Holiday Survival Kit

Black Friday is over. Cyber Monday is upon us. One article caught my eye, promising you could survive Christmas if you do all your shopping online. “Survive” connotes a dim view of the holidays. Though I do not always succeed in following it myself, I know a recipe for Holiday happiness?—a Mary Christmas.

Though this analogy may be old, it never gets tired. While Jesus' visit to the home of Mary and Martha was not Christmas, it was as special as any holiday. And while Martha focused like a scud missile on dinner preparations, Mary made a beeline for the best spot in the house, at Jesus’ feet. While Martha was stewing in the disappointed expectations of a perfect meal, Mary was consuming the abundance of fruit that fell from Jesus’ lips. Martha busied herself with ‘every’ thing while Mary quieted herself with ‘one’ thing.

As we begin preparations for this year's Christmas festivities, let us not allow disappointment with secondary things—family, food, presents—to steal our joy from that which is primary. Jesus came to earth “that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). Don’t allow a “Martha” mentality to steal your “Mary Christmas.”

At His Feet

One of the sweetest stories in the Gospels has to be when Jesus visited the home of Mary and Martha. While Martha had her ‘feet on the ground’—she was sensible and practical, Mary had her feet up, relatively speaking! While Martha fixated on festal foods, Mary yearned for finer fare at the feet of Jesus.

“Sitting at one’s feet” is a timeless idiom, meaning “pay worshipful attention to.” And while Mary was setting her mind on Jesus, a mortally-minded Martha was being held hostage to the familiar. This was Mary’s “break-out” moment—not to do great feats, but to love His.

“Falling at one’s feet” is another timeless idiom, with similar meaning. The Gospel writers record a number of times people fell at His feet and worshipped Him. I wonder how much more they would have done so, if they had known His feet would one day be nailed to a Cross for them. How different was their unrestrained expression from our Sunday morning church-goers sitting at the foot of a stage sipping coffee and eating doughnuts.

"Great Feets"

‘Herod the Great,’ King of Judea in Jesus’ lifetime, is known for his great feats. His name seems a metaphor for natural man, not only trying to be better, but Something-the-Great! Such is the appeal of Joel Osteen’s newest book, “Break Out,” an appeal to break free of all limitations—truly footloose—and dream big.

Was this not the appeal of Satan to Adam, and then to Jesus. If they could only think ‘bigger’ and ‘better’ of themselves, what great feat they would have. Of course, it caused Adam to ‘get off on the wrong foot,’ leaving a foul foot print on each of us. Fortunately, he couldn't fool Jesus who said, “the ruler of the world has nothing in Me,” i.e., he can't find a foothold (John 14:30).

Someone has said, “It is a long road to the end of ourselves.” And when we get there, we will not have sore feet, as some might imagine, but ‘happy feet.’ One step at a time, we will walk in the good works He prepared for us (Eph. 2:10; 3:20), or in the homophonic language of this post, we will have “Great Feets.”

Foot Washing

I find the practice of foot washing, practiced by some sincere believers today, puzzling, because it takes Jesus’ command to go and do likewise (John 13) so literally. Foot washing was not a symbolic act. People had dirty feet. And by relegating the task to lowly servants, it turned something very “personal” into something “impersonal.” But not that night!

That night, His earthly ministry was topped off by an act so personal it was almost embarrassing. Jesus had always embodied His principles: “I am the truth” (John 14:6). But that night He embodied love. No, it was not a principle that lived with them for 3 years. It was not a principle that washed their feet. It was not a principle that died on a Cross and rose from the dead. It was a Person; and it was very Personal.

I know some of you are going through almost unbearable trials. Though you've been sustained by biblical principles, the Personal Jesus seems elusive. Toward the last days, the love of many will grow cold (Matt. 24:12). Is this the result of hard times? Today, more than ever, we need to know Jesus Personally as the One who washes our weary feet with the water of His Word (Eph. 5:26).

Footsteps

In writing yesterday’s post, “Footprint,” I had a revelation that my footprint is God's to make, not mine. As a disciple, I am called to walk in Jesus' steps, or you could say, his shoes. On the other hand (or foot), as our forerunner, or fore-walker, Jesus did the proverbial walk a mile in our shoes.

The writer of Hebrews says, “He understands our weaknesses since He faced all of the same testings we do” (4:15). And it’s precisely because of that, we can go to Him “to receive His mercy, and find grace to help us when we need it most” (4:16).

Two days ago, I wrote this prayer in my journal: 
"Lord Jesus, lead me that I might be 'in step' with You. Give me grace to make the right steps, and mercy for my missteps." If it were not for a steady pace of grace and mercy, His shoes would be too big to fill.

Footprint

My carbon footprint is the amount of the earth’s resources I will consume in my lifetime. It’s a negative. On the other hand, what I have given ‘in time’ will leave behind my life's footprint. That’s a positive.

Every year, millions of tourists travel to our Nation’s capital to see the monuments to larger-than-life men and women whose influence lives beyond their mortality—their footprint. But is this appetite for perpetuity an evil part of human nature? Not at all. In fact, it is a divine quality turned inward. Solomon said, “God has put eternity in our hearts.” The natural man tries to satisfy this through immortality. But “immortality” —never dying— is not the same as “eternity” — always living.

None of us knows what footprint we will leave behind. But Jesus did. And though His feet may have touched the same ground we walk on, the footprint he left behind transcends time and space. He is not immortal; He is eternal. And now, as we walk with Him, each of us is a part of His footprint on the earth.

How Often Do You Wash Your Feet?

When our little children come to the dinner table, we ask them “Did you wash your hands?” But before we come to the Lord’s Table, He asks “Have you washed your feet?”

The Pharisees criticized Jesus and His disciples for not washing their hands before they ate. Ceremonial hand washing was but one of many self-imposed rituals of t he self-righteous Pharisees (Matt. 15:2, 20). Whenever the Old Testament writers employed the expression of clean hands it was always in reference to a pure heart. New Testament writer James says “Wash your hands, you sinners” (4:8).

Isn’t it curious then that Jesus (who apparently did not practice hand washing before meals) washed the Disciples' feet as part of the the Passover Supper (John 13)? Some commentators construe the “washing” of feet as equivalent to the confession of sins. When the ever passionate Peter said “Lord, wash my hands and my head,” Jesus said “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet” (John 13:10). We who have been cleansed from sin by the blood of Jesus do not need to be ‘washed’ again every time we sin. Rather, all we need to do is confess our sins—wash our feet—to be entirely clean again (1 John 1:9).

What an extraordinary paradox—our Divine Parent asks us to keep our hands clean (a pure heart) by washing our feet!