This week we finished up our segment on the early church’s second point of devotion which was to “THE FELLOWSHIP” and used our final two examples of the early church’s involvement in “the Fellowship” as a springboard into their 3rd point of devotion which was “the breaking of bread”.
The phrase “breaking of bread” includes two different things, both of which are illustrated in scripture and in extra-biblical historical literature. Primarily this phrase referred to partaking of communion from house to house which itself teaches us something, but we will not touch on that until next week. The second expression of this “breaking of bread” was simply meals eaten among the saints from house to house, as they communed over the word of God, the teaching of the apostles and prayers.
This week we only introduced the topic – focusing in upon its expression in the communion table.
Paul places a strong emphasis on communion as much more than a simple symbolic meal, but as an actual living declaration – a dramatization if you will, of our literal participation in the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord. Even as Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:14, “…if one died for all then all died” and in his letter to the Romans where he said that if we have been crucified with Christ, then we have also entered into His death and resurrection with Him.
Next week we will explore this topic further both in communion, but also in the simple meals believers share in their homes together fellowshipping over the Word of God and in prayer.
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