Daily Manna 18 January
KEY VERSE: “For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you” (John 13:15).
TEXT: JOHN 13:1-15
Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
2 And [a]supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, 4 rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. 5 After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. 6 Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”
7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”
8 Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!”
Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”
Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”
10 Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.” 11 For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”
12 So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you [b]know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
Leaders in the world, conventionally, crave recognition, respect and honour. They seek to be applauded for every little conduct. The promises they make and the work they do are all geared towards garnering popularity. To them, those they lead must remain grateful for their service.
Jesus Christ is different. He models a distinct type of leadership uncommon in the world. After dinner one day, He did something unusual. He took a towel and a bucket of water, and washed the feet of His disciples.
Probably baffled, none of the disciples questioned this strange action, until Jesus got to Peter. He thought it was demeaning for His Master to wash his feet, a task usually reserved for servants in Jewish households. Jesus explained to him that except his feet were washed, he could not have a relationship with Him. Peter promptly pleaded that his whole body be washed. But Jesus assured him that it was sufficient to wash the feet. When He completed the task, Jesus reminded the disciples that while they rightly called Him Master, they should follow His example and wash one another’s feet.
The standard of leadership expected of believers is much higher than that practised in the world. His message was simple: the Christian leader’s task is to be of service to his people. He should not see himself as a master, but as a servant. His activities must bring benefits to his people whose spiritual and temporal wellbeing must remain his preoccupation. Only then can he truly claim to be walking in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Acts 9-10
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – – by Pastor Enoch A.
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Daily Manna 18 January 2022
