John 13:6-10
Filthy Feet
I have never been much of a foot wiper. I try, but both the
testimonies of my mother and my wife is that I am no good at it. My
wife has never asked me a question that I can still hear my mother
asking, “Are your feet clean?”
We have no record of Jesus ever asking such a question but we do have
a record of Him moving to take care of a similar situation.
1. This was Christ’s last evening on earth before His
crucifixion.
2. He had set up one last supper with His disciples before the
crucifixion was to happen.
3. The men had borrowed or rented a large upper room to host this
last meal.
4. The streets were dirt in those days and the shoes were
sandals. The meal was eaten sitting or lying on pillows at
a low table (Japanese style).
5. To make the meal more appetizing, the host of such meals would
have a servant at the door to wash the feet of those
arriving.
6. Since they were at no one’s home, there was no servant.
7. No disciple took water and basin to wash the others’ feet.
8. At some point, Jesus rose from the table, took the basin and
towel, and wash the disciples feet.
9. Simon Peter, who could have taken the basin himself and washed
the feet of those there but didn’t, objected to Christ’s
washing his feet.
10. \\#8\\ Jesus answered, if you do not let me clean your feet,
you have no part with me.
There are many lessons to be learned from this text. Let’s pick out a
few.
I. Dirty feet mean you live in a dirty world.‘
A. That may not be one of the most spiritual lessons of this
text, but some of the most important lessons we can learn
come from some of the most common illustrations.
B. We can learn some lessons about dirt from the dirty world in
we live.
1. We can learn that dirt is dirty.
a. The dirty is the nature of dirt.
(1) Dirt leaves it mark on all that it touches.
(2) In the last years, many have become totally
repulsed by dirt.
(3) I’m not sure we should, but many have.
(4) Whether we are repulsed by dirt or not, we can
all agree that dirt leaves its dirty mark.
b. But it is not dirt that Jesus was dealing with as
much as sin.
(1) Like dirt’s nature is dirty, so sin’s nature is
sinful.
(2) We should not expect the world to play fair, do
right, show mercy, or be sensible.
(3) Instead, we should expect the world to lie, to
cheat, to be lustful, to steal, to blaspheme,
to curse, and to enjoy dirty humor.
(4) Why? Not because it is right but because it is
the nature of sin to be sinful.
2. We can also learn that as dirty as dirt is, it can be
dirtier.
a. Two things make dirt worse.
(1) Wind makes dirt worse. As long as dirt is laying
dormant over there, it may be dirty but we can
deal with it by staying over here. But when the
wind comes, dirt goes everywhere - in your
clothes, your hair, your mouth, your car, your
house. As bad a dirt is, wind make dirt
dirtier.
(2) Water makes dirt worse. Water gives dirt super
powers. While dirt can stain your clothes,
most of the time, you can wash it out; but if
some of Alabama’s red clay mud gets on them,
kiss them good-bye.
b. As dirt can be made dirtier, so sin can be made more
sinful.
(1) I know I make reference to what is happening in
the US almost every message, but we are seeing
dirt bubbling up out of people and spreading
across the entire globe as it has never happened
before.
(2) This is a larger scale of what happened in Nazi
Germany in the 30’a and in the Communist
countries in the 50’s, but much worse and much
larger.
(c) abortion, homosexuality, changing and crossing
of genders, surgical sex changed, socialism,
Communism, pro-Islam, anti-God
(d) This is pure evil, uncensored wickedness, and
unmitigated arrogance stirred up into a dirty
muddy cyclone of sin.
c. Is any of it right. NO!
(1) But it is what a dirty world does and loves.
(2) And it’s far from finished. As God said in the
days of the Tower of Babel:
Ge 11:6 …now nothing will be restrained from
them, which they have imagined to do.
C. We can also learn some lessons about us.
1. We live in a dirty world be we do not have to be dirty.
a. It is possible to live cleaner in a dirty world.
(1) That is what Christ commands and make possible.
(2) We are to live like the Bible tells us.
(a) A dirty world lies. Christians tell the
truth.
(b) A dirty world steals. Christian do not.
(c) A dirty world fornicates. Christians remain
pure.
(d) A dirty world kills. Christians stand
against it.
(e) And on it goes.
(3) Many do not understand that right now, the Bible
is not here to condemn us but to cleanse us.
(4) Neither do they understand that one day the Bible
will not be here to cleanse us but to condemn
us.
(5) Make sure you let it do its present work in you.
b. It is profitable to live clean in a dirty world.
(1) The more dirty this world becomes, the more
unlikely it is that they will reward us, but it
is impossible that Christ will not.
(2) More and more, this world moves to punish those
who think and live righteously.
(3) That is as Christ told us it would be.
(4) But the worse the world treats a Christian, the
greater his rewards from Christ will be.
c. It is pleasurable to live clean in a dirty world.
(1) Living clean has it’s pleasures. Mainly, it
gets you fellowship with Christ.
(2) Consider these disciples.
(a) They had no idea what lay ahead of them,
but Jesus did.
(b) They were in that Upper Room because Jesus
knew what lay ahead and He wanted to have
fellowship with them.
(c) What joy that last night with the physical
Lord Jesus must have given those 11 men the
remainder of the earthly lives!
2. Our relationship to the dirt in this world tells on us.
a. If dirt comes bubbling up inside us, we have a
problem.
Matthew 12:34 O generation of vipers, how can ye,
being evil, speak good things? for out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
1Peter 2:22 But it is happened unto them according
to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own
vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her
wallowing in the mire.
b. I can’t say who is truly saved and who is a wolf in
sheep’s’ clothing but I can say:
(1) There’s no such thing as a permanent backslider.
Hebrews 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he
chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he
receiveth.
7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you
as with sons; for what son is he whom the father
chasteneth not?
8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all
are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not
sons.
(2) When a person is guilty of sin and doesn’t see
anything wrong with it, doesn’t conviction
because of it, and doesn’t face dire earthy
consequences from God due to it, there is a
problem.
1 Corinthians 11:30 For this cause many are weak
and sickly among you, and many sleep.
(3) Remember, the number going to heaven is few and
the number going to hell is great. Please make
sure you are part of the right crowd.
II. Dirty feet leave dirty tracks.
A. If you have dirty feet, you are leaving dirty tracts. You
can’t walk through dirt and not get someone you.
B. Consider some things:
1. Your tracks tell people where you have been.
a. While we can’t walk in this world and not leave a
track, we don’t have to be hip deep in the dirt.
b. Lost people know some of God’s children do not;
namely, Christians are supposed to be in the dirt.
c. When you are in the dirt, you do three things:
(1) You damaged your testimony.
(2) You brought reproach to the name of Jesus.
(3) You grant permission for the lost to commit
sin.
d. You say, "Wait a minute, Preacher. That last one is
a bit crazy."
(1) Remember that all sinners are a bit crazy.
(2) They are looking for a while to justify their
sins.
(3) Your behavior does it.
(a) You drink a little? They will drink more.
(b) You cuss? They will cuss more.
(c) You watch bad movies and listen to bad
music? They will do worse.
(d) You smoke weed? They will snort something
stronger.
2. If you have dirty feet, you are tracking up what God has
cleaned.
a. Christian, you are tracking up your new spiritual
life.
b. A big part of the reason we all came to Christ was we
did not like the dirty lives we were living.
c. Why would we want to take a new life in Christ and
dirty it? I have no answer for that.
3. If you have dirty feet, you are tracking up what God is
trying to clean.
a. One of the greatest condemnations God gave to the
scribes and Pharisees was that their life styles were
keeping others out of heaven.
Matthew 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the
kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither
go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that
are entering to go in.
b. Christian, get out of the dirt.
III. Dirty feet can and ought to be cleaned.
A. \\#8-10\\ There are two kinds of cleaning. We need them
both.
1. At first, Peter did not want Jesus to wash his feet;
but once he understood it was required, he wanted
Jesus to give him a whole bath.
2. \\#10\\ Jesus told Peter that he had already had his
bath, that now all he needed was his feet cleaned.
3. So there are two cleanings and Christians need both.
a. The bath is a picture of salvation.
b. The foot washing is a picture of regular repentance
and renewal with Christ.
B. Without both cleanings, you have no fellowship with Christ.
1. Notice again Jesus’ response when Peter refused to have
his feet washed.
John 13:8 …If I wash thee not, thou hast no
part with me.
2. Remember that the foot washing is a picture of regular
repentance and renewal with Christ. Without it, even
the saved have no fellowship with Christ.
3. We Christians seem to view things in the extreme.
a. Some seem to think they can live in this world
without ever being influenced by its sinfulness.
(1) We can’t.
(2) You can’t walk through dirt without it getting
on you.
(3) I remember Lottie Marchant.
b. But to the other extreme, some think it is not a big
deal.
(1) It is a big deal.
(2) Even a little dirt in a clean environment causes
damages.
(3) We are surrounded with computer chips today, but
as I understand it, every computer chip must be
created in a completely dirt and dust free
environment. Why? Because the smallest amount
of dust will cause them to short out and fail.
(4) Instead of waiting to sin what sin tears up why
don’t we look for the sin and remove it before
it can tear anything up?
C. Christ is the only One who can clean you.
1. When looking at this text, one of the things we often
point out is that Christ had to do what the disciples
refused to do.
a. That was wrong.
b. Jesus humbled Himself to teach us that we should
humble ourselves.
2. But Jesus was not the only One who could have cleaned
the disciples’ feet, He is the only One who can remove
our sin.
a. This cleansing is not praying a cheap prayer—asking
for forgiveness and returning to commit the same sin
over and over again.
b. It comes from a true sorrow which comes from the Holy
Ghost of God and forces a change in your life.
2Cor 7:9 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made
sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for
ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that
ye might receive damage by us in nothing.
10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to
salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow
of the world worketh death.
11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye
sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it
wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves,
yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what
vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what
revenge! In all things ye have approved
yourselves to be clear in this matter.
3. Only God can bring this kind of sorrow to a dirty heart.
You may not know why God brought you here today, but perhaps it was
because God wants you to get cleaned up. Not from dirt, but from
sin. It is possible only through Jesus Christ.
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