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| Free2dance Registered user Username: Free2dance Post Number: 61 Registered: 2-2010 |
Our pastor preached a sermon last Sunday on the upper room. It's one in a series he is doing. I actually missed it but was able to watch it online. One of the moments that was focused on was when Jesus went to wash Peter's feet and Peter said, "Lord, YOU are not going to wash MY feet." In the same breath that Peter calls Jesus LORD he also attempts to stop Jesus in the middle of acting in His will. Jesus tells him that unless Peter allows Him to wash his feet, Peter has no part with Him. I always thought this meant that Peter would not be able to be apart of the Kingdom. The pastor explained that this is actually not about salvation, but about fellowship with Jesus. Jesus went on and said that His desciples (all but one) were already clean (saved). This footwashing was not about salvation. This idea was an incredible shift for me. I knew that in SDAism you didn't take part in footwashing unless you had already been baptised, so there was an element of understanding that this is something that follows faith in Jesus. However, I was also taught that unless I repented of my sins continually, I could fall out of salvation. The foot washing never meant "Jesus, I want to be in fellowship with you" it meant "Jesus, I want to be in heaven with you one day." This paradigm shift on foot washing should have naturally followed when I came to see this doctrine as false, but...like so many others, it didn't. I was excited by the possiblity, and it did make sense, but I wanted to look into it further. The ESV study Bible talks about this particular verse in terms of salvation so again I was confused and disapointed. But I decided to look further into it. The Amplified Bible (which exausts all possible ways of interpreting the language) explains it in terms of being in active fellowship with Jesus and doesn't make it a salvation issue. The prayer in my heart the rest of the week has been that Jesus would "wash my feet" so that I could be in this active fellowship with Him all my life. Surrender is something that has been very difficult for me to understand. I don't know how to do it...so I pretty much just tell Him that I have faith that He will just take these parts of me that I want to surrender to Him. I was always told that "Jesus is a gentleman and will not do anything without my asking first," that "He will never read the diary of your heart without your permission." It all sounded so nice of Him and of course He would be polite! He is God! I never questioned these "truths" because they made sense to me. Well, as a result, all week I have been pretty worried that I am holding something back and that I am not allowing Him to wash my feet. I have felt pretty frustrated with myself for not knowing how to let Him do this. Last night I was getting in bed and had my ipod all ready to go (I like to fall asleep listening to worship music sometimes) The first song displayed on the screne was one I had not listened to before. It was wierd that it popped up because I had not scrolled for it. I thought, "why not, maybe God wants me to hear this one," and I pushed play. The song was by David Crowder, its called "All I can Say" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_7H1Z53g6g). David Crowder captured SO well the place I easily come to during the course of the week after dealing with a lot of the fall out of leaving SDAism, and worrying about my family and the lies they are believing. The issue of foot washing was far from my mind. As I was enjoying the validation from the song and drifting off to sleep I heard the last verse, in almost a dream state. I heard him say, "washing my feet" and woke up a bit and replayed the section. This is what he sang; "I didn't notice You were standing here I didn't know that That was You holding me I didn't notice You were cry'n too I didn't know that That was You washing my feet" And it hit me, with a burst of Joy I realized that as a Christian I don't have to ask Him to wash my feet! The desciples certainly didn't ask Him to! He just did. It was His will and He did it! He didn't wait on them, He didn't make them beg, He didn't wait for permission either!!! The only thing that would have stopped Him would have been for Peter to insist that He NOT do it! This business of Jesus doing the "work" for us, it doesn't end at the cross! Our role continues to be one of obedience (Him being the LORD of our life) and Faith! Even in our daily relationship He carries SO much of the burden to sustain us. He knows I don't know how to surrender to Him. It is His will to bring me into a right relationship with Him and as long as I stay out of the way and allow Him to do what He desires to do in me...it is great between us! I am free this morning from the frantic need to figure out just how to "allow Him" to wash my feet. I know that He is in the business of making me clean, and I just need to not stop Him from doing what He wills to do. I know this is long, and many of you probably already have these details worked out. But I wanted to share that this morning, another sister has had yet another veil removed! PRAISE GOD! Why do I feel like sometimes I have to learn the same truth over and over again each time it relates to a different detail in my life? God is So Good and So PATIENT! In His PERFECT Love, <>< | ||
| Asurprise Registered user Username: Asurprise Post Number: 1424 Registered: 7-2007 |
Thank-you Free; No, I don't have all these details worked out either and your post really blessed me! | ||
| Patallen Registered user Username: Patallen Post Number: 133 Registered: 7-2010  |
Free2dance, I so appreciated your post and was blessed by it. As an Adventist, I always wondered about footwashing but never really looked into it. I could understand communion itself but somehow (even tho I participated) I personally didn't think it was necessary. Back in the day, footwashing was customary because of the mode of travel (sandals and dust). When a person entered someone's home, his feet were washed. Jesus was about to leave His disciples and they were still debating about 'positions' in His kingdom. Jesus took this opportunity to teach them about humility. It was a lesson for the disciples and not something that Jesus asked us to do literally. We humble ourselves when we love each other and extend our hearts and helping hands when they are in need. We are to serve, someone has said, 'saved to serve'. Other churches I have visited don't have a footwashing ceremony only communion. At this point, I started searching for answers and for me the following made sense: http://gospelway.com/church/footwashing.php And yes, you are correct, Jesus has already done it all just for us. Pat | ||
| Skeeter Registered user Username: Skeeter Post Number: 1066 Registered: 12-2007 |
Freetodance, Thank you for your post  I have not studied into the foot washing aspect either. The church I have been attending since leaving Adventism does have the communion service each week, but never does the footwashing and though I wondered a couple times why and planned to ask I never have. I did ask why the communion service was done each week because in the SDA church it was only done quarterly (each 13th Sabbath) and I was told (dont remember the exact words used but)that Jesus said "do this in remembrance of me " but, since Christ did not say how often to do it,, how often is left up to each church body. Since it is such an important thing to "remember" the death, burial and ressurrection of Jesus Christ, they made the decision to do it every first day of the week. At first I wondered if it might lose some of its meaning and importance being observed so often (having gotten used to each 13th Sabbath) but actually I have found it is just the opposite. Each week it has been just as meaningful if not more so than the week before | ||
| Nowisee Registered user Username: Nowisee Post Number: 561 Registered: 5-2009 |
I really appreciate your post, too, Free. I hadn't really studied it, I just somehow felt relieved that I didn't have to do it any more. (It always felt kind of odd--when I was younger, women were still wearing nylons, and we unhooked our garters to get our stockings off and it was kind of embarrassing when you were 12/13 yo and self-conscious anyway. The next stage was pantyhose and you couldn't discreetly peel them off, so everyone just left 'em on! That felt a little sacrilegious somehow.) Plus, others had to have felt uncomfortable with the whole thing because I remember how, as soon as we were dismissed to go to footwashing, about half the congregation split! It always felt odd that we were washing already clean Sabbath feet! | ||
| Psalm107v2 Registered user Username: Psalm107v2 Post Number: 740 Registered: 10-2008  |
Thanks for posting this Free2dance. John 13 is one of my favorite chapters I cannot read it without tearing up. The aspect of this chapter that grabs me is that Jesus, the king of Kings bent down to the lowest postion-that of a servant and washed the disciples' feet. None of the disciples even thought of washing each others feet-they were arguing about who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus in His last hours before the cross, humbled Himself and showed that we are to love and serve each other. It amazes me how beautiful that scene must have been, Jesus washing the ugly and worn feet of disciples who were about to abandon Him--yet He loved & served Enoch | ||
| Psalm107v2 Registered user Username: Psalm107v2 Post Number: 741 Registered: 10-2008 |
One more point here. When I was an SDA I hated foot washing. I kind of had a foot repulsion to begin with and to top it all off you had to find a partner, it was REQUIRED before you could take communion and quite frankly I just wanted to get home. I have only had the opportunity to participate in footwashing once since becoming saved. We had a small church and every man washed every other man's feet. I loved being able to serve that way but my heart was gripped with undescribable emotions as my brothers washed my feet, embraced me (I'm tearing up as I write this now) and told me they loved me. This was not a routine, this was an act of love-it was John 13 in action Enoch | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 11714 Registered: 12-2003  |
Free--what a wonderful post! Thank you! Our pastor has preached two sermons now on footwashing, and they are amazing. You can hear/watch them here:http://www.trinityonline.org./cgi-bin/MediaList.cgi?section= Colleen | ||
| Sunnimoreno Registered user Username: Sunnimoreno Post Number: 172 Registered: 10-2008 |
thanks for your post Free... I got misty-eyed reading through your testimony and you blessed me immensely. Sunni | ||
| Willy430 Registered user Username: Willy430 Post Number: 20 Registered: 2-2006 |
Great insights, I wondered about me having to play the part of God. I think from what I know now I would rather play the part of the Gibenoite, who simply brought the water. The foot washing was because of the disciples contact with the dead, not their fault but by simply troding the earth, (the dust of dead mens bones contaminated them.) No vestage of death was allowed at the last supper, so now we must ask, once baptized into Christ do we also have vestages of death? I think not, we are reborn in Christ alive and clean, so we should ask, does the dust (sins) of the earth contaminate those reborn in Christ. At first glance the answer may seem to be yes, the effects of sin are all around us in our lives and thoughts, but would that same dust contaminate Christ? Clearly that answer is NO! So for the believer in Christ, the body of sin and death has been redeemed in the infinite power of Christ. | ||
| Flyinglady Registered user Username: Flyinglady Post Number: 8712 Registered: 3-2004  |
Two years ago, Karrie, out CARE minister's wife had a meeting of all the female CR leaders. Before we left she washed each ladies feet. It felt so strange as I had not done that since the last church I was in while living in VA. I told her what this meant to me as an sda. She asked if I did not want her to do it. I reassured her it was okay as I saw things differently now. What a blessing it was. Thank you awesome God. Diana L | ||
| Hec Registered user Username: Hec Post Number: 1452 Registered: 3-2009 |
Willy430 says: I have never heard that before. Where do you get that from? Hec | ||
| Colleentinker Registered user Username: Colleentinker Post Number: 11883 Registered: 12-2003 |
Willy, even Christians sin as long as they are in the body. That sin does not remove their eternal life—which is God's own life imputed to us. But it does get in the way of our fellowship and of our doing the work of the Spirit. We have to confess when we do wrong and surrender the places in our hearts that are drawn away and enticed by temptation. This is the way we grow in the Lord Jesus. Hebrews 12:1-12 describes the reality that God disciplines His sons. Sometimes that discipline is simply the afflictions of life in a fallen world; sometimes it is facing our own sin and giving up to Him our "right" to indulge or self-protect or whatever it is where we keep control instead of trusting our Father. Colleen | ||
| Angelcat Registered user Username: Angelcat Post Number: 260 Registered: 11-2008 |
As an SDA, I thought all churches had footwashing. And I hated footwashing. Anyhow, at some pnt in my journey out, I asked my spiritual mntor/life coach/mom substitute/friend about footwashing, since i was no longer attending church. She suggested another personal hygiene item I could take care of while I was at it, if I was so inclined. A little crude, but it got the point across. The point was humility and service, not humiliation. As others have pointed out, washing feet dusty from travel was the custom then. If it was now, Jesus might have insisted on taking coats and serving coffee. I also hated the way it felt like you were set up to get emotional, and feel this closeness with others that wasn't real. I felt...almost...manipulated?? Especially once I discovered what it was like to really connect with someone on a spiritual level. |
