“Unconditional Love”

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

BIBLE READING: John 13
This blog is an excerpt from the sermon “Unconditional Love”

“[Jesus] laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 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 13.4-5)

Jesus knew that in a few hours, pain was coming. He would be beaten beyond human semblance (Isaiah 52.14, Matthew 20.18-19), pierced, mocked and then hanged on a tree to be a spectacle. He knew one of his inner circle—Judas—would betray him (John 13.2, 21-ff). He knew his apostles didn’t understand what was coming or what he was doing (John 13.7). Knowing these things, Jesus got down on the floor and washed feet, because he loved his own to the end (13.1). Love wasn’t something he merely felt; it was choice that he made long before this moment. The fact is Jesus had already stooped down from the glories of heaven to live in a broken world; and he continued to stoop down to show the love of God to the world. The humble movement of Jesus shows God’s Divine nature to love and serve.

Our world treats love like something that ebbs and flows with the circumstances of life; but Jesus teaches that love is a constant— it is unconditional—and as we grow, we ought to express love more like Jesus. In this moment, Jesus washed feet to teach us what love looks like (John 13.15). If we call him Teacher and Lord (John 13.13), we should do this too. He’s not talking just about washing feet. He’s talking about learning to love by choosing to serve. 

Am I willing to wash feet if it means suffering? People sometimes say and do hurtful things out of ignorance. Your pride, reputation and even relationships can suffer and make you want to protect yourself. What does love look like in these circumstances?  Love bears all things… hopes all things… endures all things (1 Corinthians 13.4-8). Love keeps its mouth shut (Isaiah 53.7; John 19.9-11) realizing the foolishness of trying to defend my own pride.

Am I willing to wash the feet of Judas? There will be people who accuse you of wrong things. They will manipulate and abuse their relationship with you. How you respond is not inconsequential. The example of Jesus is clear. Confront the evil in this world with humility and love.

Am I willing to wash feet even if it’s unappreciated or misunderstood? Many people will complain and coerce when love is not reciprocated. Some will stop serving altogether. We need to understand that is both immature and proud. We are not more deserving than Jesus. We are not deserving of love at all, and yet the love of God has been manifest to us in our worst of circumstances to give us hope (Romans 5.6-11). Unconditional love is a practice of the gospel.

Ultimately, we love because he first loved us and gave himself up for us (1 John 4.19). We did not seek him; he sought us. We did not deserve, but were, by most standards, unlovable. But God so loved the world that he gave his Son Jesus to teach us how to love God and love others

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