Maundy Thursday

It’s his last night, and Jesus chooses to spend it with his friends. They gather in a small room to share a meal. After they’ve eaten, Jesus does something a little different than he’s done before.

Jesus gathers a basin of water and a towel. He calls Peter to him and says, “Let me wash your feet.” 

Now imagine you’ve been playing all day in the hot sun, and your sneakers have gotten a bit hot and sweaty. And then imagine that the person you admire most in the whole world – who would it be? – tries to kneel down in front of you and peel off those stinky socks. Would you let them?

Peter refuses: “No way!” But Jesus insists. “Let me wash your feet.” And he does. He goes on to wash the feet of every one of those followers who have come along with him on this journey.

The words Jesus says next give us a clue why he does this: “Just as I have washed your feet, so you should wash each other’s feet.”

By kneeling in front of his friends and tending to them in this way, Jesus is showing us how we need to look out for each other. 

How do you take care of those around you?

Serve someone else today.

---

Servant of All

If Jesus were on earth today, where would you look for him? Should we look in the great palaces and parliaments of Europe? Should we look in the seats of power, like the White House in Washington D.C.? Where would he be?

If his life from 2,000 years ago is any hint, Jesus would not be in the high and mighty places of our world, but in the lowest and most humble.

Jesus went among those who had no power, among those cast out. He sought the people others would not even speak to or notice. He looked after those who were blind, deaf, who could not walk. He healed people sick with terrible diseases that had deformed their faces and limbs. He held the hand of those sleeping on mats in the street.

To find Jesus, we would probably need to go where people live in the most need: the homeless encampment under the city overpass. The hospital. The refugee camp.

“I came not to be served, but to serve,” Jesus promised. His life was given in service of others, and even his death would be in service of us all.

He didn’t befriend the ones on the throne, but those sleeping in the alley. Jesus’ greatness came not from making friends with powerful people, but from serving those in greatest need. 

Who is in need in your community?

How can you follow Jesus by helping other today?