Welcome
This evening we enter the Upper Room. First, Jesus washes our feet, forgiveness. Next we gather around the Last Supper, communion with the Him. Finally Jesus gives a new mandate, commandment. We head to the Garden of Gethsemane and the Good Friday service tomorrow.
Place on the table a candle to be lit, a bowl of water to wash in, a piece of bread or cracker, a glass of fluid to consume and a spoon. This evening we will walk with the disciples through this last meal. Our prayer: Lord speak to us.
Let us open our service in the name of the Father, +the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Confession and Forgiveness
Leader: On this night let us confess our sin against God and our neighbor. Let us first bow our heads for a moment and reflect.
Confession: Most merciful God, we confess that we are captive to sin and cannot free ourselves. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name. Amen.
Forgiveness: God, who is rich in mercy, loved us even when we were dead in sin, and made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved. In the name of ☩ Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. Almighty God strengthen you with power through the Holy Spirit, that Christ may live in your hearts through faith. Amen.
Prayer of the Day: Holy God, source of all love, on the night of his betrayal, Jesus gave us a new commandment, to love one another as he loves us. Write this commandment in our hearts, and give us the will to serve others as he was the servant of all, your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Gathering Hymn: Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf_glkmbNbQ
Scripture Reading
First Reading Exodus 12:1-4 [5-10] 11-14
1The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: 2This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. 3Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. 4If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. [5Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. 7They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. 10You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. ] 11This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the Lord. 12For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. 13The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
14This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.
1I love the Lord, who has heard my voice,
and listened to my supplication,
2for the Lord has given ear to me
whenever I called.
12How shall I repay the Lord
for all the good things God has done for me?
13I will lift the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.
14I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people.
15Precious in your sight, O Lord,
is the death of your servants.
16O Lord, truly I am your servant;
I am your servant, the child of your handmaid; you have freed me |from my bonds.
17I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call upon the name of the Lord.
18I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people,
19in the courts of the Lord‘s house,
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
23For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Hymn: What Can Wash Away My Sin? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k-MjVTMbUg
Gospel: John 13:1-10
1Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.”
SERMON Part 1
WASHING — A bowl of water and towel
Maundy Thursday has three major parts: foot washing, communion, and the new commandment. The journey we go through this evening parallels our growth in faith. In this final meal with the disciples, Jesus is physically walking them through truth. First we must be washed. We can then relax in His presence and commune with him. We then are prepared to relate to others as channels of God’s love.
Jesus rises in the middle of the meal and washing the feet of the disciples. Peter objects. Jesus finally responds, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” Without the washing away of sin, our relationships with God and people are dysfunctional. Why are forgiveness and daily repentance so important?
Jesus comes to the disciples, even Judas whom he knew would betray him, and washes his feet. He knew they all needed to be washed to start the evening. We all need to be washed for we have all sinned and fallen sort of the glory of God. We start our service with confession and forgiveness in this truth. You may wish to use your fingers to mark a cross on your forehead to symbolize washing your thoughts, or on your ears to symbolize what you listen to, or on your lips for better speech, or even perhaps on your heart for grudges harbored. (Silence for reflection.)
Let us pray with king David:
“Have mercy on me, O God; according to your unfailing love, according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. (Psm 51:1-4)”
Hymn: Let Us Break Bread Together Let Us Break Bread Together – YouTube
Gospel: Matthew 26: 26-29
26 While they were eating, Jesus took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will never again drink of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
SERMON – Part 2
Communion service. Lighting the Passover candles was one of the two duties for women in the Old Testament. Washed, we now sit at the table with Jesus.
PRESENCE – A Candle
Jesus assures us that whether we are battling for our lives with Covid-19, overwhelmed by anxiety for the unseen danger that threatens our loved ones, or just plain bored from sitting in our homes, Jesus has covenanted with us to be present.
Take a moment to read these verses out loud.
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me (Psm. 23:4)”
“He will not let your foot slip – he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. (Psalm 121: 3,4)”
The Great Commission ends with, “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (Mt 28: 20)”
Hymn: Amazing Grace. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSQCiaG9G8s
Gospel: John 13: 31b-35
31b“Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. 32If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. 33Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ 34I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
SERMON: Part 3
LOVE – A Spoon
We come to the end of Maundy Thursday and Jesus starts to turn his face to the Garden of Gethsemane, his trial and Calvary. The meal is finished and he turns to the disciples and gives them a “new commandment.” Maundy is the word from which mandate or command comes.
Take the spoon in your hand. It can be held to reach for and drink the water of forgiveness. It can also be turned upside down so that the water poured over the spoon flows outward to those around. Jesus in these words is telling us to take that spoon and dip it into the bowl of water to give water to others, to plants in your house, to wash hands or feet, to bless others and to live as forgiven people.
Jesus in this “new” command reframes the Ten Commandments, not to give a different commandment but to give us a new perspective and way of understanding the Ten Commandments. Have “no other gods before me,” is “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your strength.” Do not swear is now to use God’s name to express love and blessing. We go to church to refocus on what is important and eternal. We honor family and commitments. We don’t take life, we give life. We don’t objectify the other for our lusts but honor and respect others’ bodies. We don’t take but we give to others. We don’t tear down others but build them up. We rejoice in other’s accomplishments. Matthew has Jesus answering the question about the greatest commandment in the Law by saying, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.”
A bowl of water, A candle, A spoon
Tonight we bow in the tremendous knowledge that we are forgiven, we are guardians of God’s light, and we are the spoon to feed others God’s love. Let us pray.
Lord, Thank you.
Hymn: Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love.
You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvQz513Jl8M
Prayer
Let us pray for our world.
Turning our hearts to God who is gracious and merciful, we pray for the church, the world, and all who are in need.
God of love, unite your church in its commitment to humble service. Make us your faithful disciples. Speak words of truth and grace through us. Encourage us in self-giving acts of kindness. Let us love one another as you have loved us. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of love, tend to flocks, fields, and vineyards. Bring favorable weather for crops to grow. Guide the hands of those who cultivate, farm, and garden. Let the earth flourish so that all may eat and be satisfied. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of love, you give us a new commandment, to have love for one another. We give thanks for organizations that respond to disasters and for agencies that offer relief and humanitarian aid to populations in need. We especially pray for those on the front line of the Covid-19 pandemic. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of love, give ear to all who call upon you for any need of body or spirit. Provide for those who do not have enough to eat, those who are unemployed or underemployed, and those who rely on the generosity of others. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of love, you invite us to your table of mercy. Heal all divisions between members of this assembly. Extend the hospitality of this table beyond these walls, that your love and welcome be made known to all. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of love, glorify your servants who walked by faith in this life and who now feast with you. Inspire us by the sacrifice of those who were imprisoned, persecuted, or martyred for their faith. Comfort those who are grieving. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
According to your steadfast love, O God, hear these and all our prayers as we commend them to you; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us close with The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, they kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Offering Prayer: God of glory, receive the offering of our lives. As Jesus was lifted up from the earth, draw us to your heart in the midst of this world, that all creation may be brought from bondage to freedom, from darkness to light, and from death to life; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Dismissal: The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
On the Way to Wonder 