1. “Continued steadfastly...in the breaking of bread” (Acts 2:42).
The early believers continued steadfastly in the breaking of bread. Continued steadfastly in the original Greek denotes “continued without ceasing,” which means “always.” Always breaking bread is the pattern that the early believers left for us, and we should follow them.
2. “Day by day...breaking bread” (Acts 2:46).
The early believers continued steadfastly in breaking bread to such an extent that they broke bread day by day. At that time the believers were on fire for the Lord and loved Him deeply; therefore, they spontaneously wanted to break bread day by day in remembrance of Him. This tells us that the more often we break bread to remember the Lord, the better.
3. “On the first day of the week...gathered together to break bread” (Acts 20:7).
At first, the early believers broke bread day by day, but later as it became a long-term practice, they broke bread once a week on the first day of the week. The first day of the week is the Lord’s Day, the day of the Lord’s resurrection; it is also the beginning of the week, which symbolizes that old things have passed away and a new life has begun. Breaking bread in remembrance of the Lord on this day is most appropriate because even though we break bread to declare the Lord’s death, we remember Him in resurrection. We break bread in the realm of resurrection, and we remember the Lord based on the life of the new creation. Thus, it is not only a convenient time but also very meaningful to come together to remember the Lord on the day in which old things passed away and new life began, the day of the Lord’s resurrection.
4. “Supper” (1 Cor. 11:20).
Since breaking bread is to eat the Lord’s supper, it is best that it is held in the evening in order to fit the name. Moreover, in the evening all the things of the day are finished and our personal burdens are laid aside, so our hearts are light and our spirits are happy. This is the most appropriate attitude in which to remember the Lord and to sense His presence as we touch Him. This, however, is not a law. If it is too difficult to arrange the meeting in the evening, or if it is not convenient, we can do what is convenient and hold the meeting in the morning or at midday.
1. “Breaking bread from house to house” (Acts 2:46).
The earliest believers broke bread in many of the believers’ homes. At that time there were many people, so it would have been inconvenient with regard to both time and space for them to gather together to break bread in one place; therefore, they spontaneously split up into different homes for this practice. This shows that if there are many believers in one place, they may divide themselves among different homes to break bread.
2. “When therefore you come together in the same place...to eat the Lord’s supper” (1 Cor. 11:20).
It is permissible for the believers in one locality to divide themselves among homes and break bread, but it is more appropriate and more flavorful if everyone can come together in the same place to break bread. Thus, the early believers came together in the same place to eat the Lord’s supper. Today when we break bread, we may either split up or all come together as best fits our need.
1. “As often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you declare the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).
Those who break bread in remembrance of the Lord should long for the Lord and await His coming. Therefore, after we break bread, we should long for the Lord’s appearing and live a life of waiting for the Lord. If we only break bread in remembrance of the Lord every week but do not live a life of desiring His coming and waiting for Him, we are not in accordance with the meaning of breaking bread.
2. “You cannot drink the Lord’s cup and the demons’ cup; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the demons’ table” (1 Cor. 10:21).
After partaking of the Lord’s table, we cannot partake of the demons’ table; after drinking the Lord’s cup, we cannot drink the demons’ cup. According to the preceding verses, the demons’ table and the demons’ cup refer to the things sacrificed to idols. After breaking bread, we cannot eat anything sacrificed to an idol. When we break bread, we fellowship with the Lord, just as when Gentiles worship idols, they fellowship with the demons. After we fellowship with the Lord, how can we return to partake of something related to fellowship with demons? Therefore, after breaking the Lord’s bread, we cannot return to eating idol sacrifices.
The demons’ table and the demons’ cup refer to idol sacrifices. But is not worldly enjoyment also a demons’ table? Is not worldly prosperity a demons’ cup? Since we have enjoyed the Lord Himself and all that He is and has at His table, how can we go back to desire worldly pleasures? Since we have been satisfied by the Lord at His table, how can we go back to Satan to obtain anything? How can we return to Satan’s world to obtain the pleasure that Satan gives to people? After breaking bread, we should not lust after the world and its enjoyment.
3. “Let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Cor. 5:8).
In the time of the Old Testament, the Israelites kept the Feast of the Passover and immediately followed it with the Feast of Unleavened Bread, during which they eliminated every bit of leaven from their lives (Deut. 16:1-4). Since the breaking of bread in the New Testament replaced the Passover in the Old Testament, we should be like the Israelites after the Passover and eliminate all leaven from our lives. Leaven refers to all evil and malice, to all things that can corrupt man. After breaking bread we should remove all sin, evil, and every corrupting thing from our lives, and we should no longer keep the old living that we had before we were saved. We should not have any of our former evil, our old leaven; rather, we should live a holy, sinless life by the Lord’s holy, sinless life, that is, by the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. We should truly be those who keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread so that we can be those who are entirely according to the breaking of bread.