13 8 Foot Washing or The Spirit That Must Govern in the Church Of Christ
8 Foot Washing or The Spirit That Must Govern in the Church Of Christ
8. Foot Washing or The Spirit That Must Govern in the Church Of Christ THE HISTORY OF FOOT WASHING For some reason Abraham and his descendants had the custom, on receiving others into their homes or society, of preparing for the guests’ feet to be washed. At first you cannot tell whether the guests washed their own feet or the host or some of his servants did the foot washing. Note the following instances: (1) In Genesis 18:1-4 you find Abraham, on receiving three angels into his tent or home, thinking they were men, provided for their feet to be washed. (2) Reading Genesis 19:1-2 you find Lot doing the same thing when his home was visited by two angels whom he thought to be men. (3) In Genesis 24:32 you find the servants of Abraham, whom he sent to the home of Bethuel to find a wife for his son Isaac, that Laban, the brother of Rebekah, provided for these servants’ feet to be washed. Read the verses above this reference for the connection. (4) When Joseph decided to make himself known to his brethren on their second trip to Egypt to buy corn and he instructed his servants to make ready for him to eat with these men at the noon hour, water was provided for their feet. See Genesis 43:24-25. So there you have the custom. God knew we would need to know that this was their custom and so we have it.
FOOT WASHING CAME TO BE REGARDED AS AN ACT THE LESSER COULD DO FOR THE GREATER, BUT IT WAS THOUGHT ALTOGETHER WRONG FOR THE GREATER TO WASH THE LESSER’S FEET
We now ask you to read 1 Samuel 25:34-41. After Nabal’s death, David desired to have Abigail, his widow, for a wife. But note the following words of Abigail, when David’s servants told her he had sent for her to become his wife: "And she arose, and bowed herself on her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let shine handmaid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord." You could hardly find words that express how little a soul could feel in comparison with another than indicated in these words. She did not feel that she could even wash David’s feet, but rather wash the servants’ feet who washed the feet of her lord.
The words of John the Baptist mean the same thing. Hear him: "And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; and preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose." Here John doubtless refers to servants stooping down and unlatching the shoes from others feet and washing them. John felt, as did Abigail, that Jesus was so much greater than he that he could not even do this.
Now when you come to the act of foot washing as engaged in by Jesus you find Peter saying: "Thou shalt never wash my feet!" (John 13:8). And why did Peter object? It was unthinkable when our Lord was here on earth for the greater to wash the feet of the lesser. Peter knew Jesus was greater than he, hence it would not do for Jesus to wash Peter’s feet. Do you see? This was foot washing’s position in the mind). of the people at that time.
THE APOSTLES’ MISCONCEPTION OF THE KIND OFKINGDOM CHRIST WAS TO ESTABLISH No sooner had Jesus told his disciples plainly and positively that he would build his church, establish that everlasting kingdom (see Matthew 16:18-19), than these men, selected to be apostles, began to ask the question: Which one is to be greatest in this kingdom?? Now we follow our Lord, in his three and a half years’ association with these men, trying to teach them all about the kingdom.
In Matthew 18:1-3 you have these disciples coming to Jesus and asking him who is to be greatest in the kingdom? Jesus tells them, the disciples, that unless they are converted and become as little children they will never get in. This conversion is not that of aliens, but rather the conversion of these apostles from an erroneous idea about the kingdom. They thought it would be an earthly kingdom, that there would be high places in it to fill, and they wanted one of the high places. This is evident.
In Matthew 20:20-28 you have the story of James and John, with their mother, coming to Jesus and trying to get from him the promise that, when the kingdom is established, one of these sons might sit on the right and the other on the left; that is, have the two highest positions in the kingdom. Read verse 24 and you see the other disciples had indignation against these two, and Jesus had to explain again that they had the nature of his kingdom all wrong.
But they still do not see, for one day when they were on their way to Capernaum, they contended about which one should be the greatest. Read Mark 9:33-35.
Does it not seem that these men should have seen this beyonda doubt, but they did not. God had foreordained that they had to be proven to be "holy and without blame" before they could be put into the apostolic office on the day of Pentecost. Ephesians 1:4 has reference to the apostles. These men could not be placed into the apostolic office until they were converted to the spirit of service that was to prevail in the church, that was to adorn the doctrine of the church of our Lord. These disciples thought it was to be an earthly kingdom with Christ as the head of it, but that he would have a cabinet or subordinate offices to fill, and they wanted one of these big places. We should be patient with people. These were good men, but they had an erroneous idea in their head, and it took Jesus three and a half years to correct it. In fact, he did not knock this erroneous idea out until he washed their feet.
THE NIGHT OF OUR LORDS BETRAYAL
You turn to Luke now and read chapter 22, verses 7 to 27. Note that the two disciples who went, according to Jesus’ instruction, and prepared for the Passover, had water, a basin, and a towel provided. In eating the passover, the law was that their bodies had to be clean. They took their bath before leaving home for the Passover, but for fear that some particle of dust, the decomposed part of even a dead insect, should have touched their feet, foot washing was provided for, and it should have been attended to before the supper began. Read verse 24 here in Luke 22 and the lecture he gave them when he recognized that there was still contention among them as to which was to be greatest.
Now we go toJohn 13:1-17where you have the foot washing scene. You should read this from your Revised Version. You will note in verse 2 the Revised Version says, "And during supper, " Jesus arose and moved about to wash the disciples’ feet. The King James Version says, "And supper being ended," but the idea is that it was ended until this first act was attended to. The rule was to wash their feet then begin the supper. It had to end with Jesus until this was done.
But think for a moment. Jesus had been trying to teach these men for three and a half years that there is no position in the kingdom he was to establish that exalts the holder above his fellows, but he had failed to get them to see it. He does what we call in logic as taking an admitted premise and arguing from it. All those men knew him to be greater than they—"the servant is not greater than his lord”—all of this they knew and admitted. Too, they knew he was Lord and greater than they, but they could not settle the question as to which one of them was to be greatest. Foot washing was an act the lesser could do for the greater, but never for the greater to do for the lesser. Jesus, knowing they knew him to be the greatest, arose from supper since they had neglected foot washing and began to do it himself. Peter objected, but Jesus told him that if he did not wash his feet he would have no part nor lot with him; that is, unless he could convert him from that foolish idea that there are positions in the church that makes the holder too good to serve, he would never go in as an apostle. Peter was quick to change when he knew he was wrong. After washing their feet, he resumed his place at the table and explained it. In reading this explanation in John 13, please read in its connection Luke 22:24-27. When Jesus said, "I am among you as he that serveth, ” he referred to the foot washing act in which he had just engaged. Note this in verse 27. This forever settled the question with those men. Foot washing was a part of the Feast of the Passover. You had as well. try to bring the Passover over and make it a part of the new covenant as to bring this foot washing. But the lesson is that, in the church of Christ, we must "by love serve one another." See it in Galatians 5:13. Do you find these men, after this, showing any desire to be one greater than another. See how well Peter got the lesson by reading Acts 10; Acts 25, 26. There is no place in the church of out. Lord that exalts the holder above his brethren and makes the brethren look up to him as their superior. This is why we know the Catholic Church is wrong. What about the pope? and presiding elders and bishops it other human organizations? This is the lesson of our Lord in foot washing. It is not an ordinance to be observed in the church like the Lord’s Supper. Absolutely not. The disciples of our Lord were never taught by the apostles after the church was established to have any such thing as foot washing in the church as an ordinance.
3. Foot washing’s place"Now, It is a home duty, and not a church ordinance. The following Scripture makes this as plain as day: "Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man. Well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints’ feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work." (See 1 Timothy 5:9-10). From this you can see foot washing is a home duty, placed side by side with bringing up children and lodging strangers. Who would say that lodging strangers is a church ordinance? If it were, then when someone wants to spend the night with us, we would have to call the elders of the church together before we could take them in. Who ever thought of bringing up children as a church ordinance? It is a home duty. But you ask: When should we, in our homes, wash the saints’ feet? Whenever their feet need it, and we can do it better than they can. It is classed with "good works." But these good works are for necessary uses. "And let ours also learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful." (See Titus 3:14). But it means more than the feet; it means to feed them, clothe them, and bathe their whole bodies, if it is a service they need and that we can do better than they can do for themselves. Read it in Matthew 25:31-40. The Lord bless the lesson to the good of those who read it, is my prayer.
WHERE TO KEEP YOURSELF A young man at college had, among pennants and mottoes, these words on a card hanging on the wall: "I am Willing to Be Third." His roommate wondered for a long time what it. could mean. Toward the close of the school year he took courage to ask what the motto meant. The answer was: "I received this motto from my mother. She said to me: ’If you ever expect to accomplish anything worth while you must make God, first, OTHERS second, and self third. "’ This was a consecrated man; in made God first. —From Christian Leader, July 28, 1925.