Jesus washes the Feet of His Disciples (2)

We return this morning to the opening episode of John 13, in which we read of Jesus washing the feet of His disciples. Last Lord's Day, when we began to consider this passage, we focused on Jesus setting forth an example for us to be humble before others, willing to serve the brethren on behalf of our lord. This lesson is set before us through Jesus humbling Himself to wash His disciples' feet. But Jesus as an example to His disciples to humble themselves in order to serve one another is but one of two major teachings of this passage. The second lesson is shown forth through Peter's protest to Jesus that He not wash his feet. The response of Jesus reveals the teaching of our passage of the on-going need for Christians to be cleansed of sin by Jesus Christ. Accompanying this is the responsibility of the Christian to assist in cleansing his Christian brethren of their sins. In other words, the importance of the believers' sanctification is set before us and the responsibility that each of us has as a Christian to serve others, helping them in this sanctification process. We will consider this emphasis today in our study of this passage.