Holy Thursday - 2026

 

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” (John 13:1–11 ESV).

 

Holy Thursday, also known as Maundy Thursday, is a Christian holy day that commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with his apostles. It falls on the Thursday before Easter Sunday and marks the beginning of the Paschal Triduum, the three-day period that includes Good Friday and Holy Saturday, culminating in the celebration of the Resurrection. Many people are not familiar with the word “Maundy.” On its own, the word maundy means “the ceremony of washing the feet of the poor, especially commemorating Jesus’s washing of his disciples’ feet on Maundy Thursday.” Recorded around 1250–1300 AD, the word maundy comes from the Old French mande, in turn from the Latin mandātum, which means “mandate or command.” As you may surmise, this Latin word is the source of the English mandate.

 

A bit of chronology might be helpful at this point. As the Passover Meal concluded, Jesus gave some final instructions to His disciples—and to all who would follow Him in the centuries to come. Then He did something quite remarkable. He took a towel and poured water into a basin and began washing the disciples’ feet (v. 5). In First Century Israel, most people wore sandals and walked on dusty or muddy roads that were often covered by animal droppings. The task of cleaning people’s feet was given to a slave, or the lowliest servant in the home. But Jesus knelt before each of His disciples—even Judas who would betray Him—and took the role of the humblest servant.

 

Then He spoke the words that would give this solemn day its name, “Maundy Thursday.” Later in the upper room Jesus would give them one of His last directives: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you…”  (John 13:34). Of course, this is in stark contrast at the scourging and crucifixion as Jesus’ focus was on love.

 

Jesus took on the sins of the world on Calvary—including your sins and mine—to make a way for us to have a restored relationship with God. That is what Maundy Thursday is all about. In the world, filled with so much sorrow and sadness, Christ’s command to love one another shines like a beacon in the darkness. My hope and prayer is that you would resist the polarization so commonly practiced in our culture today. By grace, let each of us pick up this commandment of Jesus to lost and hurting people everywhere—thus fulfilling His desire for the future of His Church.