April 2, 2026 – Maundy Thursday Text: Zechariah 13:1-3
Dear Friends in Christ,
The Centers for Disease Control has a whole page dedicated to washing your hands. The headings are, “Why it’s Important,” “Key times to wash hands,” and “How it works.” We all know how important it is in protecting your own health and that of others to wash our hands.
What about cleansing our hearts? The Washington D.C. government has on their website a “Clean Hand Mandate.” But it is not about washing hands. It is about being up to date on your taxes so you can get city permits etc. It goes to the heart and a business’s honesty. How honest are we? We know that no amount of soap and water can clean a mouth spouting disgusting words or a heart that harbors hate. Isaiah calls us “filthy rags.”
But God provided a fountain where we can be cleansed. On this Holy Thursday . . .
“A CLEANSING FOUNTAIN”
We cannot scrub the iniquity from our insides. So what are we to do? There is nothing we can do. The Lord has already done it for us. “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.” (v. 1).
That day is the day the Savior was crucified. The day of salvation and the fulfillment of God’s plan. Jesus’ side was pierced and there was a flow of blood and water. Cleansing blood and water.
This night, as we partake of the Lord’s blood, we also drink from the fountain. We rejoice that this same body and blood present at his sacrifice are also present in his Sacrament, with the same power to cleanse our dirty souls.
Typical hand sanitizers promise to kill 99.9% of germs. But what about that sneaky 0.1% that could still make you sick? Jesus removes our sins not at 99.9% but at 100%. He removes even the tiniest sins, the ones we don’t recognize anymore.
As you come to the Lord’s Supper, know that Satan (that spirit of uncleanness) has lost his grip on you. One day he will no longer tempt you with unclean thoughts. One day you will sit at Christ’s table in heaven with completely clean hands and permanently pure heart.
As you leave the altar and reflect on the sacrifice, remember the cleansing. Then pray to the Holy Spirit for a grateful response.
We have some shocking language in our text. According to God’s Old Testament Law, children who struck or cursed a parent were to be killed. God did not put up with the worship of other gods from His people.
We do not live under that law, but there can still be consequences to our sinful actions. Are you serious about keeping your hands and heart clean? What idols need to be eliminated from your life? What is luring you from the Lord: a job? a friend? a romantic interest? a hobby? a sport?
Examine your budget and calendar. Are you wisely managing your time, talents, treasures? Are you shouting any pro-world, anti-God philosophies from the rooftops? Even so, get away from them, even if the rot is in your own family. That is the warning of Zechariah tonight. “If anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him, will say to him, ‘you shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.” (v. 3)
Parents, please don’t pierce your children, even if they have wandered from the truth of God’s Word. Sense the urgency. It is a matter of life and death. Pray for those who are straying but don’t tolerate false teaching they may be professing.
Germs are everywhere. That is why we wash our hands often. Threats to your faith are everywhere too. Act decisively against any influence leading you away from your Savior – work, play, social media, friends, even family. Pierce it and get it out of your life.
Do it because you have been cleansed in the fountain that flowed from that Friday morning sacrifice. Do it because you have been cleansed by Jesus’ body and blood in this Thursday evening sacrament. Do it because it feels good to be clean . . . and you want to stay that way.
Amen.