Maundy Thursday Homily

John 13.1-17, 31-35
I Corinthians 11.17-26

Greetings to you on this Maundy Thursday of Holy Week. Maundy Thursday draws its name from the Latin “Dies Mandatum” meaning “The day of the New Commandment”. Typically on this day of Holy week we focus on the Eucharist or The Lord’s Supper. It is on this day of Passover that Jesus sat with his disciples and took His last meal, a seder meal of roast lamb, apple sauce mixed with nuts, matzo (unleavened bread) and bitter herbs to symbolize the important elements of the miraculous Passover event. We see this revealed to us in Exodus 12 as God gives the instructions to Moses to tell the people to prepare for the coming plague of death he will level on their Egyptian slave masters.

Jesus sits with his disciples to partake in this most important meal. We see that Jesus adds to this meal and forever changes it for those who claim His name. The bread becomes His body that will be damaged, torn and broken for them. The wine will represent the new covenant that frees mankind from sin. Free to live for Him, love through Him and serve in His name.

Jesus demonstrates this for His disciples in our gospel text this afternoon. Jesus knowing the evil that Judas intended for Him knelt and washed the feet of those whom he loved. Peter’s pronouncement of, “No Lord. You will never wash my feet!” speaks to his misunderstanding of the love being demonstrated to him. It is this very same love that will be shown to mankind as Jesus asks “the Father” not to hold this sin against them as they do not know what and to whom they are doing this to during his crucifixion. Jesus answers Peter words with words of incorporation as he declares that only if you are washed by me can you be claimed by me. Peter then asks to be fully immersed in the washing of Jesus. As I am sure that most of us would have done as well.

This show of love for those whom he loved demonstrates to us the kind of people that we are called to be as Christians. The ethic that we are called to live our life by is that of love and kingdom incorporation. The Eucharistic table of which we ponder on this afternoon exudes grace prompted by love. We consume the body and blood of Jesus, allowing Him to embody us so to speak, enabling us to gracefully act in love towards the world and each other in the kingdom of God. We are able to love only because of the love demonstrated to us in the servant hood of Jesus toward those whom he loved.

Jesus tells his followers in verses 34-35 that love is the way with which they will be counted as His. The world will know they are one with him only if they show love toward each other. This is the very thing that the Apostle Paul battled some in the Corinthian church on. In the first letter to the Corinthians we see that they are mistreating the table and therefore misrepresenting Jesus love in the process. In chapter 11 Paul tells them that due to the divisions that exist among them they are not concerned with the grace of the Lord’s Table. Some eat to fill their bellies while some go without. Some drink until they are no longer able to think soberly while others are unable to share with them. The very table of love, forgiveness, and community has become one of gluttony and selfishness.

Corinth, being a hodge podge of religious thinking, affluence and culture, incorporated some pagan thinking into their belief system and worship practices. They were an intermingling of rich and poor that should have been a wonderful manifestation of the grace of God at work in a community of believers. Problems persisted though with these dividing walls and carried over to the sacrament that was to represent Jesus’ sacrifice for all. The grace was not afforded to all the believers equally and the loving sacrifice of Jesus was turned into a mockery.

The good news today is the promise of unity that Jesus gave to the disciples rolls over to us. The world will know that we are Christian by the manner in which we treat one another. The way that we approach the table of unity displays our love for one another as well. We are equally forgiven and bearers of the grace of God through the sacrifice of Jesus. Therefore we in unity come to the table to proclaim his suffering, death and glorious resurrection.

Our Holy Week services are meant to be a proclamation of this unity among the church. Although we do display at times some theological divisions on varying matters. We do all bare this unifying mark as believers—the atonement of Jesus Christ has freed us to live according the will of God. We confess that through Jesus Christ we are justified, as Paul says in Romans 5, and we now claim a new status as members of the kingdom of God. We confess also with Paul in Ephesians 4: one Lord, One Faith, and One Baptism. Through the gracious love of Jesus we also have one table. May we sit at this table together this Easter season and show the world that we are Christian by our love for one another.

Grace and Peace