Love Feast.

Sharing time at table together over a meal. Food is really normal and intimate. A quick breakfast and out the door. Wondering when you might sit at the table as a family for dinner in the midst of busy schedules. Simple, special meal with friends. Lunch by yourself and a book or Jesus. Meals are such a routine part of the fabric of each of our days. It's easy to overlook just how meaningful lingering over food with good friends can be. Use your imagination of what kind of meal and gathering would be desirable to you. Perhaps remember times when you have shared really special, simple moments with those that you love around a table together. I have several that emerge pretty quickly in my mind.

Our early Christian family in the biblical account of the bible book of Acts gives us pictures of what these early Christ following hearts valued, what they prioritized. In that bible book of Acts, chapter 2, verse 42, we receive a description of what some of those things were. "They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers." They were hungry together in this new time as Jesus has ascended into heaven and they are beginning to live life as Christ followers without Him on the earth. And so Jesus had taught them and now they are teaching themselves and new followers what He had taught them. They devoted themselves to teaching about Jesus. And then the next thing that it says that they devoted themselves to is "and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread...". It's interesting to note that there is not an "and" in between the fellowship and the breaking of bread. Another "and" comes right after the breaking of bread...."and" to prayer. The skipping of the "and" between fellowship and breaking of bread seems to be linking these two together in some way. That link seems to be a meal.

In the bible book of Jude, verse 12 we see this interesting phrase. "Love feast." Our early family shared what came to be called the love feast or sometimes called the agape feast. This is what is happening as we read in Acts that they devoted themselves to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread. They were hungry together for the apostles teaching and they were also hungry together for communing together over meals and communing together in the way that Jesus showed them how to remember Him through the bread and the wine at the Last Supper. In these early days of catalytic growth, the love feast was regularly practiced. They wanted to be together in fellowship and friendship which they did around meals and while gathered, they wanted to keep remembering the sacrifice of Jesus which they did at some point in their meal with the bread and wine as Jesus had taught them.

Many of us observe communion or the Lord's supper in some regular fashion. Our observance, understandably so, takes place within minutes in a church pew or on retreat or gathered around a communion table together. After years of practicing this relatively brief remembrance in minutes, it is easy to think that what Jesus did at that last supper probably also lasted only minutes. But notice the richness of what the bible tells us in the bible book of Matthew, chapter 26, verse 26 and the bible book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 11, verse 25. Jesus is sharing this final meal with His friends before He moves deliberately towards the cross and it says, "While they were eating, Jesus took break, gave thanks and broke it and gave it to His disciples saying, 'Take and eat this is my body'." During the meal. Paul in 1 Corinthians continues it this way. "In the same way, after supper He took the cup saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me'." After the meal.

So why am going on about this during and after? After years of sharing the Lord's supper in mere minutes, which is certainly still incredibly meaningful, I don't want to miss that when Jesus showed His followers what this time of remembering would be like for centuries to come, that it most likely happened not in the context of minutes, but in the context of lingering over a a meal at table together in all its ordinary glory. During and after the supper. Lingering. The fellowship, the breaking of bread. The love feast is not rushed. And I believe this is pointing us toward a lingering supper feast that is yet to come.

Bible book of Revelation, chapter 19, verse 9. A supper is coming. A feast. It will be a love feast to end all love feasts and it will be a beginning of forever that we can't fully fathom. "Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the lamb." Somebody is getting married! Jesus and you, if you are in Christ! Jesus and me, if I am in Christ! Jesus and us, if we are in Christ! LOVE FEAST! I want it. I want to be there. I want you to be there too.

And so what of the love feast today? As many things do, the love feast of old began to change and was not practiced in the same way that it had been. But what of you and I today as we gather around tables with a spouse, children or friends? Or gathering with work friends or a small group of Christ followers? Can we gather with meaning together? Can we long to love each other and love Jesus while we share a burger or bulgogi?

Feast of love.

Jesus invites.

There's more.