At the last supper, Jesus washed his disciples feet. It was a supreme act of service that we would all do well to emulate. However, foot-washing as an act of service does not carry the connotations of what it did in Jesus’ day. So I’m wondering, what takes the place, if anything, of foot-washing?
Is it:
- Carrying in the neighbor’s groceries?
- Mowing someone’s lawn for free?
- Pumping gas in the rain for someone?
or something else?
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What takes the place of foot-washing?
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September 21st, 2006 at 2:56 pm
We just studied that chapter in our family small group time a couple of nights ago. The kids determined that the equivalent is cleaning up puppy poop. : )
July 12th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
David, I realize this is an old post, but I followed it from the Judas/Lord’s Supper post.
Though I see where you’re coming from, I’m not sure that I would agree that feet washing “does not carry the connotations of what it did in Jesus’ day.” I realize it is not part of our culture, and would be somewhat impractical and even seem “weird”. But I believe folks could/would still get the point.
I think the big lesson is humble servitude — we are servants and should express that in our lifestyle. Any of the three things that you mention would be part of a “servant lifestyle”, IMO. But I don’t think I would use the phrase “take the place of” in comparing these to feet washing. I think there is a certain “genius” to washing the feet of another that is missed in some acts of service we do (and should do). While I do not doubt that some hosts occasionally washed the feet of their guests, simple hospitality only required the host provide water for the guest to wash his own feet. Jesus went beyond the common practice of hospitality and became a servant in washing His disciples — a complete contradiction, condencension and humiliation considering who He was/is.
But, anyway, back to what I called the “genius” a person washing the feet of another. In actual practice this very often does not just cause “discomfort” to the one performing the act, but can also be very disconcerting to the one having his/her feet washed — so an act of “humiliation” in a sense for both parties. I can think of some times when I was uncomfortable being “served”, and if the person serving was uncomfortable as well, this might more closely approach the mutual feeling of the act of feet washing. Again, another post that doesn’t really answer your question, but perhaps a few thoughts that might be of some benefit.