The Beginning of the End: A Maundy Thursday Meditation

Nick Minerva • Apr 14, 2022

It’s the Thursday of Holy Week. Today the disciples begin to prepare to observe the traditional feast to commemorate God’s deliverance through their exodus out of Egypt - Passover. Jesus sends his disciples into the city to find a guy with a water jug and ask about an upper room. (Luke 22:10-13) They go and find the man and the room and prepare for the Passover meal as I am sure they had done many times before. The day was probably filled with excitement, but it was also very normal. This was a holiday that their people had been celebrating for thousands of years. No doubt they looked forward to it and, given the events of the week, there may have been some additional anticipation in their minds. But the Passover was nothing new. Despite the ordinariness of this event, Jesus was greatly looking forward to this meal. He was going to take this ancient moment to institute something new. We read about it in Luke 22:14-20. 


Luke 22:14-20

When the hour came, he reclined at the table, and the apostles with him. Then he said to them, “I have fervently desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he said, “Take this and share it among yourselves. For I tell you, from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

And he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way he also took the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.


In the middle of the Passover meal Jesus uses the elements as signs to show the type of death he would die and in so doing institute a new covenant. From now on, they would remember a new and better deliverance. The bread and cup in communion serve as signs that remind us of the broken body and shed blood of Jesus. Eating and drinking were common practices when in the presence of God. It was symbolic of their relationship and communion with him. When the leaders of Israel went up on Mount Sinai to meet God they beheld God and ate and drank. (Exodus 24:9-11) In Deuteronomy, the people of Israel would tithe their crops so that they could take that 10% and feast before the Lord at the annual festival. (Deuteronomy 14:23-26) In the Old Testament, they had sacrifices and ceremonies and meals that would point to the fact that their sins were not yet paid for, because the sacrifices had to be repeated year after year. (Hebrews 10:1-4) When Jesus instituted communion he gave us a better meal because it reminds us that our sin has forever been paid for. There is no more sacrifice needed to be made. Jesus is showing us that he is the fulfillment of what the Passover was a shadow of. 


After they had finished eating what Jesus does next is incredibly remarkable. Realizing that the stage was set he gets up from dinner and begins to wash his disciple’s feet. He demonstrates to them that true greatness is found in humble service and that true happiness is found in obedience. (John 13:16-17) After this he becomes troubled. Jesus shares that one of his disciples was going to betray him, which causes the disciples to begin arguing about who it would be. This argument turns into an argument about which of them was the greatest. (Luke 22:23-24) The lesson just given is forgotten. How quickly we default into self-preservation mode. After Jesus reveals his betrayer, Judas leaves the group. But the disciples were confused. They thought Jesus was sending him on an errand. (John 13:26-30)


Jesus then takes this opportunity to teach his disciples one final time before he is crucified. In John 13-16 Jesus instructs his disciples about the Holy Spirit and our relationship with him. He teaches that the only way anyone can have a relationship with God the Father is through him. He is the only place true peace can be found. He tells them that they will face suffering in the world. And above all, he gives them a new commandment - love. Love just like Jesus. This is where we get the name for today - Maundy Thursday. The word Maundy is derived from the Latin word mandatum, which means command. This new command is how the world will know that they are followers of Jesus. Jesus then tells his disciples that the point of his instructions is so they can persevere. (John 16:1) Trouble laid ahead for these followers of Jesus. He wanted them to be ready. 


After all this, the disciples sing and retreat to the Mount of Olives and into the Garden of Gethsemane. As the sun sets on Thursday, Jesus asked that his disciples stay and pray with him because he was in deep distress. In his anguish, he pours out his heart to the Father to see if there is any possible alternative, but ultimately, he surrenders to the plan that has been set for eons past. Three times he finds his disciples, his closest friends, asleep. (Mark 14:32-42) And now, Judas has now returned. But he is not alone. He was followed by an armed mob. And in an act of ironic betrayal, he kisses Jesus. That was the signal. The mob moves in to arrest Jesus. As Peter wakes up and realizes what is going on he pulls his sword and lops off the High Priest’s servant’s ear. Jesus stops Peter from his violent response and heals the man. The Scriptures must be fulfilled. This has to happen. Then all the disciples, who mere hours before swore their loyalty to Jesus, abandon Jesus. 


Jesus is then taken to the High Priest and all of the religious leaders are assembled. Court was now in session. These people wanted Jesus dead and were even willing to plant people to give fake testimonies so that they could end his life. Unfortunately, this didn’t even work in favor of the religious leaders. The stories weren’t consistent and Jesus remained silent, further fulfilling prophecy (Isaiah 53:7). Finally, the High Priest point-blank asks Jesus if he is the Messiah. Jesus responds in Mark 14:62 “I am,” said Jesus, “and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.” This was all that was needed. They had Jesus on record for blasphemy. They could now condemn him to death. 


Following from a distance was Peter. He witnessed this rigged court from afar. But he was recognized. Three times in fact. Each time he denied he knows Jesus, more and more vehemently in fact, until he was cursing and swearing that he did not know Jesus. After the third time, he hears a rooster crow. Then in one agonizing moment, Jesus looks up and locks eyes with Peter. Peter’s mind goes back to when Jesus predicted this would happen and Peter said he would die before he denied Jesus. Overcome with grief, Peter leaves and weeps bitterly. (Luke 22:60-62) After Jesus sees Peter deny him the crowd blindfolds him, beats him, then mockingly asks him to prophesy who hit him. 


This is how Thursday ends. His hour had come. 


Mark 14:41b

The time has come. See, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

A Creed To Remind The Gathered Church Of Its New Life In Christ

By Nick Minerva • 14 Jul, 2023
When I was pastoring I wanted to read a blessing over the church that would remind all of us of our new life in Christ. So I wrote this new life creed and every week I would read it and remind us of what Christ had done for us. We gather together as believers professing our great need We acknowledge that we have fallen short We confess that we are rebels who have gone our own way Apart from Christ, we stand condemned, guilty, and unable to save ourselves But what we are incapable of doing, God did In his infinite love, God made a way of salvation for all who would believe Jesus willingly laid down his life and received the just punishment we deserve So that could walk in new life So yes, we confess our great need We humbly recognize that apart from Christ we are incapable of any good thing But we also proclaim that because of the finished work of the cross we will never be apart from Christ We are forever secure in the love of the Father We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit All because of the sacrifice of the Son, Jesus Christ. We are no longer in bondage to sin We are no longer facing righteous wrath We have been declared holy by our King And nothing on heaven or earth will change that reality This gathering is a testimony to our redeemed state We pursue holy living to be an authentic demonstration of the love we have for Christ We believe that we have been empowered by grace to meet our every need And we gladly anticipate the complete fulfillment of our adaption and the remaking of this world at the coming of our Lord To Christ be glory forever and ever Amen

A Praying Church: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 23 May, 2023
Prayer is one of those topics that always seems to convict me. I have never heard a sermon or read a book on prayer and not been challenged. Even as I am writing this review there is a bit of imposter syndrome because I know I should pray more. In A Praying Church , Paul Miller writes about how to become a people of hope in a discouraging world through prayer. And he does so in a way that was very authentic and accessible. While I was consistently challenged, I was also consistently encouraged. Throughout the book, he takes you on his journey of developing a personal prayer life plus countless stories of ministries that developed communal prayer as a vital component of their life together. One thing that struck home with me throughout these stories was the reality that prayer always grows out of desperation for God. There were several things that I found very helpful in this book. One of them was the connection between a life yielded to the Holy Spirit and a vibrant prayer life. The power to do anything of eternal importance comes from the Holy Spirit and the Spirit moves in response to prayer. Paul shows us a biblical pattern we see throughout the New Testament. Prayer-Spirit-Jesus-power. However, this is not a simple formula to get God to do what you want. Another thing I appreciated about this book is Paul tells us time and again that the Spirit often moves in ways we don’t expect and that almost always includes difficulties. The Spirit enables us to look more like Jesus and that means joining him in the fellowship of his suffering. So this is not a “how to turn God into your personal genie” scheme, like many books on prayer. God often answers in ways we don’t expect and in places we don’t anticipate. This book is also full of practical help. I’ve already mentioned the stories he tells, but Paul also offers several helpful charts, strategies, and ideas to help put into place what he writes about (and lives by.) At the end of each chapter, he has a section called “A Word To Pastors” with a few paragraphs of wisdom to help them become a person of prayer and then lead their congregation to become a church of prayer. This book also made me thankful that I am a part of a church that has sought to grow in corporate prayer over the last few years. This would be a great book for any ministry leader who is burdened with the prayer life of his or her church. But it’s also a great read for any believer seeking to develop their own prayer life. Crossway was kind to send me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. You can get a copy of it at the affiliate link below.

Non-Toxic Masculinity: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 28 Apr, 2023
Let me start this review by saying everyone should read this book. If you've grown up in Evangelicalism, you‘ve no doubt heard of purity culture. For the last several years we have seen the harm that has come as a result of this sub-group of Christianity. In Non-Toxic Masculinity, Zachary Wagner does an excellent job unpacking its teaching and the damage that has come as a result. He explains so well the angst I've been feeling with the movement and how often the Church falls short and winds up doing more damage. But unlike many critiques, this one also points a way forward. We know what toxic male sexuality looks like. We see it in the news and unfortunately, in the Church. But what does healthy male sexuality look like? What does it look like for me? What will it look like for my boys? In my heart, I know what I want it to look like, but so often I struggle to find the right words to express it. Non-Toxic Masculinity paints a healthy picture that is (re)humanizing and ultimately looks like Jesus, who, like all of us, had a sexual body. Zach is also very transparent in this book and God used his transparency to encourage, challenge, and convict me. As you read his story you will no doubt find yourself resonating with him on some level. Every man should read this book for themselves first and foremost. But if you have sons, nephews, grandsons, or young boys in your life, reading it is a must. Non-Toxic Masculinity is a breath of fresh air that will prove to be a tremendous resource for generations. Thank you Zach for writing it and sharing your story to serve us.
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