Weekly Devotionals - 27 February

Think of the time when somebody did an act of service for you which made a lasting impact on you – What was the reason that it was so impactful? Possibly you were impacted because it was a genuine gesture of love and sacrifice.

LOVE

In John 13:1-15, the gospel writer, John, narrated an account of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. Jesus and His disciples gathered in a person’s house to celebrate the Passover feast together. Jesus knew that His time has come for him to return to the Father by way of the cross. He will later be handed over to the Roman authorities at night and crucified on the following day. This presents the final opportunity for Jesus to show the twelve disciples His love for them. At such a crucial time, how does “Jesus love His disciples to the end” (v1)?

Suppose you hear news of someone who is going to betray you. Will you be tempted to treat the person differently? What would Jesus have done? Our Lord had foreknowledge of what was about to transpire.

At the dinner, Judas had already decided in his heart to betray Jesus (v2). A couple of hours later, Peter would deny Jesus three times. The rest of the disciples would not have fared much better. They would have all fled to save their own lives, abandoning Jesus to face the cross alone. Despite knowing what would happen that night, Jesus’ love for every one of his disciples did not change. The act of washing his disciples’ feet was his way of conveying his deep love to each of them, including even Judas and Peter. No one was left out that night.

FORGIVENESS

When it was Peter’s turn to have his feet washed, he stopped Jesus with a question. He wants to know why Jesus wants to wash his feet. Jesus explains that for Peter to be a partaker of his forgiveness and grace, he must be washed by Jesus from his sinfulness (v8 & 9). This is because Jesus has come to be the Saviour of the world.

Jesus desires to be our personal Saviour, he has come to remove the filthiness of sin from our conscience. Do you come to him daily to confess your sins and ask him to wash them away? When you do, you will experience a renewed joy and peace, because the Saviour has cleansed you from the burden of your sin, guilt, and shame.

SERVICE

The love that Jesus had for His disciples motivated him to wash their feet. In that era, that was the duty of a domestic servant. Whenever a guest was invited into the house, the domestic servant would wash the feet of the guests when they enter. Jesus did not consider this task of washing His disciples’ feet to be too menial or lowly. He would not allow such thoughts to stop him from demonstrating His love for His disciples. His love for you and me is the same. Dear friends, will you received our Lord Jesus’ love for you? If you are willing, then say a prayer to thank him for loving you.

Jesus says that He has set an example for us to follow (v14 -15). This is His example – He loves, and therefore He serves. We must not serve grudgingly or out of compulsion. If our Lord Jesus humbles himself to serve others, we must also serve one another in love. Do you serve out of duty and obligation or out of your love for Jesus and fellow believers in Christ?

Looking around, it is not difficult to find opportunities to serve God and His people. Take hold of these opportunities whenever they appear and do not let them pass you by. When we apply the teachings of Jesus in our lives, we will be blessed (v17). Moreover, when we serve a fellow believer, Jesus says that we are doing it as though we are doing it unto Him (Matthew 25:40).

May you experience the joy and peace of our Saviour Jesus Christ and be richly blessed as you serve him and the Body of Christ.