Bread of Remembrance

During the Passover, Christ broke bread and told His disciples to take and eat. This represented His body broken for us (Matthew 26:26) and Jesus is called the Bread of Life (John 6:35). By breaking and distributing the bread to eat, the Lord was in essence giving away His life, as it were in pieces, to be consumed by his disciples who in turn become bread for others.

We see this breaking, distributing and gathering of bread illustrated in the feeding of the 5,000 when Jesus order the disciples to gather every fragment so nothing will be lost (John 6:12). Not one crumb or fragment of Christ’s life is ever wasted, but is always multiplied.

Compared to Gospel accounts of Mark 14:22 and Matthew 26:26, Luke adds the words, “in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19). Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church also includes this call to remember (I Corinthian 11:23-24).

When you eat the bread during communion, do you reflect more on your own brokenness/restoration or more on your redeemed life purchased by a broken Redeemer?

Who and what we remember matters when we take communion. For it will help us not to forget our purpose in partaking of the bread both as an individual and as a community of believers.

After the resurrection, Jesus walked along the Sea of Galilee to find the disciples had returned to fishing. After all the events that transpired, He finds them at the very placed He called them three years before! What is interesting is that Jesus makes them breakfast but notice the description in John 21:9. There is fish broiling on hot coals and bread.

Why do you think Jesus included the bread for breakfast?

It could be as simple as having fuller breakfast but I believe it was to serve as a reminder.

“Remember I’m the Bread of Life! Remember how I feed the multitudes with only five loaves and fishes! Remember that man shall not live by bread alone but through every word that proceeds from the mouth of God!”

Remember His word when you are hungry and tempted to fill it with the worldly things. Only His bread can multiply life in and through you that truly satisfies the soul.