Jesus is in the Upper Room with his disciples, preparing for the Passover Feast. As there is no servant to watch the guests feet, Jesus does the task himself. But Peter resists....
John 13: 8-9, No ... Yes!
“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
9 “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”
Peter is all-or-nothing. First he resists, then he throws himself fully into it. In neither case is he really submissive to Jesus' plans. Very human....
John 13: 10-11, One is unclean
Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.”
11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.
Jesus uses Peter's comments as a segue to point out that one of the disciples will betray him.
John 13: 12-17, I have set an example
When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.
13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.
14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.
15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.
16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Should we literally wash each others' feet? Is this is a "sacrament"? Or is this a more general symbol of humility and servanthood?
Jesus, in fact, here gives a straightforward lecture on the meaning of his actions. If he, their teacher and leader, washes their feet, then they should act the same way to each other. Jesus explicitly set as an example for his followers. At the end he provides a promise: "you will be blessed if you do them."
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