Sermon Illustrations For Maundy Thursday (2020)
Illustration
Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19
Praising God is difficult sometimes. Our challenges become easier when we realize we are not in them alone. For those of us with an intimate relationship with Jesus, praising becomes a little easier — but often, only a little easier. I do not profess to always be in an attitude of praise, especially when times are hard, and situations are tough. I have been teaching myself the practice of the mindful pause. When I am in those tough times, I breathe and pause. I picture my savior beside me, embracing me, leading and comforting me. I say a silent thank you for not being alone. Then I interact in the challenging situation. Breathing helps. But praising Jesus for not leaving me alone is the true solution. I praise as a commandment, as an act of obedience. I am reminded that in the moments before his arrest, torture, crucifixion and death, Jesus also praised and surrendered to God. That is the savior I follow, and the savior I call upon.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
Freedom requires a sacrifice. American history validates this statement.
Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence. Their conviction resulted in untold sufferings for themselves and their families. Of the fifty-six, five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army. Another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or hardships of the war.
Those fifty-six men and their families were willing to pay a price to give birth to a new nation dedicated to freedom and opportunity. I think sometimes we forget that the founding of our nation came at the cost of the blood of patriots, men and women who gave their all.
Freedom requires a sacrifice. The words are true for our country but are even more poignant for God’s people. The Israelites were to remember what happened on the night, in Egypt, when the death angel passed over the houses marked by the blood of the lamb. “This 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.”
Remembering matters for God’s people today. The blood of the Lamb of God was shed so that we could be free.
Bill T.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
The children of Israel were to make hurried preparations for departure out of slavery. The Angel of Death was about to pass over them and strike elsewhere. I try to imagine what it must have been like trying to cook under those circumstances when normally any outside pressure can lead to ruining dinner.
Time is twisted a little inside out in this passage, for instructions are being given to Moses for an event that is about to take place, but the account is written for those in the future who will be re-enacting this event as well. Past, present, and future are intertwined, bringing us into a timeless place that is closer to eternity than most moments we share within our hurtling train upon the track of time.
The same is true for our communion services, which find their source in Passover, which we inherit from our Jewish cousins. We are there at the first breaking of the bread and sharing of the cup, a meal which will find its perfect fulfillment at the wedding feast of the Lamb.
But it’s that future event that will be perfect. The first Passover was rushed. The first Communion service was imperfectly observed because only Jesus realized the full significance at the time. His sorrow at his coming death seems not to have been shared by the disciples who were having a good time at the Passover.
Therefore, we needn’t worry if everything is not perfect for our communion services. We won’t have our lives together, our ducks won’t be in a row, and we may be rushed, like at that first Passover. But if you take a look at Passover and the Last Supper, there is a rushed and hurried aspect to both of these. The shadow of death hangs over Passover, and the Last Supper, and our lives.
Frank R.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
The actor Denzel Washington is known to speak openly about his Christian faith. Washington once considered becoming a pastor. He stated in 1999, “A part of me still says, ‘Maybe, Denzel, you're supposed to preach. Maybe you're still compromising.’ I've had an opportunity to play great men and, through their words, to preach. I take what talent I've been given seriously, and I want to use it for good.” His devotion to God and his desire to be a spiritual leader is reflected in the commencement address that he delivered in 2015 at Dillard University, a historically black college in New Orleans. In that address he told the graduating seniors, “I pray that you put your slippers way under your bed tonight, so that when you wake up in the morning you have to get on your knees to reach them. And while your down there, say thank you.”
Ron L.
* * *
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
The Roman Catholic Church offers a penetrating observation about Jesus’ Institution of The Lord’s Supper. In its Catechism of the Catholic Church (1337) it states: “The Lord having loved those who were His own, loved them to the end.” To the very end, Christ loved you and me. This leads to celebration in life. The sacrament reminds us, in the words of famed Christian theologian and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer that
Our life is not only travail and labor, it is also refreshment and joy in the goodness of God... Through our daily meals He is calling us to rejoice, to keep holiday in the midst of our working day. (A Testament To Freedom, p.349)
God’s love in the sacrament leads us to celebrate life. The Catholic Church offers a related observation about what this sacrament can mean in everyday life:
As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life... By giving Himself to us Christ revives our love and enables us to break our disordered attachments to creatures and root ourselves in Him... (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1394)
Mark E.
* * *
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Holy communion, or the eucharist, are common Christian practices that are based on this passage, but have you ever wondered, how did we get from a story about Jesus blessing wine and breaking bread to a regularly-scheduled Christian ritual (weekly, monthly, or less often)? The simple answer is Jesus’s request in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26: “Do this in remembrance of me.” But why then, in the liturgy of communion, do Christians bless the cup of wine (or grape juice) before we bless the bread, when in this passage Jesus clearly breaks the bread before he blesses the cup? And why use wine (or grape juice) anyway? This passage doesn’t mention the presence of wine.
One explanation is that the earliest followers of Jesus, who were Jewish, took the weekly Sabbath blessing of wine and bread, called “Kiddush” and “Hamotzi” respectively and in that order, and reinterpreted them as a ritual in remembrance of their Lord, Jesus the Messiah. The connection between the Jewish Kiddush prayer and Jesus’s blessing of bread and cup is especially evident when we look closely at one of the key phrases in the prayer:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה׳ אֱֹלהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן
“Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.”
In the parallel passages in the Gospels of 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Jesus says “Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until the day that I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:27-29; Luke 22:15-20).
It’s not difficult to see how these early Jewish followers of Jesus would have understood the connection between the Kiddush prayer and their messiah’s command to “do this in remembrance of me.” Over time, as Gentile Christians began to outnumber the original Jewish followers of Jesus, the ritual of blessing wine and bread was retained as remembrances of Christ, but lost their connection to their Jewish roots.
M T.
* * *
John 13:1-17 31-35
Gary Inrig, in A Call to Excellence, wrote about Dwight L. Moody. Moody was the most famous evangelist in the world in the late 1800s. People came from around the world to attend his Bible Conferences in Northfield, Massachusetts. One year a large group of pastors from Europe were among the attendees. They were given rooms in the dormitory of the Bible school. As was the custom in Europe, the men put their shoes outside the door of their room, expecting them to be cleaned and polished by servants during the night.
There were no servants in the American dorm, but as Moody was walking through the halls and praying for his guests, he saw the shoes and realized what had happened. He mentioned the problem to a few of his students, but none of them offered to help. Without another word, the great evangelist gathered up the shoes and took them back to his own room where he began to clean and polish each pair.
Moody was imitating what his savior taught a long time ago when he showed his love for his disciples. Jesus assumed the lowly position of washing the feet of his disciples. Jesus reiterates the point that Moody understood years later, “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” (vs. 34).
Bill T.
* * *
John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Like the Passover, the shadow of death hovers over the scene in John. But in John’s gospel, and unlike the other three gospels, this last supper is not the Passover meal. It takes place the day before, when the Pascal Lamb is slaughtered in preparation for the meal. Some suggest that this is for a theological reason that in John Jesus is the Lamb of God, and the sacrifice required for Passover. I have also read that because some Jewish groups used the solar calendar and others the lunar calendar we are actually talking about the same day. I am willing to live with the ambiguity.
But with death looming there’s a poignancy to every action of Jesus. This is the last chance he will have to teach them before his brutal and horrifying death passes over all of us and strikes him. What lesson can Jesus give that they will never forget?
Nothing succeeds like an object lesson. An action, an activity, a demonstration, speaks louder than words. The apostles might have wondered what Jesus meant when he said whoever would be the greatest among them would be the greatest servant, but there was no way they could forget the moment when Jesus girded himself with a towel and, though he was the master, he took on the aspect of a slave and washed his disciples’ feet.
In that age one would typically bathe before coming to a banquet, then walk over, either barefoot or in sandals, ending up with dirty feet. Basins were laid out for people to wash their own feet upon their arrival. Sometimes a slave could be compelled to do this task for one’s guests. But there is no recorded instance in ancient history where a superior washed the feet of an inferior. The disciples were shocked — Peter was the only one who could bring himself to voice his disapproval! But as Jesus pointed out, “I have set you an example…” (13:15) Identifying himself as their “Lord and teacher” (13:14) Jesus told them if he has washed their feet, they ought to wash one another’s feet.
What does this mean? The clue is found in the words Jesus spoke in the new commandment recorded a few verses later: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (13:34-35)
If the disciples are to be known by their love for each other, and if that love can be exemplified by feetwashing, perhaps we are to understand that our communion with each other frees us to perform the difficult, unpleasant, gritty tasks of service that no one else wants to do. Our service — the ways we share the body and blood of Christ, commemorated this day in Holy Week — should lead to tangible, visible service, following the example of the one who died for us in a horrible way.
The ministry of Jesus, the healing that brought people into the fold, involved touching the untouchables. For young parents it begins with something as simple and natural — and unpleasant — as changing diapers. When circumstance and necessity draw us into the ministry of caregiving, we are also called to imitate Jesus as servant as well. For each one of us feetwashing may translate into a different, difficult ministry.
(This selection for Maundy Thursday is adapted from a sermon written for CSS Publishing Co. some years ago….)
Frank R.
* * *
John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Alex Trebek has been the host of the television game show Jeopardy since 1984. For a number of years he has been quietly donating money to organizations that care for the homeless. Trebek said he began this practice after having driven around Los Angeles for some time and continually noticing the number of homeless people. He felt he needed to help these individuals. In February 2020, he donated $100,000 to the Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission. He only did so after auditing their financial books, visiting all of their facilitates, and extensively interviewing the director of the mission, Ken Craft. Trebek wanted to be sure his donations would be used to help others and not be squandered. He began this extensive research procedure when he once learned that an organization he was contributing to paid its director a salary of $450,000. Trebek said of that outlandish salary, “I just don’t think that’s a good use of non-profit finances.” Offering his reason for assisting the homeless Trebek said, “Homelessness is a serious problem. I wanted to do something, so I researched this charity, visited their facility, and personally saw the good work they are doing, and wanted to help. I hope others will do what they can as well.”
Ron L.
Praising God is difficult sometimes. Our challenges become easier when we realize we are not in them alone. For those of us with an intimate relationship with Jesus, praising becomes a little easier — but often, only a little easier. I do not profess to always be in an attitude of praise, especially when times are hard, and situations are tough. I have been teaching myself the practice of the mindful pause. When I am in those tough times, I breathe and pause. I picture my savior beside me, embracing me, leading and comforting me. I say a silent thank you for not being alone. Then I interact in the challenging situation. Breathing helps. But praising Jesus for not leaving me alone is the true solution. I praise as a commandment, as an act of obedience. I am reminded that in the moments before his arrest, torture, crucifixion and death, Jesus also praised and surrendered to God. That is the savior I follow, and the savior I call upon.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
Freedom requires a sacrifice. American history validates this statement.
Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence. Their conviction resulted in untold sufferings for themselves and their families. Of the fifty-six, five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army. Another had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or hardships of the war.
Those fifty-six men and their families were willing to pay a price to give birth to a new nation dedicated to freedom and opportunity. I think sometimes we forget that the founding of our nation came at the cost of the blood of patriots, men and women who gave their all.
Freedom requires a sacrifice. The words are true for our country but are even more poignant for God’s people. The Israelites were to remember what happened on the night, in Egypt, when the death angel passed over the houses marked by the blood of the lamb. “This 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.”
Remembering matters for God’s people today. The blood of the Lamb of God was shed so that we could be free.
Bill T.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
The children of Israel were to make hurried preparations for departure out of slavery. The Angel of Death was about to pass over them and strike elsewhere. I try to imagine what it must have been like trying to cook under those circumstances when normally any outside pressure can lead to ruining dinner.
Time is twisted a little inside out in this passage, for instructions are being given to Moses for an event that is about to take place, but the account is written for those in the future who will be re-enacting this event as well. Past, present, and future are intertwined, bringing us into a timeless place that is closer to eternity than most moments we share within our hurtling train upon the track of time.
The same is true for our communion services, which find their source in Passover, which we inherit from our Jewish cousins. We are there at the first breaking of the bread and sharing of the cup, a meal which will find its perfect fulfillment at the wedding feast of the Lamb.
But it’s that future event that will be perfect. The first Passover was rushed. The first Communion service was imperfectly observed because only Jesus realized the full significance at the time. His sorrow at his coming death seems not to have been shared by the disciples who were having a good time at the Passover.
Therefore, we needn’t worry if everything is not perfect for our communion services. We won’t have our lives together, our ducks won’t be in a row, and we may be rushed, like at that first Passover. But if you take a look at Passover and the Last Supper, there is a rushed and hurried aspect to both of these. The shadow of death hangs over Passover, and the Last Supper, and our lives.
Frank R.
* * *
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
The actor Denzel Washington is known to speak openly about his Christian faith. Washington once considered becoming a pastor. He stated in 1999, “A part of me still says, ‘Maybe, Denzel, you're supposed to preach. Maybe you're still compromising.’ I've had an opportunity to play great men and, through their words, to preach. I take what talent I've been given seriously, and I want to use it for good.” His devotion to God and his desire to be a spiritual leader is reflected in the commencement address that he delivered in 2015 at Dillard University, a historically black college in New Orleans. In that address he told the graduating seniors, “I pray that you put your slippers way under your bed tonight, so that when you wake up in the morning you have to get on your knees to reach them. And while your down there, say thank you.”
Ron L.
* * *
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
The Roman Catholic Church offers a penetrating observation about Jesus’ Institution of The Lord’s Supper. In its Catechism of the Catholic Church (1337) it states: “The Lord having loved those who were His own, loved them to the end.” To the very end, Christ loved you and me. This leads to celebration in life. The sacrament reminds us, in the words of famed Christian theologian and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer that
Our life is not only travail and labor, it is also refreshment and joy in the goodness of God... Through our daily meals He is calling us to rejoice, to keep holiday in the midst of our working day. (A Testament To Freedom, p.349)
God’s love in the sacrament leads us to celebrate life. The Catholic Church offers a related observation about what this sacrament can mean in everyday life:
As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the Eucharist strengthens our charity, which tends to be weakened in daily life... By giving Himself to us Christ revives our love and enables us to break our disordered attachments to creatures and root ourselves in Him... (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1394)
Mark E.
* * *
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Holy communion, or the eucharist, are common Christian practices that are based on this passage, but have you ever wondered, how did we get from a story about Jesus blessing wine and breaking bread to a regularly-scheduled Christian ritual (weekly, monthly, or less often)? The simple answer is Jesus’s request in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26: “Do this in remembrance of me.” But why then, in the liturgy of communion, do Christians bless the cup of wine (or grape juice) before we bless the bread, when in this passage Jesus clearly breaks the bread before he blesses the cup? And why use wine (or grape juice) anyway? This passage doesn’t mention the presence of wine.
One explanation is that the earliest followers of Jesus, who were Jewish, took the weekly Sabbath blessing of wine and bread, called “Kiddush” and “Hamotzi” respectively and in that order, and reinterpreted them as a ritual in remembrance of their Lord, Jesus the Messiah. The connection between the Jewish Kiddush prayer and Jesus’s blessing of bread and cup is especially evident when we look closely at one of the key phrases in the prayer:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה׳ אֱֹלהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן
“Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.”
In the parallel passages in the Gospels of 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Jesus says “Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until the day that I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:27-29; Luke 22:15-20).
It’s not difficult to see how these early Jewish followers of Jesus would have understood the connection between the Kiddush prayer and their messiah’s command to “do this in remembrance of me.” Over time, as Gentile Christians began to outnumber the original Jewish followers of Jesus, the ritual of blessing wine and bread was retained as remembrances of Christ, but lost their connection to their Jewish roots.
M T.
* * *
John 13:1-17 31-35
Gary Inrig, in A Call to Excellence, wrote about Dwight L. Moody. Moody was the most famous evangelist in the world in the late 1800s. People came from around the world to attend his Bible Conferences in Northfield, Massachusetts. One year a large group of pastors from Europe were among the attendees. They were given rooms in the dormitory of the Bible school. As was the custom in Europe, the men put their shoes outside the door of their room, expecting them to be cleaned and polished by servants during the night.
There were no servants in the American dorm, but as Moody was walking through the halls and praying for his guests, he saw the shoes and realized what had happened. He mentioned the problem to a few of his students, but none of them offered to help. Without another word, the great evangelist gathered up the shoes and took them back to his own room where he began to clean and polish each pair.
Moody was imitating what his savior taught a long time ago when he showed his love for his disciples. Jesus assumed the lowly position of washing the feet of his disciples. Jesus reiterates the point that Moody understood years later, “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” (vs. 34).
Bill T.
* * *
John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Like the Passover, the shadow of death hovers over the scene in John. But in John’s gospel, and unlike the other three gospels, this last supper is not the Passover meal. It takes place the day before, when the Pascal Lamb is slaughtered in preparation for the meal. Some suggest that this is for a theological reason that in John Jesus is the Lamb of God, and the sacrifice required for Passover. I have also read that because some Jewish groups used the solar calendar and others the lunar calendar we are actually talking about the same day. I am willing to live with the ambiguity.
But with death looming there’s a poignancy to every action of Jesus. This is the last chance he will have to teach them before his brutal and horrifying death passes over all of us and strikes him. What lesson can Jesus give that they will never forget?
Nothing succeeds like an object lesson. An action, an activity, a demonstration, speaks louder than words. The apostles might have wondered what Jesus meant when he said whoever would be the greatest among them would be the greatest servant, but there was no way they could forget the moment when Jesus girded himself with a towel and, though he was the master, he took on the aspect of a slave and washed his disciples’ feet.
In that age one would typically bathe before coming to a banquet, then walk over, either barefoot or in sandals, ending up with dirty feet. Basins were laid out for people to wash their own feet upon their arrival. Sometimes a slave could be compelled to do this task for one’s guests. But there is no recorded instance in ancient history where a superior washed the feet of an inferior. The disciples were shocked — Peter was the only one who could bring himself to voice his disapproval! But as Jesus pointed out, “I have set you an example…” (13:15) Identifying himself as their “Lord and teacher” (13:14) Jesus told them if he has washed their feet, they ought to wash one another’s feet.
What does this mean? The clue is found in the words Jesus spoke in the new commandment recorded a few verses later: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (13:34-35)
If the disciples are to be known by their love for each other, and if that love can be exemplified by feetwashing, perhaps we are to understand that our communion with each other frees us to perform the difficult, unpleasant, gritty tasks of service that no one else wants to do. Our service — the ways we share the body and blood of Christ, commemorated this day in Holy Week — should lead to tangible, visible service, following the example of the one who died for us in a horrible way.
The ministry of Jesus, the healing that brought people into the fold, involved touching the untouchables. For young parents it begins with something as simple and natural — and unpleasant — as changing diapers. When circumstance and necessity draw us into the ministry of caregiving, we are also called to imitate Jesus as servant as well. For each one of us feetwashing may translate into a different, difficult ministry.
(This selection for Maundy Thursday is adapted from a sermon written for CSS Publishing Co. some years ago….)
Frank R.
* * *
John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Alex Trebek has been the host of the television game show Jeopardy since 1984. For a number of years he has been quietly donating money to organizations that care for the homeless. Trebek said he began this practice after having driven around Los Angeles for some time and continually noticing the number of homeless people. He felt he needed to help these individuals. In February 2020, he donated $100,000 to the Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission. He only did so after auditing their financial books, visiting all of their facilitates, and extensively interviewing the director of the mission, Ken Craft. Trebek wanted to be sure his donations would be used to help others and not be squandered. He began this extensive research procedure when he once learned that an organization he was contributing to paid its director a salary of $450,000. Trebek said of that outlandish salary, “I just don’t think that’s a good use of non-profit finances.” Offering his reason for assisting the homeless Trebek said, “Homelessness is a serious problem. I wanted to do something, so I researched this charity, visited their facility, and personally saw the good work they are doing, and wanted to help. I hope others will do what they can as well.”
Ron L.
