The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1920-03-25

4!kAA ing OF the disci-
PIES feet was In
view OF his going to the Father. and
In love that cannot cnange.
rJesus knowing that the Father had
given all things into his hands. and
That he was come from God and went
To God he riseth from supper" oh,
think Of II These are the hands that
Will not shrink from taking our soiled
feet In them to put away their stain.
II was the Passover supper. III, we'll
known .ype Of his death. lie must
rise from the dead 10 go back 20 God.
and no special amounting Of the eye
Is required to see in this rising from
supper figure OF his resurrection
from the dead.
The scene that follows is the shad-
owing forth Of his present service there
In the presence Of the Father where he
the girded Servant Of our need, APP
pears rs Advocate on account Of our
sins. This Is emphasized by the Lords
words 10 Peter: "What do thou
knowest not now but thou shalt know
hereafter" and his later words 10 the
twelve: 'Know We what I have done
unto your" Certainly Peter and the
rest knew what he had done. II the
washing Of their feet were all and had
no significance other than humility.
And when Peter cries out gainst
him: Thou shalt never wash my
feet" he is met with this answer: "If
l wash thee not. thou hast no part
with me-" II Is not. "lf you do not
wash YOURSELF" but III I wash tifee
not" 1t Is not Peters sense of need
not yours and mine. that leads the
Lord TO serve him and us. but his own
sense " our need. Peter could not
wash away sin. nor can I. There Is
One alone who can. And because
am united 10 him. he must do II. for he
would be put TO everlasting shame II
he allowed the slightest stain TO re-
main for an instant upon the poorest
member OF his mystical body.
He does not say. mo part In me-"
but with me-" "In Christ" is the
interchangeable position OF every
Christian. and II Is because we are In
him that he il 50 concerned about us.
But with Christ Is fellowship. and hat
this may be me attained. and restored
when broken. he must see 20 the
cleansing from the defilement OK our
practical ways. The twenty-third
verse Of the chapter reveals what that
part with" him Is: Now there was
leaning on Jesus bosom one OF his
disciples whom Jesus loved" The
mention Of that disciples name here
would have spoiled the whole story,
for he II but the representative OF
them all. as verse one declares
Having loved his own ne loved
them unto the end" This Is the holy
intimacy to which he invites and wei.
comes all his own.
Peter then goes 10 the other ex-
IRENE. "Not NIX feet only. hut also my
hands and my head" And 10 this
the Lord replies: ''He that is washed
needeth not save TO wash his feet. but
Is clean every whit" Here are two
different words for wash" whose sig
nificance is not brought out In the
translation. The first means ito
battle" and the second ito rinse" He
that Is bathed. with the washing OF
regeneration" IN clean every whit. II
is the judicial cleansing that his blood
accomplishes once for all. The cleans
ing effected In the new birth Is not re-
peated. Now, for the saint, Il is "the
washing OF water by the word" He
died 10 make us clean. He lives 10
keep us clean. We are made as clean
as his precious blood can make us.
We are kept as clean as the water In
his basin and the towel In his hands
can keep us. The feet are the SYM
boil OF our walk. and II Is In our walk
here on earth that we become defiled.
needing his gracious ministry, our
solled feet In his blessed hands. where
the responsibility becomes his. "The
underlying imagery" says Doctor SEQ
neld. is Of an oriental returning from
the public baths 10 his house. His feet
would contract dehlement and require
but not his body. SO the
believer Is cleansed as before the 'aw
from all sin once for ALL but needs
ever TO bring his daily sins 70 the Fa-
Iha~ In aoafaaatA.