded—but a person to be loved.

Anna and Susan Warner’s novel, “Say and Seal” in 1860, contains the lyrics to likely the most well known english song about God’s love for us. In the story, a young orphan is terribly ill and is being cared for by his school teacher. The small child is dying, has no parents to care for him, and nothing to offer anyone else. And his school teacher sings:

"Jesus loves me—this I know, For the Bible tells me so: Little ones to him belong,— They are weak, but he is strong.

"Jesus loves me,—he who died Heaven's gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let his little child come in.

"Jesus loves me—loves me still, Though I'm very weak and ill; From his shining throne on high Comes to watch me where I lie.

"Jesus loves me,—he will stay Close beside me all the way. Then his little child will take Up to heaven for his dear sake."

1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4 rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” 12 When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. ”

• John 13:1-13

Why is this surprising? If we can hear this story with fresh ears, we should be surprised. The disciples’ certainly were. Peter’s response has a tone of outrage that our English can’t convey quite exactly: Lord, do YOU wash MY feet?

This is surprising for a number of reasons, because it shows us (1) how love serves, (2) how love leads, and (3) how love cleans.

How Love Serves

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. - John 13:1

It is the last day that Jesus has before He dies. Sometimes, a popular ice breaker people will ask is, “If you had one day left to live, what would you do?” Usually, we imagine how to squeeze the most of those last moments—eat the best meals, see the most beautiful sights, scratch some experience off our bucket list. Here, it should strike us: Jesus knew it was last day. And what did He do? He washed feet.

Jesus’ hour has come to die. And John wants us to know that throughout Jesus’ life, He has loved His own—that is, His sheep, those who believe in Him, who hear His voice. And He has loved them “to the end.” This could mean, everything that Jesus has done, right up to His very death has been motivated by love. Or, it could mean, ‘He loved them to the uttermost, perfectly.” I think John likely means both.

How does Jesus reveal to us His perfect love?

He washes feet

Imagine it is summer time and all our roads are made of dirt. Imagine that you live in a city that lacks garbage and sewer service. Imagine that the streets would have many animals walking in the midst of it, leaving their droppings behind. And imagine that you only have open-toed sandals for shoes and you sit down for dinner in a home without air conditioning.

What would your feet look like?

What would your feet smell like?

It was a common courtesy to offer foot washing to guests in Jesus’ day to clean the filth and sweat off and alleviate the odor. If a host was poor, he would wash the guests’ feet, but usually servants would be responsible for it. Some rabbis, however, in Jesus’ day taught that if you had a Jewish servant, you could not ask him to wash your feet, because it was too demeaning. If you had a Gentile servant, or a woman or child, they could wash your feet, but no Jew could.

Apparently, there are no servants around to wash feet before the meal. None of the disciples volunteer to do so—nor, frankly, would they be expected to. But, for reasons that don’t seem immediately clear, it is in the midst of supper (”during supper” John 13:2, 4) that Jesus rises from the table and begins to wash His disciples’ feet.

We have stories in Greek and Jewish histories of disciples washing their master’s feet. There are zero instances in any Greco-Roman or Jewish history of a teacher washing His students’ feet.

But here, Jesus—who is not just rabbi…but the Messiah…and not just the Messiah…but God in the flesh—stoops down and washes feet. We were moved just a few weeks ago at Mary’s remarkable act of devotion in washing Jesus’ feet with the expensive ointment. That makes sense—He deserves that kind of attention. But this?

So, when the disciples are all stunned into embarrassed silence and only Peter plucks up the courage to say something about how improper this all is, it makes sense.

What comes to your mind when you think of “perfect love”? Romantic gestures? Spontaneous, passionate feeling? Ease and simplicity? Love, Jesus shows us, is revealed not most clearly in the flowery and easy, but in scrubbing smelly feet. The sermon next week will turn to how we are to do this to one another, so I will make this application very brief in passing, but: The point of this story is to show us what perfect love is—and it looks inconvenient, uncomfortable, humiliating, even.

“Washing feet” is a popular metaphor that gets thrown around to refer to a kind of honorable humility and service. But have you ever actually washed people’s feet before? Or have you ever had someone wash your feet? It is extremely uncomfortable. In Dostoevsky, The Brother’s Karamazov, he speaks about how it is easy to imagine heroic gestures of love and sacrifice for humanity in general, but actually sacrificing for a real individual is miserable.

“The more I love humanity in general the less I love man in particular. In my dreams, I often make plans for the service of humanity, and perhaps I might actually face crucifixion if it were suddenly necessary. Yet I am incapable of living in the same room with anyone for two days together. I know from experience. As soon as anyone is near me, his personality disturbs me and restricts my freedom. In twenty-four hours I begin to hate the best of men: one because he’s too long over his dinner, another because he has a cold and keeps on blowing his nose. I become hostile to people the moment they come close to me.”

Jesus doesn’t offer us theoretical love that loves the idea of humanity. He loves us as individuals. And comes to the particularsOne of the benefits of church membership is it requires us to love individuals. It is easy to say you believe in forgiving one another, in loving your neighbor, in opening your home to brothers and sisters in Christ. It is another thing to have concrete, specific people that you vow to undertake that with: real feet that must be washed.

How Love Leads

During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4 rose from supper He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet.…- John 13:2-5

Obviously, Jesus exhibits the paragon of service, lowliness, and humility by washing feet. If you have any familiarity with the life of Jesus and you have to think of an example of His humility, you likely will think of this scene.

Yet, what has struck me this week as I have studied is how John emphasizes Jesus’ power and kingly authority as well. When Peter protests that he will not let Jesus wash his feet, Jesus does not acquiesce or say, “If you are uncomfortable with this, you totally don’t have to.” No, He says, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me,” (John 13:8). Afterwards, Jesus says, “You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am,” (John 13:13). Authority isn’t something to be ashamed of. Jesus was not bashful about His status, no false-humility or performative modesty, nor did He frame His teachings as suggestions that could be taken with a grain of salt, or end with a “…I don’t know, that’s just my opinion.”

John’s own interpretive preamble to this whole event underlines just how extensive Jesus’ authority is: “Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God,” (John 13:3). This is surprising especially when this verse was first introduced with the identification that satan and Judas are working in tandem to betray Jesus (vs. 2).

With such power and status at his disposal, we might have expected him to defeat the devil in an immediate and flashy confrontation, and to devastate Judas with an unstoppable blast of divine wrath. Instead, he washes his disciples’ feet, including the feet of the betrayer. - Carson, PNTC

That’s surprising.

Why is He doing this?

Jesus is demonstrating to His disciples how love uses authority. John isn’t showing us what Jesus is doing despite His authority, but because of it. Because all things have been put in His hand and He is returning to the Father…He stoops down to wash feet. How does that demonstrate authority?

The surprise of the disciples at Jesus’ act reveals to us that this is not something that Jesus normally did. The true meaning of this act is to signify more than just Jesus’ humility. When Peter asks him what He is doing, Jesus replies: “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand,” (John 13:7). We will come back to this in our last point, but this act is intended to symbolize something unique that only Jesus can do. But this act reveals true authority because it reveals the (1) needs of the disciples and (2) the responsibility of Jesus. Real authority is used to bless and serve those under the authority for their highest good. And when the needs of those being led and the responsibility of the leader come together, sometimes that means that the leader is required to go to low, humbling places…like washing feet.

Authority is a good thing. Our world needs good coaches, bosses, parents who use their authority to bless those they lead. Good authority is power in service of others for their good. Bad authority is power in service of self. You can pick that up in another one of Jesus’ famous teachings from the gospel of Luke:

And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. 26 But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. 27 For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves. - Luke 22:25-27

The world understands power and authority to function as a way to solidify your social standing. Why should you become a figure of authority, according to the world? So that your corner office and company car telegraph to everyone else that you are a big deal. So that you don’t have to play by the rules that limit lesser men.

But “leadership” that operates that way…that balks at the idea of washing feet…is not real authority.

It is possible to have something that looks like power and authority, when really it is just insecurity—you fear your weakness or what others may think, so you puff out your chest and swagger, you overcompensate and refuse to think about what would actually help other people. And you certainly avoid doing anything might put you in a position to be looked down upon.

But, it is possible to have something that looks like humility, when really it is the same insecurity—you are weak and the safest way for you to get through the world is to keep your head down, to not make decisions, to defer to others, to avoid responsibility because you are just afraid of owning a decision. But that’s not real humility—you are just thinking about yourself.

There is a common misunderstanding about what Christian leadership should look like, either understanding it as an extreme of authority with no humility, or humility with no authority. This is seen often in how men approach their authority as a husband. They can assume that their role as a “head” means an extreme authority which involves a brittle power that is just a cloak for insecurity—which is why this kind of brittle machismo cannot listen to his wife when she disagrees with him or will refuse to do some household task or childcare responsibility that they believe are beneath them. Nowhere in the Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 5 is a husband commanded to make his wife submit to him. Instead, he is commanded to lay down his life for his bride and to wash her with the water of the word—to serve like our Lord does as He washes His disciples’ feet.

Or they can swing the opposite way and assume that servant-hearted leadership means never leading, but only responding…out of fear of looking like a bully. True humility is not two people holding their plates, saying, “After you….no, after you….No, I insist, after you” at the potluck line, for all eternity. In marriage, this can look like a man who defines leadership simply by forcing his wife to make all of the decisions—which really is just an escape hatch from responsibility. Adam was not exercising humble authority when he listened to his wife and ate the fruit, he was being passive. And we know that was his heart because as soon as God seeks him out and holds him accountable, what does he say? “It was the woman you gave me!” (Gen 3:12) That is not servant-hearted leadership. That is, “I don’t want to do the hard work of having to own a decision, and if I just default to her, I don’t have to think too much and if it goes bad, I can just say, ‘This wasn’t my idea, I did this for you.’”

Jesus, here, shows us that true humility does not come at the expense of real authority and power, nor does real authority come at the price of true humility. Jesus’ authority is used in service of His love for His disciples. Because His authority is used in service of His love for His disciples, when love requires lowly, humble service, He is willing to go—not because He forsakes authority, but precisely because He has it. That’s what all real authority is intended to look like.

How Love Cleans

Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” - John 13:8-11

Jesus’ foot washing means more than it seems. Peter must submit to the footwashing because it represents something more than footwashing. It represents being united with Christ. Yet, Jesus doesn’t permit Peter to overcompensate and have a full bath. In some sense, His disciples have already been “bathed” and only need their feet to be cleansed, and they will be completely clean. Yet, not all of them are clean. Judas is not.

• “Bathed” refers to election—those who are drawn in by the Father, whom Jesus chooses
• I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. - John 13:18
• Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. - John 15:3

The washing of the disciples’ feet is intended to represent the cleansing from sin His death on the cross provides.

John tells us that Jesus came from the Father, has come down, and is returning to where He came from back in vs. 3. Then, as a kind of acted out parable of that, Jesus leaves his place at the dinner table, sets aside his outer clothes and puts on the clothes of a servant and stoops down to the lowly place to cleanse his disciples, and then afterwards, “When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you?” - John 13:12

Of course they don’t. Jesus told them they wouldn’t understand until “afterwards”…after what? After His death!

What does this show us?

The Love of God cleanses us. Jesus stoops down to the foul, the embarrassing, the part of you that is ugly…and He cleanses it.

the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. - 1 John 1:7

3 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.- Heb 9:13-14

Jesus dying to cleanse me of my sin helps transform “Jesus Loves me” from an abstraction to something with feeling, depth, height, breadth…something that we need the very power of God to comprehend.