Wash Feet - A Sermon for March 1, 2026
GOSPEL: John 13:1-17
The gospel is announced.
The holy gospel according to John.
Glory to you, O Lord.
The story of the last supper in John's gospel recalls a remarkable event not mentioned elsewhere: Jesus performs the duty of a slave, washing the feet of his disciples and urging them to do the same for one another.
1Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" 7 Jesus answered, "You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand." 8 Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." 9 Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" 10 Jesus said to him, "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you." 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, "Not all of you are clean." 12 After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.
The gospel concludes:
The gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
The first 12 chapters of John’s Gospel
cover 3 years of Jesus’ ministry.
The next 5 chapters cover just one night,
the night of Jesus’ betrayal.
We’ve moved quickly through Jesus’ 3 years ministry,
and now in Lent,
week by week,
we will focus on the night before Jesus’ crucifixion.
John describes this night in detail,
and it’s going to be challenging for us.
I hope you are all challenged and blessed
these next few weeks
as we dig deeper into Jesus’ passion.
We begin with the story
of Jesus washing the disciples feet:
a notable shift in John’s gospel
as Jesus knows the hour has come.
Jesus’ ministry has been leading to this hour.
We typically hear this story on Maundy Thursday.
For those of you
who are not familiar with Maundy Thursday,
it begins the great three days
- the Triduum -
the culmination of Lent
as we remember Christ’s betrayal,
death,
and resurrection.
Maundy Thursday is marked with the rite of foot washing
coupled with Holy Communion,
and remembering the commandment of Jesus
to love one another.
Foot washing is a beautiful service,
but many do not want their feet washed.
Some don’t like to show people their feet.
Some feet stink.
Some toe nails look funky.
For some the third toe curls over the second.
Some have athlete’s foot,
callouses,
corns,
ingrown toenails,
leg hair,
toe hair
toe jam. Ugh.
I’ve heard of some women
who will intentionally wear panty hose
on Maundy Thursday
just to have an excuse to avoid the foot washing.
You could just say no…
I’m always fascinated on Maundy Thursday
by the children who worship that night,
Children will run to the front
to participate in foot washing.
They will wash each other,
they will wash strangers.
They’re not afraid to show people their feet,
and they’re not afraid to touch the feet of others.
Ah, to have faith like a child.
That’s what John’s gospel invites us into:
faith like a child;
to trust and to believe that Jesus is the Messiah,
the Son of God,
and that through believing
we may have life in Jesus’ name.
As we heard last week,
belief requires action.
Belief is not just something you think in your mind;
belief is something you do.
If you recall the seven signs in John’s gospel:
turning water into wine,
healing the royal officer’s son,
healing the paralytic,
feeding 5000,
walking on water,
healing the man born blind,
and the raising of Lazarus;
with each sign,
Jesus invites the people of God
to take a leap of faith,
to do belief,
and do whatever Jesus tells you to do.
The servants fill the jars with water,
the young boy brings 5 loaves and 2 fish,
the paralytic picks up his mat and walks,
the blind man bathes in the pool of Siloam,
the people roll away the stone,
the dead man walks out of the tomb.
The people do faith.
Jesus says “if I, your Lord and Teacher,
have washed your feet,
you also ought to wash one another's feet.
For I have set you an example,
that you also should do as I have done to you.”
So wash feet,
simply because Jesus tells you to,
and when you consider the details in the story,
washing feet is joining in the glory of God.
The seven signs point us to who Jesus is
and show us God’s power,
God’s glory.
Leading up to the night of Jesus’ betrayal,
Lazarus had been raised,
Jesus had been anointed,
Jesus had entered triumphantly into Jerusalem;
this is what Jesus’ glory looks like,
what Jesus’ reign looks like -
washing feet.
In those days,
Upon entering someone’s home,
you would be offered a basin of water
to wash your own feet.
Normal people would wash their own feet before dining.
A variation of this practice
was that slaves would wash guests' feet.
This would often be done by a female slave.
No free person would wash the feet of another free person
- that’s the slave’s job.
According to the Jewish laws and traditions
regarding the relationship
between a teacher and his disciples;
a teacher had no right to demand or expect
that his disciples would wash his feet.
But, you could wash someone else’s feet
in an act of utter devotion.
This is the power of God;
this is God’s glory;
Jesus washes the feet of the disciples
in utter devotion to them.
God, in Jesus Christ
is utterly devoted to God’s people
- all God’s people.
Peter,
who is about to deny Jesus,
is washed in utter devotion.
Judas,
who is about to betray Jesus,
is washed in utter devotion.
That is the Kingdom of God.
That is the power of God -
utter devotion to all God’s people.
And this was no ceremonial washing.
Jesus removed his outer garments
to wash their feet.
Jesus was planning on getting dirty
with the dirt that clung to the disciples.
This meal would have been completely awkward
with everyone sitting on the floor
reclining against pillows
seated at a short table,
with dirty feet
way too close to the food they would eat.
It would be a germaphobe’s worst nightmare.
Who is the slave?
Who is the master?
What do we do here, Jesus?
And Jesus interrupts social convention and awkwardness:
“if I, your Lord and Teacher,
have washed your feet,
you also ought to wash one another's feet.
For I have set you an example,
that you also should do as I have done to you.”
If the invitation from Jesus
is to do whatever he tells you to do,
to do belief,
and through believing
we will have life in Jesus’ name,
then the invitation is clear:
wash feet.
Wash the feet of your friends,
in utter devotion to them,
just as God is devoted to you.
Wash the feet of those who may deny you,
in utter devotion to them,
just as God is devoted to you.
Wash the feet of those who will betray you,
in utter devotion to them,
just as God is devoted to you.
The invitation is clear:
wash feet.
I’ve been thinking about how to apply this,
because, culturally and practically,
there is no need to wash feet
when someone enters our homes.
Even washing hands doesn’t quite fit,
because of germs
and hand soap
and washrooms
and boundaries and stuff.
And I have this image in my mind
of people not wanting their feet washed
on Maundy Thursday,
and this image of calloused,
bent,
smelly,
ingrown toe-nailed,
hairy,
toe jammed
corn-covered feet
that people don’t want touched - let alone seen,
and I’m guessing that the disciples,
walking from town to town
without sneakers
and socks
and insoles
have their own foot issues,
and considering all this,
I see possibility…
It’s not so much the feet:
it’s an image of something deeper.
We all have parts of us that we don’t want others to touch.
Like many suffer with foot issues,
our friends have their own issues,
as do we all.
We all have parts of ourselves
that we don’t want others to see.
Sometimes washing feet means listening to people
who just need a friend.
Maybe washing feet means listening to someone
who needs to work through something
that is culturally taboo,
or to talk about mental illness,
or to talk about death,
or those things that keep us awake at night -
those things that hurt us
and keep us broken
and shameful:
those things that we keep our panty hose on to hide.
So wash feet:
wash the feet of those closest to you,
wash even the feet of the Peters
and the Judases that you know.
Don’t be afraid of the dirt.
Friends, there is power in washing feet,
and there is power in having your feet washed.
Maybe its you who needs your feet washed,
but that means you have to stop hiding them.
Don’t be afraid of your dirt.
God is at work in the washing feet;
be it literally soap and water
or a listening ear,
or prayer,
or however it is that we can be vulnerable
and share our shame
and sorrow
and guilt
or whatever it is that is hiding inside,
keeping us broken and dirty.
Like Jesus washing the grime and dirt
off the disciples’ broken feet,
our God has the power to cleans our hearts
from those things that keep us dirty,
and our God has the power
to mend the brokenness within us.
May you believe this.
And may you do belief.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
