John 13:12-20 (ESV)

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. ¹⁴ If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. ¹⁵ For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. ¹⁶ Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷ If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. ¹⁸ I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ ¹⁹ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. ²⁰ Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”

After Jesus and his disciples ate together, he took on a role fit for the lowest of slaves, removing his garments and putting on the attire of a servant. Then he washed his disciples’ feet. After he was done, he got up and redressed in the clothes he wore at the dinner and asked them if they understood what he had just done. He explained that because they rightly called him their teacher and their Lord, they should follow in his footsteps and do the same. He called them to wash one another’s feet. As he humbled himself before them, taking on the lowest role, looking to their interests rather than his own, he called them to do the same. Does this mean we should gather together, take out buckets of water, and wash each other’s feet? Not really. For one thing, in our culture we don’t commonly walk long dirt roads wearing sandals without socks.  . Jesus didn’t establish foot washing as an ordinance, like Baptism or Communion. Instead, he addressed the need for Christians to prefer one another and look out for each other’s needs. This is an issue of the heart, which should drive our actions. Jesus explained that those who live this way will be blessed.

Because Jesus is our Lord and our King, we need to do as he asked. And what a wonderful Lord and King he is! Not only does he ask from us, but he also models what our behavior should look like. He isn’t a leader who demands what he would never be found doing. In fact, the opposite is true. Because of his love for us, he humbled himself and went all the way to death, even a slave’s death, on a cross. As Jesus looks out for us, he commands us to look out for our fellow believers. What does your sister in Christ need today? What would benefit her as she walks through the roads of life and comes home with dusty feet? Think about a practical way you can honestly meet a legitimate need of another Christian woman, and “wash her feet” today. When you put on the garment of a servant, you will be doing exactly what Jesus called you to.