Blessed & Broken Bread

“Gracie, how and when did we change the phrase ‘partaking in the holy communion‘ into ‘break bread?”– that was Arnold (my hubby) .

Truth is, I also didn’t know when or how, or at most I had a very vague idea as I briefly reflected on the Acts of the Apostles. But I was curious to find out, more for myself, and maybe for Arnold too (if he is still interested) 🙂

The instructions for the Passover (commonly practiced among Christians as the communion) was given to the Jews by God through Moses on the night preceding their exodus from Egypt (Exodus 12:22-23). They were to kill a lamb, drain its blood into a basin and then rub the blood on lintels and doors around their houses. This would protect them and their household from being hurt by the destroyer. Afterwards, the Passover was held by the Jews on the 14th day of the first month at twilight to commemorate their exodus from Egypt and their freedom from slavery. This tradition was passed down many generations (Exodus 12:24-30).

Interestingly, Jesus considered it very necessary to have the Passover with His disciples before His crucifixion…

“And when He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying; “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me “. Luke 22:19 NKJV.

At the table, Jesus directed that henceforth, the attention should be on Him, and not on the Passover experience or celebration as the Jews knew it. So, while the Jews observed the Passover to remember when God saved them from death and slavery in Egypt, Jesus commanded us to take the communion in remembrance of His sacrifice for mankind. 

At Jesus’ death, a new Passover Lamb was introduced; Himself…

“…for indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore, let us keep the feast…” 

1 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV 

What’s the Frequency of breaking bread?

Jesus also broke the rule regulating the frequency of observing the Passover; He commanded His disciples to do it as often as they can in remembrance of Him, no longer as an annual event.

From then onward it would seem that the disciples’ understanding and practice of the Passover changed somewhat, from being a very sacred ceremonious event that took place at an appointed time, to something that needed to be done more frequently as we see in cited scriptures below;

“so continuing daily in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.” Acts 2:46

“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.” Acts 20:7

“The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?” 1 Corinthians 10:16.

Probably for the disciples, breaking bread (considering the frequency of its occurrence) depicted a continuous event than a periodic one. So it would seem that the phrase changed from the Passover to breaking bread among the disciples and understandably so.

Why we break bread……

I believe that when Jesus commanded that the disciples observe the Passover in remembrance of Him, He meant for them to remember:

1. That He represents the new Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7).
2. That we have a New Covenant with God sealed with His blood (Hebrews 9:12, Mark 14:24).
3. That the old covenant of sin and death is obsolete.
4. That while the old covenant covered sin (atonement) to prevent death and destruction, the new covenant completely removes sin (remission) from us (Matthew 26:28, Hebrews 9:26).
5. That this New Covenant affirms of eternal deliverance from the law of sin and death for all who believe (Romans 8:2, Hebrews 9:12), therefore we are protected from Death and the Destroyer.
6. That for our transgressions He received wounds, for our iniquities, he received bruises, for our peace, He got chastised, for our healing, He got stripes and for every curse emanating from the old covenant, He got us the blessing (Isaiah 53:5, 1 Peter 2:24, Galatians 3:13-14). Therefore, we are healed.

Every time we break bread, we remember and affirm these things.

First Corinthians chapter eleven, verses 29 to 30, reminds us that we are one body in Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-27) so our participation in the communion is an affirmation to this truth because the bread symbolizes the body of Jesus which was broken for us. Therefore, when we partake in the communion, we proclaim that we identify with Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection, and that we also identify as being one with every member of the Body of Christ.

In essence, the communion signifies a protective as well as a bonding event; we proclaim that the destroyer can’t touch us and that we (Christians) are bond as one in Christ. ‘Not discerning the Body of Christ’ during communion happens when we do not walk in love towards the brethren and yet eat of the communion. This is counter-productive and works against us. So why do I want to eat myself to weakness, sickness, or death? No, I’ll rather forgive walk in love. This way ill maximize the benefits of the communion as well as enjoy good health.

So the practice of the Passover in terms of its frequency and what to focus on changed, but did it’s significance change too? 🙂

Why did Jesus talk about a New Covenant as He served and partook in in His last earthly Passover?

Join me next time in the concluding part of this blog post.

AboutGrace Obomanu

Grace obomanu is a Christian Blogger and Founder; 'Grace Obomanu Foundation'. Grace is an inspiring writer who intentionally projects the truth of God's word by sharing simple yet profound truths from the Bible. She writes with a revelational thrust, sharing wisdom, insights relatable to everyday living with particular emphasis on Victorious Christian Living. Her foundation, a non-profit trustee, continues to make impact, adding value to people's lives through outreaches, mentorship, bible teachings and counseling, partnerships. Grace has a diploma in Ministerial Training (with emphasis on Spiritual Leadership from Rhema Bible Training Center Nigeria. She trained as a medical doctor and has years of experience in Health Systems Management. She also holds a master's degree in Public Health from the University of Liverpool.