Have you ever read a portion of Scripture and found yourself weeping and you're not even sure why? I had one of those this morning...
I was reading John 13:1-5 in my NIV..."It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing (some versions say garments -plural-as in all his clothes), 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."
The tears started at "he now showed them the FULL EXTENT of his love"...Jesus knew who he was (Son of God, Son of Man, divine Creator of the Universe, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Master, Saviour, Teacher, Friend, Lover of our Souls, Healer...), why he had been sent here, and that it was his time to return to God, His Father. Jesus loved his disciples before, but now he was going to SHOW them the FULL EXTENT of that love...
Can you even begin to imagine what the FULL EXTENT of Jesus' love feels like??? Willing to show it even to the one who would betray him? I can't.
It doesn't say the full extent of his love was experienced in Jesus' sermons or when he healed or in all the miracles he performed. The full extent of His love was not shown when He raised someone from the dead or cast out demons. It doesn't even say that the full extent of His love was shown at the cross (although it may have been). It says the full extent of His love was shown when Jesus stripped himself, wrapped himself in a towel, and took on the task that belonged to the lowliest servant. Jesus took off his robes: his robes of righteousness; his teacher/preacher/evangelist/prophet/healer/Son of God/Creator-of-the-Universe robes, put on a servant's linen towel, knelt in the dust at their feet, and washed away the filth of the world that had collected on their feet and then wiped them dry. That's when the FULL EXTENT of Jesus' love came. The full extent came when he humbled himself and did a task that even the lowest servant hadn't done. Jesus did it, not because he was forced to do it, or because he felt he had to...He did it because he was willing. He wanted to show that this is what the full extent of His love is about...stripping ourselves of whatever "robes" we wear, being humble enough to have the servant's heart that is willing to do the dirtiest, lowliest, looked-down-upon jobs; not because we have to, but because we can. We can do it because this is what the full extent of love is and what the full extent of love does. This is what it looks like and how it feels. It's something even I can do.
