Hot take on a humble lifestyle from the self-proclaimed King of Kings.
April, 33 A.D.
Jerusalem
At Passover supper recently, Jesus stunned many of his closest followers by adopting a servant-like stance and wrapping a towel around his waist. Although disgracefully inappropriate behavior for a Rabbi, what followed caused jaws to drop.
As Peter, (aka Simon) noted, “He reached for a basin of water, got down on his HANDS AND KNEES, and began to wash my feet. They certainly needed it, and I expected this from the homeowner’s servant, but not from our teacher. I was shocked!”
As Jesus proceeded with this disgusting, demeaning task, Peter, visibly agitated, said he could barely believe his eyes. “I said, ‘Teacher, you must NEVER wash my feet!’ Jesus looked up at me and responded, ‘Unless you let me do this, you must leave now. You’re no longer one of us!’”
Things began to get heated at this point. “Then why stop at my feet, Master? Give me a bath!”
John, another follower of Jesus, told what he saw this way: “I wondered what this was really about. If Jesus actually is the long-awaited Messiah, we should be serving Him. I rarely agree with Simon Peter, but I’m with him on this one.”
Then he explained what happened next.
“You could hear a pin drop as Jesus stood up. Instead of his usual teaching where He emphasized wisdom or strength or generosity, he was demonstrating yet another way—to humble ourselves like a servant. We were to perform the most menial tasks—even for those beneath us in social class. Jesus was getting passionate now. He said we must embrace this as part of becoming a whole new KIND of person. Some of us were starting to see what he was driving at, but others seemed perplexed.” This reporter usually refrains from editorial comment, but if this incident is any indication of what we can expect from these Jesus followers, I see hope for the future.
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