Worship Tools
Sacred Space: Small-Group Worship Outline
Gathering
Welcome
Maundy Thursday is the night on which the Lord’s Supper first was celebrated. The central theme of that first Lord’s Supper was one of humble service. Jesus washed the feet of the disciples and commanded that they do the same for each other. Jesus taught that he came not to be served, but to serve, to share the hospitality of God and the intimacy of breaking bread together.
Prayer for Peace
Ring a bell or chime three times slowly.
Light the peace candle.
Loving and humble God, today we make ourselves vulnerable to your Spirit. You showed the disciples vulnerability as you stooped to wash their feet. How might we have the same courage to do the same with our friends and neighbors as we seek to create peace? You create spaces for each person at your table and feed us in a new way, allowing us to take peace into our hearts. Grace us with that peace so that we may share it. May the voices of servant leaders focused on peace be uplifted over the voices of hatred and division so that all may find their place at the table. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Body Prayer
Say: Today our spiritual practice will be a body prayer.
Show the group members three postures they will experience for this spiritual exercise.
First posture: Head bowed with hands folded.
Second posture: Sitting or standing with arms stretched outward.
Third posture: Hands clasped over the heart.
Say: “A chime will signal when to move into the next posture. You will not offer any words of prayer but instead will focus on sensing what type of prayer wants to emerge as you hold each posture.”
Lead the group in three deep cleansing breaths as preparation. Ring a chime.
First posture: Head bowed with hands folded (one minute). Ring a chime.
Second posture: Sitting or standing with arms stretched outward (one minute). Ring a chime.
Third posture: Hands clasped over the heart (one minute). Ring a chime.
Close with a spoken “Amen.”
Invite participants to share what they experienced during the body prayer.
Sharing Around the Table
1 Corinthians 11:23–26 NRSVue
23 For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for[a]you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
—I Corinthians 11:23-26 NRSVue
Corinth, the setting for today’s passage, was a multicultural, cosmopolitan city. The competition for status and privilege ruled social relations, and formal meals reinforced class distinction. This competition and class division were reflected in the way the church community met. Paul, bothered by this, reminded people of the moment Christ introduced the Lord’s Supper and what it meant.
Christ had torn down the social barriers between people, and the Lord’s table was a time to show this. Christ had shown solidarity with those who were poor, marginalized, and displaced. He had proclaimed a kingdom, or a new way of living, which in Jesus’s time was scandalous. There was a place at the table for everyone.
As Jesus started sharing bread and wine, he was setting up a new covenant of oneness and equality. We share the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of Christ. To remember is not just a simple mental act. It means we retake this way of life and reshape our actions. It is life-changing every time. Jesus’s command to do this in “remembrance of me” is not about remembering our past as much as it is seeing everyone around the table as equals.
This covenant is at the heart of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. Through Communion, we proclaim that we are a new covenant people, called to live an alternate community lifestyle that “courageously challenge[s] cultural, political, and religious trends that are contrary to the reconciling and restoring purposes of God” (Doctrine and Covenants 163:3b).
When we come to the table, we cannot come while leaving others uninvited and unwelcomed. There are no places of honor, no persons more or less deserving. To act or think otherwise is to fail to “remember” him.
Questions
- What cultural practices do we bring into our lives as disciples that are not Christ-like?
- How can we remember Jesus in ways that enable us to take his way of life and reshape our actions?
Sending
Generosity Statement
Beloved Community of Christ, do not just speak and sing of Zion. Live, love, and share as Zion: those who strive to be visibly one in Christ, among whom there are no poor or oppressed.
—Doctrine and Covenants 165:6a
The offering basket is available if you would like to support ongoing, small-group ministries as part of your generous response.
The offering prayer is adapted from A Disciple’s Generous Response:
Ever-present God, forgive us when we are less than loving, less than hope-filled, less than you have created us to be. Your mercy and grace are always with us. May we find strength in your presence, and may we respond to your love with generous spirits. Amen.
Invitation to Next Meeting
Closing Hymn
Community of Christ Sings 519, “In the Singing”
Closing Prayer
Optional Additions Depending on Group
Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper
For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
—1 Corinthians 11:23–26 NRSV
Communion Statement
All are welcome at Christ’s table. The Lord’s Supper, or Communion, is a sacrament in which we remember the life, death, resurrection, and continuing presence of Jesus Christ. In Community of Christ, we also experience Communion as an opportunity to renew our baptismal covenant and to be formed as disciples who live Christ’s mission. Others may have different or added understandings within their faith traditions. We invite all who participate in the Lord’s Supper to do so in the love and peace of Jesus Christ.
We share in Communion as an expression of blessing, healing, peace, and community.
In preparation let’s sing from Community of Christ Sings (select one):
515 “In these Moments We Remember”
516 “Coming Together for Wine and for Bread”
521 “Let Us Break Bread Together”
525 “Small Is the Table”
528 “Eat This Bread”
Blessing and serving of bread and wine.
Thoughts for Children
You will need:
- Wet wipes
Say: On Maundy Thursday, after Jesus had shared a meal with his disciples, he did something pretty radical. He washed their feet.
He did this because he wanted them to know it was important to serve or take care of each other.
Use the wet wipes to take turns washing participants’ hands.
Say: What other opportunities can we take to serve people in our lives just like Jesus did?
Sermon Helps
Exploring the Scripture
In the verses directly before today’s scripture passage, Paul confronts the Corinthians about their abuse of the Lord’s Supper. He calls out divisions found within the church about class and status—especially when they gather. In 1 Corinthians 11:23–26 (known as “the words of institution for the Lord’s Supper”), Paul passes on the tradition he received. These verses are closest to the instruction found in Luke 22:15–20. Here Paul takes a break from chastising their behavior to pass along important memories to strengthen and remind the people. His use of the Greek words for “received” and “handed on to you” shows how the practice in Corinth strayed from Jesus’ example. This straying from tradition and teaching has caused divisions among the disciples in Corinth.
“On the night when he was betrayed” refers to the Last Supper—the meal Jesus shared with the disciples before he was betrayed, arrested, and crucified (v. 23). This meal is a model for the way many Christians celebrate the Lord’s Supper:
- We give thanks; the bread (Christ’s body) is broken and given for us.
- The cup (Christ’s blood) is shared.
- We remember the covenant.
- We remember Christ and his sacrifice for us.
Memories can be powerful. They shape who we are and define an identity for individuals and groups. Great care is made to pass along memories from generation to generation. Reminiscing on shared experiences within the community can bring people together and seal relationships; it can also divide relationships, as witnessed in Corinth. This shared memory-building creates legacy and shapes history. Jesus encouraged us to gather and “do this” regularly (vv. 24, 25). Our memories can be lost when we don’t practice, including those in our collective memory.
When we share the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, we engage our memories. Symbols, signs, and images help us remember. We engage our memories more often when items of everyday life are involved in our sacred practices. Jesus chose the ordinary staples of bread and wine to signal a new covenant given through self-sacrifice. Gods’ Spirit works through these tokens and builds our shared memories. Christ is present because he promised to be in the bread and wine.
Bread—and breaking the bread—is part of the Jewish Passover tradition. Christians understand it as a metaphor for Christ’s body and a symbol of unity. The wine is symbolic of the shed of blood at Passover. It is a metaphor for suffering.
On Maundy Thursday, we remember Christ’s great love through his self-sacrifice, forgiveness, and promise of eternal life. In the elegant and simple meal of bread and wine, Jesus invites us to become part of God’s story. The body and blood are offered to each one personally, yet the Lord’s Supper is also for the gathered community. When we eat, we remember God’s presence with us in times past. We trust God is with us now. We expect God will remain with us as we move toward the future.
Like Corinth, our congregations may also be divided. In breaking the bread and sharing the cup, Jesus commits to us his life given as a covenant.
Central Ideas
- The church received instructions about the Lord’s Supper (Communion) from Jesus’ example, outlined in his Last Supper with his disciples.
- We can connect with Christ through the ordinary acts of eating the bread, drinking the cup, and remembering him.
- Regularly celebrating the Lord’s Supper shapes our collective memory and strengthens our community through retelling the story of Christ’s self-sacrifice and the new covenant he enacted.
- On Maundy Thursday, we remember Christ’s self-sacrifice and acts that delivered us from sin and death.
Questions for the Speaker
- In what ways have you learned the sacred memories from generations past?
- How have sacred memories shaped you and sustained you? How have they shaped and sustained your congregation?
- Why do people come to the Lord’s table? For what do they hunger and thirst?
- How has celebrating the Lord’s Supper helped build collective memories and practices in your congregation?
- How can remembering Christ’s self-sacrifice and the new covenant in Christ heal divisions within the congregation?
