Lent 2014
Maundy Thursday—April 17, 2014

 For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.—1 Corinthians 11:23-26 

I cannot read this scripture without thinking of the shut-ins or hospital patients I have visited when taking Communion to them. This is often the scripture that is shared before the prayer and the taking of the bread and the wine at such visits. It is a sacred moment to share in the Lord’s Supper with people who can no longer attend church for various reasons or who are hospitalized. The Body of Christ is not limited to the interior of church buildings. 

In our scripture today Jesus is remembering the Passover when blood was spread on the doorposts of Hebrew homes in Egypt as a sign that the angel of death was to “pass over” them. This meal, this last supper, was the precursor to the crucifixion when Jesus’ own blood was spilled and a New Covenant was instigated.  This New Covenant brought the promise of salvation for all people. The terms of the New Covenant were brought forward from the old.  We are saved by the love of God through Jesus. We are to love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves and to share that love to the ends of the earth.  

As we ponder the magnitude of the New Covenant on this Maundy Thursday, let us indeed remember these events and how seriously Jesus’ disciples took them. They were an odd combination of brains and brawn, diplomats and mouthy prophets. Yet, once they got their act together and set about with all due haste to make the New Covenant a reality, they literally changed the world. We, too, are his disciples and we are still called to change the world today, one act of love at a time. 

Prayer: Jesus, you warned your disciples of your coming death and that they would leave you alone but you also told them that God was with you. You urged them saying take courage; I have conquered the world. (John16:33b) Let that message seep deep into our souls and make us whole so that we can live the New Covenant. Amen.

The identities of students, families, or staff in stories that are shared in the devotions have been altered to protect their privacy. Any similarities between these stories and the experience of others are coincidental. No stories about students, families of students, or staff from Putnam Heights Elementary School are included in any of these devotions.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.