A New Look at Jesus'
“Last Supper”
Have We Been Neglecting
the Sacred Fellowship Meal?
Many
have confused the "last meal" Jesus Christ had
with
His disciples with the "Passover."
This meal was
definitely
not a "Passover" -- there was no way they
could
have eaten the Passover lamb at that occasion --
and
John plainly says it was "BEFORE the Passover"
(John
13:1). What, then, does this meal
represent --
and
why did the apostle Paul say, "AS OFTEN AS
YE
EAT" this bread (I Cor.11:27)? Have
we all been
overlooking
something here?
William F. Dankenbring
In the first epistle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he
admonished them about many problems which had come upon the Church, and such
matters as hair length for men and women.
Then he broke into another subject, discussing the church services or
assemblies of God's people. He wrote: "I praise you not, that ye come together
[for religious worship] not for the better, but for the worse. For first of all, when ye come together IN
THE CHURCH, I hear that there be divisions [Greek, "schisms"] among
you; and I partly believe it. . . . When ye come together into one place, this
is not to eat the Lord's supper. For in
eating everyone takes before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and
another is drunken. What? Have ye not houses to eat and drink in? or despise ye the
What
is Paul talking about here? He seems to
be talking about a regular Church service, on the Sabbath, when God's people
would come together for instruction, worship, and fellowship with God and Jesus
Christ, and with one another. He clearly
speaks of "coming together in the church." But in this very same context, he indicates
that they were participating in some sort of meal, which was not to be confused
with the "Lord's supper." Apparently,
each brought his own food to the banquet, and some who were rich had plenty,
and the poor in the congregation had little -- and Paul didn't want the
Corinthians to think this was the right way to do things. Not at all!
This kind of selfishness, he said, was not at all like "the Lord's
supper."
A
Much Misunderstood Passage
What is Paul driving at here?
Let's go on: He
then refers to Jesus' last meal with His disciples, and says:
"For I have received of the Lord that which also I
delivered unto you,
that
the Lord Jesus THE SAME NIGHT in which he was betrayed
took
BREAD: And when he had given thanks, he
BRAKE IT, and
said,
Take, eat: This is my body, which is
broken for you: THIS
DO
IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME.
"After the same manner also he took
the CUP, WHEN HE HAD
SUPPED,
saying, This cup is the
new testament in my blood:
this
do ye, AS OFT AS YE DRINK IT, in remembrance of me.
For AS OFTEN AS ye EAT this bread, and
drink this cup, ye do
SHEW
the Lord's death till he come" (I Cor.11:23-26).
Let's
understand one thing very clearly: The
final meal Jesus had with His disciples was NOT THE PASSOVER! The Passover was very plainly not yet come. John, in describing this final meal Jesus had
with His disciples, said, "Now BEFORE the feast of the Passover"
(John 13:1). He plainly shows this meal
or banquet was BEFORE the true Passover, which was scheduled to be eaten and
observed the next night, Nisan 15 (John
What
few have realized, not being familiar with Jewish customs of the time of Jesus,
is that this meal could not have been the Passover, since Passover lambs would
not be slain until the following afternoon, and then eaten in the homes of the
Jews on the night of the actual "Passover" -- when God slew the
firstborn in the land of Egypt and "passed over" the Israelites --
Nisan 15. Yet obviously, this final meal
was very important -- a meal of close fellowship and spiritual
significance.
A Jewish Look at the Last Supper
Says David H. Stern, in the Jewish New Testament
Commentary:
"The Last Supper is considered by
most scholars to have been a Passover
meal
or Seder. Many Pesach themes are deepened, reinforced and given
new
levels of meaning by events in the life of Yeshua the
Messiah and by
his
words on this night. However, Joseph Shulam has suggested that it
may
not have been the Seder but a se'udat-mitzvah,
the CELEBRATORY
'BANQUET
accompanying performance of a commandment' such as a wed-
ding
or b' rit-milah.
"Here is the background for his
argument. When a rabbi and his students
finish
studying a tractate of the Talmud, they celebrate with a se'udat-mitzvah
(also called a se'udat-siyum,
'banquet of completion,' i.e., graduation).
The
Fast
of the Firstborn, expressing gratitude for the saving of Israel's firstborn
sons
from the tenth plague, has been prescribed for the day before Pesach,
Nisan 14, at least since Mishnaic times. When
it is necessary to eat a se'udat-
mitzvah,
this takes precedence
over a fast. With a modicum of foresight
a
rabbi
can plan to complete a tractate on Nisan 14 and thus avoid having to fast;
doing
so is not construed as cheating, and in fact it has become the custom.
"The
tradition of the Fast of the Firstborn dates at least from Mishnaic
times.
But,
Shulam reasons, if it goes back a couple of centuries
more to the time of
Yeshua, and if the si'udat
siyum custom applied in the first century to the
completing
of any course of study, then Yeshua might have
arranged to have
himself
and his talmidim [students, disciples] finish reading a
book of the
Tanakh on Nisan 14.
Or, since Yeshua knew he was going to die, he
may have
regarded
it as appropriate to complete his disciples' earthly 'course of study' with a
BANQUET. This solution would also
resolve the perceived conflict between
Yochanan [John]
and the Synoptic Gospels over the timing of the Last Supper"
JNT, p.77).
In other words, there is much more to this passage in I
Corinthians 11, and its meaning, than we have supposed. Although there is no doubt that Jesus Christ
presented the new meanings of the bread and the wine as representing His broken
body and shed blood, given on our behalf, at the last supper, and that these
symbols are directly involved in the Passover Seder, held on Nisan 15,
it is also a fact that this final meal was ONE DAY before the Passover. It is also a fact that Jesus did not tell His
disciples that they should institute a NEW COMMANDMENT, or a new "holy day,"
and begin observing Nisan 14, at the eve, as a memorial of this "last
supper." However, He was having a
"final banquet" with them -- a special and unique "fellowship
meal" with them, where all were relaxed, reclining, at ease, and
experiencing a very close oneness with each other. This was similar to a Passover Seder in some respects -- but yet
different.
The
Greek Word "Artos"
Interestingly, when Jesus held this final dinner with His
disciples, the word John used to describe it was diepnon, which means "supper, the principal
meal, dinner." It is used of the
last supper Jesus held with His disciples, and other main meals of the day (see
Mark 6:21; Luke 14:12, 16, 17, 24; 22:20; John 12:2; 13:21, 4; I Cor.11:20-21;
Rev.19:9, 17). This word is NEVER used
of an annual Festival, or of the Passover.
However, it simply refers to the MAIN MEAL of the day, usually at
evening.
Furthermore, at this final dinner or banquet, there is no
mention of lamb being eaten -- which would have been necessary if this were the
Passover. The gospel accounts would
hardly have neglected to mention such an important feature.
But
even more interesting is the fact that Jewish custom of that time, and always,
has dictated that UNLEAVENED BREAD was not to be eaten during the days before
the FEAST of Unleavened Bread, so that the Feast would be set apart as distinct
and real. For unleavened bread to have
been eaten BEFORE the Festival would have diminished its importance during the
Feast itself! Therefore, if Jesus and
His disciples had eaten "unleavened bread" on the night of Nisan 14,
they would have violated Jewish custom and practice. It is very interesting, therefore, to notice
that when Jesus sat down at dinner, at
that final meal with His disciples, "as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it [many Greek copies have, "gave
thanks"], and brake it, and gave to the disciples, and said, Take, eat;
this is my body" (Matt.26:26). The
word for "bread" here is artos, and
means, "bread (as raised), a loaf."
This same word is used in Matthew 4:3-4, "man does not live by
bread alone," in Matthew 6:11, "our daily bread," and Matthew
16:12, "the leaven of bread," etc.
This word is often used of LEAVENED BREAD!
Generally, whenever UNLEAVENED bread is meant, this word
is preceded by the Greek word for "unleavened," which is azumos, meaning "unleavened,
uncorrupted." But in the three
synoptic gospel accounts of the last supper of Jesus and His disciples, Matthew
26:26, Mark 14:22, Luke 22:19, the writers always use ONLY THE WORD ARTOS, meaning
BREAD -- without the modifying word azumos to designate "unleavened." Therefore, the clear indication is that AT
THE LAST SUPPER JESUS USED NORMAL LEAVENED BREAD, when He blessed and broke it, and said, "Take,
eat; this is my body"!
Here is further
proof that this dinner was not and could not have been the PASSOVER!
The Real Bread at the
"Last Supper"
Further proof that
Jesus and His disciples did NOT and could not have eaten the
"Passover," with its unleavened bread, at the "last supper"
on the eve or beginning of Nisan 14, is plain and simple Jewish law (halakha) of the time.
It is a historical fact that when the Scriptures use the expression
"kept the Passover" (Ezra 6:19) it refers strictly to the slaying of
the Passover lamb, on the 14th of Nisan, whereas the expression "eat the
Passover" was fulfilled the coming evening of Nisan 15 which was the beginning of the eating of unleavened bread on
"the night to be much observed."
The reason why this
evening was called "the night to be much observed" was because the
Passover meal was always eaten as the first meal in the Feast of Unleavened
Bread.
Also,
according to Jewish law of the times (halakha), it
was absolutely forbidden to eat unleavened bread during the 24-hour
period prior to the first night of Unleavened Bread! This was a distinction made by law to
sanctify (set apart) the sacred meaning of the Feast from whatever they may
have eaten for bread on the previous days.
This means that Jesus and the disciples could not have eaten
unleavened bread the evening prior to
the "night to be much observed"!
Also, the gospels
indicate that Jesus was keeping the Fast of the Firstborn during the
daylight hours of the crucifixion day --
this was a daytime fast observed by all firstborn Jews on the Preparation Day
in remembrance of God protecting the firstborn of Israel while killing the
firstborn of Egypt; this also explains Jesus' remark in Matthew 26:29, "I
will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I
drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom." Obviously, Jesus did not drink any wine the
following day. Furthermore, this
explains why He refused to accept the vinegar mixed with gall mentioned in
Matthew 27:34. The Hebrew text of
Matthew's gospel written by the Spanish Jewish scholar Shem-Tov
ben-Shaprut (c.1380 A.D.) reads: "and gave him wine mixed with gall. But when he began to drink it he perceived
and would not drink it." Jesus must
have remembered He was observing the Fast of the Firstborn. The Greek word for "taste" used in
this verse produced a false impression.
Jesus remembered before He drank and swallowed.
Clearly, then, the "bread" which Jesus broke
and gave to His disciples during the beginning portion of Nisan 14, in the
evening, at His final "supper" with them, must have been and
indeed was LEAVENED BREAD!
But can this
be? Can leavened bread, as well as
unleavened bread, represent the body of Jesus Christ?
The answer is a resounding YES!
In Leviticus 23:17, regarding the feast of Pentecost, we
read: "Ye shall bring out of your
habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour;
they shall be BAKEN WITH LEAVEN; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD." Leaven, in this case, certainly does not represent SIN, as nothing
"contaminated" or "sinful" could ever be offered to
God. To offer "sins" to God
would be sacrilegious -- blasphemy -- like offering swine's flesh (Isa.66:3,
17).
Notice, therefore, what the Jamieson, Faussett and Brown Commentary has to say on this passage in Leviticus
23:
"These loaves were made of
"fine" or wheaten flour, the quantity
contained
in them being somewhat more than ten pounds weight.
As
the wave-sheaf gave the signal for the commencement, the two
loaves
solemnized the termination of the harvest season. They were
the
first-fruits of that season, being offered unto the Lord by the priest
in
name of the whole nation (see on Exo.34:22).
The loaves used at
the
Passover were UNLEAVENED, those presented at Pentecost were
LEAVENED
-- a difference which is thus accounted for, -- that the
one
was a memorial of the bread hastily prepared at their departure,
while
the other was a TRIBUTE OF GRATITUDE TO GOD for their
daily
food, which was leavened . . ." (vol. 1, p.498).
However, even "leavened bread" is a TYPE of the
body of Christ, and represents "His flesh" which He gave for the sins
of the world. To the Jews, unleavened or
flat bread represented affliction and poverty, as when the Israelites came out
of Egypt; but leavened loaves of bread, as were sacrificed at Pentecost to the
Lord (Leviticus 23:17), typify ABUNDANCE, richness, wealth. The typology should be clear. Christ
crucified was in affliction, flatness, abject, beaten, bruised, pierced,
pummeled -- the perfect type being unleavened bread. Christ as the richness of the abundance of
life, life-giving bread, is pictured by the leaves of beautiful, sweet-smelling
leavened bread! Don't all of us enjoy a
beautiful loaf of home-made leavened whole wheat bread straight out of the oven
steaming? Therefore, the richness of
leavened bread also symbolizes Jesus Christ, the "bread of
life." Notice!
"The
BREAD of Life"
In John chapter 6, when Jesus fed the multitude from a
few loaves of bread and a few fishes, He declared,
"For the bread of God is he which cometh down from
heaven,
and
giveth life unto the world. . . . I AM THE BREAD OF
LIFE: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and
he that
believeth
on me shall never thirst. . . .
"I
am that bread of life. Your fathers did
eat manna in the wilder-
ness,
and are dead. This is the bread which
cometh down from
heaven,
that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
"I
am the LIVING BREAD which came down from heaven:
if
any man eat of THIS BREAD, he shall live forever: and the
bread
which I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the
life
of the world. . . .
"Verily,
verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son
of
man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth
my
flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and
I will raise
him
up at the last day. For my flesh is meat
indeed, and my blood
is
drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my
blood,
dwelleth in me, and I in him As the living Father hath sent me,
and
I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live
by
me.
"This
is that bread which came down from heaven:
not as your
fathers
did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread
shall
live forever" (John 6:33-58).
Jesus,
then, is the "bread of life."
This is a reality. This is not
just Passover. Throughout the year,
every day, day in and day out, Jesus Christ remains and IS the "bread of
life" which came down from heaven!
We should be eating of this "bread" DAILY as we study the
Scriptures! Jesus went on to declare:
"It is the spirit that quickeneth;
the flesh profiteth nothing. The
words
that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life"
(John
6:63).
Thus
even regular bread is a type of the richness of the life-giving bread of Jesus
Christ! In this sense, the leaven
represents fullness and abundance. True
Christians, as members of the body of Christ, also are "one bread" IN
Christ!
"We
. . . Are One Bread"
Now notice I Corinthians 10. Paul discusses this same subject of the wine
and bread again -- but not necessarily in a Passover context. Notice!
"I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say. The CUP OF
BLESSING,
which we bless, is it not the communion of the
blood
of Christ? The BREAD WHICH WE BREAK, it
is
not
the communion of the body of Christ? FOR
WE BEING
MANY
ARE ONE BREAD, AND ONE BODY: for we are
all
partakers of that one bread. . . . Ye cannot drink the cup
of
the Lord, and the cup of demons: ye
cannot be partakers
of
the Lord's table, and of the table of demons.
Do we provoke
the
Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than
he?" (I Cor.10:15-22).
It
is obvious that during Passover, on Nisan 15, we partake of the unleavened
bread, the matzos, representing the body of Christ, as well as the cup of
blessing, the wine, representing His shed blood as our Passover lamb (I
Cor.5:7). But in the book of First
Corinthians, Paul seems to be discussing NOT THE PASSOVER but something
altogether different!
Notice! If he were
discussing the Passover, why doesn't he call it "Passover"?
Secondly, why
does he connect this meal, with bread and wine, with regular church services,
"when ye come together IN THE CHURCH"? (I Cor.11:18)?
Thirdly, WHY if this were the Passover does Paul say,
as to the TIME ELEMENT when we partake of this special meal, "AS
OFTEN AS YE EAT THIS BREAD" (verse
26)? The phrase "AS OFT"
or "AS OFTEN" would seem to indicate not an anniversary event, but an
INDEFINITE TIME PERIOD OF UNKNOWN OR VARYING DURATION.
For years I have
puzzled why Paul used the expression "as oft as" and "as often
as" in regard to this ceremony or meal.
Herbert Armstrong never explained it.
He simply overrode it, and said the key to "how often" we
observe it is the fact that the Passover is an ANNUAL event! But the apostle Paul does not call this the
PASSOVER at all! People have simply ASSUMED it was the Passover!
The Jamieson, Faussett,
Brown Commentary
Many have assumed
in the past that Jesus' last supper was the Passover. Therefore, they have concluded that I
Corinthians 11 also must refer to the Passover.
However, neither assumption is true.
Since we now know that Jesus last supper with His disciples was actually
ONE WHOLE DAY BEFORE the true Passover,
it had to be a sacred meal of fellowship.
This sheds new light on Paul's real meaning and subject of discussion in
I Corinthians 11. Let us notice this
chapter carefully, going through it with the Jamieson, Faussett
and Brown Critical, Experimental and
Practical Commentary.
Verse 20.
"When ye come together in one place, this is not to eat the Lord's
supper." Says the commentary:
"It is not possible to eat a true Lord's supper where
UNITY exists not
(ch.X.17);
where each is greedily intent on 'HIS OWN SUPPER,' and
some
are excluded altogether, not having been waited for (v.33; where
some
are 'drunken,' others 'hungry' (v.21).
The LOVE-FEAST
preceded
the Lord's supper . . . They ate and drank together earthly,
then
heavenly food, in token of their unity for time and eternity. It
was
a CLUB-FEAST, where each brought his portion, and the rich
extra
portions for the poor. From it the bread
and wine were taken
for
the Eucharist. It was at it that the
excesses took place which made
a
true celebration of the Lord's supper, during or after it, with due
discernment
of its solemnity, out of the question . . ."
Paul
here, then, is rebuking the Corinthians for their IMPROPER OBSERVANCE of the
sacred fellowship meal, patterned after
Jesus' last supper with His disciples.
This was a "love feast" of the brethren, where members of the
church ate together:
"23. He shows
the unworthiness of such conduct from the dignity
of
the holy supper. I -- emphatic in the
Greek. It is not my own,
but the Lord's institution. received of the Lord -- by immediate
revelation
from the risen Saviour (Gal.1:12; cf. Acts 22:17, 18;
II
Cor.12:1-4).
. . . The renewal of the institution, by special revela-
tion to St. Paul, enhances its solemnity. . . . the time
for the Lord's
supper
is not fixed. betrayed.
With the traitor
at the table, and though
about
to receive such injury from man, He gave this LAST GIFT, a
pledge
of his amazing love to man. 24. brake.
The breaking of the
bread
involves its distribution . . . . as oft as -- as many times soever;
FOR IT IS AN ORDINANCE OFTEN TO BE PARTAKEN OF.
in
remembrance of me . . . The Lord's supper brings to our remem-
brance Christ's sacrifice once for all for
the full and final remission
of
sins. Not 'do this for a memorial of me,' as if it were a memorial
sacrifice,
which would be mnemosunon
(Acts 10:4) or hupomnesin,
--
areminding the Father of His Son's sacrifice. Nay, it is for OUR
REMEMBRANCE OF IT, not to remind Him.
26. For -- in proof
that
the Lord's supper is 'in remembrance' of Him.
show -- announce
publicly;
not dramatically
represent, but publicly profess each
of you,
the
Lord died FOR ME' . . .
"AS OFT AS YE
EAT IT . . ."
Notice! This
sacred meal and service is NOT AN ANNUAL MEMORIAL AT ALL -- it is to be
partaken of "AS MANY TIMES SOEVER," or 'OFTEN." This could even mean as often as weekly, when
possible. In Jewish synagogues,
following the synagogue service the congregation often met together for a
fellowship meal. Paul does not "set
a time" for this wonderful fellowship meal, patterned after the Lord's
final meal with His disciples -- this LOVE-FEAST. But he does say, "as OFT as ye do
it." The implication is that this
holy meal of fellowship, including the symbols of bread and wine representing
Christ's body and blood given for us, should be enjoyed OFTEN!
This same expression in the Greek, "as oft as,"
is found in Revelation 11:6, speaking of the two witnesses who in the future
will smite the earth with plagues "as often as they will." Thus Paul is not talking about the Passover
here at all, but to a sacred fellowship meal held often, but not on an annual
or "scheduled" basis such as an annual Festival! Let us continue:
"That the Lord's supper is in remembrance of Him,
implies
that He is
bodily
absent, though spiritually present; for we cannot 'commemorate'
one
absent. Our not only showing the Lord's death, but eating and
drinking the pledges of it, could only be
understood BY THE JEWS,
ACCUSTOMED
TO FEASTS after propitiatory sacrifices, as implying
our
personal appropriation of the
benefits of that death. till he come --
when
there shall be no longer need of symbols, the body itself being
manifested. The Greek . . . expresses the certainty of His coming . . ."
(p.316-317,
Critical-Experimental Commentary ).
How
cleverly Satan has deceived so many.
Paul is not talking about the Passover at all in this passage. He discusses the Passover in I Corinthians
5:7-8, very plainly, showing that we should also observe that Feast. It is kept as a vigil and "Seder"
on the night of Nisan 15, as it has been observed by the faithful ever since
the time of Moses. But in I Corinthians
11, Paul is discussing another subject altogether -- the sacred fellowship meal
patterned after the final supper Jesus Christ held with His disciples! And this wonderful spiritual
"banquet" is NOT an annual anniversary at all, but is to be held
"OFTEN"!
What a wonderful, marvelous new TRUTH!
The Sacred Fellowship Meal
Now notice something else. After His resurrection, Jesus in disguise
appeared to two of His disciples as they were walking to the village of
Emmaus. As they walked and talked, Jesus
expounded to them the words of the prophets concerning Himself. They were so interested in His words, that
they constrained Him to abide with them that night. We read:
"And it came to pass, as he SAT AT MEAT with them, HE
TOOK
BREAD,
AND BLESSED IT, AND BRAKE, and GAVE to them.
And
their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out
of
their sight" (Luke 24:13-31).
This
was not the Passover. It was a simple
meal of fellowship. But notice the
symbolism! Jesus took bread, which is a
symbol of His flesh, and blessed it, and GAVE it to them -- and suddenly their
eyes were OPENED and they
knew who He was!
Now notice another related event. After Jesus ascended to heaven, and God began
the New Testament Church by pouring out His Holy Spirit upon the disciples on
the day of Pentecost, Sivan 6, in 41 A.D., Peter preached a powerful sermon at
the Temple, and three thousand people were converted and baptized on that one
day (Acts 2:1-40, 41).
Now notice! What
did these NEW DISCIPLES do? What was the
most important thing they did, together, that was SO IMPORTANT that it was specifically
written down in Scripture for our admonition and EXAMPLE? Notice carefully! We read immediately in the very next few
verses of Acts 2:
"And they continued stedfastly
in the apostles' doctrine AND
FELLOWSHIP,
AND IN BREAKING OF BREAD, and in prayers . . . .
"And all that believed were together,
and had all things common;
and
sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men,
as
every man had need. And they, continuing
DAILY IN THE
TEMPLE,
AND BREAKING BREAD FROM HOUSE TO
HOUSE,
did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of
heart,
praising God and having favor with all the people "
(Acts
2:42-47).
NOTICE! IT WAS A CUSTOM OF THE EARLY CHURCH TO
"BREAK BREAD" TOGETHER, IN FELLOWSHIP, PRAISING GOD! This was so important that it was
recorded in the book of Acts.
Why? The answer
should be obvious -- FOR OUR INSTRUCTION and admonition, SHOWING US that we
should be doing the VERY SAME THING --
TODAY!
Paul's Inspired EXAMPLE
This is verified
further in Acts 20, verse 7, a verse generally neglected and glossed over. Notice!
"And upon the first day of the week, WHEN THE
DISCIPLES
CAME
TOGETHER TO BREAK BREAD, Paul preached unto
them,
ready to depart on the
morrow; and continued his speech
until
midnight" (Acts 20:7).
What
do we see here? The disciples are having
a FELLOWSHIP MEAL, most likely shortly before sunset, on the Sabbath, following
an afternoon Sabbath service. They are
together for a SUPPER or DINNER, with fellowship, and that is followed by a
message given by the apostle Paul as a "going away" message, Paul
knowing he was going to Jerusalem, and not knowing what might befall him
there.
Remember, Paul also wrote to the Corinthian brethren,
"Be ye followers of me, even
as I also am of CHRIST" (I
Cor.11:1). These things were written in
the book of Acts, and discussed in First Corinthians, to give us an EXAMPLE TO
FOLLOW! We also, today, should be having
sacred fellowship meals!
Again, when Paul was on board a ship which suffered in a
heavy storm, when the storm passed, he spoke to the sailors:
"And while the day was coming on, Paul besought them
all to
take
meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day that ye have
tarried
and continued fasting, having taken nothing.
Wherefore
I
pray you to take some meat: for this is
for your health: for
there
shall not an hair fall from any of you.
And when he had
thus
spoken, HE TOOK BREAD, and gave thanks to God in the
presence
of them all: and when he had broken it,
he began to eat.
Then
were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.
And
we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen
souls. And when they had eaten enough, they lightened
the ship,
and
cast out the wheat into the sea" (Acts 27:33-38).
Here
again we see Paul taking bread, breaking it, and giving thanks, preparatory of
a meal of fellowship.
However, in this case, Paul had a special meal with the
whole company of a ship, since all of them had weathered a severe storm at sea
together, and were survivors together.
They all had something in common.
This meal was an encouragement to everybody -- even the unconverted
sailors!
A Very Important Lesson for
US!
What are these Scriptures telling us? As a matter of fact, these Scriptures are
highlighting something that has been SERIOUSLY NEGLECTED in ALL the end-time
Remnant Churches of God -- including Worldwide Church of God, Church of God,
International, and others.
NONE of the remnants of the Church of God, in our
generation, have the CUSTOM or PRACTICE OF HOLDING A SACRED FELLOWSHIP MEAL, at
which bread -- a symbol of the body of Christ -- and wine -- a symbol of His
shed blood -- is partaken of, along with a REGULAR MEAL! In New Testament times, the "breaking of
bread" was a term which referred to having a meal or dinner together! The disciples of the Lord, as we have seen,
broke bread together OFTEN! There was no
"set time," necessarily -- but they did it OFTEN!
This was the kind of meal that Jesus Christ had with His
disciples on the EVE of His crucifixion!
This was the kind of meal the EARLY CHURCH held, often, in fellowship
with each other, in Christ!
And this was the very meal the apostle Paul was
describing in I Corinthians, chapter 11 -- a sacred fellowship meal!
Therefore, the
statements given in I Corinthians 11 by Paul, looking back to the last
"supper" or fellowship meal Jesus Christ held with His disciples
before His death, do not refer directly or only to the Passover at all. In principle, of course, these statements
do refer to the PORTION of the Passover which involves the eating of bread,
symbolizing the body of Christ, and the drinking of wine, which connotes the
blood of Christ. Nor do these
statements by Paul refer to any "new" memorial annual celebration to
be held on Nisan 14, on the eve of Christ's death!
But these
statements, in PRINCIPLE, do refer to something else? What is that?
The Sacred Fellowship Meal
Simply this -- these statements refer directly to a
FELLOWSHIP MEAL which should have been shared, as a sort of group dinner, with
each contributing as he was able, to the common meal, which was held "WHEN
THEY CAME TOGETHER IN THE CHURCH " (I Cor.11:18) -- A MEAL WHICH WOULD
OFTEN BE HELD RIGHT AFTER
CHURCH SERVICES WERE FINISHED!
Isn't
it about time we took these Scriptures literally? Isn't it about time we quit arguing over Passover
versus Nisan 14, and understood these Scriptures to be referring to something
done "AS OFTEN AS YE EAT THIS
BREAD," or as often as they held a sacred fellowship meal in the Church? The phrase, "as often as," proves
that this meal was held at an INDEFINITE TIME -- not a regular weekly, monthly,
or annual event -- not a yearly "memorial" at all -- but "AS
OFTEN AS" they were able, conditions permitting, to do it!
The
Ancient "Love Feasts" of the Church!
In his second
epistle, the apostle Peter warns us about false brethren who come to these
"love feasts." He declared of
them, "But these as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand
not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; and shall receive the
reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day
time. Spots they are, and blemishes,
sporting themselves with their own deceivings WHILE
THEY FEAST WITH YOU . . ." (II
Pet.2:12-13).
Adam
Clarke says of this passage: "It
appears they held a kind of communion with the Church, and attended sacred
festivals, which they desecrated with their own unhallowed opinions and
conduct." The Jamieson, Faussett, Brown Commentary states:
"Whilst partaking of the LOVE-FEAST with you, they are 'luxuriating
in their own deceivings'
or 'deceits."
The apostle Jude speaks of this same kind of problem
which inevitably arises when carnal, wicked impostors and false brethren come
in to partake of the sacred fellowship meals.
He wrote:
"These are SPOTS in your FEASTS OF CHARITY [LOVE],
when
they FEAST with you, feeding
themselves without fear:
clouds
they are without water, carried about of winds; trees
whose
fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked
up by
the
roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame;
wandering
stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness
for
ever" (Jude 12-13).
Says
Adam Clarke in his Commentary of the "feasts of charity" described in
this passage:
"The feasts of charity, or LOVE FEASTS, of
which the apostle
speaks,
WERE IN USE IN THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH UNTIL
THE
FOURTH CENTURY, WHEN, BY THE COUNCIL OF
LAODICEA,
THEY WERE PROHIBITED TO BE HELD IN
THE
CHURCHES; AND, HAVING BEEN ABUSED, FELL
INTO
DISUSE."
Did you GET THAT?
These original
"love feasts" or sacred fellowship meals, held OFTEN by the early
Church, and patterned after the Lord's final supper with His disciples, WERE
THE CUSTOM OF THE TRUE CHURCH -- and as such they were ABOLISHED, FORBIDDEN
AND PROHIBITED BY THE
PAGAN ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AT THE COUNCIL OF LAODICEA!!!
Adam Clarke goes on:
"Among the ancients, the richer members of the Church
made an
occasional
general feast, at which all the members attended, and
the
poor and the rich ate together. The
fatherless, the widows, and
the
strangers were invited to these feasts, and their EATING TO-
GETHER
was a proof of their love to each other; whence such
entertainments
were called love feasts. The love
feasts were at
first
celebrated before the Lord's
Supper [that is, before the emblems
of
the bread and wine symbolizing the body and blood of Christ were
taken]
. . ."
These
ancient feasts were patterned after the last supper or "love feast"
which Jesus had with His disciples. At
the end of the meal, as at the "last supper," the emblems of bread
and wine are taken, symbolizing the broken body and shed blood of our Saviour, keeping all in remembrance of the great price He
paid on our behalf, and keeping us in an attitude of reverence and spiritual
awe, even when fellowshipping and feasting together.
In process of time, however, even these wonderful sacred
fellowship meals became a problem due to infiltrators and false brethren who
sought to pervert them and use them to exalt their own authority. Rather than a true fellowship meal, with
ministers and lay members all eating and fellowshipping together, at the
same tables, as Christ did with His disciples, although He was over them in
authority, like one big joyous family, these false deceivers sought to exalt
themselves.
The Jamieson, Faussett and
Brown Commentary points out this
tragic fact:
"spots. So
II Pet.2:13 [spiloi; here, spilades, which, in secular
writers,
means rocks, viz., on which the Christian love-feasts
were
in danger of shipwreck]. A B C read
emphatically 'THE
rocks.' The reference to 'clouds . . . winds . . .
waves,' accords
with
rocks. . . . The love-feasts accompanied the Lord's Supper
(I
Cor.11, end). Korah
the Levite, not satisfied with his ministry,
aspired to the sacrificing
priesthood also: so ministers in the
Lord's
Supper, seeking to make it a sacrifice,
and themselves
sacrificing priests, usurp the function of our only
Christian
sacerdotal
Priest, Christ Jesus. Let them beware of Korah's
doom!
feeding
themselves [poimainontes ] --
'pasturing themselves.' What
they
look to is tending themselves, not the flock: they are 'pastors,'
but
it is to 'themselves.' without fear.
Join, not as the English
version,
but with 'feast.' Sacred feasts
especially ought to be
celebrated
with fear. Feasting is not faulty
in itself (Bengel ),
but
needs to be accompanied with fear of
forgetting God, as Job
(ch.1:5)
in his sons' feasts. clouds --
from which one would expect
refreshing
rain; but 'without water' (II Pet.2:17):
professors without
practice. carried about. . . 'carried aside;'
i.e., out of the right course
trees
whose fruit withereth [phthinoporina
] 'trees of the late (waning )
autumn,'
viz., when there are no longer leaves or fruits on the trees . . .
without
fruit -- without good fruit of
knowledge and practice; sometimes
what
is positively bad. twice dead --
first, when they cast their leaves in
autumn,
and seem during winter dead, but revive again in spring; second-
ly, when they are 'plucked up by the roots.' SO THESE
APOSTATES,
once
dead in unbelief, then, in respect to profession, raised from the
death
of sin to the life of righteousness, but NOW HAVING BECOME
DEAD
AGAIN BY APOSTASY, so hopelessly dead . . . ."
This
is a very powerful, thought-provoking, knowledge-crammed passage, deserving to
be read and studied very carefully.
Clearly, the early Church, which followed most closely the TRUTH
teachings of Jesus Christ, held from time to time a "LOVE-FEAST," or
"sacred fellowship banquet" or dinner. Each member contributed as he was able. Those who could afford nothing, however,
brought themselves, as the dinner was for ALL the Church! Ministers and members, all members being a
"spiritual house," a "holy priesthood," "lively
stones," fellowshipping TOGETHER, on an equal plane! In the original TRUE Church, ministers
were NOT exalted "above" the brethren. True ministers are not "as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples
to the flock" (I Pet.5:3).
There was no division or "separation" between
ministers and lay members at these true "love-feasts." It was a true FAMILY SETTING -- as the Church
of God IS the "FAMILY" of God (Eph.3:15).
Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, in The
Story of the Christian Church, describes how these corrupters and
self-seeking individuals crept into the church and began to pervert and change
that which was holy and good, and changed it into an ungodly, pagan, heathenish
masquerade.
Notice his stinging indictment of the spiritually sinking
ministry of that time!
"Many privileges were bestowed upon the clergy, not
all by imperial
enactment,
but by custom which soon became law.
Public duties
obligatory
upon all citizens were no longer required of the clergy;
they
were set free from taxes [in some churches today, tithes!]; all
accusations
against clergymen were tried before ecclesiastical courts
[i.e.,
by ministerial cohorts, in private -- of course!]. The MINISTERS
OF
THE CHURCH SOON BECAME A PRIVILEGED CLASS,
ABOVE
THE LAW OF THE LAND" (p.76).
This, of course, became a great CURSE
to the Church, by now far removed from the pure, primitive, sacred TRUTH of
God! Says Hurlbut,
further:
"Everybody sought membership in the church, and nearly
everybody
was
received. Both good and bad, sincere
seekers after God and hypo-
critical
seekers after gain, rushed into the communion.
Ambitious,
worldly,
unscrupulous men sought office in the church for social
and
political
influence. The moral tone of
Christianity was FAR BELOW
that
which had marked the same people under persecution.
"The
services of worship increased in splendor, but were LESS
SPIRITUAL
AND HEARTY than those of former times.
The forms
and
ceremonies of PAGANISM gradually
crept into the worship. Some
of
the old HEATHEN FEASTS BECAME CHURCH FESTIVALS
WITH
CHANGE OF NAME AND WORSHIP. About 405 A.D. images
of
saints and martyrs began to appear in the churches, at first as memorials,
then
in succession revered, adored, and worshipped.
The adoration of the
Virgin
Mary was substituted for the worship of Venus and Diana; the
LORD'S
SUPPER BECAME A SACRIFICE in place
of a memorial;
and
the ELDER EVOLVED from a preacher into a priest " (p.79).
Do you see what happened?
When the simple fellowship and sacred fellowship meal became perverted,
and ministers began to EXALT THEMSELVES, they quickly led the church into PAGANISM!
The truth of God became buried under an avalanche of RELIGIOUS
totalitarian authority, supposedly from God, but actually a masquerade of Devil
(see II Cor.11:13-15). In the process,
the wonderful "love-feasts" of the first century Church of God became
defiled, polluted, and perverted into the PAGAN MASS -- called "the Lord's
Supper"! But what a travesty? The priests, or "ministers,"
blessed the wine and bread, and doled it out to the members, and DID AWAY WITH
THE "SUPPER" in the 'Lord's Supper"! Thus they turned a joyous supper into a
priestly sacrifice!
Just as in the days
of the arch-rebel Korah in the time of Moses, these
ministers aren't satisfied with being preachers of the gospel -- they want to
be OFFICIATING PRIESTS ALSO!
Today,
a number of Churches, both Protestant and Catholic, and even the Worldwide
Church of God and its several splinter churches, all observe what they often
confuse with the "Passover" but also call "the Lord's
Supper," at which they partake of the emblems of bread and wine blessed by
the local priest or highest ranking minister.
What originally began by Christ and the apostles as a joyous LOVE-FEAST
they transformed and turned into a religious ritual!
How sad! How tragic!
The apostasy grew
and spread, and matters became so bad, according to historian Jesse Lyman Hurbut, that
"The humility and saintliness of an earlier age was
succeeded by
ambition,
pride, and arrogance, among CHURCHMEN. . . . the
tide
of worldliness swept uncontrolled over many professed
disciples
of their lowly Lord.
".
. . the church and the state became one. . . In the east the state
dominated
the church until it lost all energy and uplifting life. In
the
west . . . the church gradually usurped power over the state,
and
the result was not Christianity but a more or less corrupt
HIERARCHY
controlling the nations of Europe, making the
church
mainly a political machine" (p.80).
As
apostasy spread and poisoned the minds of church members, the church itself
became more and more a "POLITICAL MACHINE," instead of the lowly,
saintly, humble and pure virgin bride of Christ! The faith of many had become shipwrecked. What many still thought was the "bride
of Christ" became instead the WHORE OF BABYLON! (see Rev.17:1-7; 18:1-9).
Isn't it about time we REALLY get back to the "faith
once delivered to the saints"? As the apostle Jude wrote, who himself
mentioned the original "feasts of charity" or "love
feasts,"
"Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you
of the common
salvation,
it was needful for me to write unto you, that ye should
EARNESTLY
CONTEND FOR THE FAITH WHICH WAS
ONCE
DELIVERED
UNTO THE SAINTS. For there are certain
men crept
in
unawares . . ." (Jude 3-4).
Wonderful TRUTH RESTORED!
Thus the passage in I Corinthians 11 certainly does not
prove, as some claim, that Passover was changed to the beginning of Nisan
14. Although the principles Paul stated
here can refer to the wine and bread elements of the true Passover, held
annually on Nisan 15, Paul is actually discussing here the SACRED FELLOWSHIP
DINNER, which was held "as OFT" as they were able to do so, to have a
meal together as a Church and fellowship together, remembering on this
occasion and partaking of the "bread" symbolizing Christ's body, and
the "wine," symbolizing His blood -- as a special observance
associated with the "sacred fellowship meal." This is much more than just having a
"dinner" together! It focuses
our minds, when we have such an observance, ON CHRIST, the one who makes our
fellowship together IN HIM possible!
Let's thank God for this new truth! Let's thank Him for this NEW UNDERSTANDING which
gives us NEW INSIGHT into the importance of "breaking bread"
together, as God's people, and FELLOWSHIPPING with a sacred FELLOWSHIP
MEAL! We should strive to have a
fellowship meal with brethren often. As
Malachi and the apostle Paul write:
"Then they feared the LORD spake
often one to another: and the LORD
hearkened,
and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before
him
for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. And
they
shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day
when I make up
MY
JEWELS, and I WILL SPARE THEM, as a man spareth
his own son
that
serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between
the righteous
and
the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that
serveth him
not"
(Malachi 4:16-18).
The apostle Paul added:
"And let us consider one another to provoke unto love
and to good works:
NOT
FORSAKING THE ASSEMBLING OF OURSELVES TOGETHER,
as
the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more,
as
ye see the day approaching "
(Hebrews 10:24-25).
And
in another place, he admonished:
"But
exhort one another DAILY, while it is called Today; lest any of you
be
hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
For we are made partakers of
Christ,
IF we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end"
(Hebrews
3:13-14).
As
we head into the very last days, the time of Satan the devil's "Last
Stand," and horrifying times of persecution and affliction and great
tribulation, let us draw near to God and to Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour, and let us take to heart His admonition and
example of fellowship and breaking bread together, with thanksgiving and praise
to God.
And let us CELEBRATE God's sacred fellowship "LOVE
FEASTS" -- as Jesus Christ Himself
set us the example at His "last supper" with His disciples -- and let
us do so in the bond of true Christian fellowship, peace, unity and love!
Celebrating the "Kiddush"
Sabbath
Challah Recipe
2 packages dry yeast 1/3
cup sugar
2
cups lukewarm water 6-7
cups flour
2
teaspoons salt 2
eggs
1/3
cup vegetable oil
Make your own delicious Challah bread at
home. It may be used for the
"Kiddush" ("Blessing" of the bread and wine) portion of
your Sabbath meal, at "erev Shabbat"
(Friday evening) or Sabbath afternoon, or any time you have a special
fellowship meal with other believers (such as on annual Holy Days other than
Unleavened Bread).
Combine yeast and sugar in a large bowl. Add the lukewarm water and stir until yeast
dissolves. Let it sit for about 10-15
minutes. Add salt and about 3 1/2 cups
of flour. Beat until texture is smooth. Add 1 egg and the oil, and then mix
well. Stir in 2-3 cups of flour or more,
until the mixture forms a soft dough.
Roll the dough onto a slightly floured surface and knead it until it is
smooth. Add flour while kneading to keep
the dough from becoming sticky. When the
dough is smooth (after kneading it several minutes), punch a small hole with
your finger. When the dough bounces
back, it is ready to rise. Place the
dough in a well-greased bowl and turn to grease all the sides and the top. Cover with a wet towel and let it rise until
it doubles in size. (This recipe may be
covered with a lid and refrigerated all night.)
After this first rising, punch the dough down and divide it in
half. Divide each half into three equal
parts. Roll each third into a long strip, and then braid three together. (It is easier to begin the braid in the
middle and press the ends underneath so they will not unravel. Place each loaf into a greased loaf pan or on
a greased sheet and cover with a wet towel.
Let it rise again, for about an hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix
remaining egg with 1 Tsp. water and brush the loaves for a shiny crust. Bake for 23-26 minutes, or until golden
brown.
The Blessing
(the "Kiddush")
At the beginning of the meal, we bless God for providing the
"bread" (challah), and partake of it, and
then bless Him for the wine, and partake of it, following the example of
Christ. The words of each blessing are shown below. Only a red wine should be
used (or grape juice for children). After this ceremony, the regular meal is
served. The prayer of blessing should be
similar to this:
1) BREAD "Blessed
are you, O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who provides bread from the
earth."
In
Hebrew: Baruch attah
Adonai, Elohenu, Melek ha olam, Ha motzi lechem min ha
eretz.
"Thank you, Lord, for the meaning and symbolism which this bread,
which represents, the broken body of our Lord Jesus Christ, Yeshua
our Messiah, who said, 'I am the bread of life,' and that whoever eats of Him
will 'live forever.' And two nights
before His death, He told His disciples, 'Take, eat, this is my body; do this
in remembrance of me,' and so, Father, we partake of this bread remembering our
Lord Jesus Christ, and the price He paid for our sins. By doing this, we proclaim our acceptance of
His sacrifice for us. In His name we
pray, Amen."
2) WINE "Blessed are
you, O Lord our God, King and Ruler of the Universe, who gives us the fruit of
the vine."
In Hebrew: Baruch attah Adonai, Elohenu, Melek ha olam, boray pre ha gafen.
"Thank you, Lord, for showing us the meaning of partaking of
this wine, as a symbol of the shed blood of Jesus Christ, Yeshua
the Messiah, who poured out His blood to atone for our sins, and who said,
'Drink ye all of it, for this is the blood of the new testament, which is shed
for many for the remission of sins,'
and, 'do this, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.' So, Father, we drink of it, now, in
remembrance of the shed blood of Christ, knowing that as often as we do this,
we proclaim His death till He comes, and acknowledge Him as our Saviour and Redeemer.
In Yeshua's name, Amen."