BACK TO THE BASICS PT. 5 - The Breaking of Bread

Acts 2:42 says, “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (NKJV). A phrase in this verse that has led to some confusion is “the breaking of bread”. Barnes Notes on the New Testament says concerning this, “The Syriac renders this "the Eucharist," or the Lord's Supper. It cannot, however, be determined whether this refers to their partaking of their ordinary food together, or to feasts of charity, or to the Lord's Supper.”. Jamison, Fawsett, and Brown concur with this saying, “…not certainly in the Lord's Supper alone, but rather in frugal repasts taken together, with which the Lord's Supper was probably conjoined until abuses and persecution led to the discontinuance of the common meal.”. However Matthew Henry’s Commentary says, “They continued in the breaking of bread, in celebrating that memorial of their Master's death, as those that were not ashamed to own their relation to, and their dependence upon, Christ and him crucified. They could not forget the death of Christ, yet they kept up this memorial of it, and made it their constant practice, because it was an institution of Christ, to be transmitted to the succeeding ages of the church.” What the early church apparently did was to meet for a common meal, and during the meal pause to celebrate The Lord’s Supper. The partaking of communion raises several questions for us to address.

Does anything happen during Communion? Transubstantiation is the belief held by Catholicism that says the bread and wine actually change into the flesh and blood of Christ. Consubstantiation is the idea that the Spirit of Christ overtakes the bread and cup, but they remain in their original state. This is the view of the Lutheran Church. I do not believe either of these has any backing from the word of God. The clearest picture found in Scripture is that of the Lord’s Supper being a memorial feast. Jesus Himself says, “And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me. Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19 and 20 NKJV). The bread and the cup are to remind us of the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary, the price paid for our salvation.

Can a congregation restrict who partakes of Communion? Some churches hold what is called a closed communion. To participate one has to be a member on the rolls of the particular body of believers. Outsiders are not allowed to take communion, and in some cases even asked to leave the service. The problem I have with this is simple – ITS NOT OUR TABLE. God is the one who has set the table, and He is the one who provided His Son as the sacrifice being commemorated. The church only provides the bread and the cup, the participants actually do the communing. There are instructions given concerning the proper attitude we are to have as participants. This will be covered in later blog articles.

Dr. Oberg