Washing the Feet of Jesus

Bible Verse for Today

“You gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.”

Luke 7:44

Devotion for Today

Unworthy to Be at the Feet of Jesus

As a show of hospitality, the Israelites washed the feet of their honored guests. For especially distinguished guests, they would give them a kiss and anoint their heads with oil… but Simon didn’t do that for Jesus. Simon didn’t, but a sinful woman did; and Simon scoffed.

Surely, if Jesus was who He claimed to be, He wouldn’t allow such a sinful woman to touch Him. And not just touch Him, she was kissing His feet. How distasteful.

Simon was offended, but not Jesus. Jesus looked to Simon and knew what he was thinking. Instead of addressing it directly, He started with a story…

“A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” (Luke 7:41-43)

That’s when Jesus turned the tables…

Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much.” (Luke 7:44-47)

Too often, I think we find ourselves in Simon’s shoes. We know who Jesus is. We even invite Him into our hearts, but we fail to make Him Lord. It’s like we want Him as a guest at our party, but we don’t want Him front and center.

Have you ever found yourself there? I know I have.

Instead of washing the feet of Jesus, we expect Him to wash ours. He washes our hearts and makes us white as snow (Isaiah 1:18) and then we take Him for granted. We come home from church and put our Bibles on a shelf. Instead of sitting at the feet of Jesus, we put Him in our pocket.

I love the way the sinful woman in this story went out of her way for Jesus. She pursued Him. She gave Him her time, attention, affection, and resources. And we can do the same. The sinful woman sought Jesus out in a physical location. But we need to look no further than our own hearts; knowing He is never more than a prayer away.

Jesus is never more than a prayer away. Share on X