Today is Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday, when Jesus celebrated the Passover meal, and washed the feet of his disciples.
The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin term mandatum, which means “commandment.” It refers to the new commandment Jesus gave His disciples during the Last Supper to love one another just as He loved them.
A new commandment
This is how it is recorded in John 13:1-17:
“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.
The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 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.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”
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.” For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not everyone was clean.
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. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”
Jesus – the suffering servant
How very different – the Teacher and Lord washing his disciples’ feet! This was unheard of at the time. Washing dirty feet was the work of the lowliest of servants. This was an act of great humility and condescension. Just a few days ago, on Palm Sunday, Jesus had been hailed as King. Now he was acting as a servant. In Isaiah 53, hundreds of years earlier, Jesus is described as the suffering servant.
There was no servant in the upper room where they were eating, and none of the disciples had offered to do the foot-washing. In fact, they were more likely to vie for the position of most important. When the disciples argued about who was the greatest, Jesus said:
Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave — just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:25-28
The new commandment – love one another
Jesus “knew that the hour had come.” He knew that the time for His ultimate sacrifice was at hand. He gives a new commandment:
When he [Judas] was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.
“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.
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:31-35
Jesus had eaten the Passover, then washed their feet and given His disciples a new commandment – to love one another. His life was a daily sacrifice of love – sacrificing His own needs for comfort and peace, in order to meet the needs of others. And soon He would make the ultimate sacrifice – giving up His life, in order to pay the price for our sin.
Go and do likewise
It seems strange, don’t you think, that Jesus who is God in human form, chooses to give up His life for you? Not because you deserve it, but because HE LOVES YOU!
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16
On Maundy Thursday, Jesus said that we have to go and do likewise. We should, “wash one another’s feet,” and “love one another as I have loved you.”
It’s amazing to me, that Jesus paid the ultimate price – for me, and for you! I’m overwhelmed with gratitude and thankfulness for His undeserved mercy and sacrificial love.
So, now, in thankfulness, I’m commanded to go and do likewise – to do the work of a lowly servant; to show love to the unlovely; to forgive those who do not deserve it.
I don’t have to do these things because I have to earn my salvation. No! Jesus has already done that.
But it’s not easy!
Now, I want to act in love and to forgive, because I have been forgiven. BUT it’s not easy! Many times, I’d rather hold on tightly to the grudge; ignore the need; assume that someone else will do the dirty work; say that it’s someone’s else’s job; say that I deserve better.
It’s only when I remember all the love of Jesus, that I confess my sin and repent of it. I ask God for his amazing mercy. I thank Him for sending Jesus to take away my sin. And I ask Him to enable me to forgive others, just as He has forgiven me.
We love because he first loved us.
1 John 4:19
Prayer:
Dear God
Thank you for Maundy Thursday and the new commandment to love one another. Thank you that because You loved us to death and beyond, we can love and forgive others too. Forgive me when I hold grudges and refuse to forgive. Remind me that you have washed all my sin away, and therefore I am free to forgive others too. Thank you for Easter when we remember your death and resurrection, a free gift for us, because You paid the ultimate price.
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To hear the beautiful song: A NEW COMMANDMENT
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