The Lowest Job
"Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return 
to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him."
I have two wonderful dogs that are inside/outside. They are well house trained. Tonight it seems that the older dog has become ill. He vomited in the middle of the dining room, and then not two minutes later he had a “potty accident” in the study. No one else was at home and would not be for several hours. I looked at the clock to see if it would be too long to just leave the clean up for someone else. (Not my proudest moment.) Maybe you have been guilty of some of your own “not your proudest moments” experiences. What about the night as parents when both parents pretended to be asleep when the baby began crying in the middle of the night needing a diaper change. Or, dirty-dishes in the apartment that only get cleaned when one roommate is grossed out before the other. Or, the kitchen at work that begins to have a science experiment in the refrigerator due to old food left for weeks if not months. When it comes to yucky dirty jobs, we are proficient at finding ways to skirt around those jobs.
to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him."
I have two wonderful dogs that are inside/outside. They are well house trained. Tonight it seems that the older dog has become ill. He vomited in the middle of the dining room, and then not two minutes later he had a “potty accident” in the study. No one else was at home and would not be for several hours. I looked at the clock to see if it would be too long to just leave the clean up for someone else. (Not my proudest moment.) Maybe you have been guilty of some of your own “not your proudest moments” experiences. What about the night as parents when both parents pretended to be asleep when the baby began crying in the middle of the night needing a diaper change. Or, dirty-dishes in the apartment that only get cleaned when one roommate is grossed out before the other. Or, the kitchen at work that begins to have a science experiment in the refrigerator due to old food left for weeks if not months. When it comes to yucky dirty jobs, we are proficient at finding ways to skirt around those jobs.
Today is Maundy Thursday. The day of the Passover Seder, the Last Supper, and the betrayal.
“Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father.” Our Lord took the lowest job to be had at the Seder; the job of a slave and washed dusty, dirty feet. The disciples might have been playing “foot-washer chicken”, but Jesus stepped forward knowing His time and grabbed the lowest job as a prize. He did not allow Peter to try to raise His position from the lowest, but firmly held to it. He was as a slave, a low servant and He would not be distracted.
After the Seder, Jesus told His disciples His one command: “Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.” The Lord showed them and us, just before He gave this command, what love looks like. Take the lowest position. Wear the lowest like a crown. Choose the lowest. Race to change that diaper. Hurry to clean that disgusting sink. At the first opportunity, clean out the refrigerator. Jump at the chance to clean up after the dog. Pursue the lowest duty. Desire the least. When we serve in the humblest of ways we are like our Lord. He washed nasty feet, including his betrayer’s. The least I can do to love my family is to clean up after the dog.
- What are the tasks that you feel are beneath you?
- Which of these will you do today, or at your fist opportunity?
--Zine Smith
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