Washing feet - not merely a ritual, but a lifestyle of servant leadership

S: John 13:12-16 ¹² When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. ¹³ “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. ¹⁴ Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. ¹⁵ I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. ¹⁶ Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷ Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

O: Traditionally, popes performed the foot-washing ritual once a year, selecting 12 men—often priests or seminarians—to symbolise the Apostles. But Pope Francis broke with convention, choosing men and women from the margins of society—prisoners, refugees, migrants, the elderly, recovering addicts, and even non-Christians.

Jesus said, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” He wasn't emphasizing a yearly ceremony, but a mindset: to serve even in the most humbling ways.

In Jesus’ time, foot-washing was the job of a slave. For the Lord and Teacher to do this was shocking—it inverted the social hierarchy. This echoes what he said in Matthew 20:25-29, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Greatness in God’s kingdom is defined not by authority but by servanthood.

Pope Francis, by washing the feet of the marginalised, mirrored Jesus more closely than those who only follow the ritual. The essence is not the act itself, but the heart behind it.

I’ve also been blessed to personally know several church leaders who embodied this kind of humble, servant-hearted leadership—Benny Liew, Chong Swee Tshung, Father Jacob George John, and others. I’ve seen them doing janitorial work in the church or quietly serving behind the scenes, even though they were pastors or priests.

A: I’m not a church leader, but I am a leader in my family, among my friends, and sometimes in my workplace or community. This passage challenges me to ask: Do I lead like Jesus—with humility and service—or do I sometimes enjoy being “in charge” too much?

It’s easy to do tasks or hold roles without adopting the servant mindset. Sadly, there have been popes in history who, while faithfully observing the ritual of foot-washing, didn’t reflect the servant-hearted humility Jesus taught in Matthew 20. Their example reminds me how easy it is to perform outward acts of obedience while missing the deeper call to serve.

I need to embody this spirit of servant leadership in all my leadership roles.

P: Father, thank You for the example Jesus gave of servant leadership. Help me not to seek status or control, but to follow His way of humility. Teach me to lead through serving—in my home, in my work, and in my relationships. Keep me from pride. Shape my heart to reflect Yours. May I never lord it over others, but lead with humility. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Even a stopped clock is right twice a day

S: John 11:45-57

⁴⁵ Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him. ⁴⁶ But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. ⁴⁷ Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

“What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs. ⁴⁸ If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”

⁴⁹ Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! ⁵⁰ You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

⁵¹ He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, ⁵² and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one. ⁵³ So from that day on they plotted to take his life.

⁵⁴ Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the people of Judea. Instead he withdrew to a region near the wilderness, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples.

⁵⁵ When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover. ⁵⁶ They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple courts they asked one another, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?” ⁵⁷ But the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that anyone who found out where Jesus was should report it so that they might arrest him.

O: At first glance, it seems disturbing that the Gospel according to John appears to endorse Caiaphas’ murderous and ruthless pronouncement, “It is better that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” He was advocating the murder of an innocent man to maintain political and religious control, all in fear of Roman retaliation—even after witnessing an unmistakable miracle: Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead!

How could the religious leaders be so blind? How could they ignore such a staggering sign and instead conspire to kill Jesus?

But John offers a striking theological insight: Caiaphas unknowingly spoke a divine truth. His words, intended for evil, were used by God to reveal the deeper truth of Jesus’ redemptive death—not only for Israel but for all God's scattered children. John is not excusing Caiaphas' motives; he’s showing how God’s sovereign plan can work even through human evil. This echoes other moments in Scripture when God uses flawed or even wicked people to bring about good.

It's like how Alexander the Great, in his ambition, spread Greek culture and language across the known world—paving the way for the Gospel to be written in Greek and spread more easily. Or how Joseph told his brothers, “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20).

As Romans 8:28 reminds us: “In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

A: When I see evil people succeed, or when injustice seems to prevail, I can get discouraged. But this passage reminds me that God is still working, even when it seems like evil is winning. He can and does bring good out of wicked schemes—even using the very words of those who oppose Him to reveal His will. We see only “the back of the tapestry” – I must trust that He is weaving a tapestry far more beautiful than I can see from my limited perspective.

P: Father, when I feel overwhelmed by injustice or discouraged by how the wicked seem to prosper, remind me that You are always at work—even when I can’t see it. Help me to trust Your plan, to believe that You can bring beauty out of brokenness, and to walk faithfully in hope. Give me eyes to see Your hand in unexpected places. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

Note: I had ChatGPT help edit this a bit. 

Do I believe, here and now?

 S: John 11:21-27, 38-44

²¹ “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

²³ Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

²⁴ Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; ²⁶ and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

²⁷ “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

…

³⁸ Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ³⁹ “Take away the stone,” he said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odour, for he has been there four days.”

⁴⁰ Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

⁴¹ So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. ⁴² I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

⁴³ When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” ⁴⁴ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

O: Martha makes one of the strongest confessions of faith in the Gospels — that Jesus is the resurrection and the life, but she didn’t realise the immediacy of that truth – that in a short time, he would raise her beloved brother from the dead! So, when Jesus asked that the tomb be opened, she said “But, Lord, by this time there is a bad odour, for he has been there four days.”

A: Like Martha, I often intellectually affirm the power of God but tend to think of it in a less-than-immediate way. I sometimes live as though that power is only theoretical or reserved for eternity. It’s easier to believe in God’s eventual victory than to trust Him to move today. I often expect decay when Jesus promises life. My wife sometimes says I’m almost a practical atheist — I may not say God can’t work, but I live as if He won’t. A lot of times, I feel like the man from Mark 9, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

I affirm the truths of Scripture and believe in God’s power, but I haven’t personally seen a clear, undeniable miracle — nothing that couldn’t also be explained by coincidence or natural processes. I've had prayers answered, yes, but not in a way that forces belief. That makes it hard to live with the kind of immediate, expectant faith Jesus talks about. Like Martha, I say “I believe,” but when the stone needs to be rolled away, hesitation creeps in. Perhaps that’s part of why Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” I don’t want to just affirm God’s power in theory. I want to live as though the resurrection life is real — even here, even now.

P: Lord, you are the resurrection and the life — not only at the end of time! I believe; help my unbelief! Father, help me not just to know Your promises but to trust them in the present. Give me the faith to roll away the stone, even when I fear the stench of disappointment or decay. Show me your glory — not just in eternity, but in today’s struggles. Give me eyes to see Your hand, even in the ordinary. Grow my trust so that I don't just wait for resurrection in the future, but expect Your life-giving power in my present. In your powerful name I pray, amen.