Hello, my friends!
I hope that you are having a blessed holy week! Tonight is Maundy Thursday which celebrates the last supper of Jesus with his disciples. It is such an intimate moment filled with such emotion. The tension has been building all week and each disciple seems to have a different idea of what should happen next. Peter is ready to fight. James and John are hoping for special seats on Jesus’ right and left. And Judas has already cut a deal to betray the man he has professed to follow.
But Jesus knows exactly what he is doing. He has been conducting this moment from the start. This whole week he has been modeling for them the kingdom of heaven. He is a living parable, riding into Jerusalem in humility, cleansing the temple of its corruption against foreigners and the poor, healing the blind and the paralytics, welcoming the children into the temple.
And tonight is no different. Tonight, he offers them a new commandment. He tells them to love one another. Which isn’t new. But there’s more…love one another as I have loved you. Which he has, once again, just modeled for them. As they walk into the upper room with dirty, sweaty feet, he kneels and scrubs them clean. Even Judas. And not without their protest. This is their king, behaving like a servant? It is distasteful to them. Inappropriate. Embarrassing even.
And vulnerable. And meek. And the contrast of everything they know about how the world works. They are here to overturn an oppressive government. And that requires swords. That requires power. They are ready to fight back.
And Jesus has that power they need. But he refuses to use it. Instead of commanding armies of angels or bringing down fire from heaven, he stoops. He serves. He heals. He moves towards the ones forsaken instead of retaliating in strength.
This is the new way. This is how far love goes. It loves the unlovely. It moves towards the enemy with a turned cheek. It responds, not in anger, but in patience and kindness. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
This love will show itself completely, in all of its glory, just one day later. Good Friday is tomorrow. It is the day we stare directly into the heart of this love, displayed on the cross, and see just how much Jesus is willing to endure on our behalf.
It humbles us. It should. But it also washes us clean. From all the ways we fail to love and forgive. All the times we respond in impatience and unkindness. This is our king. He has made the way. May we have the courage to follow.
As we celebrate Easter we remember that Jesus is our true north. The risen Christ is the one who leads and guides and directs us. To Him be the glory! Amen!
I sure love you guys!
Jeff