Let Jesus Wash You

So he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.  He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”  Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”  “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”  Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”  “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

– John 13:4-9

Back in Bible times, Jesus, his 12 disciples, and nearly everyone else – except the nobles – traveled on foot in sandals along dusty roads everywhere they went.  They did not have the riches of Kings to travel by horses or chariots.  On the outside, it appeared that the only thing that was really unclean about them was their feet.  So when Jesus went to wash his disciples’ feet, he was washing the dirtiest part of them!   And Jesus wants to wash the dirtiest part of you!  You’ve been saved, baptized, and filled with the Holy Spirit, and the Lord has done some major cleansing in your life already, but there is still something in your life that you are holding on so very tightly to that has become your source of earthly pride.  It is hard for you to let go of it because it is the one thing that you believe distinguishes you and defines you as a person, yet it is the one thing that is holding you back from doing what the Lord wants you to do for him.  Just know that with the Lord there is no grey area, it is either black or white…  The Lord wants you to either be all in for him or all out!  There is no in-between!  You cannot even have a pinky finger in this world and a foot in heaven at the same time!!  And the Lord wants to bring you to this place where you are forced to make the hardest decision of your life…  Are you going to be all in for him or all out?  Are you going to let him wash the dirtiest part of you??  Jesus said to his disciples, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”  You are Jesus’ disciple as well!!  But before you can go out to preach the good news of the Kingdom of God, you must allow Jesus to wash the dirtiest part of you, because if you don’t, then you have no part with him!  You cannot put your hand to the plow and look back at the same time!  You cannot go forward with the Lord’s plans for your life and still hold on to your plans for your own life, it’s just impossible!!  The Lord wants to use you and all your life for his glory, honor and praise!  He wants to set your heart on fire for him like a blazing flame so that you can go out boldly into this dark world shining brightly for him, snatching people from eternal fire!  Today, if you find yourself at this crossroads in your life and you’re not sure what to do… Let Jesus wash you!