Under the Blood (Maundy Thursday-Deacon Chris)

“The 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.”
 
What makes this night different from all the rest? Those of you who have attended Passover celebrations recognize this question which is traditionally asked by the youngest person in attendance. What makes this night different from all the rest?

The Triduum offers many answers to this question. Each night our liturgy contains some parts that are familiar and ordinary but many more that are unique to that once-a-year service. If this is your first Maundy Thursday I encourage you to let the entire experience wash over you. In other words don’t try to figure it all out at once—it will overwhelm you.
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 Actually, if this is your tenth or twentieth time that may still be good advice. Part of the beauty of liturgy and of scripture is that once in a while, occasionally, there may be something this particular time that you don’t remember having heard before. Even for the seasoned veteran of multiple Triduums there might be something that catches your attention, gives you food for thought, which leads to a new understanding. 

I had such an experience this year as I was preparing for tonight’s sermon. I will explain what caught my attention but let me say that there are many such points where your attention may go tonight or in the next three days. By no means do my reflections sum up all that will happen. Let the experiences of these days flow over you.

First, let’s recap where we are in the story of the Thursday we remember tonight.

Jesus and his closest companions were in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. It was a commandment from God to observe this occasion every year at this time for all Hebrews and if at all possible their celebration was to be in Jerusalem. So Jesus and his dearest friends were there to follow God’s command and to observe the feast. As in a modern day Seder the Biblical story of God leading the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt is told in its entirety as a part of their observance. The plagues are remembered, frogs, boils, hail, and so on. With each plague the Pharaoh promised to let the Israelites go free but each time he reneged.

We do not read the entire story tonight; our first lesson from Exodus comes in this timeline. It occurs just before the last action God will take to release his people. What God will do is kill all of the first-born throughout Egypt, both animals and people. It is a drastic step to be taken after nine other chances for the release of His people. When this killing happens and during the chaos that ensues, the Israelites are to leave Egypt as fast as possible.

Imagine, we are hearing the same story tonight in 2019 that Jesus and his disciples heard that last night that they were together. Pause a moment, we just read the same ancient story of Moses and Aaron that Jesus and his closest companions read on that night before Jesus’ death. We are being pulled into the story from our very first lesson.

And what did we hear? “The 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.” God will protect the Israelites from this awful plague, the killing of the first-born.  

God will know the house is an Israelite house by the blood that has been placed on the doorway, three places, top and both sides. The instructions are very specific. The lamb is to be a year old, perfect, without blemish, a male. They are also prescribed how to eat it, hurriedly, and ready to go, leaving nothing until morning.

In this section of the larger story of the Exodus, the Israelites are told they will be protected from this final plague by the blood of a perfect lamb that they have slaughtered, roasted and eaten that very same night. Their protection is the blood. Their food for the journey ahead is the lamb.

 You can probably see the connection I made with this story but here is the part you don’t know. I have a dear friend, a former colleague, who is from a different cultural background than I am. We have many similarities in how we view the world and what is important; I treasure her friendship. My friend loves gospel music and it is playing at all times in her car and in her house. I am fond of that type of music but do not know the breadth and depth of the songs as she does. They are part of her fabric and often part of her vocabulary.

One time we were discussing a particularly trying time ahead for me, I don’t remember what it was, whether a trip, a situation, an illness, but as we were leaving one another she said to me, “You will be ok, you are under the blood”. “Under the blood” was the phrase she used, not by the blood or through it, rather under the blood. Now I understood that she meant all would be well, perhaps with some connection to the wine in Holy Communion, but I did not get the reference or why she used the word “under” rather than something else, so I asked her. She said it was a line from a gospel song and we left it at that.

This year the words from this first lesson connected with what she had said so long ago to me and so I researched that particular gospel song.
 
Here is part of it:

It’s under the blood
Under the blood
My past and my future is under the blood
Under the blood
Under the blood
I gave my life to Jesus and it’s under the blood.
 
Friends try to remind you of the sins of your past
Quickly remind them that I’m free at last
They may laugh and criticize you but oh don’t you be ashamed.
It’s all because of the blood of Jesus.
My whole life has changed, It’s under the blood.
Under the blood
Under the blood
I gave my life to Jesus and it’s under the blood.
 
We, like those Israelites so long ago are protected by the blood. What became crystal clear to me this year is this. We, you and I, are under the metaphorical lintel marked by the blood of a lamb. Our perfect lamb, without blemish, our Jesus, will be sacrificed for us tomorrow and his blood will protect and nourish us for all time. These are not just ancient stories; they are a part of our lives, a vital part of our lives.
 
What we do this night and over the Triduum is historical, yes, we are placed in the middle of history but even more than that they invite us in to become a part of the story. We bring the story to life by telling it and retelling it and seeing where it connects for us. The bottom line truth is this: our God loved us enough to redeem us. This was not an easy gesture and that is part of what we remember and relive in these three days. God loved us enough to redeem us. This was real and painful, physically and emotionally painful, and God did it for us. When we understand the pain we are better able to understand the joy.
 
We are under the blood, protected and fed by the blood of our savior, Jesus. He is our perfect lamb forever.
May the days ahead help us to better understand the depth of the love that our God has for each of us.
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Amen.