Those who have been saved through faith in Jesus, has also been washed clean by him. The declaration of righteousness also implies that we have been cleansed from our old dirt, the sin.
Wash each-other’s feet – John 13:8-10, NET©
8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet!” Jesus replied, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.”
9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, wash not only my feet, but also my hands and my head!”
10 Jesus replied, “The one who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean. And you disciples are clean, but not every one of you.”
It is necessary that we that have been washed white, in order to have part in Christ.
Born Again Through a Bath
5 he saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, Titus 3:5, NET©
When you received Jesus in your heart, when God brought you through the narrow gate, you were bathed. This means that you were born again.
To be born again, and a cleansing bath of the heart, goes hand in hand. The purification bath means that you are renewed through the Holy Spirit.
Washed Clean
11 Some of you once lived this way. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:11, NET©
Being washed clean implies that we have been justified. The justification and the purifying bath are connected, and all this through the name of Jesus Christ and the spirit of God.
A Pure Conscience
Hebrews 9:13-14, NET©
13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled consecrated them and provided ritual purity,
14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our consciences from dead works to worship the living God.
How do you know that you have been justified and have become born again? The big sign is the inner sanitation bath where the conscience and the heart are washed clean. When Jesus have washed you clean, you notice it. Then you notice peace in your mind, you also notice that your thoughts are different.
The dirty heart thinks of evil, money, itself, violence, anger and much more. When the heart and conscience has become clean, then there will be an obvious difference in your mind, when the thoughts of Christ dwells there instead. The difference is obvious, like day and night.
Bold Before God
22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in the assurance that faith brings, because we have had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Hebrews 10:22, NET©
When our conscience is no longer evil and the heart is clean, we can boldly come before God because we are his children.
Confession Through Baptism
21 And this prefigured baptism, which now saves you– not the washing off of physical dirt but the pledge of a good conscience to God– through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 1 Peter 3:21, NET©
Once we have been cleansed inside, we are invited to proclaim it on the outside. Baptism in water is the outwardly ritual of proclamation that expresses the pledge of a pure conscience. The baptism should never take place without a true inner cleansing, otherwise it’s just dead works.
Wash Each-other’s Feet
13 You call me “Teacher” and “Lord”, and do so correctly, for that is what I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you too ought to wash one another’s feet. John 13:13-14, NET©
The parable when Jesus is washing the disciples’ feet, is a symbolic act of God forgiving us our sins. To wash the whole body is a symbol of regeneration.
The necessity of having our feet washed is a symbol of that we need to confess our sins on a regular basis. Because we live in the world, we soil our feet again, and therefore still needs forgiveness from God.
Jesus urges us to wash each other’s feet, which means we will have to forgive each other the sins others do unto us. Otherwise it will be hard for us to keep up with Jesus, and we will start to get behind.