The Bible emphasizes three things that we should do on the first day of the week:
First, Psalm 118:24 speaks of the attitude that all God’s children should have on the first day of the week. It is to exult and rejoice. Our Lord has risen from the dead. This is the day that Jehovah has made, and we must exult and rejoice on this day. We must maintain this attitude. This day is the day on which our Lord resurrected. There is no other day similar to this day. The Lord appeared to the disciples and met with them on the first day of the week. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost also occurred on the first day of the week. The rejecting of the stone by the builders and its becoming the cornerstone refer to the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection. The rejection of the Jews was the rejection of the builders, and the Lord’s resurrection was His becoming the cornerstone. This is the day which Jehovah has made, and we should exult and rejoice in it. This should be our spontaneous reaction.
Second, Acts 20:7 says, “And on the first day of the week, when we gathered together to break bread...” According to the original text, the first day of the week here does not refer to the first day of a certain particular week. It means that they met to break bread on the first day of every week. At that time all the churches spontaneously gathered together to break bread in remembrance of the Lord on the first day of the week. Is there any other day better than the first day of the week? The first day of the week is the day our Lord rose from the dead. The first day of the week is also the day we meet our Lord. One thing we must do on the first day of the week is remember the Lord. This is the day that the Lord has chosen. The first thing we should do on the first day of the week is go to the Lord. The Lord’s Day is the first day of the week. Monday is the second day of the week. We need to meet the Lord on the first day of the week.
The breaking of bread signifies two things in the Bible: the remembrance of the Lord and the declaration of our fellowship with all the children of God. First, it is the declaration of our fellowship with God, our fellowship with the Lord, and second, it is the declaration of our fellowship with the Body, that is, our fellowship with the church. The bread represents the Lord as well as the church. The Lord’s Day is the best day for us to have fellowship with the Lord. It is also the best day for us to have fellowship with all the children of God. Although on earth we are limited by time and space from fellowshipping with every child of God and from shaking hands with all of them, every Lord’s Day every child of God puts his hand on this bread, regardless of where he is. Every child of God touches this bread. When we touch this bread, we have fellowship with all the children of God. We meet not only the Lord but also all our brothers and sisters. In the meeting we fellowship not only with the brothers and sisters who break bread together with us but also with all those who are touching this bread. On this day, thousands and millions of believers in the whole world are touching this bread. “We who are many are one Body; for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Cor. 10:17). We break the bread together, and we have fellowship in this bread.
As a new believer you must learn to remove all barriers between yourself and other children of God. You need to learn to love and to forgive right from the beginning. You cannot touch this bread if you do not learn to love and forgive. You should not hate any of the children of God. There should not be any barrier between you and them; none of God’s children should be excluded. Other than those who are removed because of problems in conduct (1 Cor. 5:11) or truth (2 John 7-11), no child of God should be excluded. All normal children of God need fellowship one with another. As we remember our Lord and touch Him, we touch all the people who belong to Him. The Lord loves us so much that He gave Himself for us. We cannot refrain from remembering Him, and we cannot refrain from loving those whom He loves. We cannot refrain from forgiving those whom He forgave, and we cannot refrain from remembering those whom He remembers. No other day is better than the first day of the week because this is the day which the Lord has made. This is the day of our Lord’s resurrection. On this day it is a most spontaneous thing for us to remember all those who have become the new creation together with us.
Third, 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 says, “Now concerning the collection for the saints, just as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also do. On the first day of the week each one of you should lay aside in store to himself whatever he may have been prospered, that no collections be made when I come.” Here we see the third thing to do on the first day of the week. Paul directed both the churches of Galatia and the church in Corinth to do the same thing. This clearly shows us that the first day of the week was a very special day during the apostles’ time. There was bread-breaking to remember the Lord, and there was the collection for the saints on the first day of the week. On the first day of every week, every one should offer to the Lord according to his income. This is a good practice. On the one hand, we have the bread-breaking, and on the other hand, there is the offering. On the one hand, we remember how the Lord gave Himself for us, and on the other hand, we also have to give to the Lord on this day. The more a person receives from the Lord, the more he should give. A thanksgiving offering in the form of material goods should be included in the thanksgiving and praise which we offer to Him (Heb. 13:16). This is well pleasing to God. Offering material goods to the Lord on His day is something that we should start practicing the moment we believe.
We should not drop our money mindlessly into the offering box. We should count, prepare, and wrap up our money in a godly way while we are still at home. Then when we come, we should put the money into the offering box. Paul shows us that material giving should be done consciously and regularly. On the first day of every week, we should lay aside according to our income and tell the Lord, “Lord, You have given to me richly. Lord, I bring to You what I have gained and offer it to You.” You have to fix the amount that you will set aside. If you have much, you should offer more. If you have less, you can offer less. The breaking of bread is a serious matter, and the offering of material goods is also a serious matter.
The Lord has purposely set aside one day out of the week and has called it the Lord’s Day. We hope that the brothers and sisters will enjoy the Lord’s grace abundantly and serve Him properly on this day. Our Lord’s Day is different from the Sabbath in the Old Testament. The Sabbath emphasized what one should not do. The Jews were angry at the Lord Jesus when He healed the sick and cast out demons on the Sabbath. However, the Lord’s Day is not for the rest of the body; neither is it the time for us to stop our work. The Lord’s Day and the Sabbath are basically two different matters. The concept of working or not working on the Lord’s Day does not exist for us. Whatever we do on other days, we can do on the Lord’s Day. Whatever we do not do on other days, we should not do on the Lord’s Day. The Bible does not tell us whether we can walk, shop, do this, or do that on the Lord’s Day. It does not tell us whether we should keep the Lord’s Day the same way men kept the Sabbath. But the Bible does tell us to exult and rejoice on the Lord’s Day; it tells us to come to the Lord in singleness of heart to receive grace from Him, to remember Him, to serve Him, and to consecrate ourselves to Him. We have to mark out the Lord’s Day as a special day in our life. At least the first day of the week is marked out for the Lord. This day is not our day; this day is the Lord’s day. This time is not ours; this time is the Lord’s. Our business is for the Lord. Our rest is also for the Lord. Whether or not we do this or that, we are for the Lord. There is no flavor of the Sabbath here. This is the day that we consecrate to the Lord. This is the meaning of the Lord’s Day.
John put it well when he said, “I was in spirit on the Lord’s Day” (Rev. 1:10). We hope many of us can say, “I was in spirit on the Lord’s Day.” We hope that this is the day that the church is in spirit and the day that we are blessed. We hope that new brothers and sisters will pay attention to the Lord’s Day from the very beginning. Consecrate the first day of the week to the Lord and say to Him, “This is Your day.” If we do this from our youth, we will be able to say after seventy years that we have given ten years fully to the Lord. This is a great blessing to the church. “O Lord! I consecrate all my time on this day to You. I come to break the bread with gladness and joy in remembrance of You. I bring all that I have before You and I consecrate it all to You.” If we do this, we will see God’s blessing being showered abundantly upon the church.