Maundy Thursday
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Prelude
Welcome/Reason for Gathering
We gather together on this night to remember and celebrate the Thursday of Holy Week—the day on which Jesus shared a meal with His disciples, washed their feet, and gave them a command.
As we gather here, separated by time and location from the events of that night, our purpose is clear: to focus on the Lord, to partake of the meal He instituted for us to commemorate, and commit to serve one another and to love one another as He has loved us.
Confession:
All: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Pastor: Most holy and merciful Father, we confess to you and to one another, that we have sinned against you by what we have done, and by what we have left undone.
All: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Pastor: We have not loved you with our whole heart and mind and strength. We have not fully loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have not always had in us the mind of Christ.You alone know how often we have grieved you by wasting your gifts, by wandering from your ways, by forgetting your love.
All: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Pastor: We, with unclean hearts, need your cleansing power, your forgiveness, your grace, your mercy. Wash us, Father, in the crimson blood of Jesus Christ, our Savior. Wash us and make us whiter than snow.
All: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Pastor: Forgive us, we pray you, most merciful Father, and free us from our sin. Renew in us the grace and strength of your Holy Spirit, for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son, our Savior, Amen.
Hymn #256: My Savior’s Love/I Stand Amazed
Scripture Reading:
1 It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
2 The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
8 “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
9 “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”
10 Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” 11 For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
18 “I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill this passage of Scripture: ‘He who shared my bread has turned against me.’
19 “I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am. 20 Very truly I tell you, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me.”
21 After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”
22 His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. 23 One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. 24 Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.”
25 Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?”
26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.
So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. 29 Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. 30 As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
31 When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.
33 “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
36 Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”
Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”
37 Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”
38 Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!
Sermon
It was the Passover celebration. Everyone in town to commemorate God’s most incredible rescue of His people—God’s most incredible rescue of His people so far.
It was just before the Passover Festival John writes for us. Jesus knew the hour had come for Him to leave this world and go to the Father.
Jesus knew this hour was coming. This was what He was born to do. Jesus was born to die, born to live among us for a time, and then to die in our place.
The perfect, spotless lamb of God, the One of whom John exclaimed: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!” has come to do just that.
But before He goes to the cross, He shares a meal with His disciples, His friends; He shares a meal with His betrayer, His denier, His deserters.
And if that isn’t enough, Jesus, the Sovereign of the Universe, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, is going to wash their feet.
In an act of humility and service and love which is meant to spur us on to a mirrored humility and service and love, Jesus gets up from the meal, takes off His outer clothing, wraps a towel around His waist, pours water into a basin, and washes His disciples dirty, dusty, smelly man feet.
For Judas who betrayed Him, for Peter who denied Him, for the disciples who deserted Him—Jesus washes their feet.
And as Jesus’ disciples today, we are commanded to do as Jesus has done for us.
There are a few ways to take this:
To actually, literally wash one another’s feet.
This is one way to model the service, the humility, the posture of our Lord Jesus. It’s a humbling act to sit before another and wash their feet. And it’s a humbling moment for the one who’s feet are being washed.
To have your feet washed, or to do the washing, is to turn your mind to Jesus, He who came to us humbly, who lived among us humbly, and who left us a most humble example.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
After Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, He spoke of His betrayal by Judas. And then, after Judas left the Upper Room and ran into the night, Jesus spoke to the 11. He spoke to them about love.
He gave them a command to love.
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
A new command Jesus gave. A new command? It sure sounds a lot like the Mosaic Law:
18 “ ‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.
A new command.
Jesus’ command certainly takes its cue from the OT law, but Jesus’ own love and teaching deepen and transform these commands.
The command to love one’s neighbor is not new. The newness of the command was found in loving one another as Jesus loves.
We are to love as Jesus loved. It’s not a suggestion, it’s a command; it’s a mandate.
This is where the phrase “Maundy Thursday” comes from. The word ‘Maundy’ is derived from the Latin: mandatum, which means mandate.
What Jesus has done here is to issue a command, a mandate; this—Love one another—is a direct order from our Lord and Savior, our King and Redeemer.
We must love one another. We must love one another just as Jesus loved us. And this love will take on new meaning for the disciples as they watch Jesus lay down His life for them.
13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
19 We love because he first loved us.
A new command Jesus gives us: Love one another.
>All of this is situated, of course, in the context of the Passover meal, the Last Supper.
The Israelites in Egypt, in order to be saved, had to hide under the mercy of the Lord. They had to smear blood on their doorframes and trust that the angel of death would pass over.
For you and me to be saved, we need perfection. We need a perfect sacrifice. This is our only hope.
To be saved by God, I need perfection to cover me. You need a perfect sacrifice to cover you and your sins.
Jesus expresses to us (in the institution of the Lord’s Supper) that He is, for us, our once and perfect sacrifice.
His body and His blood usher in a new covenant.
His blood is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
The Passover served as a reminder of what God had done for the people. It was a reminder that only one thing saved them—it was God Himself who acted to save them.
When we observe the Lord’s Supper, when we come to the communion table, it, too, should serve as a reminder for us. A reminder that only one thing saves us—God Himself who acted to save us through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.
Our good works won’t save us.
Our family name won’t save us.
Our ethnicity won’t save us. Being part of a church won’t save us.
Only Jesus’ body broken and blood poured out can save us. And praise God it does!
The Lord’s Supper ought to be, for us
A reminder. A reminder of what God has done for us. When you take the cracker and the juice, let it serve as a reminder that God sent His Only Son to the cross so that you might have life everlasting.
A mirror. A mirror that reflects for us our sinfulness, our wretched condition, our own betrayal of Jesus. Communion is a mirror for us to see our deep need and so lead us to repentance and brokenness at the foot of the cross.
A proclamation. The very act of partaking of communion is a proclamation of the Lord’s death. When people see us take the cracker and eat, take the cup and drink, we are, in a very real and tangible way, preaching and proclaiming that Jesus died in our place.
A promise. The Lord’s Supper/Communion is a promise. God has acted. He has saved. He has perfectly atoned for our sins. And Jesus is coming again. He will return. It’s a promise. Jesus promises that He will drink from the fruit of the vine with us again on “that day” in His “Father’s kingdom.” It’s a promise.
Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper so that we might, as often as we observe it, understand our great sin, our great need; so that we would express our unity as a body of believers; so that we would show our faith and trust in what Christ alone has accomplished for us.
May we remember, give thanks, and worship the One who has saved us.
May we focus on the One who came to humbly serve, to love, and to save us.
Communion:
When you’re ready, as Dixie plays, come to the table. Take and eat. Thank Jesus for His indescribable gift.
Final Hymn (Handout): They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love
Benediction: Go in peace, serve the Lord, and love one another as Jesus has loved you.