I like it whenever Peter
appears in a New Testament story. He’s going to do something. He’s going to say something. He will not be content to
remain a passive spectator.
Peter is the one who acts
in the scripture reading this evening. You see, this was a shocking situation.
Not the dirty feet themselves. They
were very common in the ancient world. You walked either barefoot or in sandals,
and the roads were dirty. But you left out basins so people could wash their
own feet, or you had slaves wash their feet if you were rich. It was a menial
chore.
The apostles must have been
shocked at that dinner, the night before the terrible morning of the trial. What was Jesus doing? He was their Lord. He should not have been washing their feet!
But no one wanted to say
anything for fear of looking foolish or getting scolded…except for Peter.
“What are you doing?”
asked Peter.
Jesus answered, “What
I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.” That would have been good enough for most of us. Not Peter.
“You’ll never
wash my feet,” he said.
That meant Jesus had to answer,
“If I don’t wash your feet you are not one of mine.”
For Peter there was no halfway.
“Fine, if you say so. Wash my hands and my head also.”
Jesus then referred to a
common custom of His time. “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean.
And you are clean, though not all of you,” He said. In the ancient world
a person would bathe before setting off to visit a friend. When he arrived at
his destination, he was still clean, except for the feet. Those needed to be washed again.
Early Christians interpreted
this verse to mean that baptized Christians did not need to be baptized again and again for the forgiveness of sin. Their baptism covered their sins. But
what were they to do about the sins they still committed? Did Christians need
to lead a totally blameless life? But who could do such a thing?
Foot washing was a symbol
of the continuing forgiveness that God offers, a reminder of our hope that even in our frailty God’s strength is revealed.
Foot washing was practiced
in the early church through the first four centuries at least. As we approach
the foot washing, we will say together a prayer of Ambrose, one of the Saints of the early Church. In our day several churches are rediscovering foot washing as they attempt to be faithful to the commands
of Jesus.
So we tonight gather to wash
feet. Jesus said that if one wishes to lead, that person must serve. To humble
ourselves before others, to serve, and then to be served, are equally difficult tasks. By
doing as Christ commanded we are becoming faithful servants. Jesus teaches
us that before we can lead, we must be broken, we must be humbled, we must offer ourselves in service.
I’m not sure if foot
washing is any less or more undignified in our culture than it was in that of the First Century. But I do realize that it
challenges our dignity when we stoop to wash each other’s feet.
I’ve invited a few
people to participate in this service. They will come and wash each other’s
feet. It’s an open invitation. If
others want to be a part of it, then feel free to take a bowl and towel and find another you can serve.
There is absolutely no compulsion.
This is an uncomfortable and invasive procedure. And
somehow re-enacting the bible passage gets the message across in a way that simply reading the account can never do.
As I stress, feel no compulsion
to take part. If this is something you feel you would gain more from by partaking
than observing, then you are welcome to do so. Likewise if you wish to observe,
to meditate upon the meaning, and think about what it means to humble ourselves in the service of others… that is equally
valid.
Following the foot washing
we will sing our closing hymn. Both Matthew and Mark tell us that their final meeting in the upper room concluded like this:
“When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” So, Jesus began His walk to betrayal and death.
As
a symbol of what happened after the foot washing we shall remove from the church signs of our faith, and drape the cross in
a dark cloth. You are asked to remain in silence as we do so… and only
then depart.
