Homily preached on Maundy Thursday, 20th March 2008, by the Revd. Stephen Fielding at St Mary’s Welwyn

‘Love one another’.

Our presence here tonight is a visible sign of our unity in Christ. All of us together rather than each of us separately. Making up the body of Christ - the church of God - in this place. We can picture the disciples at the Last Supper united with Jesus – one with him. We can picture them joined in an act of fellowship.

And at that Last Supper Jesus issues two commands. He tells his disciples that they must break bread and drink wine in remembrance of him. They must keep alive his memory so that his saving spirit can be with them where they are. Having the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

And tonight we obey this command in our service of holy communion. It is in fact probably the most self explanatory of all the services of holy communion that we hold. On the first Maundy Thursday he told us to do it. And here we are doing just that – a perfect alignment of command and obedience.

But there is a second command. It lies in the feet washing. ‘Love another’, says Jesus. Realise how much you depend on one another. This sense of one another is everywhere in the New Testament. ‘Accept one another.’ ‘Serve one another’. ‘Pray for one another’. ‘Forgive one another’. ‘Bear one another’s burdens’. ‘Love one another as I have loved you’.

One another.

It tells of an inescapable fact: we are in relationship. In relationship we realise our true selves. We are not supposed to be alone. We are inseparably linked to one another.
And we are meant to be. And so Jesus washes the disciples’ feet. Serve one another, he says. It is an act of humility. You recall it comes just after the point where Jesus is asked who is the greatest of them. And he says a servant is the greatest of them all.

One other point to make. We are to let Jesus serve us. To let heart and mind and spirit be cleansed, purified and empowered by him. That may have been the chief value of our Lenten devotions. To let the spirit of the one who saves confront our self deceptions, expose our illusions, refresh our weariness, strengthen our weak knees and set us back on our feet.

So may Jesus serve us indeed, until he comes again.

AMEN