Sermon - 4/2/26

Year A – Maundy Thursday – April 2, 2026 Pastor Megan Floyd John 13:1-17, 31b-35 Grace and peace to you from God and the Holy Spirit, and from Jesus Christ, who loves us to the end. Amen. *** This is a somber night… somber for us, because we know what's coming. We are bracing ourselves for the wave of grief… over what we have done… and what we have left undone. We are bracing ourselves for the final moments before the cross… and we gather this evening to willingly dwell in that place of grief with Jesus, our Savior. And yet, let us also remember… that our story with Jesus is ultimately… a love story. It's a story so personal… so intimate… a story of our God who created us in love… and refused to allow us to drift away… and so, our God emptied themselves into the form of a slave… being born into human weakness… into the person of Jesus. And at every turn of his life on earth… Jesus subverted the usual power structures. On this night… we gather… we gather with the disciples around the table… a table of celebration… they don't know what's coming, but Jesus does. We gather around the table with Jesus, as Jesus does his very best to say farewell to his disciples… to his friends… whom he loves… completely. Jesus is imploring them to understand what he has taught them through his preaching… and shown them with his actions. Jesus is intent… and they can feel the tension… the heaviness in the air… the importance of their meal together… even if they don't fully understand why. This night… it feels different. And yet… how could they have known it was their last night with Jesus as he was? And then… "Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end." …to the end… not only a great, heavenly love, but… he loved them to completion… Jesus loves them… and loves us… with a fullness that began with the creation of the world… and continues to the end of the ages… Jesus loves them to the end. And knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, Jesus took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself… He poured water into a basin… and began to wash his disciples' feet. I can imagine the silent wonder of those whose feet Jesus washed first… not daring to say a word. But I think… I think I would have reacted like Peter… horrified at the idea of Jesus lowering himself to wash my feet! Having our feet exposed… and washed by another… it's vulnerable and awkward… and if you feel that way, too, you're not alone! And yet… this is what Jesus does. Jesus… our God incarnate… through his life and ministry… through his actions and his love… gives us a vision and an understanding of who God is. Our God is one who loves us enough to come close to us… who shows us how to love each other through humble service… but also… how to receive love in return. And as Jesus also washed the feet of Judas… he shows us how to even love those who would betray us… that is how deeply we are called to love. On this special night… we are called by Jesus… commanded… to not only love and serve others… but to allow ourselves to be loved… to both give and receive… service and care… and love. This life as a disciple… it's not all toil and suffering… it is a life of reciprocal love… and in that mutuality… in that holy community with others… there is joy! The kind of joy that bubbles up from the relief of bearing the weight of our shared need… of daring to be vulnerable with another, and being met with love, just as Christ has loved us. That is what Christ Jesus has shown us… this life of discipleship… is full of wonder… and love… and joy. And every day we live into this truth… every day we are made clean… and sent again by Jesus to walk in the world… to walk in the light of this commandment to love others as we ourselves are loved. However, the commandment to love others is not itself new… it is ancient and foundational for our relationship with God. But what is new… on this night… is how we now understand this command through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus… through how he cared for others, especially those who were most vulnerable… the outcast… the sick… the poor… the widows and children. And how through Jesus, God revealed the depth and strength of this love that we both receive and share. For as we practice bearing one another in love, we also practice receiving love from God. And as we practice humble service for one another, we also practice receiving what we need from the Holy Spirit. As we practice bearing another's vulnerability with tender loving care, we practice allowing our spirit to be vulnerable and true with our Creator, who loves us to the end… who loves us… to completion. This is the beauty and joy in Jesus' commandment to love… that as we ...