What’s an Agape Feast?

On the night before the cross, in the midst of a meal with His closest followers, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it to His disciples saying, “Take eat; this is my body.” He then took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to His disciples saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, shed for you for the remission of sins.” By so doing, the Lord initiated what we celebrate today as “communion” or “The Lord’s Supper.” He took bread and wine-- things commonly enjoyed, typically daily consumed -- and attached to them an awesome lesson. It was clearly the Lord’s intention to keep His followers focused, even daily, on the great sacrifice He made by coming from heaven to earth, becoming a man, and dying on the cross to pay for our sins. Holding the bread and the cup and then partaking brings to our conscious minds the facts of the gospel, the love of God, and realization that what He did He did for me, personally. This special remembrance also cements the idea that we together enjoy life with Jesus because we all draw our life from the same source, we’re all sinners saved by God’s grace.

Having received this instruction, the apostles led the early church in following this pattern and came together often to “break bread.” The Word says,

"And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers." (Acts 2:42, NKJV)

"So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart," (Acts 2:46, NKJV) ^[1]

It seems as though the church continued to break bread during their meals together. These meals together became known as “Agape Feasts” or “Love Feasts” (Jude 12). It was a celebration of God’s love demonstrated on Calvary. As they shared food together, they took time to stop and remember the fact that Jesus’ body was broken and His blood was shed so that they could be saved, so that they could be together in God’s family. This focused their time together on the Lord Jesus and His work on their behalf. It definitely set the tone for their time together, inspiring praise, gratefulness, and mercy.

As time went on some problems arose. Paul addressed the church in Corinth in 1 Corinthians 11. The church was gathering for the Lord’s Supper, but it had become a production line, a time to get free meal. People were coming selfishly seeking to get their supper ahead of others. Some people were hungry and others were drunk. That church needed to be corrected. They lost the heart, the purpose, the whole focus of their time gathering together. Paul wrote that they were not discerning the Lord’s body (1 Corinthians 11:29). They were not recognizing that the Lord was there. There were not focusing on the fact of the cross. They were not seeing that the people they were gathering with were part of the Lord’s body. It was a sad situation that needed to be corrected.

Knowing the Lord intends for us to celebrate communion often, focusing our fellowship on the broken body and shed blood of Jesus, I’ve been seeking the Lord concerning how to observe this special time in a Biblical and meaningful experience. I’ve become increasingly concerned with observing communion at the end of the service. I don’t want to turn the Lord’s Supper into a mindless ritual or a rushed observance. I really want to honor the Lord as we break bread together. So, we’re going to try something different on December 5^th at 5pm. We’re going to have a special meal together, a holiday meal. As we gather, we’re going to sit down at tables together, worship the Lord, and hear a brief devotion from the Word. Then at each table we’ll break bread and take the cup together, remembering and sharing with one another what Jesus did for us. It will be a time focused on the cross, fellowship centered on the Lord. After breaking bread, we’ll continue our meal together as food will be served at each table (no cafeteria line, but family style). It’s my prayer that through the meal, Jesus will continue to be the focus, as we fellowship together.

Please pray and consider setting this time aside to come and experience this special remembrance together! If you plan to attend please sign up at church OR email calvary@ccdeltapa.org.

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[1] The New King James Version. 1982. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Spring 2011 Israel Tour

If you love studying the Word, and would like to grow in your Biblical understanding, one of the best investments you can make is taking a teaching tour of Israel. After spending a week in Israel, when you read your Bible the settings of the stories will be in your mind, not just in your imagination. You’ll have an enduring picture of the Sea of Galilee, the Mount of Olives, the City of Jerusalem, the Wilderness, and the Jordan Valley. It’s hard to explain what it’s like taking a boat ride over the same body of water that Jesus walked upon. The impact is profound, as you stand by the retaining walls of the Temple Mount and see the huge stones of the Temple that the Roman soldiers pushed off the mount, fulfilling the words of Jesus in Luke 19:45. To walk through the ruins of Capernaum, the site of ancient city of Dan, or archeological excavations at Caesarea takes you back in time to the days of your favorite Bible characters. You’ll be amazed as you stand looking over the plains of Megiddo considering what the Bible says about Last Days’ conflict that will take place on that famous battlefield. Every day in Israel will bring new memories and inspiration that will impact your faith for the rest of your life.

I’ve worked with Inspired Travel to develop a tour that is a good value for you, attempting to minimize expenses while not compromising the quality of your experience. We’ll be flying out of Philadelphia on Thursday, April 28^th flying overnight arriving in Tel Aviv on April 29^th. We’ll be staying one night in Tel Aviv, three nights in Galilee, and four nights in Jerusalem. We’ll have seven full days of touring in a comfortable tour bus. An Israeli guide will lead us, and I’ll be teaching in various locations throughout each day. A buffet breakfast and dinner will be provided daily along with four lunches. We’ll arrive home on Saturday, May 7^th. All entrance fees, taxes, tips, hotel, and airfare are included in the tour cost of $2985.

If you’d like more information, send me an email, doug@ccdeltapa.org expressing your interest or asking your questions. Please prayerfully consider being a part of this upcoming tour.