Maundy Thursday

April 2, 2026

“When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once. “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:31-35

How do you want to be known to others? In an age where we can use social media to carefully craft an image of ourselves, this is not an insignificant question. With carefully edited photos and thoughtfully worded posts, we can project whatever image of ourselves we want the world to see. Of course, as we have seen in a variety of contexts, from the famous and infamous to the people down the street, reality and carefully crafted image do not always coincide.

Jesus tells those who would follow Him that they will be known by their love for one another. Maybe because there is a lot of variation in how that word “love” is used, Jesus explains to them exactly the kind of love He is talking about. “As I have loved you,” He says, “so you must love one another.” And how is it that Jesus loves? He has demonstrated His love in countless ways to His disciples, in the words that He speaks, in the miracles He has performed, in the compassion He has shown, and in the faithfulness He has exhibited. His demonstration of His love has included getting down on His knees and washing the disciples’ feet—an act of humility and service. As He shares with them this new command, Jesus is only hours from being arrested and laying down His life for all of humanity. This is the kind of love Jesus is talking about.

We get the name “Maundy” Thursday from the Latin word mandatum, which means something like mandate or command. Jesus’s command to each of us is this: to love one another. He calls this a “new command,” though the call to love is not, in itself, new. The love that Jesus exhibits—love that is selfless, love that is unconditional, love that is self-sacrificial—that is a whole different way of loving. It’s the kind of love where the King of the Universe bends down to do the job of the lowliest servant. It’s the kind of love that brought Jesus to the cross.

The kind of love that Jesus calls each of us to is so powerful, so transformative, so life-giving, that when we love each other that way, the world takes notice and wants to be included in it, too. 

As Jesus washes His disciples’ feet; as Jesus prepares for those final steps to the cross; as Jesus calls us to a holy love, maybe we need to ask again: How do we want to be known?

Grace and peace,
Brandon