At the feet of the Lord

In his Gospel, Luke tells of five people who took their place at the feet of the Lord Jesus. Although all five certainly recognized how unworthy and corrupt they were in view of the greatness and glory of the Lord Jesus, they felt drawn to Him and sought His presence. They voluntarily took the lowly place at His feet—on the one hand, because they had needs and hardships that only He could meet, and on the other hand, because they wanted to show Him their love and gratitude. We too want to learn from these five events.

The well-known sinner

"And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil." (Luke 7:37-38).

A woman who was known in the city as a great sinner had heard that the Lord was in the Pharisee's house. It was, as the Lord himself later says (Luke 7:47), her great love that gave her the courage to follow him into the house of the high-ranking Pharisee. But that was not all. Her great love for the Lord also revealed her faith in his mercy and was evident in what she did: she wet his feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, kissed them, and anointed them with ointment (Luke 7:38). What an expression of her gratitude and love! The Lord did not leave her love and faith unanswered and forgave her sins (Luke 7:48, 50).

The possessedA possessed person has a demon inside of them, which means that this evil, satanic spirit (demons are servants of Satan) controls the body and wreaks havoc and destruction. Sometimes,... More Gadarene

“Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.” (Luke 8:35).

In the land of the Gadarenes, the Lord encountered a man who had been possessedA possessed person has a demon inside of them, which means that this evil, satanic spirit (demons are servants of Satan) controls the body and wreaks havoc and destruction. Sometimes,... More by many demons for a long time. He was naked, lived in the tombs, and could not be restrained by any man. Every attempt to bind him had failed (Luke 8:27, 29). But at the word of the Lord, the demons had to come out of him. After the possessedA possessed person has a demon inside of them, which means that this evil, satanic spirit (demons are servants of Satan) controls the body and wreaks havoc and destruction. Sometimes,... More man had been freed from the power of the demons, he took his place at the Lord's feet, clothed and in his right mind. He had found peace outwardly and inner peace for his soul (cf. Matthew 11:28). From that moment on, the Lord was able to use him in His service (Luke 8:39).

Jairus, the synagogueAt the time of the New Testament, the synagogue was a place where people gathered to hear the law. The beginnings of synagogues probably date back to the time of... More leader

“And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogueAt the time of the New Testament, the synagogue was a place where people gathered to hear the law. The beginnings of synagogues probably date back to the time of... More. And he fell down at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying.” (Luke 8:41-42).

Jairus, a synagogueAt the time of the New Testament, the synagogue was a place where people gathered to hear the law. The beginnings of synagogues probably date back to the time of... More ruler, had only one daughter, about twelve years old. But suddenly a great need arose in his life: the girl was dying. But Jairus knew whom he could turn to. In his desperation, he sought out Jesus, fell at His feet, and asked Him to come to his house. He believed in the omnipotence of the Lord. But his faith was put to a severe test when the news came that his daughter had already died (Luke 8:49). In this seemingly hopeless situation, the Lord encouraged him and strengthened his faith (Luke 8:50). The rest of the story shows that his faith in the Lord's omnipotence was not disappointed (Luke 8:55).

Mary

“And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word” (Luke 10:39).

Mary's sister Martha had welcomed the Lord Jesus and his disciples into her home (Luke 10:38). This meant a lot of work for the two sisters. After all, the large company had to be entertained. No wonder Martha, as the hostess, was busy serving (Luke 10:40). But Mary saw not only the Lord's needs, but also his abundance, from which she wanted to receive something. So she sat down at his feet and listened to his words. With the words “Mary has chosen the good part, which will not be taken away from her,” the Lord expressed his loving appreciation to her (Luke 10:42).

The leper Samaritan

“And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.” (Luke 17:15-16).

As the Lord Jesus was traveling through Samaria and Galilee on His way to Jerusalem, He encountered ten lepers in a certain village who cried out to Him for mercy (Luke 17:13). The Lord instructed them to show themselves to the priests. While they obeyed the Lord's word and went there, they were all cleansed. But only one—a Samaritan—returned to thank the Lord for his healing. He glorified God with a loud voice, fell on his face at the Lord's feet, and thanked Him. Then the Lord gave him assurance, through His word, that his faith had saved him (Luke 17:19).

Summary

Even though the Lord Jesus is no longer physically present on earth today, we can still take our place at His feet in spirit—at any time.

• At His feet, let us bring Him the affection of our hearts.
• At His feet, let us find peace, conscious of the deliverance we have experienced.
• At His feet, let us bring Him our needs and concerns, believing in His omnipotence and trusting in His love.
• At His feet, let us listen to His words and learn from Him.
• At His feet, let us thank Him.