SWP Class 7 Notes - Influence By Apostle's Bread-breaking: Breaking is Sharing

Welcome and Class Map

Class Seven, October 23, 2023

Welcome to class seven!

This is my God-given mandate: Get everyone to study and apply how to be genuine, apostolic Disciple-Makers.

Class Schedule Bird’s Eye View:

SWP Class Content & Structure for Fall 2023:

Influence by the Apostles’ Doctrine

The Great Commission (September 11)

Apostle is defined as delegate, ambassador, or commissioner.

The commissioner’s instructed one thing: What Jesus’ taught them.

New Birth (September 18)

Holy Spirit-transformation (September 25)

Influence by Fellowship

Expansion of the Field of Contacts (October 2)

Uncommon Communion, (October 9)

Uncommon Exchange of Faith & Experience, the Witness of “Withness” (October 16)

Influence by Stewardship: Breaking of Bread

Breaking of Bread defined (October 23)

Communion in Heaven’s Economy (October 30)

Redemptive distribution of value (November 6)

Influence by Worship: Prayers

Two-way Comms (November 13)

Supplication (November 20)

Lifestyle (November 27)

Reflections from this past week:

How are the Jesus-disciple-journeys unfolding?

We should have read chapter 6 in “Follow To Lead.” 

Review M.A.K.E...

How do you know when the time is right to be a Witness To Jesus?

Apply the M.A.K.E. test, as a general guideline:

It's time to M.A.K.E. a disciple if the fellowship “withness” reveals that our relationship is:

M.eeting a need.

Service? Am I adding value to their life? I must be sure that I’m on the giving end and not the receiving.

A.nswering God’s Call.

Anointing? Prayer focus for this candidate has illuminated my readiness.

K.ingdom-first.

Motive? Ensuring that it’s not a personal quest, not even a local church quest, but ultimately it is a Kingdom-first quest, to see souls added.

E.ngaging.

Audience? If you don’t have their attention, it’s highly unlikely you’ll see their salvation.

DISCUSSION: WHAT IS HUMAN DEFAULT MODE FOR THE FOLLOWING:

Smiling or Frowning?

Happy or Sad?

Comfortable or Uncomfortable?

Content or Discontent?

Full or Hungry?

Loving or Hating?

Giving or Taking?

Selfish or Selfless?

Greedy or Generous?

We or Me?

Me First or Others First?

Now or Later?

Patient or Impatient?

Self-centered or Other's-centered?

At the heart of the study of apostolic disciple-making lies the common denominator dilemma we all face: Am I willing to both live by the Bread of Life and make constant, daily distribution of Him a priority?

Backdrop Passages:

Isaiah 55:9–13 NKJV

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; And it shall be to the Lord for a name, For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

John 12:23–25 NKJV

But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

1 Corinthians 11:24 NKJV

and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

A Fresh Look at The Bread of Life

John 6:11–12 NKJV

And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.”

A careful study of John 6 reveals that Jesus fed the 5000 so that he could provide living, tangible proof that the distribution of the broken bread and fish was unlimited. There was enough… More than enough! The 12 extra baskets were symbolic of a number that means God’s original covenant people.

It was not at all about the Filet-O-Fish meal! Often, that provides a bedtime or Sunday School story which makes everyone feel happy that Jesus is such a great miracle worker.

Such an assessment falls miserably short of the true purpose for the miracle. The divine distribution was simply a backdrop for what Jesus wanted to point out in the following passages…

John 6:48 NKJV

I am the bread of life.

In essence, Jesus whetted the appetite of those crowds who were following him… He created a masterful point by creating demand in the physical that could only be met in the spiritual. The day following the miracle of divine distribution, the crowds woke up hungry and, guess what? They're looking for Someone to provide another miracle meal! Their physical stomachs were growling with hunger, but the appetite of their souls hadn't even been considered.

Jesus did such a great job of preparing a table of satisfying food in the wilderness, they were on a pursuit to try to find him, even to the point of piling in boats to cross the lake to find him. When they found him, they asked him how he eluded them by crossing the lake without a boat. He answered them by saying,

John 6:26–27 NKJV

Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”

The study of this miracle is worthy of many hours of in-depth concentration, but, allow me, for the sake of time, to pinpoint, the verse of scripture, that is the core of what Jesus had to say and demonstrate:

John 6:57 NKJV

As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.

John 6:57–58 TPT

The Father of life sent me, and he is my life. In the same way, the one who feeds upon me, I will become his life. I am not like the bread your ancestors ate and later died. I am the living Bread that comes from heaven. Eat this Bread and you will live forever!”

Can you tell that Jesus had something more in mind than simply boggling the minds of the hungry crowd? Something more than just providing a mobile buffet?

Without a doubt, Jesus Christ was placing in the mind of his disciples, by living example, that He, the Bread of Life, was enough for the entire world!

That sentiment, and that demand for a action is deeply at the heart of the third key factor for influencing the kingdom in the Acts 2:42 outline for Apostolic leadership. (We'll be right back to this divine distribution story in a moment, but let's momentarily tap back into our key thought for this class session.

Stewardship.

Acts 2:42 NKJV

And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Volumes 1–5 2. Communism

It is very plausible to refer this to the community of goods described in the verses immediately following (see COMMUNITY OF GOODS). The author might, however, with equal propriety have regarded the interchange of spiritual experiences as an act of worship in the same class with “the breaking of bread and the prayers.”

Acts 2:44–45 NKJV

Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.

Acts 4:32–35 NKJV

Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.

Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Developments 1.1. Acts 2:41–46

According to Acts 2:41–42, those who at Pentecost repented and were baptized were added to the company of those who “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship [koinōnia], to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” It is hard to determine the precise relationship among the elements in this foursome, chiefly because of the difficulty in specifying the meaning of the somewhat elastic word koinōnia. It has been suggested that the four items constitute a service, in liturgical sequence, of preaching, agapē, Eucharist and prayers (see Worship). Another suggestion is that koinōnia designates a collection (of money or goods), so that “the breaking of bread” might then stand for either an agapē or the Eucharist or both. In any case, the context indicates that the believers shared several things together: not only apostolic instruction, the “breaking of bread” and prayers, but also attendance at the temple (Acts 2:46) and the distribution of material goods as need arose (Acts 2:44–45). Thus the breaking of bread is associated with a common faith, the common worship of God and a common life of mutual service; the “breaking” is for the purpose of “sharing,” as Léon-Dufour insists (le partage du pain), and so brings to expression the unity of the community in Christ. The breaking of bread took place in the homes of believers and in conjunction with a meal of which they partook “with glad and generous hearts” (Acts 2:46; cf. du Toit).

Acts 20:7–12 (NKJV)

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.

The Acts of the Apostles Acts 20:7–12

THIS vivid story is clearly an eyewitness account; and it is one of the first accounts we have of what a Christian service was like.

It talks twice about breaking of bread. In the early Church, there were two closely related things. One was what was called the Love Feast. All contributed to it, and it was a real meal—often the only proper meal that poor slaves got all week. Here, Christians ate in loving fellowship with each other. The other was the Lord’s Supper, which was observed during or immediately after the Love Feast. It may well be that we have lost something of great value in the happy togetherness of the common meal. It marked as nothing else could the family spirit of the Church.

Breaking of Bread, along with the Lord's Supper, prevails with a daily emphasis on sharing.

Along with meals eaten together and the portioning out of God's goodness and blessings upon everyone, the Breaking of Bread can also refer to the partaking of the Lord's Supper, following His example at the Last Supper. 

The thoughtful and strategic usage of God's blessings and how they must be invested properly, comes into play when considering the Breaking of The Bread of Life...

The administration and oversight of our God-given resources, especially our Greatest Resource, The Bread of Life!

The representation of bread in biblical nomenclature is metaphorical of sustenance and sufficiency. It represents meeting needs and blessings.

Cast thy bread upon the water;

give us this day our daily bread;

turn these stones into bread;

will a father give his son who asks for bread a scorpion?

Steward: A ship’s officer who is in charge of provisions and dining arrangements.

In times past, some may recall we used the term, stewardship, to apply breaking of bread to the ways we distribute and administrate resources in the local church.

Unrequited Sharing is Nothing New, But Good Stewards Don’t Mind

For this time in my life, I consider breaking of bread as a point of reference to measure how much I'm distributing the blessing and the gospel of Jesus through me to others. AM I SHARING? Not only am I convicted to live by the Apostle's Doctrine, to pursue depths of Godly, influential fellowship with others, but also to actively and intentionally be a distributor of The Bread of Life.

Breaking of Bread only implies an unlimited supply! The more and faster I break the Bread of life to my candidates, the more and faster I find out if they really want to feed on Him!

Jesus filtered out the uncommitted overnight.

The New King James Version John 6:66–67

From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.

Confession by Peter

Then Jesus said to the twelve

Are you ready for a super-amazing fun fact? Most of you know that Jesus fed another group of 4,000, correct? There are some extremely distinctive and important details that separate both events.

The biggest difference was LOCATION!

The feeding of the 5,000 took place near Bethsaida, close to the Sea of Galilee. In contrast, the feeding of the 4,000 took place in the region of the Gerasenes, in the region around the Decapolis.

Okay, so the two miracles took place in different regions, so what? It’s important because the first region was Jewish (5,000+) and the second region was Gentile (4,000+). There are some numerical clues in the text which also point to this distinction (numbers in the Bible are rarely accidental). 12 baskets left-over possibly represent the 12 tribes of Israel, while the 7 baskets left-over could represent God's perfect number of finality!

He came to his own, and his own received him not… No doubt the second instance was a major precursor and preview to his devoted followers that the Gentiles would receive him most wholeheartedly.

John 1:12 NKJV

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

As we define breaking of bread for our current day and age as well as our Apostolic influence, it is urgent that we recognize that we are called to DIVINE DISTRIBUTION!

Are you ready to make a commitment and go beyond the filtering process left which eliminates about 99.75%? (12 of 5,000 remained!)

Never forget, God is a god of sufficiency, abundance, and unfathomable supply…

The New King James Version 2 Corinthians 9:8–12

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written:

“He has dispersed abroad,

He has given to the poor;

His righteousness endures forever.”

Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God. For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the

2 Corinthians 3:5 NKJV

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God,

CONCLUSION:

This week, post AT LEAST ONE comment on the Follow To Lead chapter 7 threaded discussion.

Please keep me posted on your progress at reaching you list of souls. Let me know if we need to meet up at odd hours for studies or baptisms, in Jesus' Name!