Humble Acts: Washing Feet, Staying Grounded

While Jesus was on Earth, He spent His time preaching about God’s love to crowds of all sizes and performing all sorts of miracles such as calming storms. It was the time of year where the Passover festival was to be celebrated. The Passover Festival is a celebration that honors God for bringing His people out of Egypt. Jesus gathered His disciples and traveled to Jerusalem so they could attend the festival. Once they arrived, Jesus knew His time to return to the Lord was arriving. He arranged one last meal with His friends: the 12 disciples. At the table, Jesus stood up and removed His robe. He kneeled before His disciple and began to wash his feet. Jesus continued to do this until He arrived at Simon Peter, who asked Jesus if He was truly going to wash his feet. Peter believed Jesus was too good to wash anyone’s feet. Why should the Son of the Highest take on the role of a servant?

“Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”” John 13:7 NIV

Peter still didn’t understand the importance of Jesus washing His feet, but Jesus continued and washed all His disciples’ feet. Jesus explained to all His disciples that He set many examples for them to follow and this action of washing feet was one of them!

This beautiful story sets a myriad of examples for us and how to live our lives. Staying humble is one of the most important lessons we learn from this. In it, we see that Jesus kneels before His disciples and challenges the notion that power comes from control and dominance rather than uplifting and serving others. We must never place ourselves over anyone else or think ourselves better than others. Through this story, we seen that not even the Almighty placed Himself over anyone, so how could we? Not only did Jesus wash the feet of those who loved Him, but even of those who would betray- Judas. Jesus highlights that humility has no boundaries and doesn’t exclude anyone. Serving and loving others is very important, as it helps us live a life like Jesus did that fills us with love rather than envy. This can be applied to even the smallest aspects of life. Maybe you received a 100% on your math test, but your friend received a 73%. Will you choose to place yourself on a pedestal, or will you help them do better on the next one? We are not superior to ANYONE. You could be the wealthiest person on Earth and that doesn’t make you any better than the person who is living on the street. God doesn’t look at your status, your wealth, your achievements, or anything materialistic- He observes your heart. He observes your actions. Are you being a good person? Are you helping your neighbors and loving them?

Try putting this lesson into practice and helping someone out this week. Show the Lord and yourself that you place yourself above nobody, and you aren’t “too good” to serve someone else. Acts of kindness don’t have to be major- a simple smile or gesture can brighten up someone’s day in an instant. Next time you see a homeless person, you could buy them a meal or some cold drinks. You could even strike a conversation, getting to know them beyond their status. You could also give back to the community by donating clothes and toys to those in need, or even your time to a charitable activity. Be grateful, serve without a need for recognition, learn from your mistakes, and stay open to constructive criticism. But most importantly, stay humble, and wash other’s feet.