Thursday, April 14, 2022
The Rev. Rob Stevens
Maundy Thursday
After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?”
It is as if Jesus pauses and asks his friends, “did you get it?” Was that clear? Well, unfortunately I think they did not get it and I think it is about as clear as mud to us.
What I found striking as I listened to and read this passage about Jesus washing his friends feet is that he had been doing it from the beginning. Jesus’ entire ministry strategy was one of servanthood. And this act of washing their feet was but another example. He fed them when they were hungry, calmed storms, healed their friends, the list goes on. Jesus was a servant from the beginning. And now he is reminding us again to go and do likewise.
So off we go and we serve…or do we? What are we really doing? Do we get it?
What does washing each others feet look like? When we think we are serving are we serving others or are we simply imposing our will or understanding of what is right upon them? Jesus served without expectation. Jesus washed Judas’ feet knowing that Judas would betray him. I think this is where we tend to get stuck. Serving others without expectation is so difficult. Jesus was rarely concerned with the outcome. Jesus did not say to Judas, “I’ll wash your feet if.” Jesus was not product driven, but honored the process that God put before him. Jesus simply served others, over and over again.
What does this look like for us.
Consider our world.
A pandemic. A war in Ukraine. What would washing the feet of those who differ from us look like? Could we suspend our need to impose our will long enough to simply wash their feet and let it be? Or do we have too much to lose? And what would we lose? Our security? I encourage you to listen this week if the Gospel has anything to say on the issue of security. Christ was killed, Lose your life to find it, etc. Security is an interesting issue for Christians, is it not?
As we move a little closer to home what does it look like. What about the poor in our midst? How might we wash their feet? Are we able to give without expectation or do we need to see results? What if the man uses our money for booze instead of bus fare? What if the attempt to serve falls flat? The question, “what if” sure takes the pressure off God and puts it on us. Jesus urges us to serve. Not to worry over whether it is effective or not. This is so difficult for those of us who have been taught not to waste time, and to be efficient and effective at all costs. God’s way may not be our way. Are we willing to hear that?
And still closer to home. Those of us who are parents, how do we wash the feet of our children. Are we willing to serve our children by providing an environment where they can become what God has called them to be. Or are we so wedded to our idea of what they should become that our will becomes the only acceptable option? Do you notice that as we move from the global issues of service to the local issues it gets a little more uncomfortable? I do. I look at Hannah and Jack and wonder if I will have the courage to admit that they do not belong to me in the end, they belong to God, and my job is not to form them into my image of a good person, but to serve them and invite them to serve others so that they might discover God on God’s terms instead of on mine. Thus, God is freed to do the forming. And I too am freed to be a Dad.
And still closer to home…How might we serve ourselves, wash our own feet?
This is perhaps the toughest. We, like Judas, struggle to receive grace. We, like Peter, deny Christ in our midst. We, like Pilate, wash our hands and turn away from God. Jesus stands before us all with a towel and a bowl of water waiting to wash our feet. We, like Peter, say “me? Never.” Our pride often stands in the way, our arrogance masked as humility, “Not me I’m not worthy” we say with our lips, while in our hearts we say “not me I don’t need to be served.” And yet, in spite of our protests and excuses Jesus remains constant with towel and bowl in hand and says, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” May we embrace this invitation and have the courage to be served and to serve others.