Remember Me

This is Holy Week. The week we remember exactly what it means to be a Christian; to be a follower of Christ. The week starts with Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem riding on the colt of a donkey, while the Passover crowds celebrate him as a king. Towards the end of the week, these same crowds either called for Jesus’ crucifixion or remained silent when others demanded his death. At the very end, they lined the streets as Jesus carried his cross to Golgotha.

Many other things happened that week as well, the most meaningful to me are the ones that didn’t occur in the presence of the fickle crowds – the Last Supper, Jesus’ time in the Garden of Gethsemane, and what we learn on the walk from one to the other.

At the Last Supper we witness Jesus the servant as he washes the disciples’ feet. In that act, we learn the importance of being a servant, not only to the world around us, but also to the people we love the most. We also learn that it takes humility to follow Jesus – we have to let him touch us where we are dirty. We need him to wash us of our filth. We cannot wash ourselves; we have to let him do it.

At the Last Supper, we receive one the most precious commandments of Christ – “Do this in remembrance of me.” In communion, we remember the life, death and promised return of our Lord Jesus. We remember that he is a gift to us – a body broken and shared. We remember that by his blood, we have a new covenant; a covenant of forgiveness for all who will receive it. And what means so much to me – we remember all of this as we share communion together with our family of believers. Communion is not just about our individual relationship with Jesus – it’s also about our relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

At the Last Supper, we receive the promise of one day actually sitting at a table with Jesus and breaking bread. More often than not we share our meals with those we love and cherish. I can’t wait to share a meal with Jesus.