“The church life is all about eating,” a brother recently said during the end-of-the-year gatherings as part of our churching together. And while we prepared and ate a lot of good food together, what this brother was talking about was more than a physical meal; he was talking about the nature of our coming together as a relationship around the table.
Although in our activities the picture of eating may seem very physical or day-to-day, it’s actually a very key part of the living of New Testament believers. Acts chapter 2 describes a very simple yet powerful scene:
And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart, / Praising God and having grace with all the people. And the Lord added together day by day those who were being saved. (v. 46-47)
From the very beginning of the New Testament church, it began in a condition of daily eating. Really, the church is not an organization or a meeting life, but a family life. What is a particular characteristic of a family? The way that a family eats together defines that family. When does my family eat? Where do we eat? What do we eat? How do we eat? With whom do you eat? The answers to each of these questions reveal what kind of family life I have. In this family eating, we are eating more than just food; we are sharing and receiving from one another our humanity. There is no pleasure in a meal where family members are in discord or strife or not mentally present. Gathering to eat requires preparation on the part of the cook and the recipients of the food. Especially as a mother or a cook, I will be very attentive to how the meal is enjoyed and what I put on the table to serve my family. In these moments, I am looking for more than the food to be eaten; I’m looking for food from my family as well as an opportunity to get into them. If the table suddenly becomes chaotic, it’s a sign of a lack of specific food — a vision for the family and household administration.
Through our recent sharing, I see it is exactly the same with our church life. Whether we are gathered around a physical table or not, each time we come together as brothers and sisters, it’s an opportunity to eat, “share in common,” and break bread as part of this divine family. When we engage one another in conversation, we are also eating of each other’s humanity. What do we have to offer? What is our condition when we see each other? As believers, we have a very specific food that we enjoy and from which we enrich one another: our daily pursuing and experiences with the Lord. Why is it that sometimes we are down or want to remain at a distance from saints in our interactions? It’s all related to our eating. If we are lacking that enjoyment of the Lord and His words we will be short of supply to give to others — our eating together is in the nature of sharing in common. If we are eating well spiritually, we will be rich not only in our sharing but even our condition with each other will be a supply. Have you ever just stood next to a brother or sister and felt you are being enriched, nourished without words? You just experienced eating! As believers pursuing the Lord daily, we carry humanity within us as a result of the Lord’s infusion into us. This is also the same exchange we experience together; that demeanor from our eating is true food to us. Today, we are not just physically eating or religiously gathering together to participate in activities — we are receiving and depositing humanity. This humanity is the Lord Himself — the more we take in, the more we have vision and are able to dispense, to serve Christ to others.
And this is what our churching is all about — eating and dispensing our Christ as part of this family.
– TW