SERMON: DIRTY FEET

24 June 2012

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to John 13

John 13:1-11 (NIV)
1 It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
2 The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.
3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;
4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?"
7 Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
8 "No," said Peter, "you shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me."
9 "Then, Lord," Simon Peter replied, "not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!"
10 Jesus answered, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you."
11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

-- I don't know if you've noticed it lately, but there are a lot of people walking around today with dirty feet -- every where I go, I see people with dirty feet -- do you remember that Bruce Willis movie, "The Sixth Sense," where the little boy keeps saying that he sees dead people every where he looks -- I guess that's kind of the way I am, except I don't see dead people -- I see people with dirty feet
-- this week when I was out of the trail, I saw a lot of dirty people and a lot of dirty feet -- but it's not just there -- I was out at the mall the other day and there was this well-dressed man -- he was wearing a suit and tie and looked really well put together but I looked down and his feet were as dirty as all get out
-- and then I went over to another store and saw the same thing -- every where I looked, I saw people walking around with dirty feet -- a lot of them were completely dirty -- from their head down to their feet -- but you would be surprised at the number of people there who had taken the time to clean and wash their body but were still walking around with dirty feet
-- have you noticed this, too, or is it just me? -- I've always been a detailed-oriented person -- or, as Kim puts it, I'm obsessed with details -- and maybe that's why I notice all these dirty feet passing me by -- but regardless, it bothers me -- and I felt like I needed to say something about it this morning

II. Dirty Feet (John 13:1-11)
-- you know, when you look at this passage in John, you can see Jesus was bothered by dirty feet, too -- let's look at this passage again together

-- if you would, look back at verse 1

John 13:1 (NIV)
1 It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

-- this story from John about dirty feet takes place in the upper room of a house in Jerusalem on a Thursday night just before the Passover as Jesus and His disciples have gathered together to break bread and share a meal
-- this was something that they had surely done many times over the past three years -- but unlike most of the other meals these men shared in their time together, this was a formal celebration of the Passover -- and, as Jews, they were bound by tradition and culture and religion to follow certain guidelines and precepts that night -- as the leader of the group, Jesus was the host of the meal they were having there in the upper room that night and it was His responsibility to lead the religious service -- to impart religious meaning into the gathering -- and to follow the time-honored traditions of their forefathers as they shared this meal commemorating the mighty works of God on behalf of the Jews
-- but something else was different about this night -- Jesus knew that He was about to leave -- He knew His time on earth was short -- He knew that He was about to be betrayed into the hands of the chief priests and that He was going to die and leave these men alone
-- but instead of rushing around and trying to heal as many people as He could -- instead of running from place to place preaching and teaching and shouting, "The end is near" -- Jesus spent these last few hours with His disciples -- with His friends -- because He loved them
-- and now, John says, Jesus was going to show them the full extent of His love -- you know, when we read those words, we tend to jump ahead to the end of the story -- we immediately think of the crucifixion and the resurrection of Christ -- but that's not the context of this passage
-- John says here that Jesus was "now" going to show them the full extent of His love -- not tomorrow on the cross -- not Sunday at the resurrection -- but "Now" -- right now, at this moment, in the upper room, Jesus was going to do something that was going to show His disciples the "full" extent of His love -- He was going to show them just how much He loved them

-- verse 2

2 The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.
3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;
4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

-- I'm sure most everyone in here has heard someone preach or teach on this passage in the past -- you probably all are well aware that in first century Jerusalem, people's feet got dirty -- they didn't have a lot of paved roads -- they had a few, but not a lot, and even those stayed dirty and muddy -- and because they tended to walk from place to place, over the course of a day, their feet got dirty
-- and this is important to know because when first century Jews gathered to eat, they didn't gather around a table like we do -- this meal that John is telling us about isn't like the painting of the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci where Jesus and His disciples were all sitting at a tall table on chairs sharing their meal -- that's just not the way Jewish people in this day shared a meal
-- they would set the food on the floor or on a very short table -- kind of like a very short coffee table -- and then they would sit on cushions around the food -- lounging around and leaning on each other as they ate
-- now would you want someone putting their dirty feet right next to your food? -- no, of course not -- so it was the custom in that area for people to wash their feet when they first entered a house or a tent, especially if they were going in to eat a meal
-- the host would provide the water and if it was a poor household, then the guests would wash their own feet -- if it was a rich household, the host would usually have a slave wash the feet of his guests -- this was the custom -- this is what normal people did

-- and that's what makes this passage so interesting to me -- we read in these verses that Jesus got up, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around Himself -- and took a basin of water and went around the room, washing the feet of His disciples
-- this is clearly the act that John was referring to when he said that Jesus was now going to show His disciples the full extent of His love
-- but why was this act of Jesus so extraordinary? -- this was normal -- this was the custom -- making sure the feet of His guests were washed would have been Jesus' responsibility as the host of the meal -- if any thing, the only thing really remarkable was that Jesus did it, but was that enough for John to have said that in doing so Jesus was showing the full extent of His love?
-- I mean, this is Jesus -- you know Jesus was constantly doing things for His disciples -- I bet when they were sitting around the campfire, Jesus was the one who got up and got water for everyone to drink -- I bet when they were sharing a meal, Jesus was the one who made sure that everyone had food -- it was His nature -- He came to serve -- and I bet that He served His disciples in hundreds of different little ways every day -- so, why did this -- this normal act -- this normal custom -- stand out so in the mind of John?

-- I've heard better preachers and teachers than me say that Jesus washed the feet of His disciples to show them humility -- to take away their pride -- to remind them that they were to be servants just like Him -- and there probably is some truth in that
-- we all know that the disciples sometimes didn't get along -- they were constantly bickering and complaining and jockeying for position -- every one of them wanted to be Jesus' second-in-command -- every one of them wanted to be His right-hand-man -- Peter certainly did -- and James and John even had their mother go to Jesus and ask Him to give them the highest positions
-- so, a lot of teachers tell you that Jesus did this to show them what it meant to be a servant -- but, I think there's more going on here than just that

-- as I said, it was customary for Jews to wash their feet when they entered a home, especially when they came for a meal -- it was expected -- it was what nice, polite people did -- and I would be highly surprised if these men hadn't already done that before they sat down to eat
-- by and large, the disciples weren't rich men -- they weren't used to having slaves wash their feet for them -- and I really don't agree with the teachers who tell you that the disciples had gotten so prideful that they just sat there with dirty feet that night waiting for someone else to wash their feet -- I just don't buy that -- it doesn't sound right
-- if I had to guess, based on what I know of Jewish culture and customs at that time and because the Bible doesn't tell us here -- I would guess that when the disciples went up to that Upper Room to have this meal with Jesus, every one of them stopped and washed their feet before they ate -- just as a habit -- just as something they were used to doing -- just like we wash our hands before we eat as a habit, they did the same with washing their feet
-- so, if that's right, then they were sitting there at the meal with Jesus with clean feet -- the meal had already begun -- but John said that Jesus got up and got a towel and a basin of water and started washing their feet again
-- you see, I think Jesus looked around that table at His disciples and He saw dirty feet -- not physically dirty -- but spiritually dirty -- and because He loved them so much, He couldn't let them go on living with dirty feet -- and so He got up and washed them Himself

-- verse 6

6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?"
7 Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
8 "No," said Peter, "you shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me."
9 "Then, Lord," Simon Peter replied, "not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!"
10 Jesus answered, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you."
11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

-- when Jesus got to Peter, Peter, of course, was aghast at the idea that Jesus would wash His feet -- in verse 6 Peter asked, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" and Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
-- I think Jesus' words here give us an indication that something more is going on than Him just washing their feet to show them they should serve others in the same way -- this was a pretty good object lesson -- I think even the most dense of the disciples would have understood Jesus' point in assuming the role of a slave here and washing their feet -- I think they realized the obvious lesson that He was teaching here
-- Jesus had rebuked them time and time again and told them to stop seeking the higher place -- that if they wanted to be exalted in His kingdom, then they had to serve their brothers -- so, I think they would gotten the message pretty quick -- but Jesus says here, "You don't really understand what's going on now, but later you will -- once you've had some time to think about it, you'll understand" -- that's why I think there's something more going on
-- well, Peter, of course, goes from one extreme to the other -- when Jesus went to wash his feet, Peter said, "No way -- I'm not letting you do that for me" -- but when Jesus said, "If I don't wash your feet, you can have no part with me" -- Peter exclaims, "Then not just my feet, but my hands and my head, as well" -- once again, Peter goes overboard -- he goes all out

-- but, here's what I want you see -- look at Jesus' response in verse 10

10 Jesus answered, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you."

-- "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean"
-- now it's obvious that Jesus is talking about more than just physical cleanliness here -- it's painfully obvious -- and that's why this passage is about more than just demonstrating a servant attitude to His disciples
-- this response by Jesus points to the reasons that He came in the first place -- when you think about it, Jesus came for two purposes
-- first, He came to give us a bath -- He came to cleanse us of our unrighteousness -- of our accumulated sins -- that's why He went to the cross -- that's why He shed His blood for us -- so that if we believed in Him and put our trust and faith in Him, we would be forgiven of all our sins
-- we have had a bath and have been washed clean when we are justified through the death of Christ on the cross
-- most of the men in that upper room that night believed and trusted in Jesus -- they may not have fully understood who He was, but they believed in Him and knew that He was the path to righteousness -- and so Jesus calls them "clean" in this passage -- but, still, He washed their feet -- which brings us to the second reason Jesus came

-- Jesus came not only to justify us and forgive us from our sins, but to sanctify us and make us holy -- He came so that we might have life and have it to the full -- to put it another way, Jesus didn't come just to make provision to cover our sins when we fail and fall -- He came to make it so that we wouldn't fail and fall anymore -- He came to make us more like Him -- to help us walk in holiness and righteousness and obedience rather than in the way we used to walk
-- Jesus' death on the cross affected our capacity to sin -- it delivered us from the power of sin in our lives -- it broke the chains of sin and made it possible for us to live holy lives as His people
-- this is what Jesus is trying to show Peter and the others by washing their feet -- Jesus said, "You don't need another bath -- you're already clean -- your sins are gone because you believed in faith in Me -- but, your feet are still getting dirty because you're still walking through this world -- and that's why I'm having to wash them for you now"

-- Jesus is still washing our feet today -- that's how He shows us the full extent of His love everyday -- that's why He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us and to fill our hearts -- He knew that even Christians -- even people who have had a bath -- were going to get dirty feet -- and, so, He offers to wash our feet every day
-- we call this act of washing our feet, "Sanctification" -- we call it "becoming holy" -- it is the power of Christ in our lives, changing us and transforming us from the inside out
-- the cross is not the end of Christianity -- it is only the beginning of a new walk with Jesus -- it is the start of a journey to holiness -- to clean feet -- to clean lives

III. Closing
-- “A large group of European pastors came to one of D. L. Moody’s Northfield Bible Conferences in Massachusetts in the late 1800s. -- Following the European custom of the time, each guest put his shoes outside his room to be cleaned by the hall servants overnight. -- But of course this was America and there were no hall servants.
-- “Walking the dormitory halls that night, Moody saw the shoes and determined not to embarrass his brothers. -- He mentioned the need to some ministerial students who were there, but met with only silence or pious excuses. -- Moody returned to the dorm, gathered up the shoes, and, alone in his room, the world’s only famous evangelist began to clean and polish the shoes. -- Only the unexpected arrival of a friend in the midst of the work revealed the secret.
-- “When the foreign visitors opened their doors the next morning, their shoes were shined. --They never know by whom. -- Moody told no one, but his friend told a few people, and during the rest of the conference, different men volunteered to shine the shoes in secret.-- Perhaps the episode is a vital insight into why God used D. L. Moody as He did. -- He was a man with a servant’s heart and that was the basis of his true greatness”
(Gary Inrig, A Call to Excellence, (Victor Books, a division of SP Publishing, Wheaton, Ill; 1985), p. 98).

-- as I pointed out in my introduction, I look around and I see people with dirty feet everywhere -- even in the church -- especially in the church -- the question is "what do we do about it?"
-- we expect the world to have dirty feet because their whole bodies are dirty -- they've never been washed clean of their sins in the first place -- but it shouldn't be like that for Christians
-- Christians are clean -- we've been washed in the blood of the Lamb and our sins have been forgiven -- but there's still a lot of dirty feet tucked under church pews every Sunday morning -- and someone needs to clean them

-- over the next few weeks, we're going to be looking at a series on pursuing holiness in our lives because I'm worried about our dirty feet -- I'm worried about my dirty feet -- and I'm worried about your dirty feet -- and I'm worried about the church's dirty feet
-- I want us to spend some time with Jesus over the next little while learning what it means to have Him wash our feet on a daily basis and learning how to wash the feet of those around us -- just like Jesus did with us and His disciples and D.L. Moody did with the shoes of the visiting pastors
-- I want us to start a campaign against dirty feet -- I want us to start a campaign for holiness in the church -- will you join me in this campaign? -- will you wash each other's feet?
-- let us pray