John 13:1-15
Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper, fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God, he rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and dry them with the towel around his waist. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Master, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later." Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well." Jesus said to him, "Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed, for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all." For he knew who would betray him; for this reason, he said, "Not all of you are clean."
So when he had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, "Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me 'teacher' and 'master,' and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do."
Dawg's thought:
Today's prayer intention is for the sanctity of marriage, and for two marriages that are in trouble.
We all know that it is good to serve others, but one thing I think many struggle with is allowing others to serve you. Take Simon Peter for example. He was not willing to let Christ serve him, granted out of respect. The thing is that if we cannot allow others to serve us, how can we allow others to emulate Christ? We must be willing to give the opportunity to others to imitate Christ just as we are called to imitate Christ.
Of course, the major message of today's reading is to humbly serve one another, imitating Christ Who is our "teacher" and "master." We must constantly strive to serve one another through acts of mercy and compassion. In this, we learn to love because it is only through Christ that we can truly serve one another. Take care and God Bless.
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