I have given you an example

Before the Lord Jesus began His final teachings to His disciples He left them an example that they would never forget. On the surface it was an act of lowliness and humility that would remind them of the One who came not to be ministered unto but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many. Beneath the surface of course lay a deeper spiritual lesson that the disciples would need to learn if they were to make progress in God’s school of holiness.

In case there was any wonder in their minds why the Lord Jesus was going to leave these men behind, John reminds us that it wasn’t because He had lost hope in them, or grown discouraged with their lack of progress. He still loved them and He would love them unto the end, v. 1. In a world where love is so flippantly spoken of, He demonstrated it, not only in His willingness to take the servant’s place and wash their feet, but also in His willingness to lay down His life for them.

In the parabolic act of the feet washing the Lord Jesus was showing His disciples that in order for them to live lives that would be pleasing to God there was a need for a two-fold washing. The first washing was a once-and-for-all bathing all over. This symbolized what would later be called by Paul the ‘washing of regeneration’ and is effected by the Holy Spirit, the moment we are saved. This new birth places within us the desire and power to live a life of holiness through the indwelling Holy Spirit. In the second, the Lord Jesus spoke of a need for perpetual rinsing of the hands and the feet. This symbolized the ongoing need for the washing of the word of God. As we read the word of God, it acts as a mirror, which highlights our defilement, and causes us to acknowledge our sin before God and seek His forgiveness.

The Lord Jesus made it clear that not all the men sitting around the table were ‘clean’. As the deliberations continued Judas revealed his true character in betraying the Lord, and fittingly left the room to go out into the night. It is a stark reminder of what worldliness is. At its core, it is to live as though this world is everything and that the eternal doesn’t matter. He lost what was eternal in order to gain a few pieces of silver.