In John 13, at the Last Supper on Maundy Thursday of Holy Week, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. He did this for two main reasons.
First, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet as a symbol of the spiritual washing that he was about to provide for them on the cross (Jn. 13:8).
Second, Jesus washed his disciples’ feet as an example of humble service for his disciples to follow. In John 13:14, Jesus told his disciples, “You also ought to wash one another’s feet.”
Some Christians think that John 13:14 means, “Every Christian for the rest of history must actually wash the feet of other Christians.” They may even call foot-washing an “ordinance,” which means that it is a rite ordained by Jesus and binding for all believers.
Before taking this view, we should consider a few things.
First, the command was first given to the disciples in their first-century context. Jesus was talking to the disciples when he said, “You also ought to wash one another’s feet” (Jn. 13:14). This does not mean that Jesus’s words don’t apply to us today. But it should make us pause and ask, “How exactly do we apply an instruction that was given to a particular group of people 2,000 years ago?” Context matters when making such an application.
For example, consider a different biblical command: “Greet one another with a holy kiss” (Rom. 16:16). This command is actually repeated four times in the New Testament: “Greet one another with a holy kiss” (1 Cor. 16:20). “Greet one another with a holy kiss” (2 Cor. 13:12). “Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss” (1 Thess. 5:26). This repeated New Testament command absolutely applies to us today, but how exactly does it apply? Before making the application, we must consider the first-century context, since the command was first given to actual churches in the first-century Roman world. The same is true of the foot washing command, which is only given one time (in John’s Gospel), and is never commanded again in the New Testament.
In ancient times, foot washing was a frequent necessity (Gen. 18:4, 19:2, 24:32, 43:24; Judg. 19:21). In the first century when Jesus lived, people had dirty feet from traveling long distances on foot, usually in leather sandals. It was the job of servants to wash their masters’ feet. Jesus took the place of a humble servant to meet a real need that his disciples had. Then he told his disciples to do the same.
We are living in a very different world. In most places today, foot washing no longer meets a practical need, just as a holy kiss is no longer a culturally acceptable greeting (except perhaps in a few places like France!). Because it is so foreign to our modern world, many people do not react well to having their feet washed. Instead of making them feel loved and served, it makes them feel weird and uncomfortable (like having a “holy kiss” planted on their lips!).
Most Christians today apply the “holy kiss” command by greeting other believers with a warm, affectionate, but culturally appropriate greeting, like a warm handshake and smile or an appropriate hug. Similarly, when applying John 13:14 today, it seems best to look for practical needs that other people have—especially needs that are “dirty” and unpleasant to meet. Perhaps a better application would be, “Clean the church toilet!”
This is not to say that we can never actually wash one another’s feet. Foot-washing can be very meaningful as a reenactment of the Last Supper or as a lived “object lesson.” Washing someone’s feet can still be a very humbling activity. However, most churches that still wash feet today make it optional. They do not require or pressure people to do it if they feel uncomfortable.
Furthermore, it is common to only wash feet on Maundy Thursday when the Last Supper is commemorated. However, recall that on the first Maundy Thursday, the disciples did not wash one another’s feet. Jesus washed their feet. For this reason, in many churches that have Maundy Thursday foot washings, it is the Minister who washes everyone’s feet—not the congregation that washes one another’s feet. These churches are actually focusing on the first reason why Jesus washed his disciples’ feet: As a symbol of the spiritual washing that he was about to provide for them on the cross (Jn. 13:8). This is fitting as the Church prepares for Good Friday and Easter Sunday. The Minister acts as a representative of Jesus, and the congregation comes to receive the symbolic washing as the disciples had to receive the washing from Christ.
However a church practices foot washing today, we should be slow to call it an “ordinance,” because that implies that every church that doesn’t actually wash feet is in disobedience to Christ. This is a big claim that’s difficult to prove. And unless we are also greeting one another with a holy kiss, we aren’t being consistent in our interpretation and application of Scripture.
