Great Thursday; Our Venerable Father Simeon of Persia; Our Venerable Father Acacius, Bishop of Melitene.
Matins – Luke 22:1-39; Vespers with Liturgy – Exodus 19:10-19; Job 38:1-23; 42:1-5; Isaiah 50:4-11; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32; Matthew 26:2-20; John 13:3-17; Matthew 26:21-39; Luke 22:43-45; Matthew 26:40-27:2.
Read 1 Corinthians 11:23-32
When God commissioned Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land, ten plagues were sent upon Egypt to convince the pharaoh to “Let My people go, that they may serve Me” (Ex. 9:1). The tenth plague was the death of all the firstborn in Egypt, both of man and of beast. To commemorate the “passing over” from slavery into freedom, the celebration of Passover was instituted. Each household would slaughter a spotless male lamb at twilight, and its blood would be put “on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it” that night, along with eating unleavened bread and bitter herbs (Ex. 12:1-8). That night, the firstborn would be saved in all the houses that had the blood on their doorposts and lintels. Death would “pass over” those houses.
The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke indicate that when Jesus instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper, He was celebrating the Passover with His disciples. The gospel of John seems to indicate that the Last Supper happened an evening prior to the Passover so that Jesus’ crucifixion coincided with the slaughtering of the unblemished, male paschal lambs. Regardless of the exact day Jesus ate this meal, the connection between Jesus’ death and the celebration of Passover is strong. We Eastern Christians refer to the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection not as “Easter” but rather as “Pascha,” a word which means “Passover.” Christ is our Passover from death into life, from bondage from slavery in sin into freedom.
When we partake of Christ’s Body and Blood in the Eucharist, we partake in the new covenant which is the fulfillment of the old covenant. We partake in the pure, spotless “Lamb of God,” the only-begotten Son of the Father. Under the old covenant, animals had to be sacrificed continually to forgive sins and restore right relationship with God. However, with the new priesthood of the new covenant, Jesus is our High Priest: “For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, unstained, separated from sinners, exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people; he did this once for all when he offered up himself. Indeed, the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever” (Heb. 7:26-28).
Today, let us meditate on the Mystery accomplished in Christ. As we spiritually prepare ourselves today to remember His Passion, Death, and Resurrection, let us give thanks to God for His sacrifice and showing His indescribable love for us.