Maunday Thursday
This is the story of Maundy Thursday, the last supper. Do you know why they call it the last supper? Let’s find out.
Our story begins when Jesus had traveled with his 12 disciples to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover. The disciples asked Jesus, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” Jesus told them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ The owner of the house will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.” The disciples left and found things exactly as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover dinner.
(Are you wondering what Passover is? Click HERE to find out.)
When they came together to eat, Jesus 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. When he came to the disciple Peter, Peter looked at Jesus with surprise. “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” he said.
Peter felt that he should be the one offering to wash Jesus’ feet. Jesus was Lord, after all, the Son of God. He should not be washing his disciples feet.
Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
When he had finished washing their feet, Jesus said “Do you understand what I have done for you? 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. The greatest among you is the least, and the one who rules should be the one who serves.”
Jesus was showing the disciples that their job was to be serve the people in the name of God, his Father. As Jesus showed us, all great leaders must be servants as well.
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to his disciples, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me for I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
The kingdom Jesus was talking about was the kingdom of Heaven. Jesus also said, “My children, I will be with you only a little longer but where I am going, you cannot come."
Peter was worried. “Lord, where are you going?” he asked. Jesus said, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”
But Peter did not want to be left behind. “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you,” he said.
“Will you really lay down your life for me?” Jesus asked. “Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
As the meal ended, Jesus gave his disciples a very important message. He said, “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.”
After they had eaten and sung together, Jesus and his disciples went out to the Mount of Olives where Jesus prayed as he watched through the night, waiting for the sun to rise on the day he would be cruicified. And that is the story of Maundy Thursday, the story of the last supper.
You know now why we call it the last supper, don’t you? It was the very last time that Jesus ate with his disciples while he was on this earth. At Utqiagvik Presbyterian Church, we remember this last supper on the first Sunday of every month when we share bread and juice together. This is called communion.
When we come together to celebrate Maundy Thursday we celebrate communion and sometimes the Reverend washes the feet of the of the Elders just as Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.
Do you know why we call this day Maundy Thursday? Maundy comes from a Latin word that means commandment. Maundy Thursday commemorates the day when Jesus gave us the last great commandment: Love one another.
This week's memory verse:
“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 13:34
Something to do:
Download the last supper crossword puzzle below.