April 6, 2023
MAUNDY THURSDAY

Every Sunday in worship the church celebrates the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit gathers us to receive again the gifts of God that come to us through Christ, the saving Word. On several key days at the center of the church year, however, worship takes a particular shape. These central days have come to be known as the Three Days, recalling Jesus' own words to his disciples that he would be handed over to death, and that "after three days he will rise again" (Mark 10:34). The Three Days encompass the time from Maundy Thursday evening through the evening of Easter Day. In particular, the services of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Vigil of Easter unfold in a single movement, as the church each year makes the passage with Christ through death into life.

INTRODUCTION
This evening our Lenten observance comes to an end, and we gather with Christians around the world to celebrate the Three Days of Jesus' death and resurrection. Tonight we remember Christ's last meal with his disciples, but the central focus is his commandment that we live out the promise embodied in this meal. As Jesus washed his disciples' feet, so we are called to give and receive love in humble service to one another. Formed into a new body in Christ through this holy meal, we are transformed by the mercy we have received and carry it into the world. Departing worship in solemn silence, we anticipate the coming days.

CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
The presiding minister invites the assembly into the confession, using these or similar words.
Friends in Christ, in this Lenten season we have heard our Lord's call to struggle against sin, death, and the devil—all that keeps us from loving God and each other. This is the struggle to which we were called at baptism. [We have shared this discipline of Lent with new brothers and sisters in Christ who will be baptized at the Easter Vigil.]

Within the community of the church, God never wearies of forgiving sin and giving the peace of reconciliation. On this night let us confess our sin against God and our neighbor, and enter the celebration of the great Three Days reconciled with God and with one another.

All kneel or sit and keep silence for reflection and self-examination.

The presiding minister leads the assembly in the confession.
Most merciful God,
we confess that we are captive to sin and cannot free ourselves.
We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us.
Forgive us, renew us, and lead us,
so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your holy name. Amen.

The presiding minister addresses the assembly.
In the mercy of almighty God, 
Jesus Christ was given to die for us, 
and for his sake God forgives us all our sins. 
As a called and ordained minister of the church of Christ 
and by his authority, I therefore declare to you 
the entire forgiveness of all your sins, 
in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

OR
God, who is rich in mercy, 
loved us even when we were dead in sin, 
and made us alive together with Christ. 
By grace you have been saved. 
In the name of + Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. 
Almighty God strengthen you with power through the Holy Spirit, 
that Christ may live in your hearts through faith.
Amen.

The assembly is seated. People may come forward and kneel for the laying on of hands.

The minister, laying both hands on each person's head, addresses each in turn.
In obedience to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins.
The person may respond Amen.

GREETING
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.

PRAYER OF THE DAY
Holy God, source of all love, on the night of his betrayal, Jesus gave us a new commandment, to love one another as he loves us. Write this commandment in our hearts, and give us the will to serve others as he was the servant of all, your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

OR
Eternal God, in the sharing of a meal your Son established a new covenant for all people, and in the washing of feet he showed us the dignity of service. Grant that by the power of your Holy Spirit these signs of our life in faith may speak again to our hearts, feed our spirits, and refresh our bodies, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
I give you a | new commandment,* that you love one another just as I | have loved you. (John 13:34)

READINGS AND PSALM
Exodus 12:1-4 [5-10] 11-14
Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19
I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. (Ps. 116:13)
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
John 13:1-17, 31b-35

FIRST READING: Exodus 12:1-4 [5-10] 11-14
Israel remembered its deliverance from slavery in Egypt by celebrating the festival of Passover. This festival featured the Passover lamb, whose blood was used as a sign to protect God's people from the threat of death. The early church described the Lord's supper using imagery from the Passover, especially in portraying Jesus as the lamb who delivers God's people from sin and death.

1The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: 2This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. 3Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. 4If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it.
	[5Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. 7They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. 10You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn.]
	11This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the LORD. 12For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. 13The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
	14This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.

PSALM: Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19
I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. (Ps. 116:13)

1I love the LORD, who has | heard my voice,
	and listened to my | supplication,
2for the LORD has given | ear to me
	whenev- | er I called.
12How shall I re- | pay the LORD
	for all the good things God has | done for me?
13I will lift the cup | of salvation
	and call on the name | of the LORD.   R
14I will fulfill my vows | to the LORD
	in the presence of | all God's people.
15Precious in your | sight, O LORD,
	is the death | of your servants.
16O LORD, truly I | am your servant;
	I am your servant, the child of your handmaid;
	you have freed me | from my bonds.
17I will offer you the sacrifice | of thanksgiving
	and call upon the name | of the LORD.
18I will fulfill my vows | to the LORD
	in the presence of | all God's people,
19in the courts of | the LORD's house,
	in the midst of you, | O Jerusalem.   R

SECOND READING: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
In the bread and cup of the Lord's supper, we experience intimate fellowship with Christ and with one another because it involves his body given for us and the new covenant in his blood. Faithful participation in this meal is a living proclamation of Christ's death until he comes in the future.

23For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 25In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

GOSPEL: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
The story of the last supper in John's gospel recalls a remarkable event not mentioned elsewhere: Jesus performs the duty of a slave, washing the feet of his disciples and urging them to do the same for one other.

1Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" 7Jesus answered, "You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand." 8Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." 9Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" 10Jesus said to him, "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you." 11For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, "Not all of you are clean."
	12After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13You call me Teacher and Lord and you are right, for that is what I am. 14So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.
	31b"Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. 32If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. 33Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, 'Where I am going, you cannot come.' 34I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION
The prayers are prepared locally for each occasion. The following examples may be adapted or used as appropriate.
Sustained by God's abundant mercy, let us pray for the church, the world, and all of creation.
A brief silence.
You make a new covenant with your people. Gather your church around word and table in love and promise as these three holy days enfold us. Open us to behold the mystery of our salvation. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
You give us our daily bread, fruit of the earth and work of human hands. Bless those who labor and tend to their crops and those who prepare our meals. Strengthen us to advocate for food justice and a fair distribution of resources. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
You, our Savior and Teacher, stoop down to us in servant love. Inspire national and local leaders (especially) with a renewed sense of public service. Increase in them a humility to serve with equity and fairness. Teach us to pray for our enemies. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
You incline your ear to us in every need. Befriend all who are lonely. Comfort those who grieve. Soothe any who are anxious. Console all who are distressed. Graciously tend to the hurts of your children who suffer in body, mind, and spirit (especially). Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
You inspire your people to praise in word, song, and art. We give thanks for artists (especially Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald, and Lucas Cranach) whose gifts enrich the church's worship. Kindle in us appreciation for all who beautify our worship space throughout the changing seasons. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
Here other intercessions may be offered.
Precious in your sight is the death of your faithful ones. We remember and give thanks for the those who have died (especially). With them, we trust your promise to love your own until the end. Merciful God,
receive our prayer.
We lift our prayers to you, O God, trusting in your steadfast love and your promise to renew your whole creation; through Jesus Christ our Savior.
Amen.

OFFERING PRAYER
God of good gifts,
receive these and all our offerings
as we present them in faithful service
for the sake of your gospel.
Prepare our hearts to receive you in this meal
as you pour out your very presence
through Christ Jesus, the wellspring of eternal life.
Amen.

INVITATION TO COMMUNION
Come and receive Jesus,
our strength in the wilderness.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Lord Jesus, in a wonderful sacrament
you strengthen us with the saving power
of your suffering, death, and resurrection.
May this sacrament of your body and blood
so work in us that the fruits of your redemption
will show forth in the way we live,
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

STRIPPING OF THE ALTAR
The service may conclude with the stripping of the altar. The assembly sits or kneels. The sacramental elements and vessels, linens, paraments, banners, and books are removed from the worship space. Psalm 88 or Psalm 22 is sung or said by a cantor, the choir, or the assembly. Lights may be dimmed as the worship space is stripped.

The blessing and dismissal are omitted. All depart in silence.

Reprinted from Words for Worship, copyright 2022 Augsburg Fortress; Maundy Thursday liturgy from Evangelical Lutheran Worship, copyright 2006. Used by permission. Scripture quotations (except psalms) from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. All rights reserved. Used by permission.