The Tension of Time
Time seems to be against us. With three young kids, the days feel long but the years are short. It feels like one second I was rocking my firstborn to sleep at 3:00 a.m., and now, after I blinked, we are nearing the end of kindergarten.
You’ve probably seen numerous commercials and ads promising to keep your appearance looking ten times younger. When we look in a mirror, we feel the tension of time, so a product offering to relieve its symptoms sounds wonderful.
We want time to slow down, we want time to speed up. It’s a battle either way.
I’ve come to realize that time can hinder us in our Bible reading. Think for a moment how we read the Old Testament – we can read hundreds of years’ worth of history by flipping through a few pages. We often don’t stop to consider how many years have passed and how each decade shaped Israel’s ache for a savior.
The New Testament isn’t exempt from this either. Even though the gospels are written in a (mostly) chronological narrative, we catch ourselves reading the stories as isolated events containing little nuggets of wisdom and principles, and not as one continuous string of events. I have fallen victim to this many times.
But I believe time can be on our side when we read the Bible.
I recently wrote content for a new app called Footsteps With Jesus. For this project, I traced the timeline of Jesus’ life and meticulously compared the accounts of all four gospels. As I worked on this, different parts of Jesus’ story stood out to me in new ways. And as I studied, I saw more clearly how God uses time to teach us.
At a unique moment in the Upper Room, Jesus shows us that the power of grace can be displayed in a quiet and humble act of service, full of intention and generosity. And the timing of his grace seemed glaringly obvious as I read through it this time, even though it’s always been there.
Timing of Grace
As Jesus and the disciples began to situate themselves in the Upper Room during what we now call Holy Week, Jesus did something that shocked his friends.
“During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper.” (John 13:2-4a)
The story goes on to tell how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. It was a first-century custom for a servant to wash the feet of guests before eating a meal because they would’ve traveled on foot, and their feet would’ve been dusty and worn. Leaders or peers never washed each other’s feet; it was reserved for the servant of the house. But this wasn’t the shocking part for me when I recently re-read the story…
By the time Jesus sat down with the disciples, Judas was already planning to betray him.
Take a second to put yourself into the scene. Jesus and the disciples are filing into the room and settling in. Judas is walking in with other things on his mind. What could be going through his head? Is he quiet, trying not to draw attention to himself? Maybe his personality lent itself to overtalking as an attempt to distract himself from the fact that he had already decided that taking the money was the best option. We don’t know for sure.
When I’m nervous, my stomach feels tight, and I don’t have an appetite. I carry the tension in my shoulders. Maybe Judas kept fidgeting with the sleeve of his robe, avoiding Jesus’ eyes. Maybe he smiled too quickly or laughed too loudly, hoping no one would notice the weight in his chest. Judas might be trying to act normal and convince himself that everything is fine. However, the atmosphere of the group was already getting tense at this point and Jesus would try to calm their hearts in a moment (John 14:1). Jesus had been telling them that his time on earth was almost up. They all were feeling the weight of these last precious moments.
On top of this growing tension, Judas walks into these final moments carrying a different weight.
And the unexpected twist? Jesus knows that Judas is about to hand him over for a cash prize.
“Not All of You Are Clean”
“Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.” (John 13:5)
Pause for a moment and consider the time it would have taken for Jesus to wash the feet of each disciple. Peter tried to stop him, which likely slowed things down even more. Jesus took the time to show each disciple a tangible example of love and service.
After the awkward exchange with Peter, who tried to refuse the foot washing, Jesus continues around the circle. The basin sloshes, the towel grows damp, and one by one, the disciples are on the receiving end of this gracious act of service. Then Jesus says…
“‘And you are clean, but not every one of you.’ For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “‘Not all of you are clean.’” (John 13:10b-11)
Again, insert yourself into the room. Can you imagine Judas hearing Jesus declare that someone in the room is not clean? The rest of the disciples hesitantly look around, trying to figure out who it may be.
“When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place…” (John 13:12a)
The washing is over.
We aren’t given any indication that Jesus skipped over anyone, therefore, we are right to assume that Jesus washed everyone’s feet, including Judas.
This is where the timing struck me. Jesus, knowing full well that Judas was the betrayer, fully committed to serving him in that moment and showed him a great act of love and service.
Modern Grace from an Ancient Room
A friend and I recently tried to put this into our context—imagine sitting down to breakfast with someone who is about to betray you (I know this requires divine foreknowledge) – would you still offer kindness? Would you still pick up the check? Your breakfast partner will betray you in some way, and you decide to buy them a meal. Would you extend an extreme act of grace like this?
N.T. Wright puts foot washing into a modern context by equating foot washing with cleaning someone’s dirty bathroom or kitchen. Would you clean someone’s bathroom if they had knowingly wronged you?
This is the kind of love that followers of Christ are called to exercise.
“…he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you”. (John 13:12b–15)
Jesus expects his followers to display extreme grace into the world.
Jesus offered grace to someone who decided to harm and betray him. I imagine the world would say that Judas didn’t deserve the grace shown by Jesus. But that is the scandal of grace. The level of grace displayed by Jesus in this story is so extreme that it astonished the disciples and still has the same effect when read today.
But we’re called to offer the same to others.
Maundy Thursday: The Mandate to Love
The term Maundy comes from the Latin word mandatum, which means “mandate” or “commandment.” In that sense, Maundy Thursday could also be called “Commandment Thursday.” It refers to the new command Jesus gave His disciples that evening. Before His arrest, Jesus said,
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34–35)
We’ve been shown an extreme amount of mercy and grace despite our sins.
On this Maundy Thursday, and as we turn the corner into Good Friday, consider the ultimate act of love – Jesus on the cross, giving his life for the sins of the world. For you.
We are on the receiving end of this sacrifice.
If you are a disciple of Jesus, you are to love another because He loved us first (1 John 4:19)
His love and grace are freely given. No matter what time it is, Jesus cleanses us from our sins.
Article by Craig Archer
Active Theology
Footsteps with Jesus Researcher and Content Creator