Shepherd of the Springs
Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod

This evening we continue our midweek Advent meditations considering How Sinners Meet Jesus. This evening our text in the 13^th chapter of John presents the amazing meeting of Jesus by his disciples, but not in the role of miracle worker, prophet, or teacher - no, not in any of the work that the Father had given to the Son under His given vocation as Savior of sinners. Rather, Jesus comes to them as a lowly foot-washer and one that would wash their feet at that. Peter, as we see in our text, will have none of this. But, notice . . . he does not protest saying to the Lord; sit down, Lord - I’ll do it. Rather he just pleads for the Lord to stop. He is embarrassed to see the One he would consider his Lord doing such menial and lowly work - work that he considers below what he, Peter, would be willing to do. And that is the rub about the Jesus for many sinners at Christmas time. It is difficult for sinners sometimes not to become embarrassed when approaching and considering Jesus as someone they ought to worship and consider their Lord and Savior. He does things that seem below what we would be comfortable doing.

Let’s explore this a little this evening as we would reflect about our preparation for meeting the Christ of Christmas. Jesus made the point that his foot-washing exercise should to be considered an example for his disciples as they would understand something about their own vocations. He was not, strictly speaking, doing the duties that were part and parcel of His vocation. Jesus received his calling from His Heavenly Father to be the promised Messiah - to be the Savior and to carry out all of the tasks and duties of that vocation as the Father prescribed. On more than one occasion, He told the unbelieving Jewish leaders that the words that He spoke and the works that He performed were only engaged because they were given to Him by the Father (John 8:28-29, 10:37-38). The point that Jesus was making is that we should not be put out by the seemingly lowly tasks that we may be called upon to be about in the offices and vocational duties that fall to us that meet simple daily needs of others. Perhaps we can see foot-washing then as doing the laundry in our homes today. In as much as we have washed the dirty socks and such of our family members (if laundry duties should fall to you), you will be reckoned and praised for washing the dirty stuff of our Lord Himself.

But more to the point . . . not only can we can also embarrassed by the work that the Lord gives to us, we can also be embarrassed by the work the Father gave to the Son. It is one thing to find yourself in a lowly place with some humble tasks to be about, but how do you feel about the One that you would worship as your Lord and Master? Sometimes Christians are timid about being followers of the Man from Galilee, especially today, because it is not very in and it does not make a very powerful statement about yourself. Have you been embarrassed about claiming Jesus as your Lord on occasion? Is it becoming difficult to say Merry Christmas rather than Happy Holidays with our cards and greetings to others outside your Church friends? We certainly are not the only ones who have been given what may seem as humble tasks by our God. The Father has especially given to Jesus the task of being a Messiah Who had the calling to be a humble Suffering Servant - to be One not be much to look at or much to commend on the basis of earthly standards. He was called into this world to do some washing - but, not of our socks, rather, our sins - that though they be scarlet, and as filthy rags, so He was called to a cross, to wash them in the blood of God’s Lamb in order to make them as white as snow. Kings enter the scene with trumpet sounds, pomp, and impressive entourages. The One we would acknowledge as King of Kings enters the world with bunch of stable animals in a nowhere dusty middle eastern town. He entered the center of Jewish worship, Jerusalem, on the back of a donkey. He entered into the holy of holies of God to make sacrifice for our sins by being nailed to a shameful criminal’s cross. The most important event of His life was His death.

Do you sometime feel embarrassed to consider yourself among the number who would be counted to have this one as your Lord? Might you be inclined, like Peter, to wish that He would stop this lowly stuff and get on with tasks and shows of glory and splendor that really are more fitting for One who we would acknowledge as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe? Do you sometimes just wish that Jesus would hurry up and return with all his Godly might and heavenly hosts to really show the world Who He really is and therefore how we are not really so nuts claiming Him as our Lord and God? Must we go to the barn again, kick the animals out of the way, and peer into the feed trough to behold the One we confess as our Lord? . . . The answer is, of course, yes we must. It is what Christmas is really all about. It is about bowing your head and getting with God’s way of things in His business of redeeming this fallen creation and saving sinners like us. It is about being humble, being small, being dead, and being . . . largely unnoticed by the movers and shakers of this world. It is about joining the Christ child in the manger, joining Him in His cross, dying to sin with Him, and being approved and gaining favor with the Father for the sake of the humble suffering servant work of his Son incarnate. Foot-washing is nothing. It is about associating with One who would die a shameful criminal’s death discredited by all the rich, the powerful, and all the rest who matter and make big names for themselves in the eyes of the world.

In this we remember that as with our Lord, so with those of us who are joined to Him. He who humbles himself will be exalted. The first will be last, and the last will be first. As He would humble himself to die to sin, so must we. As He would accept a life that in the eyes of the world may look small, lost, poor, and beneath what most would accept - so must we. As He told Peter in the upper room, the servant is not above his master. So where do we begin? We begin by getting ready to go to Bethlehem to meet the one who would one day wash his disciples’ feet in preparation for washing away their sins. And if we will not be embarrassed by all this, we can be renewed in our callings which can also include the equivalents of foot-washing. And we can take our sins - as beggars in need of a complete washing - to the stable and worship the One who render them white as snow and ourselves as clean as we can appear before our Heavenly Father. Oh, come! Let us not be embarrassed, rather let us come and adore Him, Christ, the Lord.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. A-men.