ORDER OF WORSHIP
Maundy Thursday
April 2, 2026
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.
+ GATHERING +
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE
There Is a Fountain
arr. Sandra Eithun
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
+ All may make the sign of the cross, the sign that is marked at baptism, as the presiding minister begins.
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 honestly loving God, ourselves, and one another. This is the struggle to which we were called at baptism.
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.
Silence is kept for reflection and self-examination.
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.
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.
GATHERING HYMN
Great God, Your Love Has Called Us
ELW 358
Great God, your love has called us here
as we, by love, for love were made.
Your living likeness still we bear,
though marred, dishonored, disobeyed.
We come, with all our heart and mind
your call to hear, your love to find.
We come with self-inflicted pains
of broken trust and chosen wrong,
half-free, half-bound by inner chains,
by social forces swept along,
by powers and systems close confined
yet seeking hope for humankind.
Great God, in Christ you call our name
and then receive us as your own
not through some merit, right, or claim,
but by your gracious love alone.
We strain to glimpse your mercy seat
and find you kneeling at our feet.
Then take the towel, and break the bread,
and humble us, and call us friends.
Suffer and serve till all are fed,
and show how grandly love intends
to work till all creation sings,
to fill all worlds, to crown all things.
Great God, in Christ you set us free
your life to live, your joy to share.
Give us your Spirit's liberty
to turn from guilt and dull despair,
and offer all that faith can do
while love is making all things new.
APOSTOLIC 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.
Let us pray together.
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 did: your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
+ WORD +
FIRST READING: Exodus 12:1-14
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.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
PSALM 116:1-2, 12-19
I love the LORD, who has | heard my voice,
and listened to my | supplication,
for the LORD has given | ear to me
whenev- | er I called.
How shall I re- | pay the LORD
for all the good things God has | done for me?
I will lift the cup | of salvation
and call on the name | of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows | to the LORD
in the presence of | all God's people.
Precious in your | sight, O LORD,
is the death | of your servants.
O LORD, truly I | am your servant;
I am your servant, the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me | from my bonds.
I will offer you the sacrifice | of thanksgiving
and call upon the name | of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows | to the LORD
in the presence of | all God's people,
in the courts of | the LORD's house,
in the midst of you, | O Jerusalem.
SECOND READING: I Corinthians 11:23-26
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.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
I give you a | new commandment,
that you love one another, just as I | have loved you. (John 13:34)
GOSPEL: John 13:1-17, 31b-35
The Holy Gospel according to John, the 13th chapter:
Glory to you, O Lord.
1 Now 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. 2 The devil had already decided that Judas son of Simon Iscariot would betray Jesus. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from supper, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then 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. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus 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.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said,
“Not all of you are clean.”
12 After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had reclined again, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, slaves are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17 If 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. 32 If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. 33 Little 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.’ 34 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
SERMON The Rev. Beth Gardner
Silence is kept for reflection.
HYMN OF THE DAY
Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love
ELW 708
Refrain
Jesu, Jesu,
fill us with your love,
show us how to serve
the neighbors we have from you.
Kneels at the feet of his friends,
silently washes their feet,
master who acts as a slave to them. Refrain
Neighbors are wealthy and poor,
varied in color and race,
neighbors are nearby and far away. Refrain
These are the ones we will serve,
these are the ones we will love;
all these are neighbors to us and you. Refrain
Kneel at the feet of our friends,
silently washing their feet:
this is the way we will live with you. Refrain
APOSTLE’S CREED
We now profess the faith we share using the words of the Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.*
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION
On this night when Jesus gave us a new commandment to love one another, let us bring our prayers before the One whose love knows no bounds.
A brief silence.
Gracious host, you knelt to wash your disciples’ feet. Cleanse us from pride and self-centeredness, and teach us to love one another as you have loved us. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great. Creator God, the earth is yours and everything in it. Awaken us to care for all you have made and conserve the rich diversity of your good creation. Hear us, O God.
Your mercy is great.
God of the nations, guide the world’s leaders in the ways of justice and peace. Where they wield power unjustly, confront them. Where they are indifferent to suffering, awaken their conscience. Hear us, O God.
Your mercy is great.
Compassionate One, embrace all who are lonely or in captivity, comfort the grieving, and relieve those in pain. Draw near to all who suffer, especially those we name before you now, whether silently or aloud. Hear us, O God.
Your mercy is great.
Blessed redeemer, we give you thanks for this community of faith, and for all who gather around your table of grace. Unite us in love for you and for one another. Hear us, O God.
Your mercy is great.
Here other intercessions may be offered.
Eternal God, we praise you for the great cloud of witnesses who now rest from their labors. At the last, gather us with them at your heavenly banquet. Hear us, O God.
Your mercy is great.
We entrust these prayers to you, O God, confident that you will strengthen us by your Spirit to love one another as Christ has loved us. We ask this in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
SHARING OF THE PEACE
The peace of Christ be with you always.
And also with you.
+ MEAL +
OFFERING
OFFERTORY
In Remembrance
Buryl Red
OFFERING PRAYER
Let us pray:
O God, maker of heaven and earth,
your steadfast love embraces all creation.
You send rain and sunshine to nourish the earth and bring forth its bounty.
Through these gifts of bread and wine, draw us into the death and life of your Son,
who calls us to bear witness to his saving work.
We ask this in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
DIALOGUE
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
PREFACE
Holy God, you set aside the perfection of your Trinitarian life to create the universe, and you called the children of Abraham to be your priestly kingdom. You gave your people freedom in the parting of the sea and marked them for life with the blood of the Lamb. In Jesus you laid aside the robe of your majesty and knelt among your children, facing humiliation and rejection. In his agony in the garden and suffering on the cross you showed the world the extent of your love and your longing to bring us home to the throne where we shall join angels and archangels and all the company of heaven, praising your holy name in the unending hymn:
SANCTUS
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and God of might;
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the Highest!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the Highest!
THANKSGIVING AT THE TABLE
You are indeed holy, almighty and merciful God. You are most holy, and great is the majesty of your glory.
You so loved the world that you gave your only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.
We give you thanks for his coming into the world to fulfill for us your holy will and to accomplish all things for our salvation.
In the night in which he was handed over,
our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks.
He broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
“Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.”
Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.”
For as often as we eat of this bread and drink from this cup,
we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Blessed and broken God, be among your people who taste the bitter herbs of slavery and oppression; be close to your children who are poured out in grief and despair; remake the church, your Son’s body, where it is broken by discord and dispute; and renew your creation in the joy of thanksgiving. Spread your table in the face of friends and enemies, that all may know your peace and gather in the company of your saints, where you, in the presence of Christ and the companionship of the Holy Spirit, are all in all, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Remembering, therefore, his salutary command, his life-giving passion and death, his glorious resurrection and ascension, and the promise of his coming again, we give thanks to you, O Lord God Almighty, not as we ought but as we are able; we ask you mercifully to accept our praise and thanksgiving and with your Word and Holy Spirit to bless us, your servants, and these your own gifts of bread and wine, so that we and all who share in the body and blood of Christ may be filled with heavenly blessing and grace, and, receiving the forgiveness of sin,
may be formed to live as your holy people and be given our inheritance with all your saints.
To you, O God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be all honor and glory in your holy church, now and forever.
LORD'S PRAYER
Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.
INVITATION TO COMMUNION
Come to the table. Feast on God’s goodness and mercy.
Thanks be to God.
+THE WASHING OF HANDS +
The pastors will wash each other’s hands, and those of lay assistants. As you come forward for communion, anyone who wants their hands washed will come to the station. Hold your hands over the bowl as warm water is poured. When hands have been dried, continue forward to the altar rail to receive communion or cross your arms over your heart to receive a blessing instead of communion.
DISTRIBUTION
All baptized children of God are invited to the Lord’s Table, where we receive Jesus’ very body and blood in, with, and under the bread and wine. We partake at the communion rail; gluten free bread and grape juice are available. If you wish to commune, but cannot come forward, let an usher know and we will come to you. If you do not wish to commune, you are welcome to come forward to receive a blessing. Anyone may remain at the rail for a time of personal prayer, following which you may return to your pew down the side aisle.
LAMB OF GOD
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world:
grant us peace, grant us peace.
COMMUNION HYMNS
By Your Hand You Feed Your People
ELW 469
By your hand you feed your people,
food of angels, heaven's bread.
For these gifts we did not labor,
by your grace have we been fed:
Refrain
Christ's own body, blessed and broken,
cup o'er flowing, life outpoured,
given as a living token
of your world redeemed, restored.
In this meal we taste your sweetness,
bread for hunger, wine of peace.
Holy word and holy wisdom
satisfy our deepest needs. Refrain
3 Send us now with faith and courage
to the hungry, lost, bereaved.
In our living and our dying,
we become what we receive: Refrain
Let Us Break Bread Together
ELW 471
Let us break bread together on our knees;
let us break bread together on our knees.
Refrain
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
Let us drink wine together on our knees;
let us drink wine together on our knees. Refrain
Let us praise God together on our knees;
let us praise God together on our knees. Refrain
POST-COMMUNION BLESSING
The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace.
Amen.
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Let us pray.
Lord Jesus, in this meal, you have strengthened 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.
+ THE STRIPPING OF THE ALTAR +
We are seated while the altar is stripped and Psalm 22 is read aloud. We remain until the conclusion and depart silently. There is no benediction until the Easter Festival of the Resurrection. The service continues on Good Friday.
Liturgical Text and Music from Evangelical Lutheran Worship and All Creation Sings, © 2006, 2020, 2022 Augsburg
There Is a Fountain, Music: Sandra Eithun, b.1963, based on Tune CLEANSING FOUNTAIN. Music © 2015 Lorenz Publishing Company. Music streamed with permission under OneLicense #A-722274. All rights reserved.
Great God, Your Love Has Called Us, Text: Brian A. Wren, b. 1936. Text © 1977, rev. 1995 Hope Publishing Company. Music: Norman Cocker, 1889-1953. Music © Oxford University Press. Reprinted and/or streamed with permission under OneLicense #A-722274. All rights reserved.
Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love, Text: Tom Colvin, 1925-2000, alt. Music: Ghanaian folk tune, adapt. Tom Colvin. Text and music © 1969 Hope Publishing Company. Reprinted and/or streamed with permission under OneLicense #A-722274. All rights reserved.
In Remembrance, Text: Ragan Courtney, b. 1941. Music: Buryl Red, 1936-2013. Text and Music © 1972 Broadman Press, renewed Van Ness Press Inc. (ASCAP), admin. by LifeWay Worship c/o Music Services www.musicservices.org. Text and music streamed with permission under OneLicense #A-722274. All rights reserved.
By Your Hand You Feed Your People, Text: Susan R. Briehl, b. 1952, Music: Marty Haugen, b. 1950. Text and music © 2002 GIA Publications Inc. Reprinted and/or streamed with permission under OneLicense #A-722274. All rights reserved.
Let Us Break Bread Together, Text and music: African American spiritual. Public domain.
