Wash My Feet, Lord: Our News Must Be The Good News

"Wash My Feet, Lord"

I am a sinner, saved by grace, loving and loved by the Saviour, and striving to live the words of Scripture throughout my sanctification. I need to be convicted and changed more into the image of Christ. I desire to share with you, within this blog, all that I am daily learning. I want to serve Christ and become more and more like Him. I don’t want to live a legalistic life, but I do want to live a holy one. I want to see God receive the glory He deserves. I want to see the depth and richness of the Gospel come back to the Church. I want to see God’s people encouraging and building one another up in Christ. I want to encourage young people, and be encouraged by them, to live a set-apart life. I want to give up my life for the sake of the Kingdom and it’s King.
May you accept what is written here, if it truly honors the Lord, as coming from a heart that purely wants to honor Jesus Christ, my Savior. As He teaches me, rebukes me, corrects me, and trains me in righteousness, I hope to grow in my knowledge and love for Him. May everything that is said here bring Him glory. If I stray from the truths of Scriptures, please tell me. May my words be full of grace, as though seasoned with salt. May "the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.” (Ps. 19:14)

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Our News Must Be The Good News

“When Jesus commissioned His disciples to minister in His name, (the Good News) is the message He told them to proclaim. As we face our own struggles with sin and minister to people who seem trapped by things they cannot overcome, this must be our message too. We must faithfully proclaim, ‘Hope is only to be found in Jesus Christ, the King of Kings. In Him, lasting, personal heart change is possible.’ Any other message encourages false hope.

“People struggling with life in a fallen world often want explanations when what they really need is imagination. They want strategies, techniques, and principles because they simply want things to be better. But God offers much more. People need to look at their families, neighbours, friends, cities, jobs, history, and churches and see the Kingdom. They need imagination – the ability to see what is real but unseen. This is what Paul fixed his gaze on (2 Corinthians 4). They need to look at a city and see the glorious company of the redeemed being gathered, amidst a brutal spiritual battle, to live in union with God. They need to look at their children and see a Redeemer pursuing their hearts for His own. They need to scan history and see God accomplishing His purpose. People need to see the shining hope of human existence: people can know, love, and serve God. They can commune with Him forever and form a community of love that is possible no other way. All of this is possible because the King has placed His love and grace on them.

“(God) hasn’t given us ‘seven steps to personal and relational perfection.’ Instead, He has told us to place our hope in the presence and work of Jesus the Redeemer.”

-Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands, Paul David Tripp

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Wash My Feet, Lord

This blog is about sin, salvation, sanctification, and the Savior. The title comes from John 13. The book of Luke tells of the disciples arguing in the upper room during the Passover meal about who was the greatest. All too proud to humble themselves, the twelve were stunned into silence as Jesus gently brought out the basin of water and a towel and washed the feet of the ones He loved. But when He comes to Peter, he says to Jesus, “Lord, do You wash my feet?” Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not realize now, but you will understand hereafter.” Peter said to Him, “Never shall You wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.” Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, then wash not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.”Pastor John Macarthur explains this passage in his NASB notes on John 13: 6-10, “While others remained silent, Peter, perhaps on behalf of others, spoke up in indignation that Jesus would stoop so low as to wash his feet. He failed to see beyond the humble service itself to the symbolism of spiritual cleansing involved. Jesus’ response made the real point of His actions clear: Unless the Lamb of God cleanses a person’s sin (as portrayed in the symbolism of washing), one can have no part with Him. The cleansing that Christ does at salvation never needs to be repeated – atonement is complete at that point. But all who have been cleansed by God’s gracious justification need constant washing in the experiential sense as they battle sin in the flesh. Believers are justified and granted imputed righteousness, but still need sanctification and personal righteousness.”So here lies the essence of this blog. We are all sinners in desperate need of salvation. After we are declared righteous by God - justified, and repent of our sin, we live the lifelong process of sanctification. This is only possible because of the Saviour. Just as Peter and the disciples needed Jesus to wash their feet, so, too, do we need Jesus to forgive us and cleanse us of the sin in our lives. We need His correction, reproof, teaching, and discipline throughout our lives. For those who do not know Christ, the entire body must be cleansed, but for those who have been given new hearts, we must recognize our utter helplessness without Him and say, “Lord, wash my feet.”