If I Wash Thee Not

If I Wash Thee Not By Yuri Solomon

Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. (John 13:8)

This is an ultimatum of identification through participation. Yet it remains that many join the local church and remain unserviceable. They have taken the initial obstinate position of Peter, “Thou shalt never wash my feet.”

Such a posture is evidenced by the unchanged life. There are those who have entertained the idea that a true believer can remain unchanged. However, Jesus’ rebuke of Peter excludes such a notion.

They gathered in an upper room setting. The greater took the position of the lesser, removed his garment, girded Himself with a towel, and begin to wash the feet of His disciples. Yet He comes to one who thought he knew how things ought to be better than Jesus . Peter emphatically objected to Jesus washing his feet. However, Jesus cancels his statement with an absolute declaration. Jesus asserts here that purification is as essential to one’s Christian identification as believing itself, not as a means of salvation, but as an indicator of salvation.

A fellow I once went to speak for was living with his girlfriend. My flesh said stay out of it, yet I knew that it was my God-given duty to participate in this fellow’s washing. I addressed the matter, expressing to him the mess he was making of his life and consequently his church. He married the woman a few months later. Thank God he was serviceable!

The word of Jesus here does not relegate washing to a secondary or non-essential matter. In the Old Testament temple the laver was on the inside of the holy place. One did not wash until he went in, yet one did not go in and fail to wash.

Jesus is saying to Peter, no one can have anything to do with Him and He has nothing to do with that person’s life. Every Christian in some sense will be able to say, “I may not be all that I ought to be, but thank God I am not what I used to be. For every Christian is serviceable and has endured a degree of washing.

Yuri Solomon holds degrees from Gospel Ministry Outreach Theological Institute and the College of Biblical Studies. He currently serves as Senior pastor of the New Life Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, and is the Secretary of Christian Education in the Union Baptist Fellowship of Churches.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com CHRISTIAN WRITERS