Post by Betty on May 11, 2005 9:15:40 GMT -5
With Towel And Basin
by Max Lucado
It has been a long day. Jerusalem is packed with
Passover guests.
The disciples enter, one by one, and take their
places around the table. On the wall hangs a
towel, and on the floor sits a pitcher and a basin.
Any one of the disciples could volunteer for the
job, but not one does.
After a few moments, Jesus stands and removes his
outer garment. He wraps a servant's girdle around
his waist, takes up the basin, and kneels before
one of the disciples. He unlaces a sandal and
gently lifts the foot and places it in the basin,
covers it with water, and begins to bathe it. One
by one, one grimy foot after another, Jesus works
his way down the row.
I looked for a Bible translation that reads,
"Jesus washed all the disciples' feet except the feet
of Judas," but I couldn't find one. What a
passionate moment when Jesus silently lifts the feet of
his betrayer and washes them in the basin! Within
hours the feet of Judas, cleansed by the kindness
of the one he will betray, will stand in
Caiaphas's court.
Behold the gift Jesus gives his followers! By
morning they will bury their heads in shame and look
down at their feet in disgust. And when they do,
he wants them to remember how his knees knelt
before them and he washed their feet. He wants them
to realize those feet are still clean. "You don't
understand now what I am doing, but you will
understand later" (John 13:7).
Remarkable. He forgave their sin before they even
committed it. He offered mercy before they even
sought it.
>From "Just like Jesus"
Copyright 1998, Max Lucado
by Max Lucado
It has been a long day. Jerusalem is packed with
Passover guests.
The disciples enter, one by one, and take their
places around the table. On the wall hangs a
towel, and on the floor sits a pitcher and a basin.
Any one of the disciples could volunteer for the
job, but not one does.
After a few moments, Jesus stands and removes his
outer garment. He wraps a servant's girdle around
his waist, takes up the basin, and kneels before
one of the disciples. He unlaces a sandal and
gently lifts the foot and places it in the basin,
covers it with water, and begins to bathe it. One
by one, one grimy foot after another, Jesus works
his way down the row.
I looked for a Bible translation that reads,
"Jesus washed all the disciples' feet except the feet
of Judas," but I couldn't find one. What a
passionate moment when Jesus silently lifts the feet of
his betrayer and washes them in the basin! Within
hours the feet of Judas, cleansed by the kindness
of the one he will betray, will stand in
Caiaphas's court.
Behold the gift Jesus gives his followers! By
morning they will bury their heads in shame and look
down at their feet in disgust. And when they do,
he wants them to remember how his knees knelt
before them and he washed their feet. He wants them
to realize those feet are still clean. "You don't
understand now what I am doing, but you will
understand later" (John 13:7).
Remarkable. He forgave their sin before they even
committed it. He offered mercy before they even
sought it.
>From "Just like Jesus"
Copyright 1998, Max Lucado
