Maundy Thursday: The Mandate of Love

Matthew 26:17-30; John 13:1-17; Luke 22:7-23

As we approach the culmination of Holy Week, Maundy Thursday marks a pivotal moment in the life of Jesus and His disciples. The day is filled with profound acts of love, service, and the establishment of new rituals that will define the Christian faith for generations to come.

The Last Supper: A New Covenant
Maundy Thursday is most remembered for the Last Supper, where Jesus shares a final meal with His disciples. During this meal, He institutes the practice of communion, breaking bread and offering wine as symbols of His body and blood, signifying the New Covenant between God and humanity (Jeremiah 31:31-34). This act becomes a powerful sacrament, central to Christian worship throughout the ages, symbolizing Jesus’ body broken, and His blood shed for the forgiveness of sins.

In Matthew 26:26-29, Jesus redefines the Passover meal, a Jewish tradition that commemorates the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt. The original Passover, instituted in Exodus 12, was commanded to be observed "throughout your generations, as a statute forever" (Exodus 12:14, 24)—a lasting reminder of God's salvation. Yet, on this night, Jesus reveals its ultimate fulfillment. By associating the bread and wine with His own body and blood, He introduces a new understanding of deliverance—one that will come not through political or national liberation but through the forgiveness of sins in the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34). Just as the blood of the Passover lamb spared the Israelites from judgment, Christ, the true Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7), offers His blood for the redemption of all who partake in His covenant. In this moment, the long-foretold promise of a greater exodus—the liberation from sin and death—is revealed at the table of the Last Supper.

The Washing of Feet: The Mandate of Servant Leadership
In John 13:1-17, we find one of the most profound acts of Jesus’ love and humility—He washes the feet of His disciples. This task, typically reserved for the lowest servant in the household, is an act of love that demonstrates what true leadership looks like in the Kingdom of God. Jesus, the Teacher and Lord, stoops down to serve His followers in this humble way, showing them that greatness in His Kingdom is not about power or position but about service and sacrifice.

The act of foot washing becomes a symbol of the Christian life: just as Christ serves us in humility, we are called to serve one another with the same self-giving love. Jesus then gives His disciples a "new commandment" (from which Maundy Thursday derives its name, from the Latin mandatum meaning "command")—to love one another as He has loved them (John 13:34). This new commandment becomes the hallmark of His followers: a love that is sacrificial, servant-hearted, and unconditional.

The Triune Love Feast: A Tradition of Service, Communion, and Fellowship
Among the Brethren Church and other Anabaptist traditions, Maundy Thursday is often observed through a practice known as the Love Feast, a communal meal that embodies the humility, fellowship, and unity Jesus demonstrated in the Upper Room. This threefold celebration includes foot washing, a shared meal, and communion, reflecting the interconnectedness of Christ’s love, service, and sacrifice. Foot washing humbles participants before one another, reminding them that true discipleship is found in serving others. The communal meal fosters deep fellowship, echoing the Last Supper, where Jesus dined with His closest followers. Finally, the Eucharist—or bread and cup—seals this sacred act, drawing believers into the mystery of Christ’s self-giving love.

Our Western minds often prefer to see Jesus’ actions on this night as merely symbolic, reducing foot washing to an abstract lesson on humility rather than a concrete practice to be lived out. Yet for the early church and many traditions today, this is more than a symbol—it is a command to embody Christ’s love through tangible acts of service. The Love Feast is not just a reenactment; it is a lived expression of Jesus’ new commandment: to love one another as He has loved us (John 13:34-35).

The Betrayal: Jesus’ Foretelling of His Arrest
As Jesus shares this intimate moment with His disciples, He also foretells of His betrayal. In Matthew 26:21-25 and Luke 22:21-23, Jesus reveals that one of His disciples will betray Him. The shock and grief of this revelation set the stage for the events of Good Friday. Judas, the one who will betray Him, even partakes in the meal, fulfilling the prophecy that Jesus will be handed over by one of His own.

This moment serves as a stark reminder that Jesus’ love, humility, and sacrifice would be met with rejection and betrayal. Yet, even in the face of such rejection, He continues to offer His love freely, knowing that His purpose is to redeem even the one who will betray Him.

Gethsemane: The Solitude of Surrender
After sharing the Passover meal and washing His disciples’ feet, Jesus retreats to the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46; Luke 22:39-46). In the hush of the night, surrounded by olive trees, He enters into deep prayer—alone with the Father. This moment is both an act of communion and anguish, revealing the weight of what is to come.

Jesus’ prayer in the garden is one of ultimate surrender: “Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Here, we see the full humanity of Jesus—He does not rush toward suffering but submits to the Father’s will in trust and obedience. In this moment, He experiences the solitude of surrender, where no one—not even His closest friends—can fully understand or bear the burden He carries.

His disciples, though invited to watch and pray, fall asleep. The contrast is striking: Jesus wrestles with His impending suffering while His followers drift into spiritual complacency. It is a reminder of how easy it is to grow weary in prayer, even when the hour is urgent.

In many ways, Gethsemane is the silent battleground before the cross. It is the moment where Jesus chooses the Father’s will over His own, ensuring our redemption. True strength is found in surrender, and here, Jesus teaches us that victory is often born in solitude, in the unseen moments of wrestling with God.

Reflection: A New Mandate for a New Kingdom
On this Maundy Thursday, we are invited to reflect on the depth of Jesus’ love for us. His actions—His institution of the Eucharist, His humble washing of the disciples' feet, and His willingness to be betrayed—remind us of the radical love that defines the Kingdom of God. It is a love that serves, a love that sacrifices, and a love that endures even in the face of rejection.

As we reflect on these acts of love, we are also invited to ask ourselves: How are we living out the mandate to love one another as Christ has loved us? Are we serving others with humility? Are we allowing Christ’s love to transform our hearts so that we may extend that same love to the world around us?

Questions to Ponder:

• Jesus institutes the practice of communion as a sign of the new covenant. How does the Eucharist or Communion shape your understanding of Christ’s sacrifice and the new relationship we have with God?
• In John 13, Jesus washes His disciples’ feet as a model of servant leadership. How can we embody this kind of humility and service in our daily lives? 
• Would you participate in this example set forth by Jesus? What reservations do you have?
• Jesus gives a new commandment to love one another as He has loved us. What does this kind of love look like in practical terms, and how can we show that love to others—especially those who may not love us in return?
• In light of Jesus’ prediction of His betrayal, how do we reconcile the fact that even in the face of rejection and betrayal, He continues to love? How can this shape the way we respond to hurt and betrayal in our own lives?
• What does Jesus' prayer "not My will, but Yours be done" teach us about surrendering to God's will in our own lives?