Day 13 ~ John 13

SCRIPTURE ~ John 13
KEY VERSE ~ John 13:14Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. 15I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.

OBSERVATION ~ John goes right from the Jews unbelief and desire to kill Jesus and Lazarus in chapter 12 to the Passover and foot washing. It was an expectation that when you went into someones home they would give you something to wash your hands or your feet; or if they were wealthy a servant would wash your feet. Here Jesus is acting as the servant, doing what nobody would ever expect the Messiah to do, get on His knees and wash the feet of another person. We should be doing that for Him, not He for us. Yet that is the example He sets before us. Along with it is the command 'to do as He has done.' That command is one of the cornerstones of our faith, yet we often don't get it. Along with it is another command from this passage 'love one another.' Sometimes it is not easy to love others. Let's not be pious, let's admit the difficulty and move to finding the remedy, which of course is always Jesus.

APPLICATION ~ So, how do we / I apply what Jesus commands? What was His example, other than to go into the world and love the unlovable, to challenge the status quo, to seek to be a difference maker. He was GOD! He had the power and ability to do anything He wanted, all resources were at His disposal, yet He did not act 'willy-nilly' about anything He did. Jesus strategized His moves. He loved, He served, He cared. And He did it to those who were the rejects of society. Those were the ones who knew they needed something more. After all, the Pharisees had the law and their arrogance, so they felt they didn't need anything else. God's call is to go into the world and love others, to do as He did, give your love to someone who needs and wants to be loved. Break down the walls and barriers which separate us.

Prayer ~ Lord, it is not easy to love. Sometimes we want to be loved and be the recipients of the gifts. But for me to grow, I need to extend myself into the world and give away Your love which You continually pour into my heart. Remove any arrogance, remove moments where trust decreases and help me to rely on Your grace and love to lead me. Amen.