John’s snapshot of that last night is so different than the other gospels. John leaves out the transformation of the Passover meal into Communion. Instead he call to servanthood and love. What a powerful portrait and a wonderful compliment to that of the other gospels.
The details shared about the footwashing are particularly striking for me. Listen as John paints the scene (2-5):
The evening meal was being served… . Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 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.
It is that second sentence that struck me. Knowing His position with the Father and that His future with the Father was secure, Jesus got up and began to wash feet. Maybe it is just me but that thought seems so telling. Jesus had the wherewithal and the strength to serve because He was secure in His Father’s relationship and the assurance of His future.
True servanthood, this suggests to me, is a sign of strength and assurance of position with the Father. If/when I am truly assured of my position in Christ, being a co-heir with Jesus, a child of God, and seated with Jesus in the heavenlies (Rom 8, Eph 2), then I will be able to lay aside my fears and myself and serve others humbly like Jesus did His disciples.
O, Lord, help me to grasp who I am in Christ. To understand in the depth of my being how much You love me, how You have adopted me and grafted me into Your family, how I bear Your name Father and all that goes with that. Help me, Lord, to grasp all of this so that I might be free to serve, truly serve, others in Your name…
O, God, may my daily encounter and walk with You be so real that it dominates my life, frees me from personal striving, personal needs of success, power, position, and the like. O, God, may my knowing You and Your love, grace and mercy set me free to live with the attitude of Jesus, who became a servant serving unto his death (Phil 2). May it be so in my life, O Lord, may it be so… amen.
highlights Jesus’ footwashing,
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