feet

Isaiah 52:7
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”

It seems as though people have always had “bucket lists.” In ancient times a man put together a list of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It was like a travel guide for the wealthy, of things needed to be seen before they died. Things have not changed much. People still have their wish lists of the sites they hope to see before they are too old to enjoy them. Of all the beautiful things we could see I don’t imagine anything more amazing than seeing a person who has come to our rescue. Imagine being abandoned on a remote island and seeing a Helicopter, or being held captive by an assailant and seeing the prison doors burst open and police have come or being under siege by an enemy and the cavalry has appeared. Of all the beautiful sites their are to see none can compare to seeing the one who has come to set us free.

Isaiah speaks of the beauty of one who will go forth with the message of hope for a lost world. The person who will risk their own comfort in order to bring the message of salvation to others. Think back to the one who shared Christ with you. How thankful are you that they were willing to risk relationship to bring you the message of Christ. Paul spoke of being in debt to the whole world because of what Christ had done for him. He felt the only way to pay the debt was to tell everyone he could about the salvation that was found in Jesus.

I think it is time we saw ourselves as those who have been given the key to rescue men and women from captivity. We need to be willing to take risks and bring the message of Christ to others. Once a person receives Christ they will see the beauty in the message we declare.

Jim

John 13:10
“He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean;…”

Living in Israel at the time of Christ, it was impossible to walk the streets of Jerusalem without getting dirty. Open-toed sandals in a desert climate made for dirty streets and dirty feet. One solution was the custom of foot washing. Whenever a guest entered a home, the host was responsible for ensuring that the feet of the guest were washed. When Jesus gathered with the disciples for the Passover meal, he took on the role of the host, and began to wash their feet. As expected, Peter had something to say about the actions of Jesus. First he resisted, to which Jesus explained,

“If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

In response, Peter replied,

“Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

To which Jesus said,

“He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean;…”

The washing of the disciples’ feet serves as a great example of serving one another, but it also illustrates something about the Christian walk. Just as it was impossible to walk the streets of Jerusalem and not get dirty feet, so it is impossible to live in our world and not get a little dirty. Even when we determine to live committed to Christ, we come into contact with things that defile us, and even trigger the desires of the flesh. It might happen sitting in a waiting room, glancing down at a magazine with a seductive photo on the cover; or in the break room at work, when someone decides to share a crude or off-color joke. One way or another, we get the mud of the world on us.

The solution is not to isolate ourselves completely from the world. After all, Jesus sent us into the world as witnesses of the resurrection. No, the solution is foot washing. I am not speaking of reinstating the custom of washing feet, but of what I believe it represents in our walk with God. Paul spoke to the Ephesians about “The washing of water by the Word of God” (Ephesians 5:26). God’s Word has a cleansing effect in our lives. When we get the muck of the world splattered on us, the solution is to sit down and let God’s Word wash it away. How refreshing it is to sit with our Bibles, and allow him to give our minds a cleansing.

Just as there is no better way to start the day than with God’s Word, there is also no better way to end the day.

Pastor Jim