“Just before the Passover festival, Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” John 13:1
Today is Maundy Thursday, which, according to John 13:1, symbolized “the full extent” of Jesus’ love for humankind. The time when the Savior of the world bent down to wash the dirty feet of the disciples. The ceremony of extending a special “last” meal to imperfect men who had left families and occupations to travel around with their Teacher. They had been on a journey together for three years, and this day would symbolize a turning point for all of them.
There’s a poignant little book entitled The Art of Lent, by Sister Wendy Beckett, and in it, she has curated a new painting for each day of Lent and a short description of the details surrounding the painting. Today’s choice is Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, painted in the late 1400s.
Because of copyright restrictions, I don’t think I’m able to post the painting on my website, so I just took a snapshot of the book. If you haven’t viewed the painting lately, please google it and take a closer look for yourself. What I learned from Beckett was that the painting started to deteriorate soon after da Vinci painted it on the wall of a local monastery in Milan, where it is still viewed today. Da Vinci used a new technique on the painting that failed, and the painting has been restored many times over because of this. There’s a hidden meaning of God’s ongoing restoration in my life that is not lost on me this morning.
I researched a bit more about the painting online and found some additional interesting facts. Supposedly each of the disciples is identified specifically in the painting. For instance, Judas is seated to the right of Jesus, reaching for the bread, perhaps agitated and in a hurry to get out of there. Peter, ironically, is the one holding the knife. (Perhaps symbolizing how he chops off the ear of the servant of the high priest later in the garden!) John is seated right next to Jesus, listening to Peter, and seems to be a bit dazed; could it be that he has a kind of love and trust in Jesus that keeps him more serene? To the immediate left of Jesus, James is throwing his arms out angrily, while Philip is pointing to himself as if to ask, “Surely, not I, Lord?” Behind him is doubting Thomas pointing upwards, perhaps asking, “Is this God’s plan?”
But look at the face of Jesus, with his hand extended toward the food that would symbolize His broken body. He looks forlorn and lonely to me. I’m not sure what da Vinci was trying to portray; perhaps Jesus was coming to grips with the reality that the rest of the journey would be His and His alone, while those He had poured Himself into over the last three years would flee His presence and be scattered. The reality of betrayal and disappointment is a common human experience for us, one we can relate to, but Jesus is coming to grips with all of what the next day would hold for Him, which is something we ourselves are unable to grasp.
The preoccupation of the disciples is very pronounced in the painting, not unlike our very real temptation and experience today. We use many ways to self-justify and deflect our discomfort as we consider the reality of Jesus’ deep sacrifice, knowing it was our sin of betrayal and denial that led him to the cross. As Tim Keller once wrote, “The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.”
As we reflect on the importance of this day in the church and during this Passion Week, may it lead us all to take a deeper moral inventory of our souls and what was required of Jesus to finish the road to Calvary.
The song, “Love Poured Out”, by Todd James, describes the rescue God made on our behalf:
Never worthy of such love could I ever hope to be. Within my wretched sinfulness Thou, Lord, would die for me. Through Christ the Lord my ransom paid when sin the sinless One became. And Your love was poured out upon it, the fury of heaven, scorching the spotless Lamb, so that Your love could freely be given, poured out upon me, that I should be called the son [daughter] of God.
Peace and grace to you on this day as you pause to consider the enormity of God’s love for you.
