Lenten Devotional Day Thirty-Eight
As an adult have you ever had anyone wash your feet? Other than getting a pedicure, I have not. Isn’t it interesting that foot washing was one of Jesus’ last acts before being arrested? An act of humble service which was not performed based on any merit. And yet somehow our culture has a hard time coming to grips with the simplicity of this truth.
Perhaps you’ve seen artistic or actual representations of foot washing. One viral artist has done a series of simple graphics. Donald Trump getting his feet washed by Jesus, Joe Biden getting his feet washed by Jesus. The series includes an alcoholic, a political activist, a child — in short, all comers. The reactions of the masses to this visualization it telling. Some find it to be a profound representation that Jesus came to save the world. (John 3:16). His offer is for anyone — no one is beyond His saving grace. Yet others find it to be a stumbling block. They consider some to be too wretched for Jesus to save.
I read one comment that expressed the idea that Jesus would only wash the feet of those who repent, but it certainly would appear that Jesus washed the feet of his betrayer, Judas. And we know He washed the feet of His denier, Peter.1 Yet there is a hardwiring in the human heart that wants to say, “I’m not as bad as that person. I am more deserving. I have no obligation to love them.”
I hope these lenten devotionals have consistently pointed to the fact that other people are not the standard. Jesus is the standard. We are all fall horribly short in every way. It is nonsense to defend ourselves by trying to point to someone who falls shorter. Who cares? If that is a hangup I am afraid we’ve missed the message of the cross entirely.
All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away. Isaiah 64:6
Digging Deeper:
Who in your life or in the world do you find yourself wishing Jesus would skip over for foot washing?
Do you sometimes slip into thinking other people are the standard? Why?
To clarify I am not saying all will be saved. The gate is narrow. What I am arguing is that the offer is for everyone. It is not extended only to those who are attempting to clean up their lives. The Five Solas is a beautiful summary.