Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Lectionary: 282

  

When Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet, he said to them:
“Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him.
If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it.

I often ask the patients in the VA hospital to, “Tell me a story.” I am not interested in their theories or ideas; I’ve got plenty of my own. But I want to know their stories of how they got there. True stories reveal who we are and how we come to act as we do. They describe a past which might be reinterpreted but cannot be changed.

Today’s gospel verses allude to a story which should not be overlooked. During his last supper with his disciples, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. He performed the menial role of a slave and honored these gentlemen as no one had ever treated them. (They were not wealthy men, nor did they come from wealthy families. In the stratifications of the Palestine, they were just a notch higher than slaves.) 

He followed the foot-washing with a discourse about what it meant, but we should notice that he didn’t express these opinions as if he might have washed their feet. He actually did it. Sometimes when required to do an odious task someone will propose, “Let’s not and say we did.” Maybe a fiction will fill the bill. Jesus might have taken that route but did not.

He would make the same decision on the following day, as he died on the cross. His death was not a matter of appearances or opinion. He truly died as every human being must die.

“If you understand this” foot-washing, you will understand what happens next: the arrest, trial, torment, and crucifixion of Jesus.

Because life is meaningful and must be interpreted rightly, we pay attention to the Master’s interpretation of what he has just done:

…no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it.

There can be no stratification among the disciples of Jesus. All are called to serve the Lord and his mission in various capacities, and all of those capacities are vital.

The recent epidemic has reminded us of the vital work of the least among us; especially of health care providers,  grocery clerks, truck drivers, farm laborers, and so forth. These are not the well-paid athletes, entertainers, bankers, developers, or Wall Street traders who ordinarily garner our attention and admiration. In fact, we could do without most of them. 

The pandemic has reminded some of us that we really do care about our parents and grandparents in nursing homes. We're willing to make sacrifice and take risks for their sake. We need and love these little ones. Jesus sends you and me to serve, and not be served. Once we have had our feet washed; once we have eaten his body and drank his blood. We have no choice but to serve others.