Maundy ThursdayApril 9, 20201 Corinthians 11:23-32

Today is Maundy Thursday where we celebrate the anniversary of our Lord’s Supper – His last will and testament given to His church on the night in which He was betrayed.

Do you know what the word Maundy means? Well it has two possible meanings, depending on what Latin or old English word you take “Maundy” from.

The first meaning, which is commonly accepted by the Reformed and Evangelical churches, is “mandatum” or “command”. In Lutheran Sacramental theology, part of a sacrament certainly does include a ‘mandate’ such as “eat” or “drink” or “baptize”.

But the second meaning of the word Maundy is likely more accurate: that the word comes from an old custom of carrying gifts to the poor in ‘maunds’ or hand baskets, on this day. The Missouri Synod’s encyclopedia considers this second meaning more accurate.

In any case, Maundy Thursday means so much more than a simple command given by God or delivering gifts to the poor – this is the day that our Lord instituted His supper, and we are here for that very reason.

It was on this night, the night before our Lord’s death, that Jesus and his disciples assembled to celebrate the yearly Passover meal. As we read in the Gospel of John, Jesus also washed His disciples’ feet, setting an example to His disciples, and to us, as to how we ought to treat one another. Later on, after the Passover meal, Jesus took bread. He blessed it – lifting it up to heaven – and then He broke it and handed it to His disciples while saying “Take and eat, this is my body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of me.” After He distributed the

bread, He took a cup of wine, blessed it – lifting it up to heaven – and then handed the cup to his disciples. As they passed the cup around the table, Jesus said, “Take and drink, this cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.”

Now it’s tempting to question Christ’s words – to assume He was speaking figuratively or awkwardly pointing to Himself when He said “this is my body…this is my blood”. The truth is that, inasmuch as we do not question Christ’s words when He says “I am the resurrection and the life” or “whoever believes in me will not perish…”, we dare not question them here in this text either. How our heavenly Father can give us Christ’s body to eat and blood to drink in the bread and wine is a profound mystery, but we believe it because Christ says it. And we also believe and trust in the benefits given – forgiveness of sins, strengthening of faith, assurance of life eternal.

Now we Lutherans have very little trouble with the doctrine of the “real presence” – saying that the bread and the wine ARE the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus. But how often do we consider the words “this do in remembrance of me?” What is it that we ‘remember’ when we receive Christ’s body and blood? Well today when you come and receive, I want you to remember three things:

First, remember your sinfulness. You know, most people in this world don’t want to deal with or talk about sin. Their way of finding comfort or satisfaction is to simply avoid discussions about sin, or to make sin so trivial that it just becomes part of day-to-day conversation. Speeding down the road – running red lights – gossip, slander, “hey everyone else does it, so who cares”, right? There are whole church groups built upon the premise that we should not dwell on the bad, the sinfulness of the members, but that we should browbeat the members into doing

the right things – living better lives, using Jesus as the perfect example of how they should act and be.

The truth is that sin is rebelliousness against God; it separates man from God, and sin always leads to death and damnation. And let’s be clear: sin is sin, and God judges all sin under the same lens. God does not forget sin, and certainly God does not want us to think of sin so lightly that we write it off as just a dumb decision or a temporary inconvenience.

In truth God wants us to CONFESS our sins. And when we realize the enormous offense each and every one of our sins are against God, we also see just how important, yes, how mandatory, is the confession of sins. What does St. John write in his epistle? “If we CONFESS our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness.” Solomon writes, “He that covers his sins will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will receive mercy.”

The fact is, God knows all our sins. He is not fooled when we try to cover them up, evade them, or make excuses. But we ARE fooled, which is why we must confess our sins.

And what is it that God wants for us? He wants to forgive us our sins. And when we receive our Lord’s body and blood in the bread and wine, it is that very forgiveness which is offered, but not for those who do not need a physician – not for those who do not think they need forgiveness.

See, being a Christian is first and foremost about confession – confessing that there is nothing good in us – that is in our sinful nature – but that we owe all that we have and are to God our Father who sent His son, who shed His blood for our forgiveness. So when we come forward today, it’s not about image or worth, it’s about remembering

our naturally sinful human state, receiving His body and blood fully aware of the fact that we do not deserve it, but receiving with the faith which says “even so, Jesus has died for me.”

Second, we remember our savior whose love is for all mankind. What is it about humanity which caused Jesus to enter into time, to become human, to place Himself in servanthood, to become obedient to the Law, to live and die? Was there anything in man that drew God to him? The only answer that we can conclude is “love”. God so loves the world – so much so that He sent His only Son. God loves sinners, in spite of our sin, God loves us, and seeks us, and was willing to go to great lengths to save us. Why did God send a savior? Love. Why did His only Son, our Lord, give us His body and blood? Love.

And it is God’s desire that we are confident, convinced in the fact that He loves us so much, that Jesus’ death DID atone for our sins – 100% - no “take backs.” It is out of love that God gave us the Gospel – the message of peace between God and man. And it is out of love that He has given us His holy supper. God desires to commune WITH US. And rightly receiving His body and blood necessitates that we remember what Christ has done for us, fully out of love, with no worthiness of our own.

Finally, remembering our Lord’s death on the cross also moves us ever closer to our heavenly Father by faith. The Lord’s Supper is a sanctifying medicine, an energetic fuel, which out of sorrow and contrition, faith and trust, naturally results. Our desire to keep the commandments only exists BECAUSE of faith and because that faith is sustained and nurtured through the gifts and sacraments God provides. Being sorrowful for sin, and coming to our Lord by faith, knowing that He loves to forgive our sins, causes the new man within us – the man

washed in Christ’s own blood – to shine forth, while the old man be drowned away.

This is a daily process. Contrition, repentance, faith, forgiveness – this is an ongoing work of God’s Holy Spirit within us. In doing this – receiving the Lord’s body and blood – we remember to, by faith, walk in the way our Lord desires us to walk, to follow where He leads, and to go where He sends.

Thus, in just a few minutes, when you receive our Lord’s body and blood, do it remembering these three things: The depth of your sin and confession of your sin, the love of God our Father given in Jesus Christ, and the Spirit-driven pledge to live a godly life out of gratitude to God. And we do this in remembrance of Him who, suffered and died for us. Amen.