John 13:12-20. Immediately after washing his disciples' feet at the Last Supper, Jesus asks them if they realize what he has done to them. He says he has given them an example that they must follow. He, who is their Lord and Teacher, has washed their feet - even insisting on it when Peter objected. They, then, must wash each other's feet. No servant is greater than his master nor is he who is sent greater than the one who sends him. Jesus then acknowledges that one of them will not be sent, but will betray him. For the others, though, he says anyone who receives one whom he has sent receives him and anyone who receives him receives the one who sent him.

We are all sent, everyone who is baptized is priest, prophet, and king. So Jesus' lesson here is not just for his disciples, or his priests, it is for all of us. We may have more, know more, or be further along on the path of holiness than others, but we are still to wash their feet - to be with them and of service to them in the humblest of ways.

If God himself came down into the mire of this world and not only suffered through it himself, but also washed the mire from the feet of those he taught, even the one who would betray him, then we can certainly do no less. This humble service teaches us to love properly; to see our fellow men and women not only as our equals, but as people deserving of our time and attention in loving actions.