Verse Before the Gospel
I give you a new commandment, says the Lord:
love one another as I have loved you.
Gospel
Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to pass from this world to the Father.
He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.
The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.
So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
“Master, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“What I am doing, you do not understand now,
but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him,
“Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him,
“Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him,
“Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
for he is clean all over;
so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
Do we follow Jesus? Are we followers of the lamb that was slain for us? Do we follow the one who served others at the last supper? Even the ones who were not clean? The one who would betray him?
So should we serve all others not according to their righteousness but according to the love Jesus always had for them.
This Holy Thursday we will wash each others’ feet to show we serve all just as Jesus came for all and loved all.
Our life should reflect this humble attitude and love each day and love all Jesus puts in our path. It doesn’t mean we do not recognize their waywardness, but we still include them when we share our blessings.
If we believe in our hearts, we are loved by God we should be compelled to love others. If we have no love for our brother, we do not yet understand the love God has for us. Loving God and loving others are joined and are like two sides of the same coin. They exist together and do not exist without the other.
Where is my heart today?
Eager to serve and love all?
Is my heart opened and filled with the knowledge Jesus deeply loves me.
Knowing his love for us is freedom. He came and released us from bondage and opened up the cell door the evil one held us in. He stands at the door and asks if we want to come with him and into a union with him, one body and one love. To live free and let go of fear and anxiety. Loving others in gratitude for the love he has for us is the key that unlocks many doors.
Deacon Tony Pynes 
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