I would still prefer to call this day, Holy Thursday, or the Celebration of the Last Supper.
Maundy talks about the washing of feet which deflects so much from the substance of this fateful day about 2,000 years ago. Maundy emphasizes a social kind of gospel too much when the substance of that day is more about the significance of the body and blood of the Messiah. Without a personal involvement in the true meaning of the Last Supper, the washing of feet is pointless as it becomes a gospel of works accomplished through human effort, both concepts completely opposed to faith (or at the very least distorting its meaning).
The texts on the Last Supper, of course, are quite common to most Christians since the various practices or denominations celebrate it at least once a month. However, I believe the most meaningful passage in the gospels that concern the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ is found in John 6:53-58 while he was teaching in Capernaum...
53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”
Many outsiders even in the first century thought that Christians were cannibals because they "eat flesh and drink blood"! Fortunately, we have more common sense today and we know that Jesus used metaphors to clearly illustrate the meaning of the Passover meal and at the same time looking forward to the time he would himself administer this in the upper room.
The following are salient points in the passage that we should not miss
First, we discuss the meaning of body and blood of Christ. The body of Christ is what took the torturous penalty of sin in our behalf. The blood of Christ represents the very life of Christ. The Torah itself says that "the life of the flesh is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11)".
Secondly, the words, "eat" and "drink" mean at least two significant concepts. The first is when we eat or drink, we actually take into our bodies and they become part of us. So when we "eat" the body of Christ and "drink" his blood, we accept and take in his death on the cross and we take in HIS VERY LIFE. This is the reason why Paul says in Galatians 2:20 that the life he lives, he lives by faith in Christ. The second concept is the act of faith. When we take in anything into our body, we exercise faith that it will do what it is supposed to accomplish for our life. When we take in Christ, we exercise faith in what it is suppose to accomplish -- forgiveness of our sins and eternal life which, according to Jesus himself in John 17:3 is knowing God and Jesus in a personal intimate and POWERFUL way.
Thirdly and rarely discussed is the continuous-ness of eating and drinking. Most interpreters of this passage focus ONLY on verse 53 and assume that we eat the body and drink the blood of Christ only once and that's it! The Greek verbs of verses 54 to 58, however, are present participle which is the equivalent of a progressive and continuous action. And here is the reason why many Christians lack power from on high, the resurrection power of Jesus Christ himself emanating from his resurrection life. Yes, "the life of the flesh is in the blood" and only if we continuously, daily, or even moment by moment drink of that blood can we truly experience the resurrection life and the power that comes with it. We stop drinking, we stop the life, we stop the power.
In 1 Corinthians 11:25, Christ clearly mentioned that the NEW covenant was in his blood (and not his body). While the body of Christ was meant to bear the penalty of man's sin (which is no small thing!), the blood of Christ in the new covenant was about experiencing the resurrection life and power of Jesus Christ in our lives TODAY when we experience the baptism by Christ with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33). That same supernatural power is meant to free us from the power of the sin nature. No wonder, Christ told us to "Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." Such power has to be replenished as often as possible, not just once in a lifetime.
Maundy talks about the washing of feet which deflects so much from the substance of this fateful day about 2,000 years ago. Maundy emphasizes a social kind of gospel too much when the substance of that day is more about the significance of the body and blood of the Messiah. Without a personal involvement in the true meaning of the Last Supper, the washing of feet is pointless as it becomes a gospel of works accomplished through human effort, both concepts completely opposed to faith (or at the very least distorting its meaning).
The texts on the Last Supper, of course, are quite common to most Christians since the various practices or denominations celebrate it at least once a month. However, I believe the most meaningful passage in the gospels that concern the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ is found in John 6:53-58 while he was teaching in Capernaum...
53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”
Many outsiders even in the first century thought that Christians were cannibals because they "eat flesh and drink blood"! Fortunately, we have more common sense today and we know that Jesus used metaphors to clearly illustrate the meaning of the Passover meal and at the same time looking forward to the time he would himself administer this in the upper room.
The following are salient points in the passage that we should not miss
First, we discuss the meaning of body and blood of Christ. The body of Christ is what took the torturous penalty of sin in our behalf. The blood of Christ represents the very life of Christ. The Torah itself says that "the life of the flesh is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11)".
Secondly, the words, "eat" and "drink" mean at least two significant concepts. The first is when we eat or drink, we actually take into our bodies and they become part of us. So when we "eat" the body of Christ and "drink" his blood, we accept and take in his death on the cross and we take in HIS VERY LIFE. This is the reason why Paul says in Galatians 2:20 that the life he lives, he lives by faith in Christ. The second concept is the act of faith. When we take in anything into our body, we exercise faith that it will do what it is supposed to accomplish for our life. When we take in Christ, we exercise faith in what it is suppose to accomplish -- forgiveness of our sins and eternal life which, according to Jesus himself in John 17:3 is knowing God and Jesus in a personal intimate and POWERFUL way.
Thirdly and rarely discussed is the continuous-ness of eating and drinking. Most interpreters of this passage focus ONLY on verse 53 and assume that we eat the body and drink the blood of Christ only once and that's it! The Greek verbs of verses 54 to 58, however, are present participle which is the equivalent of a progressive and continuous action. And here is the reason why many Christians lack power from on high, the resurrection power of Jesus Christ himself emanating from his resurrection life. Yes, "the life of the flesh is in the blood" and only if we continuously, daily, or even moment by moment drink of that blood can we truly experience the resurrection life and the power that comes with it. We stop drinking, we stop the life, we stop the power.
In 1 Corinthians 11:25, Christ clearly mentioned that the NEW covenant was in his blood (and not his body). While the body of Christ was meant to bear the penalty of man's sin (which is no small thing!), the blood of Christ in the new covenant was about experiencing the resurrection life and power of Jesus Christ in our lives TODAY when we experience the baptism by Christ with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33). That same supernatural power is meant to free us from the power of the sin nature. No wonder, Christ told us to "Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." Such power has to be replenished as often as possible, not just once in a lifetime.
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