Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of John, chapter 13. John 13. Let's look at verses 12 to 17. John 13, verses 12 to 17. Remember, the Lord had just previously
washed the disciples' feet Scripture says, John 13, verse 12, So after
he had washed their feet and had taken his garments, he was
set down again. He said unto them, Know ye what
I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord, and
ye say, Well, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master,
have washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example
that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say
unto you, the servant is not greater than his Lord, neither
he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know
these things, happy are ye if ye do them." The Lord, after
he had washed his disciples' feet, he asked this question,
know ye what I have done to you? Do you know what I've just taught
you? Do you know what I've just performed
for you? That question, no doubt, was
asked to bring to their minds a vital part of His ministry And also to teach them something
concerning their walk, following after Him. The first thing we
learned from what He had just done to them, washed their feet,
was we know that we need a daily washing. I said last time when
we were considering the actual washing, there is a cleansing
that never needs to be performed again. By one sacrifice, the
Lord has perfected forever those that are His. Redeemed them. Paid an eternal
debt that was due. Paid in full. It is finished. When I see the blood, I'll pass
over you." Put away their guilt. Cast as far as the east is from
the west. Behind the back of God. It'll never come up again. Never. But obviously there's
a daily cleansing that needs to be performed. And the Lord
Jesus Christ, great, great, Mystery. Great mystery of God's grace. Great mystery of God's mercy
and compassion to His people. There is a daily cleansing, a
daily washing of their walk, of the believer's walk. And it's
by the Word of God being blessed to God's people. I need to be
told again. I need to be told again. what
I am by nature. I need to be told again of my
fallings and frailties. I need to be told again, just
like what we just looked at in Proverbs. I need to be told again
what I am before Him in Adam. I need to be reminded, cleansed. Lord, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I've said before, the failings
of my flesh I need to be told. There's a new man that does not
sin, Mark. I know that. I know that. But that old man, that old man,
I am a sinner. But the Lord Jesus Christ has
paid the debt of that old man. Not the new man. He's given a
new nature. But that old man is a rebel. Paul says, I know that in me,
it is in my flesh. It's old flesh. It's old nature.
Can you imagine that old man is rebellious before God? Christ paid the debt of it? I'm telling you, the more you
think of what he's done, the more mysterious and wonderfully
blessed it is that God would pay in His own body, by His own
blood, I need cleansing. There's a new man that doesn't
sin. There's an old man that doesn't do anything but sin. And the debt of that old man,
the debt has been paid I've loved you with an everlasting
love. I'm not going to leave you. I'm going to forgive your
sins. You mean even David? Yeah. You mean Solomon? You mean Abraham
when he lied about his wife? Those? It wasn't one recorded
in all of Scripture. It was not set forth as being
a sinner saved by the grace of God. Paul said, Christ Jesus
came into this world to save sinners. Sinners. Rebels. Chosen sinners that need to be washed daily.
That new man that realizes it. That knows it. You know what I've done for you? Secondly, he's teaching us something
about our attitude. Toward him, toward others. The word of Almighty God in the
asking of forgiveness for our sins against Him, as they are
manifested toward our brethren. All sin, Mike, is against God.
All sin is against God. You say, well, I don't know.
I mean, it wasn't against God. I said something about that person. Actually, it was against God. That's what Scripture says. All
sin is against God. Lord, help me. The Lord washed all twelve disciples'
feet. Even Judas's. Judas was there. Look at verse 18. When our Lord
said concerning these things, He said, I speak not of you all.
I know whom I have chosen, but that the Scripture may be fulfilled.
He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against
me. Verse 11 says, He knew, who should
betray Him, therefore said He, you're not all clean. He's talking
to them. Look at verse 30. After these
things had transpired, and then had the Lord's Supper, then the
Lord spoke, told Judas to go do what he needed to do, do it
quickly. He then, having received the
sop, went immediately out. It was night. He was there. And the Lord came and washed
his feet. I'm going to tell you something
about that in just a second. Our Lord knew who Judas was and outwardly
treated him just like the other twelve. Outwardly. You know, Judas was a devil. The Lord says, Have I not chosen
you twelve and one of you as a devil? The Lord knew who He was. You
know that. He knew eternally who He was.
But the other disciples didn't have any idea who He was. The Lord told them one night,
He said, One of you is going to betray me tonight." Not one
of them said, it's Judas. I kind of thought it was him.
No. They said, Lord, is it me? Lord, am I the one
that's going to be a traitor? Am I the one that's going to
prove to be unfaithful? Is it I? Not one of them. You know, Lord help me learn
this. I may be suspicious of someone. But don't act on suspicion. You
don't know. Lord, you want us to go in there
and rip out the tares? You don't know who the tares
are. Who made you judge and jury? Who gave you the omniscience
to know the eternal counsels of God? I tell you, I promise
you there wasn't very many believers that put any stock in Saul of
Tarsus. Whenever the Lord stopped old
Saul on the road to Damascus and arrested that man spiritually,
gave that man a new heart, sent him into Damascus, Sent Ananias
over there to him. He said, there's one Saul of
Tarsus. Go ask about Saul. Ananias said, Lord, we've heard. He said, he's a chosen vessel
unto me. How much stock would somebody have put in you before
the Lord called you out of darkness? Would it have been any way in
the world that someone could have looked into the eternal
counsels of God Almighty, into the Lamb's book of life, and
said, I'll tell you this, I don't believe he's one of them,
or I believe he's one of them, you don't know. Our Lord waited until Judas exposed
himself. He openly told him to do what
he had to do. But not until then. Nobody suspects
Him. Know ye what I have done to you?
The Lord displayed His love toward them and His care for their fellowship. He cared for their walk, for
His people. And His desire for them was to
have the dust of this world forgiven. removed, washed by His blood,
revealed in this Word, blessed by the Spirit of God. The Scripture
says if we confess our sins, and remember, don't ever think
that you're going to confess all of them because you don't
know them all. If we confess our sins saying this, Lord, I
am a sinner. I don't know where it ends. I
mean, just a failure to be able to know where it is shows my
inability to confess. I don't know what I've done.
I don't know what I should have done. Lord, if we confess our
sins, you see, you're faithful and just to forgive our sins. Lord, have mercy on me. Verse 13, you call me Master
and Lord, and you say, well, for so I am. Here our Lord commends
His disciples for addressing Him in a proper way, in a right
way, in an honorable way. You call me Master and Lord, He uses a word. Master means
teacher. Doctor. Instructor. But not merely
an instructor. Not merely a teacher. The teacher. The prophet from God. We know,
Nicodemus says, we know that thou art a teacher. Come from
God. O greater than what you thought,
Nicodemus. The prophet. The Word. God's final Word. You call me Master and Lord. God. Sovereign. Controller. Sir. Sir. When we were down in Mexico,
when they called on some of the men there leading prayer, I don't
understand one word. Well, I did understand one word.
I'd listen to them speaking in Spanish, and they're praying
in Spanish, and all of a sudden I'd hear, Señor. Señor. Sir. Lord. That's what they're saying. You
call me Master and Lord. You call me Sir. Whenever my dad asks me a question, the answer is either yes, sir,
or no, sir. You leave off that last part, and you won't the next time.
Yes, sir. Yes, sir. You call me master
and sir, Lord. And that's how believers speak. When they speak of Him, they
speak respectfully. They speak of Him as God. They speak of Him as the Teacher,
the Lord, the Master. Here He is, the Lord of glory.
And I'm telling you, they just say, Jesus, Jesus. The apostles never addressed
Him as Jesus. Never. The Lord Jesus, the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Master God, the Spirit of God would speak
of Him concerning Jesus, but spoke of Him as an equal. God speaking of God, but we don't
speak of Him like that. We speak of him with respect. If I then, your Lord and Master,
have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.
For I have given you an example that you should do as I have
done to you. Not to do like. You do as with
this attitude, is what he was saying. I know a lot of people,
they have foot washings. The Lord was not teaching us
to wash one another's feet like He did. You do as I did, what
I have taught you, as an example by, in the spirit of. The Lord Jesus Christ set forth. There is a cleansing that He
alone can do. By the Spirit of God, the blood
applied, through the preaching of the gospel, the reading of
the Word of God, the Spirit of God blessing that Word to our
heart, and the asking of forgiveness according to His good pleasure.
He forgives us as His Spirit draws us to ask for forgiveness. He alone can forgive sin. He alone can cleanse, truly cleanse. But for us, concerning especially our brethren,
all men, but especially our brethren, Hide their faults. Cover their frailties. Put the best twist, the best
thought upon their actions. And forgive them. Forgive them
as the Lord has forgiven us. Galatians 6, 1 and 2 says, Brethren,
if a man be overtaken in a fault, Ye which are spiritual, restore
such a one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou
also be tempted. Bear one another's burden, and
so fulfill the law of Christ, that new commandment, that we
love one another as he has loved us. So we do as. He has done, as He has taught,
in the spirit of what He has taught us. A cleansing. You know, when you show some
mercy and kindness to somebody, you know, for their frailties,
faults, what you do, you think about yourself. It's just a matter
of time. Shoe will be on the other foot,
don't worry. And you'll be looking for a little bit of kindness
and mercy too. Verse 16, Verily, verily, I say unto you, the servant
is not greater than his Lord, neither he that is sent greater
than he that sent him. Oh, how easily we forget that
truth. We exalt ourselves and we look
on others with such disrespect, contempt, and how vain we are
to lord over God's heritage as if we deserve the right to bring
out their faults. Bring it up. Set it forth. Check
this out. Check this out. To not, in a spirit of meekness,
love, cover, wash one another's feet by loving them, forgiving
them, praying for them, striving to maintain peace. By not doing
that, all we're saying is that we have the preeminence and we
deserve it. All you're doing is saying, I'll
never do that. You'll never catch me doing that.
If you know these things, happy are ye. Is that what it says? If you know
these things, happy are ye. If you know these things, what? That we need cleansing from Him?
That He's the Lord and Master? That we need to wash one another's
feet in love and humility? If you know these things heartfully,
happy are you. Happy are you, or that is, supremely
blessed if you do them. If you do them. I can know, I
can know the right thing to do. I can know. I know the right attitude. And
a believer does. He knows. Are you not happy to ask His
daily cleansing? Are you not happy to ask for
forgiveness? Are you not thankful that He does forgive? Happy are
you if you do. If you forgive others. Did you
not find happiness to speak respectfully of him? Then speak respectfully
of others. And when you open your mouth
against a brother, is not your heart heavy? Heavy. I wish I wouldn't have said that.
You know, that was so unnecessary. I wish I wouldn't have said that. Are you not happy to speak well
of your brethren? Dwell upon others for his sake
with kindness, respect, love. Knowledge without practice is
the character of the devil. Knowledge without practice. You
know, when the Lord was tempted in the desert, did not Satan
quote scripture? He said, it's written. Took him
up to the highest pinnacle. He said, I'll tell you what,
jump off. It's written. I'm not going to let your foot
dash against a stone. Jump off. True happiness, being
supremely blessed, being fortunate, being well off, is manifested
when kindness, compassion is mercy. is shown toward others. For Christ's sake. For Christ's
sake. The Lord went through and washed
twelve disciples' feet. One of them was a devil. One
of them was a tare. All of them were clean in the
blood, but one. And he manifested That without
a new heart, without true cleansing, without regeneration, without
a new body, new man, new mind, new spirit, there is no daily
cleansing. It was never cleansed the first
time. Man by nature can sit under the
same gospel right here. Two people sitting right next
to each other. Both of them hearing the same word. It's like all
12 got their feet washed. Two people can hear the same
word, same message. Same message that's preached
to one's preached to the other. One of them that's cleaned by
the grace of God hears it, heart's pricked. Convinced in his heart, I've
sinned against God. That's what David said, against
thee and thee only have I sinned. Forgive me. Lord, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry." That one sitting right next to him heard the same
truth, but there was no conviction.
There was no cleansing of that daily sin because he had never
been cleansed the first time. Those that are cleaned need to
be cleansed daily and desire it and want it. Lord, for Christ's
sake, cleanse me.