""I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work." John 9:4

"Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all." John 13:10

"I am the Living Bread Which came down from heaven...." John 6:51

Greetings, friends! – and may your day be a peaceful one – with joy overflowing! And that it surely will be for those who have the Keys to the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, and use them for our here and for our now.

Far too long has Christendom fumbled and stumbled in the darkness of this spiritual "night" which set in after the Cross of Calvary. With terrifying truth did Jesus predict that after He was gone, "night" would set in, when no one could see to work. He also forecast the horrible deception which would enter to brainwash all of Christendom, through interpretations by Lucifer. Did He not say, "The prince of this world cometh, and has nothing in Me" (Jn. 14:30)?

Had the Devil been able to do away with the record of history – that the Son of God had actually been born into the world and lived and wrought a completed work on Calvary – he would have done so. Because he could not do that, he set to work to "interpret" almost every saying of the Lord; to twist and pervert it in such a way that it would be MIS-understood by man. Those interpretations were injected into the mind of the leaders in early Christendom. At another time the Lord labeled this the "tare-seed" which an enemy sowed – "while men slept" (Matt. 13:25). As a result man has toiled and groaned, faltering under his heavy burdens, not knowing that the Son of God wrought a completed work of atonement on Calvary – for man's HERE and for our NOW. But SHOUT, "ye prisoners of hope," for the principles to the Keys to the Kingdom of Jesus Christ for the here and now have been made available in printed form, and may be yours FREE for the asking!

When once we recognize that the Lord's work on Calvary was a marvelous work of ABSOLUTE REDEMPTION for man's here and now, then we can indeed start laughing and shouting and singing from sheer joy of heart. And when we use the Keys of Knowledge to the Kingdom of Christ for our here and now, then does our life take on a transformation, as the shadows of night depart and the glorious light of Christ enfolds us.

This time I want to quote to you from the John 13, which details how Jesus washed the feet of the 12 disciples. I will commence to quote from verse 4:

"He riseth from supper and laid aside His garments, and took a towel and girded Himself. After that He poureth water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded. Then cometh He to Simon Peter and Peter saith unto Him, Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?"

Receiving His answer he replied:

"Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, IF I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me. Simon Peter said to Him, Not my feet only, but also my hands and head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed, needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all."

I wonder by what stretch of the imagination Christendom can arrive at the conclusion that our Lord's washing of the disciples' feet, would have anything to do with their "souls"? Are not our feet that by which we walk the earth? Are they not the most earthly part of the physical man? In the days of Jesus, or in any warm climate, the feet became the dirtiest part of the body before the end of the day. Neither did they have bathtubs and showers in those days. So, when they improvised a bath, they could wash all of the upper body, but their feet would still remain dirty. THAT was the outer, or apparent, significance of Jesus' reply to Peter when He said that "He that is washed, or has had a bath, has no further need except to wash his feet." THAT would usually be done before their going to bed.

There is no mentioning here, not even the slightest hint, that the disciples had taken a bath previously. That was also implied by Peter's words when he said that "Not only my feet, but my hands and face as well." So, the chances are that he hadn't washed either his hands or face previous to the supper.

In verse 10, we see where Jesus replied, "And ye ARE CLEAN, but not all." It was only a matter of an hour or so later when He said to them what we read in the 15th chapter, 3rd verse: "Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you." From these several corroborating statements, we must gather the conclusion that the words of truth which His disciples had heard Him preach every day throughout several years, had set them right in their thinking, and constituted an inner cleansing for them. We might call it a spiritual cleansing. Now, it was to this spiritual cleansing that Jesus referred when He replied to Peter that "He that is washed" – which statement He wound up by saying that "Ye are clean" (except for the "feet").

Yet here He introduced one more factor: namely, their need of getting their feet washed. Now, my dearly beloved, I have no intention of telling you that you have to partake in feet-washing rituals in order to belong to Christ, neither am I going to speak against it. Today, in this land with the conveniences of modern plumbing, most of us are not in too great a need of having our feet washed at some ritual. Yet if it is done as an exercise in humility, and with an understanding of its full significance, then I think that is quite all right, and even commendable.

Yet here I want to bring out that which I doubt you have ever heard from any pulpit, and to lay bare to you the truths which can indeed cause you to rejoice without measure. Now, bear in mind the basic setting: our Lord said to them, speaking of their persons in general, that they WERE CLEAN. Yet one factor was lacking: their feet had to get washed. Do not suppose for a moment that the feet of the disciples stank so badly that the Lord figured He had to do something about it. No, indeed! He was not concerned over such minor details; neither did such factors of what we call hygiene bother Him in the slightest. And may I draw to your attention the Lord's startling statement we read in verse 8, wherein He said, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me." Bear in mind that in that very moment He had stated clearly that they were clean, so it becomes apparent that what He here referred to when saying that they would have no part with Him unless He washed them, was exclusively their feet. I repeat my double question: "Why did their feet have to get washed, and what was its significance?" Then and there He told Peter that in course of time he would come into understanding. In fact, that was a portion of the Kingdom Keys which He delivered to him later.

Our feet constitute our most earthly part of the physical body, and are that which becomes the most easily soiled during our labors of the day, especially in the climate and under the conditions which our Lord and His disciples knew at that time. Are not our feet that which takes us through life? Do they not stand for the path we walk? Is it not our feet which keep us on the highroad, or lead into the bypath which carries us to the cooling, cleansing stream – or into the gutter? Our feet and the dirt which they gather symbolize the uncleanness which we contact in the course of life, as we rub shoulders with people and conditions.

To illustrate what I mean: a person starts out in the morning fresh from prayer and meditation in the blessed words of our Lord, Whom he recognizes as his Savior. Yet, before the day is over, he has been forced into overhearing blasphemy, and maybe vile language. He may not have been able to avoid overhearing words of hatred, of lust and of envy, and he may even have seen things which invoked improper or unclean thoughts. All of this is symbolized by the dirt which gathers on a person's feet throughout the course of the day. It was of that which the Lord spoke when He said they could have no part with Him unless their feet got washed. In other words, you may know that the Lord's work of redemption was complete for your entire being; nevertheless, through the course of the day you become defiled through your contact with the thousand-and-one unclean conditions in this world. And from that uncleanness you must get separated or washed before you can have any part with the Lord.

Now let us look more carefully to some of the words. We are told that after supper He laid aside His garments and took a towel and girded Himself. The word used in the Greek is himation and means "an outer cloak or garment." Every word He spoke and every deed He did had a deeper meaning than that which was apparent on the surface. And those of you who know my teachings are also aware that the outer garment was symbolic of the body of flesh which is worn by the spirit which indwells it. So here the Lord wrought out a prophecy depicting how His physical body would be laid aside – that is, murdered – and that so soon as that would be done, He would take a towel and gird Himself. We know that such a large towel would be a cloth, but likely a softer cloth than that from which their mantles or tunics were made. This depicted how the Christ-Spirit would, after the body had been killed, take upon Himself a finer body – or garment – in order to accomplish a special work. There can be no doubt but that the Christ-Spirit had the power.

Then we are told that He took water, pouring it into a basin, and commenced to wash the feet of the disciples. Water is a symbol of soul. Now listen carefully: this shows us how the Lord of life took of that finer substance composing His Own soul, and poured it into the earth. That basin which received the water symbolized this earth which we walk with our feet, and the water was His Own soul which He poured out for our cleansing. In other places He said that He was and is that Living Manna Which cometh down from God out of heaven (Jn. 6:30-35,48-51).

We have electricity, but we need wires or conductors to channel it. And similarly was the Christ-Spirit; He had the life, but He needed a channel to conduct it. Therefore was His soul poured out into this very earth, in order to act as a conducting cable, and a storage battery for His Own very life. That was done in order that when we walk this earth, our very feet may receive the cleansing, energizing life of very God. And that is precisely what He did for your good and for mine. That is why I say that HIS work wrought out on Calvary was an absolutely finished work for our here and for our now, while we are in the flesh on this earth. And that in order that we may have an absolute and full part with Him. Yet the same with that as with the balance of His work of redemption: unless we know it, unless we believe it, and reach out for it, we do not receive it. What wondrously happy news that our Lord and Redeemer wrought an absolutely completed work on Calvary's Cross, which entitles us to the fruits of the Kingdom of Christ here on earth right now!

In verse 12, we read where after He had completed the washing of their feet, He again took His garments and sat down with them. Again we see how this was a prophecy wrought in drama, portraying how after His redemptive work had been fully completed, He would once more pick up His earthly body and sit down with them at the table. In fact, that portrays more than merely His resurrection, but in that He sat down at table with them shows that there would be fellowship and communion; and from the account later on, it is quite evident that they had something more to eat. That betokened not only the fellowship that becomes established between Christ and those who accept Him, but that once more He is at the head of the table right here on earth, and gives unto everyone according to his needs.

Are your feet in dire need of washing? Or are they clean? Perhaps you realize that this is a portion of the secret – even of the Kingdom Keys – that you may be a partaker with Him in the fullest measure. True enough, there are measures or degrees to which you can partake with Him; yet for that measure which is heaped up, shaken down, pressed together and running over, your feet must be clean. Do you know the secret thereof? Do your JOY-shouts ring out regardless of the situation or development – KNOWING that the Master of every situation stands at your spirit-side, ever ready to DELIVER?!

What a JOY it is to live when Christ the Lord is your closest Friend, your ever-present Help and unending Supply! At times you are almost tempted to look for some obstacle or difficulty – in order to see the glory of His delivering power!

What a joy to live! What PEACE to know that you are a son or daughter of Jesus Christ! And what a happy treasure to possess the Keys to the Kingdom of Jesus Christ here and now!

Why not settle for the "full loaf" instead of but a slice so thin and misty you can't even see it (and that in the uncertain future)?