The Holy Apostles received this New Testament in His blood from the Lord Jesus “on the night when he was betrayed,” and they delivered the same to His Church, which we also now receive in the name and remembrance of Christ (1 Cor. 11:23–26; Matt. 26:26–28).

Today’s Readings

Old Testament

Epistle

Gospel

Psalm

Thought for the Day: The Servant’s Testament

Today, we stand at the threshold of the Passion. The "New Commandment" Jesus gives us—to love one another as He has loved us—is not a heavy burden of new laws, but a fruit of the incredible gift He institutes this night.

In the LCMS, we marvel at the "Real Presence": that in the bread and wine, Jesus truly gives us His very body and blood. On the night He was betrayed, knowing exactly what the morning would bring, Jesus did not focus on His own coming agony. Instead, He focused on you. He left a testament—a last will and apparel—that ensures His forgiveness and presence are "for you" until the end of time.

As the service ends tonight, you will likely witness the Stripping of the Altar. As the linens, candles, and crucifixes are removed in silence, we see a visual representation of Christ being abandoned by His friends and stripped of His dignity. The bare stone of the altar reminds us that Jesus goes to the cross alone, so that we might never have to be alone again.

"The Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.'" — 1 Corinthians 11:23–24