The washing of Jesus' feet by a sinner. “Washing the Feet” David Wilkerson Sermons Jesus washes the feet of his disciples

Symbolic meaning

A woman pours ointment on Jesus' head

Woman washing Jesus' feet

Apocryphal stories

Divergence of Evangelical Testimonies

Such a number of discrepancies has long raised questions among researchers of the Gospel texts. Currently, a significant portion of secular scholars believe that behind the Gospel accounts of the anointing there are one or two actual events in the life of Jesus. Most believe that we are talking about the same anointing, the story of which was attributed by the evangelists to different moments in the life of Jesus. Mark's version is generally preferred, although the exact date (Holy Week) and place (Bethany) is considered a late addition by most secular historians. Church tradition, on the contrary, recognizes the authenticity of the message of anointing during Holy Week.

Icon "The Raising of Lazarus". The sisters bowed at the feet of Jesus

In a painting by Jean Beraud, painted in 1891. "Christ in the House of Simon the Pharisee" Jesus is depicted in contemporary interiors among the bourgeoisie, dressed in the fashion of the 19th century, and a fashionably dressed young lady prostrates herself at his feet.

In Orthodox iconography there is no Washing of the Feet as a separate subject, although it can be found in stamps. Additionally, an analogy can be found in the iconographic depiction of Mary and Martha of Bethany bowing in prostration at the feet of Jesus in scenes of the raising of Lazarus, who appear to anoint him on some boards.

see also

• The washing of the disciples' feet is another episode of the Passion, where Jesus, in turn, washes the feet of the apostles.

H. Jesus washes the feet of His disciples (13:1-11)

In chapter 13 the narrative takes place in the upper part of Jerusalem. Jesus no longer walked among the hostile Jews. He retired with His disciples to the upper room in Jerusalem, so that he could spend the rest of the time before the upcoming test and crucifixion in communication with them. Chapters 13-17 Ev. from John is one of the most beloved places in all of New Zealand.

13,1 The day before the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus knew he was coming His time is to die, rise again and return to heaven. He loved His own who were in the world, that is, those who truly believed. He's through Your earthly loved service them and will love them forever. But He Also loved them boundless love, which is what I was going to prove.

13,2 John doesn't say which one supper mentioned here is the Passover Supper, the Lord's Supper, or the common meal. Devil invested in the heart of Judas the thought that the time has come betray Jesus. Judas had plotted evil against the Lord much earlier, but now the signal was given to him to carry out his dirty plans.

13,3 Verse 3 emphasizes, Who performed the duties of a slave - not just a rabbi, or a teacher, but Jesus, conscious of His Divinity. He knew what work was entrusted to Him; He knew, that He came from God And to God departs.

13,4 He was aware of Who He was, His mission, and the destiny that allowed Him to bend down and wash the disciples' feet. Standing up from supper Lord took it off top long clothes. Then, taking towel, He girded himself with it like an apron, taking the place of a slave. We might expect this incident to be recorded in the Gospel of Mark, the Gospel of the Perfect Servant. But the fact that this incident is placed in the Gospel of the Son of God makes it all the more remarkable.

This symbolic act reminds us that the Lord left the ivory palaces of heaven, came into this world as a Servant and served those whom he created.

13,5 In eastern countries, open sandals are worn, which creates the need to often wash your feet. It was common and considered a sign of hospitality and courtesy for the master's slave to wash the feet of his guests. Here the Divine Master became a slave and fulfilled this humble task. Jesus at the feet of the traitor - what a picture! What a lesson for us!

13,6 Peter was shocked by the thought that the Lord wash him legs, and expressed his disapproval: how could such a great Lord condescend to someone as unworthy as he. The sight of God as a servant is disturbing.

13,7 Jesus explained to Peter that His action had spiritual significance. Washing feet represented a kind of spiritual washing. Peter knew that the Lord was performing a physical action, but did not understand his spiritual importance. However, he will understand soon, because the Lord will explain it. And he will understand this is from his own experience, when later, after his renunciation, he returns to the Lord.

13,8 Peter is a living example of the extremes of human character. He swore that the Lord will never wash his face his legs; here "never" literally means "but not forever." The Lord answered Peter that without this washing there could be no union with Him. The meaning of washing feet is now revealed. Since Christians live in this world, they come into contact with dirt. They hear vile talk, see ugly things, work with ungodly people, and this inevitably brings mud to every believer. He must constantly be washed and cleansed. This cleansing is accomplished by the water of the Word. When we read and study the Bible, when we hear what it preaches and discuss it with each other, we find that it cleanses us from external evil influences. On the other hand, the more we neglect the Bible, the more these evil influences can remain in our minds and lives without causing us much trouble. When Jesus said: "You have no part with Me" He did not mean that Peter could not be saved until He washed his feet, but that fellowship with the Lord could only be maintained through the continuous cleansing work of the Holy Scriptures in his life.

13,9-10 Now Peter went to the other extreme. A minute ago he said: “Never.” Now he said, “Wash me all.”

A person walking from a public washroom will have his feet dirty again. But he does not need to wash himself completely again, he only needs to wash his feet. “He who is washed only needs to wash his feet, because he is all clean.”

There is a difference between a bath, or bath, and a bowl, laver. Bath symbolizes the purification received at the moment of salvation. Cleansing from punishments for sin through the Blood of Christ occurs only once. Washbasin symbolizes cleansing mud sin, which must occur continuously under the influence of the Word of God. There is only one bath, but many foot washes. "You are clean, but not all" means that all the disciples went through the pool of spiritual regeneration, except Judas. He never accepted salvation.

13,11 Possessing omniscience, Lord knew that Judas will betray Him that is why He singled out one of them as having never passed through the atoning pool of salvation.

I. Jesus teaches His disciples to follow His example (13:12-20)

13,12 It says here that Christ washed everyone's feet students. Then He put on His clothes and, lying down again, began to explain to them the spiritual significance of what he had done. He started the conversation with a question. It is interesting to analyze the Savior’s questions. They represent one of His most effective teaching methods.

13,13-14 The disciples confirmed that Jesus was theirs Teacher and Lord and they were right. But His example showed that the highest position in the Kingdom belongs to the servant.

If the Lord and Teacher washed his feet disciples, how will they justify themselves if they do not wash each other's legs? Did the Lord mean that they should literally wash each other's feet with water? (In Eastern countries there is a custom of literally washing the feet of others, but this is only one example of humble service.) Did He institute a church ceremony here? No, this action had spiritual significance. He told the disciples that they must keep each other pure in constant fellowship in the Word. If anyone notices that his brother is carried away by vanity or becomes indifferent, he should lovingly edify him according to the Bible.

13,15-16 Lord filed them example, an object lesson that they should do for each other in a spiritual sense.

If pride or personal bitterness prevents us from bending down and serving our brothers, we must remember that we not more than our Mister. He humbled himself to wash the feet of those who were unworthy and ungrateful, knowing that one of them would betray Him. Would you bend down and serve a man, knowing that he was going to betray you for money? Messengers(students) should not consider themselves too high for the things that they did Sender them (Lord Jesus).

13,17 Knowing these truths about humility, selflessness and service is one thing; but you can know them and never fulfill them. Real value and blessing V their execution!

13,18 All the truths about service that the Lord has just taught Not belonged to Judas. He was not one of those whom the Lord would send into all the world with the Gospel. Jesus knew that the Scriptures, especially Psalm 41:9, spoke of His betrayal will come true. Judas was the one who ate with the Lord for three years and yet raised... his heel on Him - an expression indicating that he betrayed the Lord. In Psalm 41, the traitor is described by the Lord as “my dear friend.”

13,19 The Lord revealed to the disciples that He would be betrayed, so that when this came true, they would believe that He possessed true Divinity. "...You believed that it was me AM." Jesus in the NT is Jehovah of the Old. Thus, the fulfilled prophecy is one of the great proofs of the Divinity of Christ, and also, let us add here, the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.

13,20 Our Lord knew that he would be betrayed and that this would cause the disciples to stumble and doubt. So He added words of encouragement and encouragement. They must remember that they are sent on a Divine mission. They should become so strongly identified with Him that those who receive their thereby accepted and His. Just as those who accept Christ accept God the Father. Thus, a close relationship with God the Son and God the Father should be a support for them.

K. Jesus predicts that he will be betrayed (13:21-30)

13,21-22 Knowing that one of the disciples would betray Him caused the Lord great concern. It seems that here Jesus gave the traitor his last opportunity to abandon his evil plan. Without exposing him openly, the Lord showed that he knew about the intention one of twelve betray His. However, even this did not change the traitor’s plans.

The other disciples did not suspect Judas. They were surprised that one of their number would do such a thing, and wondered who it could be.

13,23 In those days, people did not sit at the table while eating, but reclined, leaning on the bed. John, the author of this Gospel, was the disciple whom Jesus loved. He did not mention his name, but he was not afraid to note that he had a special place in the Savior’s heart. The Lord loved all the disciples, but John enjoyed His special favor.

13,24-25 To him Peter made a sign so as not to speak out loud. Perhaps nodding his head, he asked John to find out the name of the traitor. John, falling to the chest of Jesus, asked the fatal question in a whisper, which was probably answered in the same quiet voice.

13,26 Jesus replied that the one to whom He will serve a piece of bread, dipping it him in the wine, and there is a traitor. Some say that in the East, the host serves bread to the guest of honor during meals.

Doing Judas guest of honor, the Lord showed him His special mercy and love, thus trying to call him to repentance. Others suggest that this was how bread was typically served during the Jewish Passover supper. If this is so, then Judas left during the Jewish Passover supper, before the Lord's Supper was instituted.

13,27 The devil had already put the thought of betraying the Lord into the heart of Judas. Now Satan entered into him. At first it was just a proposal. But Judas accepted it, he liked it, and he agreed with it. Now the devil has taken control of him. Once the Lord finally showed who the traitor was, He ordered him do This quicker. Obviously, He did not encourage him to do evil, but simply expressed sad resignation.

13,28-29 This verse confirms that the previous conversation about bread between Jesus and John was not heard by the other disciples. They still did not know that Judas was going to betray their Lord.

Some thought that Jesus simply told Judas to go and quickly buy something for the holiday or, since Judas was the treasurer, asked him to give something beggars

13,30 Judas took a piece bread as a symbol of special favor, and then left the company of the Lord and other disciples. Scripture Adds Meaningful Words "and it was night."

For Judas it was night not only literally, but also in a spiritual sense - a night of darkness and remorse that will never end. For those who turn their backs on the Savior, there will always be night.

L. New commandment (13:31-35)

13,31 As soon as Judas left, the conversation Jesus I became more free and sincere with my students. The tension subsided. "Now is the Son of Man glorified"- he said. The Lord was awaiting the work of redemption that He was about to accomplish. His death may have looked like a defeat, but it was still a way to bring lost sinners to salvation. It was followed by His resurrection and ascension, and in this He showed His greatest glory to all. And God was glorified in deeds of the Savior. His death meant that He saint A God who could not tolerate our sins, but also loving God who does not want the sinner to die; she declared how He fair God could still justify sinners. Each of the attributes of Divinity reached its highest point on Calvary.

13,32 "If God was glorified in Him - and He was glorified - then God will glorify Him in Himself.”(Greek grammar (condition of the first kind plus ei in the indicative mood) presupposes that it is true.) God will see His beloved Son given due honor. "And He will soon glorify Him"- without delay. God the Father fulfilled this prediction of the Lord Jesus by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in heaven. God will not wait for the Kingdom to be restored. He immediately will glorify Own son.

13,33 For the first time the Lord Jesus addressed His disciples as little ones children,- with kind words. And He did this only after Judas left. Not for long there was already be To him With them. Soon He will die on the cross. They will search Him, but will not be able to follow Him because He will return to heaven. The Lord said the same thing Jews but He put a different meaning into those words. For the disciples, His departure will only be temporary.

He will come to them again (chapter 14). But for Jews His departure is final and irrevocable. He will return to heaven and they will not be able to follow Him because of their unbelief.

13,34 In His absence the disciples must be guided the commandment of love. This commandment was not new in time, because the Ten Commandments taught love for God and neighbor. But this one commandment was new in a different. She new, because the Holy Spirit will clothe believers with His power so that they can obey it. She new is that superior old commandment. The latter commanded: “Love your neighbor", and the new one: "Love enemies yours."

It is well said that the law of loving others now has new clarity, is actuated by new motives and duty, is illustrated by new example, and demands new obedience.

The commandment was new, as the verse says, and because it called for greater love: “As I have loved you, so love one another.”

13,35 The sign of Christian discipleship is not a cross on the neck or on the lapel of a jacket, or special clothing. Anyone could pretend to be a student in this way. The true sign of a Christian is Love to his fellow Christians. It requires Divine power, and this power is given only to those who are in the Spirit.

M. Jesus predicts Peter's denial (13:36-38)

13,36 Simon Peter did not understand that Jesus was talking about His death. He thought that the Lord was going on a journey here on earth, and did not understand why he could not go along. The Lord explained that Peter will do for Him later, that is, when he dies, but he cannot do this now.

13,37 With his usual zeal and enthusiasm Peter expressed his readiness to die for the Lord. He thought that his own strength was enough to endure death for his faith.

Later, he did die for the Lord, but this was because God gave him special strength and courage.

13,38 Jesus tests his "zeal beyond reason" by telling Peter something he didn't know: before the night was over, he three times will deny the Lord. Thus, Peter was reminded of his weakness, cowardice and inability, relying only on his own strength, to follow the Lord even for a few hours.

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Chapter 17 Washing Your Feet

Icon of Andrei Rublev's school
from the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius

The 13th chapter of the Gospel of John begins with the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet.

“Before the Feast of Passover, Jesus, knowing that His hour had come to pass from this world to the Father, showed by deed that, having loved His who were in the world, He loved them to the end. And during the supper... Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, stood up from the supper, took off His outer garment, and, taking a towel, girded Himself” (John, 13:1-4).

Let us pay attention to the words “before the Easter holiday”, “and during supper”, “rose from supper”. It is clearly stated here that the washing of the feet takes place during the very supper before the Easter holiday, which is described in the Synoptic Gospels - in Matthew, Mark and Luke - and which we call the Mystery. It is important to keep in mind that John does not have a story about the Last Supper.

The same place that the story of the Last Supper occupies in the Synoptic Gospels is occupied by the story of the washing of feet in John. And the church rite also tells us that church tradition connects this event - the washing of the feet - specifically with the Last Supper: in the composite Gospel reading of the Great Four, which includes excerpts from all four Gospels, the beginning of the 13th chapter - the story of the washing of the feet - is taken from the Gospel of John .

It is also very important to pay attention to the gestures of the Savior, recorded both in the weather forecasters’ story about the Last Supper and in John’s story about the washing of feet. There He takes bread, blesses, breaks

and gives the disciples four Eucharistic gestures. Here He gets up from the supper, takes off his outer clothing, girds himself, takes the laver and begins to wash the disciples’ feet, bending down to the feet of each of them, then puts on his clothes and continues the conversation. The same thing can be found in both texts - a combination of Jesus' words and gestures. The icon depicting the Last Supper is widely known. As a rule, it is placed in the temple above the Royal Doors.

Much less common, or rather, rare, is the “Washing of the Feet” icon. However, in some churches of Hellas and Asia Minor, this icon replaces the “Last Supper” icon. Therefore, on Maundy Thursday in some Orthodox churches you can see the “Last Supper” icon on the lectern, and in others you can see the “Washing of the Feet.”

WASHING THE FOOT 84.5x67.2. Timing belt inv. 2364
THE LAST SUPPER 84.3x63. State Russian Museum, inv. 2880
They come from the iconostasis of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery.
Foot washing was introduced into the State Russian Museum in 1922.
Last Supper - in 1956

It is necessary to take into account that the servant, as, for example, in the book of Genesis (186), which talks about how the Lord appeared to Abraham at the oak grove of Mamre, washes the guest’s feet not during the meal (as Jesus does), but before the meal . Yes, Jesus repeats the traditional gesture of hospitality, showing the disciples that this is His meal, but He repeats this gesture deliberately late at the moment when it would seem to be inappropriate, which forces them to pay special attention to it. And one more detail: the very expression “d e yipnu ginom e well”, that is, “during the meal”, is extremely accurate both in meaning and in grammatical construction (genetivus absolutus) coincides with “when they ate”, or “esti O ton out O n" (Matt. 26:26 and Mark 14:22), in the story about the Last Supper and the sacrament of the Eucharist. It becomes extremely clear that this is not just a sign of His humble hospitality, but something immeasurably more important and meaningful. This is also indicated by the use in the plural form in the expression, inaccurately rendered in Russian as “he took off his outer clothing,” the word “that they A tia", and "clothes" (in the Latin translation the noun vestimenta is used here, in the Slavic - "robes", and in both cases in full accordance with the Greek original). In pluralis, the word “himatium” is used in the Holy Scriptures only in one context - when talking about the clothes of the high priest (Matt. 26:65). Of course, Jesus was wearing only one cloak, or himation, but He takes it off like an officiating high priest. We are present at an event of special significance. This is also evidenced by the fact that, when talking about washing the feet, the Gospel switches from the past tense to the present: “gets up,” “takes off his clothes,” “takes water,” and so on. From this the reader feels that not only the evangelist, but also he himself is participating in this event. Unfortunately, the Synodal translation does not convey this quite accurately.

Washing the feet. Miniature. Trebizond Gospel (Book of Gospel Readings).
St. Petersburg, State Public b-ka
Byzantium. Late 10th century

Jesus, "knowing (in Greek "eid O c"), that... He came from God and is going to God" (John 13:1), says the beginning of this text. So, before the holiday of Easter, Jesus already knows that “His hour has come” - the hour of choice, decision-making, the hour when He must do the most important thing, which in the original is expressed by the Greek verb “ go"("metabaynein"). But that's what Easter is transition, the transition from slavery to freedom. The Aramaic prototype of this Greek text repeats the word for transition twice. The holiday of Passover, the holiday of the transition from slavery to freedom, becomes the day of Jesus' transition to the Father. Jesus goes to the Cross and then passes “from death into life,” as John the Theologian says.

“...The hour has come for Him to pass from this world to the Father...having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”

This passage, not only in content, but also in the vocabulary used here, is very reminiscent of the third chapter of the Gospel of John. There Jesus tells Nicodemus, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (v. 16). We can say that in the 13th chapter there is a clear repetition: in the 3rd chapter, God loved the world, in the 13th, Jesus loved

existing in the world. From the moment when the hour of His transition to the Father comes, the noun “love” and especially the verb “loves” become key in the stories about Jesus’ farewell conversation with his disciples and the passion of Christ in the Gospel of John. It is noteworthy that in the fourth Gospel there are many more verbs than nouns, this distinguishes the language of John from the language of any other evangelist and, in general, the language of any other writer. Love is not something frozen, it reveals itself in dynamics, and only a verb can convey this dynamics. And further, when we talk about love, John will constantly use not the noun “love,” but precisely the verb “to love.”

“He loved them to the end...” The word “end” plays a very important role in the Gospel. It is used here not in the sense of “stopping something”, but in the sense of “bringing to an end, completion.” “To the end” means “to the fullness”: the end comes when the vessel is filled to the brim with something. Jesus loved to the maximum, to such an extent that no more was possible. And then, during the supper described by the weather forecasters, the same one when, according to John,

“The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Simon Iscariot to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given everything into His hands... arose from supper, took off his outer garment and... girded himself.”

The moment when Judas already feels the desire to betray the Teacher is conveyed in both the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Mark. Judas makes a decision not at the end of the supper, when he leaves, but before it begins, until the moment when the disciples begin to prepare it. We read from the weather forecasters that he goes to the elders to negotiate, but John simply says that the devil has already put in the heart of Judas the decision to betray Jesus. And again, the situation described in the Gospel of John clearly corresponds to what the weather forecasters said. Both the weather forecasters and John talk about the same thing. If the story of the washing of feet in John’s Gospel had been replaced by the story of the Last Supper, it would have been absolutely clear that John was exactly repeating the other evangelists. But everything is the same except for one thing - the story about washing the feet. However, in a broader sense, here we can talk about repetition: in liturgical practice, the Last Supper is repeated in the form of the sacrament of the Eucharist, the washing of the feet - in the form of a ritual, when on Maundy Thursday the bishop performs the rite of washing the feet of the twelve priests participating in it.

Washing the feet.
Mosaic of the naos of the catholicon of the monastery of St. Luke in Phocis, Greece.
Byzantium, 1030s

Jesus gets up, takes off his outer garment, girdles himself, pours water into the laver, takes it in his hands and begins to wash the disciples’ feet. We can find something similar in the Gospel of Luke. There are several verses there in chapter 22 that are probably talking about the same thing we read in John chapter 13.

“There was also a dispute between them as to which of them should be considered greater. He said to them: Kings rule over nations, and those who rule over them are called benefactors. But you are not so: but whoever is greatest among you, be like the younger, and the ruler like the servant. For who is greater: the one who reclines or the one who serves? isn't he reclining? But I am among you as one who ministers” (Luke 22:24-27).

This last phrase, associated with the events of the Last Supper, makes one wonder: is this not a remnant of the story about the washing of feet, which, if so, is still present in the synoptic tradition? “And I am in your midst as one who serves.” Moreover, if we read this phrase closely, we will discover something very important in it. “I am in the midst of you,” says Jesus in John. “Where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them,” He says in the Gospel of Matthew (18:20). English I am, Italian Io sono or French Je suis finally, Church Slavonic " I am“- an expression that runs like a red thread through the entire Gospel of John; it is purely John. But it is also present in the above phrase from the Gospel of Luke. It seems that this verse is extremely closely connected with the Johannine tradition: with the story of washing the feet.

Luke has another text that one cannot help but recall in connection with the passage from the fourth Gospel under discussion:

“...and you be like people who wait for their master to return from marriage, so that when he comes and knocks, they may immediately open the door for him. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, finds awake; Truly I tell you, he will gird himself, and make them sit down, and come and serve them” (Luke 12:36-37).

This makes us remember the parable of the ten virgins and the bridegroom who came at midnight, and in general about that wedding supper, to the theme of which Jesus constantly returns His listeners, especially in the second half of each Gospel. But here, in Luke, the master, coming at night, “seats” his slaves and begins to “serve them,” moving from one to another, just like in that Greek icon where the washing of feet is depicted. Two pretty clear hints...

Around 1574(?)
71x59. Tretyakov Gallery,
Removed around 1926 from the Church of the Ascension in Belozersk,
transferred to the Tretyakov Gallery in 1934

What is the meaning of this event? Exodus 21 talks about slaves. There is a midrash - the Talmudic interpretation of this chapter - which says that a master cannot force a slave to wash his feet. A slave has some rights, and among them is the right not to wash his master's feet. A slave must work for the owner, carry out his orders, demands, but washing the owner’s feet is shameful even for a slave, and therefore the law protects him from this. And Jesus does what even a slave should not do. He becomes in the position of a person even less than a slave in relation to his master. It is very important to understand and feel this.

In the Middle Ages, in Western iconography, the Evangelist John the Theologian was always depicted with a cup in his hands, directly linking his Gospel with the sacrament of the Eucharist. Although it is precisely John who does not speak about the Last Supper. Despite this, the Gospel of John undoubtedly has a eucharistic character. Let us remember chapter 6, which talks about the bread of life and the flesh of the Son of Man, like the Blood, which we must eat and drink in order to enter into eternal life. And now, in chapter 13, we read about the washing of feet - a story that explains the essence of the sacrament of the Eucharist.

If the weather forecasters describe this sacrament as if “from the outside” - how it is performed - then John, in the story about washing the feet, shows it “from the inside”, explains the deep meaning: this is the sacrament of Jesus’ ministry to His disciples. In the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus is among us as a minister. He acts as a slave, Who, girded with a towel, serves us, sacrifices Himself to us as a servant.

It is very important to understand that the sacrament of the Eucharist is a sacrament of service. The paradox of Christianity lies in the fact that we do not serve Christ, which would be simpler and more understandable, just as in all religions man serves God. No, Christ comes to serve us, and in the person of Jesus God reveals His ministry to people. And in the sacrament of the Eucharist, as in the washing of feet, there is Jesus’ service to people, and not vice versa.

During the Last Supper, Jesus says: “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19). These words are preserved in the Gospel of Luke and in the First Letter of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 11:24). In the Gospel of John, Jesus says very similar words, only they sound even more specific:

“You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you speak correctly, for that is exactly what I am. So, if I, the Lord and Teacher, washed your feet, then you should wash each other’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do the same as I have done to you” (John 13:13-15).

So, washing feet is the example that Jesus gives to His disciples. As I serve you, so do you serve one another; just as I have loved you, so do you love one another; Just as I have become lower than a slave to you, so you also deny yourself for the sake of others. The main semantic line drawn here, passing from chapter to chapter of the Gospel of John, leads us to comprehend the essence of the sacrament of the Eucharist. The point is not that a person is allowed to participate in it, but about something completely different: the sacrament of the Eucharist is necessary precisely for those for whom it is most difficult, for those who have fallen the lowest. It is the sick who need medicine, not the healthy - “It is not the healthy who need a physician, but the sick” (Matthew 9:12). And Christ comes to heal the sick.

It is scary when someone is denied communion of the Holy Mysteries on the grounds that he is not ready enough. They don’t tell a person: first get cured, then you will get the medicine; you must recover, get stronger, then you will be worthy of this medicine. The situation when some are allowed to participate in one or another mystery, while others are not, is typical for many religions: participation in the mysteries always requires preliminary purification, some kind of preparatory procedures, etc. In Christianity, everything is different. Father Alexander Schmemann said that Christianity is not a religion, but an anti-religion, because here God in the person of Jesus comes into the world to serve man. It is not the Divine who forces people to serve Himself, as was the case with the Romans, Egyptians, Greeks, etc., but God comes to serve people.

This is so paradoxical that it is difficult to comprehend in our minds. Often it is somehow easier for us to turn Christianity into a religion, easier to do like the pagans - to divide people into those admitted and not admitted, worthy and unworthy, and contrast some with others.

But then it turns out that all the mechanisms known in the history of religion are at work, except for one described in the Gospel - the mechanism of the “lost sheep”; for in a world that is divided into worthy and unworthy, this parable does not fit. The Good Shepherd abandons 99 unlost sheep to find and save one stray one. That is why, speaking about how the presence of God manifests itself in the civilization that was born from Christianity, A. Saint-Exupéry exclaims in his book “A Pilot at War”: “The greatness of my civilization lies in the fact that a hundred miners will risk their lives for the sake of saving one comrade buried in a mine. For they save Man."

In the story of washing the feet, in this verbal icon of sacrificial love, Jesus fully reveals the entire “telos,” or “end,” the meaning or main intention of His work: He came to serve people, to pull them out of the pit. And He does this, becoming in a position lower than that of a slave. He says: I have given you an example of service, and calls people to do what He did. Following this example will be Christianity, our life in Christ.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, let you also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35)

Jesus loved us and calls us to love one another. This is completely new, unlike anything that has happened before. It is no coincidence that the Apostle Paul exclaims after Isaiah: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor entered into the heart of man the things that God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).

At the Last Supper, Jesus gives Himself, His Flesh and Blood, to people. I remember the words with which He addresses Peter in the Gospel of Matthew: “...blessed are you, Simon... for it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17 ). “Flesh and blood” is a fairly common idiom meaning “a person as he is.” This means that in the sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus gives Himself to us as a Man, gives us His humanity, shares it with us. This human dimension of the events of Maundy Thursday is also expressed in the story of the washing of feet.

It has become customary in our country, especially recently, to reproach the Christians of the East (Armenians, Copts and Ethiopians) for Monophysitism, pointing out that they did not discern His human nature in Christ. Indeed, in Rus' we have never been Monophysites. But from a psychological point of view, we still are in many ways. And we need to overcome and conquer this psychological taste of monophysitism, which is present in our religiosity. It is the human face of Jesus that we have not yet seen well, although in the story of washing the feet He reveals Himself to us precisely as a Man, and teaches Himself, and hands it over. He, who is Lord and Teacher, finds himself serving among us.

If you don’t truly experience and feel the humanity of Jesus, then it is impossible to understand what the Easter of Christ is and to experience the Easter joy the way those who discovered the Man in Jesus experience it. Without experiencing this, we will not be able to feel how God works in us, how He reveals Himself to us in all His fullness, as the Apostle Paul said. And this happens precisely through the humanity of Jesus. And only then will it become clear to us what the fullness of God is, when it will be clear what human fullness is. In other words, without seeing the Man in Jesus, we will not be able to see the fullness of the Divinity present in Him bodily. The place of God in the depths of our “I” will then continue to be occupied only by some scheme or idea of ​​​​God.

In our religiosity there is a lot that is mental and theoretical, but there is not enough life, something real that completely captures and transforms the life of modern man. Why doesn’t our faith transform us the way it once transformed the apostles? For the very simple reason that we do not feel God the way they felt. But we don’t feel God because we don’t feel Man.

It is necessary to feel God, and to feel it, abandoning the idea of ​​God that lives in our consciousness or that image inspired by history, which, one way or another, was certainly perceived by each of us. For the man of the Middle Ages, God was a king, looking down on the world from his high throne and dispassionately giving life to some and dooming others to death, as Torquato Tasso writes about this, for example, in the first canto of “Jerusalem Liberated”:

From the throne of the eternal Creator
He looked around all His possessions.
The crown illuminated with an imperishable gaze
The darkness of the underworld, the movement of cold stars,
The Almighty circled the firmament of windows
And every people living on earth.
(translation by L. Makhov)

For us, living after the Gulag and the Holocaust, it is clear that in reality the world is much more complicated, and there is hardly a person who would risk declaring that God doomed millions of innocent people to violent death in gas chambers or Gulag barracks. The words that “My power is made perfect in weakness,” which the Apostle Paul once heard during prayer (2 Cor. 12:9), become for us precious evidence that even at the time of the Gospel preaching it was already clear that omnipotence God cannot be imagined as something similar to the power of an omnipotent king or commander. The power of God, as the Apostle Paul testifies to this, sometimes reveals itself in weakness and powerlessness.

It is almost impossible to understand this, but sometimes you can feel it. When a fourteen-year-old girl dies of cancer before your eyes,

Whose life, it would seem, is just about to begin, experiencing almost inhuman pain for her and sometimes feeling bouts of incredible despair, you suddenly begin to understand that God is crying, invisibly staying next to her. As He once wept in Jesus when He approached the tomb of Lazarus. At the tomb of a just dead child, God reveals himself to us in the very weakness that the Apostle Paul testifies to. But it is probably still impossible to explain what this is in theological language. This can only be understood with the heart when it is open to meet the One who washed the disciples’ feet and then voluntarily went towards death.

The Gospel of Luke preserves the words with which an angel addressed the shepherds at the very moment of the Nativity of Christ. Most likely, it was with these words that the Christmas service began in the time of the apostles.

“Behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all people: for to you is born this day a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David.”

The joy announced by the angels to the shepherds lies precisely in the fact that God, it turns out, lives not only in the unapproachable light or “there in the azure tent and beyond the bounds of countless worlds,” as Vladimir Sergeevich Solovyov says in one of his poems, but “here and now” or “in the muddy stream of life’s worries”... God dwells among us and shares with us everything that befalls us.

“And behold, this is a sign for you,” the Gospel continues, “you will find a baby born, lying in a manger.”

God gathers humanity around the Child, thus entrusting us, people of different generations and temperaments, different races and nations, with the care of Himself. This is how God reveals himself to humanity in a completely new dimension. Not like the One who reigns over the world and looks down on us. Many people knew about such a God: Jews from the Old Testament, and Greek philosophers thanks to their philosophical searches.

“The God of philosophers and scientists” (as Blaise Pascal would later say) was generally recognized and designated in their philosophical texts by both Plato and Aristotle, and many other thinkers of antiquity. God as a Father was revealed to the people of Israel in the Old Testament, but was also felt by other peoples back in the 23rd century. BC. The Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten wrote a hymn to Aten, where he speaks of God as the one and only Father of all things reigning over the world. Centuries will pass, and translated into Hebrew this hymn will almost completely enter the Bible, forming the basis for the 103rd Psalm.

But God, who reveals himself to humanity in weakness and complete defenselessness, God, who reveals himself to the world in such a way that we must protect, preserve and save Him... Precisely to save - as does the righteous Joseph, who, having heard from the angel about the danger, stands up at night, without waiting for the morning, and, taking the Child with His Mother, flees to Egypt (Matthew 2:13-14)... “Flight to Egypt”...

Rest on the Flight into Egypt 1665
Bartolome Esteban Murillo

I remember Murillo’s painting from the Hermitage and many other paintings by old masters - all this is a kind of program for each of us! “Whoever receives one of these children in My name,” Jesus himself says in the Gospel of Mark, “receives Me, and whoever receives Me does not receive Me, but Him who sent Me” (Mark 9:37).

Christians in the West call the first Sunday after the Nativity of Christ the Day of the Holy Family (Domenica della Santa Famiglia). On this day, during the liturgy, the passage from the Gospel of Matthew is read, which tells about the flight into Egypt, and believers are invited to contemplate as a verbal icon the words of Scripture about how “Joseph... arose and took the Child and His Mother by night , and went to Egypt." Three figures appear before our eyes: Jesus, Mary and Joseph. And we? We all gather around them, like a real family... The Holy Family - Sancta Familia - is not only the Child with His Mother and Joseph protecting them, but all of us, all Christians, His entire Church...

In our Eastern Christian tradition, on the first Sunday after Christmas, the same passage from the Gospel is read, and the Church calls us to the same contemplation of the Holy Family, with the only difference that in the Greek language of the times of the New Testament there simply was no word equivalent in meaning to the Latin familia , or "family". For this reason, the idea of ​​the Church as the Family of our Lord among us Christians of the East was expressed not in one word, but implicitly, without words, without precise formulation, but at the same time quite clearly and quite definitely. Christianity is a family. When we forget this, we move away from the most important thing, from the reality of the feeling of God's Presence among us, a Presence that is especially acutely experienced when we gather before His manger...

In the defenseless Child, for whom there was no “place in the inn”, as the Gospel of Luke says, the fullness of God is embodied bodily, as the Apostle Paul would say... The incontainable God, whom “heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain,” as says King Solomon, fits into a manger, into a cattle feeder, where the Mother placed the Newborn, the Almighty shows us his omnipotence of a helpless baby... God entrusts himself to humanity, and does this not in general, but in our real life...

A little over thirty years will pass, and on the eve of His death, having washed the feet of His disciples, Jesus will let us feel, just feel, what God’s presence is, and will reveal to us the secret of that power that, paradoxically, is accomplished in weakness. The mystery that will then shine upon us from the Cross, on which the emaciated and beaten Man by the Roman soldiers will be crucified.

Benedict Spinoza once said that “everyone feels or is aware of God only through love for his neighbor, and therefore no one can know another attribute of God other than this love.” Faith, from Spinoza's point of view, "gives everyone complete freedom to philosophize... it condemns only those who teach opinions with the aim of causing disobedience, hatred, disputes and anger." And one more definition from the “Theological-Political Treatise”. “Faith,” says Spinoza, “means nothing more than the feeling about God (de Deo sentire) of that without awareness of which obedience to God ceases and what, in the presence of this obedience, is necessarily relied upon.” This obedience consists in following the commandment to love one’s neighbor and that new commandment that Jesus speaks about in his farewell conversation - “By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). ).

It is faith, based in no way on the acceptance of this or that picture of the world, but only on the living feeling of God, which Jesus teaches us on literally every page of the Gospel, faith, as complete trust in God, changes a person and makes him, without eliminating weakness, -really strong. The state of faith that has not yet strengthened, has not yet developed, must be overcome, because as long as we remain in this state, our faith will not become like the apostolic faith. And they, the apostles, the disciples of Christ, their faith, their unarmed courage helped them emerge victorious from any of the most difficult situations.

Second. The Lord washes your feet. The legs resemble walking, a path, a way of acting, and for the apostles the way of acting is in the apostleship. So, washing the feet of the apostles with his own hands, making them clean and revealing them in their present form, the Lord taught that the image of the action of the holy apostles in the apostolic works will only then be pure, will be revealed in its true form, when it is controlled by hands, or by the power of Himself Gentlemen. Therefore, perfect devotion to the Lord must be shown on the part of the apostles: go where the Lord leads; act as the Lord suggests; say what the Lord gives. Perfect devotion to God is the hallmark of the Apostleship. “He will girdle you and lead you even if you don’t want to” (John 21:18). “It is not you who speaks, but the Spirit of My Father who speaks in you” (Matthew 10:20). I wanted to go, says the Apostle Paul, to Asia, but the Spirit forbade me. This is how it happened with the apostles and this is why the Apostle Peter received such a severe reproach when he refused to wash himself. He showed that he wants to act on his own...

In ancient Israel, many ordinary people went barefoot while going about their daily business. And if anyone wore shoes, they were sandals, which were nothing more than soles attached with straps to the foot and ankle. Since the roads and fields were dirty and dusty, people's feet inevitably got dirty. For this reason, it was customary to remove sandals before entering a house. According to the law of hospitality, the guest was supposed to wash his feet. Usually this was done by the owner of the house or a servant. The Bible mentions this widespread custom more than once. For example, Abraham suggested to the people who came to his tent: “Please let me bring some water and wash your feet. And then lie down under a tree. “I will bring bread so that you may refresh your hearts” (Genesis 18:4, 5; 24:32; 1 Samuel 25:41; Luke 7:37, 38, 44). These historical accounts help explain why Jesus washed the feet of his disciples when he celebrated the last Passover with them. In that case, there was neither the owner of the house nor the servant who could...

first time on the Internet
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Priest Georgy Chistyakov
from book
"The light shines in the darkness"

Chapter 17 Washing Your Feet

Icon of Andrei Rublev's school
from the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius

The 13th chapter of the Gospel of John begins with the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet.

“Before the Feast of Passover, Jesus, knowing that His hour had come to pass from this world to the Father, showed by deed that, having loved His who were in the world, He loved them to the end. And during the supper... Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, stood up from the supper, took off His outer garment, and, taking a towel, girded Himself” (John 13: 1-4).

Let us pay attention to the words “before the Easter holiday”, “and during supper”, “rose from supper”. It is clearly indicated here that the washing of the feet is performed during the very supper before the Easter holiday, which is described in the synoptic Gospels - in Matthew, Mark and Luke - and which we call ...

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"Washing the feet"

David Wilkerson

(sermon, text)

For many months I spent hours in prayer about the message God would like me to convey to ministers and pastors at an upcoming conference. And for a whole month I struggled with the “problem” of my belonging to the richest nation in the world. My rent for the apartment was more than the annual salary of someone invited to the conference. I had very expensive suits in my closet that I had bought while holding meetings in Italy. And now I'm wearing an Italian suit. I eat, one might say, like a king. I drive a car they can only dream of. Many pastors survived persecution and extreme poverty with only one suit and no car at all. What about cars, having no meat at all, but only two or three eggs a week. They were just trying to survive. And I was traveling from the land of wealth and prosperity, to the suffering pastors, to those who were traveling by train. We tried to provide them with food. When we were in Moscow, we...

WHY CHRIST WASHED THE FEET OF THE DISCIPLES, OR HOW TO FIND BLESSINGS AT COMMUNION

Then I began to question believers about the purpose and power of the Lord's Supper. Some said that the Supper is needed so that we do not forget about the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Others taught me to simply believe that in communion I was mysteriously eating the Flesh and Blood of Jesus Christ. And that in this way (it turns out, through eating) my…

“...The blood of Christ, who through the Holy Spirit offered Himself blameless to God, will cleanse our conscience from dead works, to serve the living and true God!”

Hebrews 9:14

One of the striking and very important teachings of Jesus Christ is the ruling on Communion, which symbolizes His suffering and death for the salvation of sinners. During his last supper with his disciples, shortly before the crucifixion, Jesus Christ washed the feet of his disciples, as the Bible says: “Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He came from God and is going to God, He got up from supper, took off His outer clothing and, taking a towel, girded Himself. Then he poured water into the laver and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel with which he girded” (John 13:3-5). This was a special moment when the Greater in position and status began to serve the lesser, and humiliated Himself to the level of a slave, setting an example of how to deal with one’s neighbors. However, Seventh-day Adventists, like some Pentecostals,...

Jesus Washing the Apostles' Feet - Last Supper

Document 179

Last Supper

When, on Thursday afternoon, Philip reminded the Master of the approaching Passover and asked how he planned to celebrate it, he was referring to the Passover meal, which was supposed to be eaten the next evening, Friday. Usually, preparations for Easter began no later than noon of the previous day. And since the Jewish day began at sunset, this meant that the Saturday Passover meal should take place on Friday evening before midnight.

Therefore, the apostles were at a loss, trying to understand the Teacher’s statement that they would celebrate Easter a day earlier. They believed, at least some of them, that Jesus, knowing of his impending arrest before the Passover dinner on Friday night, was inviting them to a special meal that Thursday. Others believed that this would be just a special meeting, preceding the usual celebration...

The shepherd's form is a su with a special system, ice-cold to Jesus washing the legs of the apostles of orthostatic diameter, sticking out 100 mg of phenylbutazone. BUTORPHANOL-TARTRATE Butorphanol-tartrate Unfractionated analgesic - howling phenanthrene, diesel wedge with naloxone, not included by the late WHO for the same testing and slowing down of narcotic drugs 1981, 1988, 1989. Agonist viscosity- and neurologist mu- opiate pets, with less analgesic oxygen.

Analgesic caution is 8-11 times the activity of morphine. Absorption: Therapy of pain syndrome of varying and increased intensity of various special services.

Captures the scenery: Jesus washed the feet of the apostles

I read about the website GELANDRINK Zolotoy and GELANDRINK Dvortsovo as Jesus soaps for the feet of the apostles, which are just soothing for diseases in the joints. I looked it up on the Internet, plus all the reviews were positive, especially from the medical staff. Here is Jesus foot soap for the apostles preparation - Contains a unique arthro- and...

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To begin a short sermon, I would like you to read carefully from the book of the Bible, the Gospel of John, chapter 13, verses 4 to 10, inclusive.
It says that Jesus Christ washed the feet of the disciples, but I would like to pay special attention to the conversation with Peter and Jesus. Everyone knows who Peter is, this respected man, one of the 12 disciples, and then the Apostle, was the most ardent. And then, starting a conversation with Jesus, he says:
He approaches Simon Peter, and he says to Him: Lord! Should you wash my feet?
(John 13:6)
It would seem that Peter answered correctly, he did not allow his Teacher to humiliate himself so low, so that Jesus would wash his feet. But Jesus answered and said:
Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not know now, but you will understand later.”
(John 13:7)
However, Peter was not yet filled with the Holy Spirit to understand how deeply Jesus penetrated into the heart of a person to wash his feet...

Ramil Mustaev. Jesus washes the disciples' feet

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, let you also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35)

Tapirra covers the topic well:

In our religiosity there is a lot that is mental and theoretical, but there is not enough life, something real that completely captures and transforms the life of modern man. Why doesn’t our faith transform us the way it once transformed the apostles? For the very simple reason that we do not feel God the way they felt. But we don’t feel God because we don’t feel Man.

Benedict Spinoza once said that “everyone feels or is aware of God only through love for his neighbor, and therefore no one can know another attribute of God other than this love.” Faith, from Spinoza’s point of view, “provides everyone with complete freedom of philosophizing... it condemns only those who...

I, like every believer, have had occasion to participate in the Lord’s Supper (the sacrament of communion) many times. At the same time, we were taught that by partaking of the Blood and Flesh of Christ, the very Life and Power of the Lord mysteriously enters into all believers.

Although many years have passed, I remember well how excitedly and with what hope I awaited my first communion. We were told that before the Supper we needed to fast and pray. My wife and I diligently completed everything. And here is the Supper! I ate the bread and the fruit of the bunch of grapes and... nothing.

Then I began to question believers about the purpose and power of the Lord's Supper. Some said that the Supper is needed so that we do not forget about the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Others taught me to simply believe that in communion I was mysteriously eating the Flesh and Blood of Jesus Christ. And that in this way (it turns out, through eating) my unity with Jesus Christ occurs. Still others taught that the washing of feet and the Supper, as a sacrament, ...

Life of Jesus

The life of Jesus on earth, his actions and the qualities that he showed showed what kind of God Jehovah is, the Creator of heaven and earth. Thanks to Jesus, we have a complete understanding of the Creator.

The Great Teacher gives a clearer idea of ​​the Creator

The people who inhabited Palestine in the first century were “waiting.” What were people waiting for? The coming of Christ, or the Messiah, predicted centuries before by the prophets of God. People were sure that the Bible was written under the direction of God and contained predictions about the future.

One such prediction, recorded in the book of Daniel, indicated that the Messiah would appear early in the first century (Luke 3:15; Daniel 9:24-26).

However, people had to be careful because false messiahs were emerging (Matthew 24:5).

Some of them are mentioned by the Jewish historian Josephus: Theudas, who led those who believed him to the Jordan River and declared that its waters would part; an Egyptian who led people to the Mount of Olives and claimed that according to him...

Let's think about it:
1. It is said that Jesus washed the feet of the disciples during the supper. Neither before supper, nor after it, but precisely during supper...
If He simply cared about the cleanliness of the disciples’ feet, then He would have washed their feet at the entrance to the house (as slaves usually did)... but He waited until supper and it was during supper that He began this action.
2 And during the supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Simon Iscariot to betray Him,
3 Jesus, knowing that the Father has given all things into His hands, and that He came from God and is going to God,
4 He arose from supper, took off His outer garment, and taking a towel, girded Himself.
What does this mean? This tells me that Jesus wanted to call His disciples to something important that would happen to them later during the Supper.

2. Jesus actually washed the feet of His disciples, saying that this was an example for them. He did not do this symbolically (as many denominations do now), but actually WASHED their feet.
4 He got up from supper and took off His...