Is Foot Washing a Church Ordinance?

Introduction. When I preached in Birmingham Alabama, across from our building there was a little denominational German reformed church that practiced the Lord’s Supper in an unusual way. They only did it a few times a year but when they did so, they tried to observe the full Passover meal, and they also practiced foot-washing as a religious ritual.

      I hadn’t thought about that in some time, until this past week I was reading something written by a man who used to be a member of the Lord’s church, who has left the church. He was writing to accuse the church of inconsistency, and claimed that while we ridgidly practice the New Testament pattern for the Lord’s Supper, he claimed we are inconsistent in not practicing literal foot-washing as a religious ritual or practice.

      I would like for us in this lesson to consider, is foot-washing a church ordinance? I struggled a little in knowing how to put this question. An ordinance is usually considered a biblically authorized practice that is enjoined upon the church as a regular ritual or practice. There are certainly things that the Bible teaches about this, and things that must be practiced by Christians, but is Jesus teaching that this must be literally observed as some type of collective ritual?

      Let’s start by looking at the key text where Jesus teaches on this.

I. The Account of Jesus Washing the Disciples’ Feet (John 13:1-17).

A.      The supper was ended (2), so the memorial had already been instituted (cf. Matt. 26:26 “as they were eating”). This is not an element of the memorial. [Note: Some translations put this “during supper” (NASB). This is due to a single letter variant that changes the Greek participle genomenou (“happened”) to ginomenou (“happening”) in some manuscripts. There is substantial evidence for both readings, but the majority of manuscripts, including the second century papyrus P66 use the past tense.]

B.     Ê“Loved them to the end” (1). This was an act of love.

C.     There was symbolism in the act (8-10) they were “clean”—He has already cleansed them.

D.    They would “understand”—“after this” (7).

E.     What does He lead them to understand (12)?

1.      Disciples “ought” to do what their “Teacher” has done (13-14).

2.      A servant behaves like his Master (16-17), and is blessed in this.

F.      It is an “example” (15). Gr. Hupodeigma from verb meaning “to show by placing under (i.e. before) the eyes” (Thayer).

1.      The things of the tabernacle were an “example” (Heb. 8:5) or “pattern” of heavenly things (Heb. 9:23, KJV).

2.      Prophets “examples” of endurance under suffering (James 5:10).

3.      Sodom and Gomorrah are an “example” of punishment (2 Pet. 2:6).

4.      One can follow an “example” of unbelief (Heb. 4:11).

5.      This is not a word that speaks strictly of a religious practice.

II. Foot Washing in General Practice.

A.    An act of hospitality (Gen. 18:1-4; 19:1-2; 24:29-32). Usually done to one’s own feet (cf. Luke 7:44).

B.     Considered the act of a servant (1 Sam. 25:40-41).

C.     Praised when done to Jesus as an act of humility and repentance (Luke 7:38, 44).

III. What Did the Church Do?

A.    There is no example of this being done as a ritual or as a collective action of the church.

B.     It is considered an individual action (1 Tim. 5:9-10)—if it was a church ritual all Christian widows would be assumed to have done it.

1.      John Calvin “_By a figure of speech, in which a part is taken for the whole, he means by the washing of the feet all the services which are commonly rendered to the saints” (Commentary on First Timothy).

Conclusion. ÊThis was a lesson on humility and service—not the institution of an act of collective worship.

•         Service may require much more than just washing feet—it could require laying down our life (1 John 3:16-18).

•         The disciple of Christ must not be too proud to offer service to others.