Maundy Thursday Year A
A sermon based on John 13:1-17, 31b-35
In the name of Jesus; amen.
Coming to a Maundy Thursday service means stepping into a place of vulnerability.
It happens first in confession where we admit our sins and beg forgiveness.
Confession means that we open ourselves up and show God those things we would much rather keep secret. We recognize that we do things we know that God does not want us to do and that we don’t do things that God wants us to do. We proclaim our captivity to sin, not just to God, but to one another. We show ourselves as sinners, vulnerable to God’s wrath and judgment and reliant, not on our own abilities, but on God’s mercy alone.
It happens in the reading and hearing of scripture where we open our ears to God’s word.
To listen leaves us open to hearing things we might not want to hear. To listen means that we must put our own thoughts aside and welcome the words of someone else into our consciousness. And hearing God’s word leaves us particularly vulnerable to thoughts and ideas that, more often than not, are counter to what we live and what the world demands of us.
It happens in the new commandment to love one another.
Tonight we hear a new commandment from Jesus’ own lips: “Love one another.” To love another requires a giving of one’s self to that other. Loving another is risky even when we know that that love will be returned. Hearts can be broken even when love is deep. But when Jesus commands us to love one another, he is not just asking us to give our hearts to those who will love us back. Loving others, as Jesus commands means loving those who might return our love with hatred and rejection. Loving others as Jesus commands means loving those who we would rather not be involved with at all. Loving others leaves us vulnerable to rejection and frustration.
It happens when we take our shoes and socks off to have our feet washed.
Bearing our feet might not sound as challenging as bearing our soul, but having our feet washed tonight means that someone else is going to touch us, feel our calluses, notice our funny looking toes, perhaps even smell what our feet smell like. Just as there are emotional parts of us that we keep covered there are physical parts of us that we keep covered too. Our feet have been housed in shoes and socks for months now to keep them from the cold. Being invited to uncover them and have them touched leaves them and the rest of us vulnerable.
It happens when we are fed Christ’s own body and blood.
We come to the table with empty hands. We express our need in that one simple hand gesture, the same gesture used by beggars on street corners. Our empty hands at the table express our need. Being hungry is a vulnerability, especially if you are relying on someone else to feed you. Will you like what they are giving? Will it satisfy and nourish you? Will it be enough?
It happens when the altar, a place of holiness is stripped away and we hear those words of the Psalm that Jesus spoke from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
We have expectations of this place and its décor. The things that we place in this place aren’t minor symbols, but significant symbols of our faith. They help us to focus and understand what we are doing here. And they are about to be taken away, stored in another room, away from our sight. And while it is happening we are reminded that even Jesus cried out in the darkness that God had forsaken him. If Jesus was vulnerable to pain and death and the experience of feeling forsaken by God… where does that leave us?
Maundy Thursday is a time of acute vulnerability.
But, in our vulnerability we receive.
We are not left in the despair of our sin… God gives us forgiveness. God’s mercy overcomes the wrath and judgment we should receive. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left with words too hard to bear… God gives us good news. God’s word overcomes the harsh words of the world. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left unloved and rejected… God gives us love so that we can continue loving even when our hearts are shattered in pieces. God’s love overcomes hatred. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left uncovered… God gives us a gentle touch, stoops to serve us and cover us with warmth and refreshment. God’s touch overcomes our harsh realities. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left with empty hands… God gives us food and drink. Christ’s body and blood overcomes our hunger and fills us and nourishes us. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left stripped bare… God gives us a new vision of our faith and redecorates our hearts with images of holiness that we are a part of. God’s décor overcomes forsakenness and surrounds us not with symbols of our faith, but with the reality of God’s own presence in our lives. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
This is a night of vulnerability; be open to it and all that it means. God will enter into our vulnerability and fill us will grace, upon grace, upon grace. Amen.
A sermon based on John 13:1-17, 31b-35
In the name of Jesus; amen.
Coming to a Maundy Thursday service means stepping into a place of vulnerability.
It happens first in confession where we admit our sins and beg forgiveness.
Confession means that we open ourselves up and show God those things we would much rather keep secret. We recognize that we do things we know that God does not want us to do and that we don’t do things that God wants us to do. We proclaim our captivity to sin, not just to God, but to one another. We show ourselves as sinners, vulnerable to God’s wrath and judgment and reliant, not on our own abilities, but on God’s mercy alone.
It happens in the reading and hearing of scripture where we open our ears to God’s word.
To listen leaves us open to hearing things we might not want to hear. To listen means that we must put our own thoughts aside and welcome the words of someone else into our consciousness. And hearing God’s word leaves us particularly vulnerable to thoughts and ideas that, more often than not, are counter to what we live and what the world demands of us.
It happens in the new commandment to love one another.
Tonight we hear a new commandment from Jesus’ own lips: “Love one another.” To love another requires a giving of one’s self to that other. Loving another is risky even when we know that that love will be returned. Hearts can be broken even when love is deep. But when Jesus commands us to love one another, he is not just asking us to give our hearts to those who will love us back. Loving others, as Jesus commands means loving those who might return our love with hatred and rejection. Loving others as Jesus commands means loving those who we would rather not be involved with at all. Loving others leaves us vulnerable to rejection and frustration.
It happens when we take our shoes and socks off to have our feet washed.
Bearing our feet might not sound as challenging as bearing our soul, but having our feet washed tonight means that someone else is going to touch us, feel our calluses, notice our funny looking toes, perhaps even smell what our feet smell like. Just as there are emotional parts of us that we keep covered there are physical parts of us that we keep covered too. Our feet have been housed in shoes and socks for months now to keep them from the cold. Being invited to uncover them and have them touched leaves them and the rest of us vulnerable.
It happens when we are fed Christ’s own body and blood.
We come to the table with empty hands. We express our need in that one simple hand gesture, the same gesture used by beggars on street corners. Our empty hands at the table express our need. Being hungry is a vulnerability, especially if you are relying on someone else to feed you. Will you like what they are giving? Will it satisfy and nourish you? Will it be enough?
It happens when the altar, a place of holiness is stripped away and we hear those words of the Psalm that Jesus spoke from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
We have expectations of this place and its décor. The things that we place in this place aren’t minor symbols, but significant symbols of our faith. They help us to focus and understand what we are doing here. And they are about to be taken away, stored in another room, away from our sight. And while it is happening we are reminded that even Jesus cried out in the darkness that God had forsaken him. If Jesus was vulnerable to pain and death and the experience of feeling forsaken by God… where does that leave us?
Maundy Thursday is a time of acute vulnerability.
But, in our vulnerability we receive.
We are not left in the despair of our sin… God gives us forgiveness. God’s mercy overcomes the wrath and judgment we should receive. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left with words too hard to bear… God gives us good news. God’s word overcomes the harsh words of the world. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left unloved and rejected… God gives us love so that we can continue loving even when our hearts are shattered in pieces. God’s love overcomes hatred. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left uncovered… God gives us a gentle touch, stoops to serve us and cover us with warmth and refreshment. God’s touch overcomes our harsh realities. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left with empty hands… God gives us food and drink. Christ’s body and blood overcomes our hunger and fills us and nourishes us. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
We are not left stripped bare… God gives us a new vision of our faith and redecorates our hearts with images of holiness that we are a part of. God’s décor overcomes forsakenness and surrounds us not with symbols of our faith, but with the reality of God’s own presence in our lives. Our state of vulnerability is transformed into a state of grace.
This is a night of vulnerability; be open to it and all that it means. God will enter into our vulnerability and fill us will grace, upon grace, upon grace. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment