The Sacrament of Footwashing
The Sacrament of Footwashing
Like baptism, footwashing is a sacrament; a divine act which the Lord commanded the believers to receive and imitate.
Jesus said, “He who is bathed needs only to washed his feet, but is completely clean” (John 13:10). With this analogy, the Lord demonstrated that a believer needs to accept footwashing after he has been baptised. When we receive the sacrament, a brother or sister in Christ performs the footwashing, but in spirit, it is our Lord who washes our feet. It is the Lord’s reminder to us of His eternal love and a call to live forever under His love.
Having A Part with The Lord
According to the Lord’s command, the church today washes the feet of the baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The person administering the sacrament follows the example left by Jesus and washes each new believer’s feet and dries them with a towel.
The observance of footwashing is not merely symbolic. It is a command from the Lord. Its effect is to “have a part” with our Lord Jesus (John 13:8). To have a part with Jesus is to have a part in His life. God’s saving grace does not end at baptism — it is a life-long gift.
In order to participate in this lasting relationship, we need to accept the footwashing by our Lord. Behind this act of washing lies the full extent of Christ’s unfailing love.
Participating in His Holiness
Our feet represents our behaviour and lifestyle. The Lord Jesus cleanses all our past sins through baptism. But we still need to continue our lives in a world filled with temptation, immorality, and godless values. We must leave our former life of sin and detest sin as much as God detests it.
To continue living in sin after we have heard the truth is to “trample the Son of God underfoot” (Hebrews 10:29) because it is disregarding our Lord Jesus’ sacrifice. It grieves our Lord to see His children sin, knowing that sin brings on us troubles and hurts. Sin is a serious matter to God, so serious that He “did not spare his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” (Romans 8:12). God loves us so much that He paid the greatest price to deliver us from sin.
If we are willing to rely on Christ to help us overcome sin, He will create in us a new heart after the image of God. We also need to let the word of God “wash” our feet, by listening to and obeying the teachings of the Bible. The word of God keeps our feet from straying. A psalmist writes, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalms 119:105). God’s word directs the way that we should go in life.