In the 13th chapter of the Gospel of John beginning with chapter 1 verse 1 we find Jesus preparing to teach His disciples about spiritual sanctification that would be necessary for them (His disciples) to receive salvation and join Him in His Father’s future kingdom.  As was brought out in an earlier posting, they could not be His “friends” and receive salvation unless they did exactly as He commanded them to do.  He said that He would die ONLY for His friends.  This group would consist only of those who would do what He was about to command His 12 disciples to do–take a spiritual bath and remain spiritually clean until the end of their lives.   Unlike the cleansed sow that returns to its mire and the healed dog that returns to its vomit, they must refuse to return to their former spiritual condition (2 Pet. 2:22).  He had earlier noted that only those who get clean and stay clean until the end would receive the promised salvation (Mat. 10:22).  Christ’s command to His disciples would also apply to those they would bring to Him during their time of ministry.  The apostles’ ministerial descendants would teach that same message as I and others are doing now in the final days of this world as we know it.

The lesson Jesus taught in John 13 involved physical water being used in spiritual sense.  This very important lesson is based on a custom that was common in the Middle East during the time of the apostles.  When visitors entered someone’s home the host was expected to provide water so that his guests could wash their feet.  If the host had a servant or slave, it was his job to wash the visitor’s feet.  Anciently, travel was by foot for most people.  Only the wealthy could afford wheeled carts and animals to pull them.  Royalty traveled in cloth-covered cabins born by their servants.  Several decade ago I watched a t.v. documentary about a modern day guru (god/holy man) whose feet were never to come into contact with dirt.  When he went for a walk men carrying long, narrow rugs would go before him and would place the rugs on the ground just ahead of him.  The men were divided into squads which would keep sections of carpet always laying in front of their master.  By the time he reached the end of one carpet another squad would have laid another strip of carpet.  Those bearing the carpet he had just walked on immediately ran ahead and prepare a section for his arrival.  In this way the feet of the exalted potentate never touched dirt.  The actions of both the worshiped and his worshipers left no doubt as to their respective mind-sets.  It was agreed that one was to be served and the others were to serve.

Though the display of total subjection on the part of the servants toward a mere human was disturbing, it did remind me of the attitude we must display toward the true God.  Though our physical actions are not the same as that of the servants toward their human god, our attitude toward our God must match theirs.  He is the Master; we are the servants/slaves.  Whatever He tells us to do we must do in order to please Him.  And unlike the ruler in the documentary, our Ruler bought using His body as payment.  Which brings us back to the lesson He teaches us in John 13.

The Passover meal (the Last Supper) had been completed and the disciples were no doubt talking among themselves about things of common interest.  Without announcing what He was about to do, Jesus stood up, removed His outer garment, wrapped a towel around His waist and poured water into a basin.  He then began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel.  But when He came to Peter the disciple asked Him, “Are You going to wash my feet?”  None of the disciples understood why their Master was doing what was normally the job of a servant.  Peter, being outspoken to a fault, asked why the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savior of mankind wanted to wash his feet?

Being patient and understanding, Jesus told him that neither he (Peter) nor the other disciples understood the symbolism of what He (Jesus) was doing, but that they would understand later.  Strong-willed and stubborn, Peter did not wait for understanding.  It was time to correct the Messiah once again.  He had earlier corrected the Lord and had been chastised for doing so (Mat. 16;21-23).  Now we find him preparing to refute the Lord’s Christ–again, for which he would be corrected–again.  Peter spoke the words Satan placed in his heart–again by informing the Creator of the Universe that He was wrong–again, saying: “You will never wash my feet.”

The Lord’s reply takes the Truth seeker to a depth of spiritual understanding plumbed only by those whose sole purpose in life is to learn the will of the Lord and obey it.  These are His true saints, His Very Elect, “little flock,” His remnant who have been set aside for holy use (sanctified).  Without knowledge of His will it is impossible to obey it.  The Holy Bible is God’s will in written form.  The man Jesus was His will in human form.  Jesus, Who obeyed his Father perfectly, serves as our Standard–the divine Pattern by which we must judge ourselves.  Everything we know about the Godhead we get from Their Holy Scriptures.  As Jesus proclaimed in John 12:48, it is by the Holy Bible that mankind will be judged.  In this lifetime true saints must judge their “walk” by comparing it to the Holy Word.  The Apostle Peter was referring to this divine Truth in 1 Peter 4:17,18 where he tells us that judgment is always ongoing in God’s church, and that only the righteous, whose walk match His Word, will be saved.

Jesus tells us that we must obey even as He obeyed the Father in order to prove our love for Him and to spend eternity with Him on His throne in Kingdom of God headquarters known as New Jerusalem (1 Jn. 2:6/Rev. 3:21).  Jesus tells us in John 15:10 that He also had to obey God in order to remain in God’s love.  Let this Truth sink in: THE FIX WAS NOT IN FOR JESUS OF NAZARETH WHO HAD NO GUARANTEE OF ETERNAL LIFE WITH GOD IN PARADISE.  We are told in Revelation 21:10-14 that New Jerusalem will be a 1500 mile by 1500 mile walled city located in the land God promised the descendants of Abraham.  The walls of the city will be 1500 miles high.  The foundation of the city will have the names of the 12 tribes of Israel written on them.  The city’s gates will have the names of the 12 disciples written on them.  Note that no Gentile names will be written on the walls, foundation or doors of the capitol.  This is because saved Gentiles will have become spiritual Israelites.  Recall that the land God promised Abraham’s descendants stretched from the Euphrates River to the Nile River.  Only God’s Very Elect, who will be few in number (Mat. 7:13,14; 20:16), will live within the walls of that great city in the presence of the Father and the Son.  Others who have received eternal life will live throughout the world and will make a pilgrimage to New Jerusalem once each year to pay homage to the Lord.  Read The Three Resurrections and The Kingdom of God.  Key words–Three and Kingdom respectively.

Simon Peter (Heb.–Kepa) was snapped out of his temporary heresy by the Words of Jesus Christ: “IF I DO NOT WASH YOU, YOU HAVE NO PART WITH ME.”  Note that Jesus did not mention washing Peter’s feet.  His Words: “wash you” referred to more than just the disciple’s feet: “He that is (totally) washed need only to wash his feet to be fully clean ….”  Note that we must be “fully (totally) washed” in order to have any part to play relative to Christ’s ministry, God’s kingdom, His church, etc.–WE MUST BE REMAIN THOROUGHLY CLEAN IN ORDER TO HAVE ANY DEALINGS WITH THE LORD JESUS.  DO NOT LET SATAN’S FALSE PROPHETS TELL YOU DIFFERENTLY.  Revelation 12:9 tells us that he has deceived the whole world, which includes the Catholic/Protestant Church world.  He has a doctrinal plan to appeal to everyone who supposedly “gets saved.”  His “Have It Your Way,” Burger King style religion is just that–religion, which is to be avoided (2 Cor. 6:14-7:1).

In John 13:10,11 Jesus noted that, having had their feet washed, the disciples were now clean–with one exception.  Judas Iscariot was not totally clean because he had refused to allow Jesus to cleanse every part of his being.  He continued to think religious dirt, do religious dirt and walk in religious dirt. What is meant by religious dirt and what it means to be fully cleansed of it will be explained later in this series.  L.J.

Memory verse: Romans 15:8: “Jesus was a minister to the circumcision (Jews) for the spreading of the Truth of God, to confirm the promises (God) made to the (Israelite) fathers” (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob).  Jesus, a Jew of the Tribe of Judah, confirmed in John 17;17 that God’s Word was THE (only spiritual) Truth.  Romans 15:9 reveals that those same promises would later be made to those Gentiles who would become spiritual Israelites following true conversion.