Sermon Maundy Thursday 2013

Sermon:

Text: John 13:1-35

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ who washes us clean.

            It is first communion tonight, and we had two baptism’s earlier. These two events are the two Sacraments of the Lutheran Church. A sacrament is something that is sacred, that connects with God. It is something that uses a physical element, Bread, Wine, Water, and gives to us God’s presence, love, forgiveness, and is something that Christ commands us to do, take and eat, drink of this all of you, go and baptize all nations.

            The footwashing scene we read here in fact does fulfill all of those slots, Water is used, a towel, and it confers cleansing and washing of sins, and Jesus commands the disciples to love each other here, but since it only shows up in John it has never become as grand as Holy Communion or Holy Baptism.

            This footwashing is not a new thing that Jesus just decides to do here. It was a common occurrence for people entering the temple area to undergo footwashing, usually they would wash themselves or if rich a servant would wash their feet for them.

            Jesus of course does flip it though and he says as such, “If I your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” It’s not the norm for the one in charge to stoop down to wash the servants feet.

            Jesus follows this act of footwashing with his commandment to love one another. Jesus connects the act of love to the act of service. Washing the disciples feet is an act of love by Jesus. His love for his disciples causes him to push through the current cultural boundaries that Lord’s shouldn’t wash servants feet.

            In the midst of the footwashing though we find Peter questioning Jesus. He holds back, telling Jesus, “You will never wash my feet.” Peter resists Jesus’ act of love. We don’t really know why, John does not say any reason. He could be holding to those cultural boundaries, wanting to exchange places with Jesus here. Maybe he’s embarrassed by the lowly form his master has placed himself in. Maybe he just cannot stand the reminder of the grace that is being given to him and how much he needs it. In any way, Jesus offers this gift of love and service, and Peter denies it.

            I think Peter actually echoes a large number of people. I think we find it hard to accept Christ’s love for us. We can grasp that we should love and serve each other, but grasping that Jesus loves and serves us? We want to praise Jesus as Lord and raise him up on a pedestal, all the while Jesus is attempting to kneel at our feet.

            One of the greatest problems of many Christians is the feeling that they are unworthy. We hear of people who say they can’t come to church because they aren’t a good enough person. They can’t come up for communion because they are too large of a sinner. They don’t deserve Christ’s love because they haven’t done anything worthwhile or they have done so much wrong that they can’t possibly be worthy of receiving that love.

            And so when Christ comes to wash, we say no. When Christ comes to cleanse us of all that stuff we find ourselves dwelling on, we say no, you can’t take it, that’s ours to deal with.

            It turns though. Peter finally hears Jesus and declare, well, don’t just wash my feet, but my head and hands as well. I think this follows how we react as well. Peter resists and then wants everything. Now, it’s not saying, you shouldn’t ask for all forgiveness, but Peter acts like someone scared that this offer of forgiveness is soon going to be removed forever.

            A favorite story of my parents is from when I was one or two. I had never had ice cream before and one day they got an ice cream cone and let me try a bit. I took a lick, and then when they started to pull the cone away, reached out and grabbed it and pulled it back in. We act like that, like forgiveness will only be here for a time.

            Christ’s forgiving cleansing is not for just a time, but always available, when we are dirty, Christ will wash. That is what we have to accept. That not only does Christ offer us forgiveness in our hurt and broken states, but continues to offer it, even when we immediately go out and fail once again. Christ washes the disciples feet knowing that they will get dirty again.

            In fact one of the disciple’s feet gets dirty again before our passage even finishes. Our lectionary excludes a passage from 18-30 which deals with Jesus and Judas confrontation and Judas’ leaving of the upper room to complete his betrayal of Jesus. But, this all happens after the footwashing. Jesus washes Judas’ feet. Jesus washes the betrayers feet.

            If Jesus washes the feet of the one who will initiate his death, how will Jesus not wash our feet?

            If Jesus loves Judas, how can Jesus not love us?

            No matter who we are, how far we feel we have fallen, how dark our world seems, Jesus kneels at our feet. Washes our feet. Loves us.

            And Jesus asks us to love each other in response. And that includes our own Judas’. The people who betray us, the people we may think don’t deserve that love. Who we would rather push aside. But because our love is Christ’ love which we are asked to reflect to the world we must reach out to them.

            And Christ’s love is the love that goes to the cross. The reason that the Jewish people wash their feet before entering the Temple grounds is because this is where they will offer their sacrifices. Jesus washes the disciples feet because he knows that soon he will be offering himself up for sacrifice. And Jesus’ sacrifice is not for those who are perfect and have no faults, it for us, we who sin and fail on a daily basis, we who trek through life, dirtying our feet more and more with every step.

            Christ on the cross, kneels at our feet, and gives himself up for us, taking all that stuff we carry and washes us clean.