Hello to our readers and welcome back to the second blog post in our four-part series, “What is church?” The team at e3 Partners Ministry thanks you once again for your readership & prayers!
Previously, we talked about the core practices of the early Church. Together, we examined the book of Acts and identified a biblical model for modern-day church planting. Namely, church members should hear the Gospel, repent & believe, undergo baptism, and make disciples. As we continue our discussion, readers will observe that the early Church participated in two additional core practices: gathering together regularly and devoting themselves to the breaking of bread.
Breaking of Bread
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer … Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God … And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” – Acts 2:42, 46-47
As we can see from the scripture above, the early believers regularly emulated the actions of Jesus and His disciples at the Last Supper, obeying Christ’s command to “do this in remembrance of me.” And now, modern-day believers follow their example through the practice known as the Lord’s Supper, or Communion. As such, we invite you to view e3’s Guide to Communion PDF.
As our missionaries help to plant churches around the globe, they educate new believers on the importance of this fundamental practice, during which believers take time to share bread and wine or juice in remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection. So please pray for our hardworking staff members who are taking the practice of the Lord’s Supper to 90+ countries across six continents!
Gathering Together Regularly
It’s worth noting that, in both mentions of the believers breaking bread, they did so together; simply put, the early believers were devoted to fellowship. And so we must be, as modern-day followers of Christ. In fact, Hebrews 10:24-25 admonishes believers to not neglect meeting together. Why? Because gathering allows us to stir one another up to love and good works. We see this actively happening within the early church in Acts 2:42-47, and we see it today on the mission field as well.
Our missionaries spend a substantial amount of time with non-believers as they share the Gospel, which can at times lead to rejection and persecution. Yet they understand the biblical importance of gathering with like-minded believers to worship, rest, and recharge. That’s why our missionaries and National Partners periodically gather at evangelism & leadership training events, where they can hone their skills for the harvest and build one another up. Your readership and prayers are an encouragement to them, so thank you again.
Please stay tuned for the next blog post in this four-part series, and until then, we would like to leave you with e3 Partners’ one-page Guide to Communion PDF. Please feel free to share this with a fellow believer in your sphere of influence in remembrance of our dear Lord’s sacrifice and resurrection.