It Happened Today
Apr 14, 2022.
Christians the world over are focusing their hearts upon what Jesus won for humanity 2000 years ago. As I write this blog, it is Thursday of Holy Week, and something very important happened today! Yet, this significant milestone sometimes gets skipped – The New Passover.
#JesusStories: On the evening before Jesus was crucified, he gathered his disciples for a Passover Meal, which is included in all four Gospels (Mt. 26, Mk. 14, Lu. 22, Jn 13). While most Jews would be gathering for their Passover meal the next day, Jesus would not be able to join as he had an appointment with the cross that day. So instead, he hosted the disciples’ Passover celebration the evening before. Once in the Passover room, Jesus altered the script. Rather than following the historic liturgy from the Ha Lachma, he changed the focus of the evening from ‘Remember God’s miraculous rescue from Egypt‘ to ‘Remember me‘. While he left the historic directive of inviting the strangers and the family-less in tact, he shifted the reason for the remembrance. Toward the end of the evening he referred to the moment as forging a “new covenant” as he held up the cup. Further, he told them to “do this” whenever they come together. In this way he instituted The New Passover, which would serve as a vision of Christian Gatherings going forward.
There is little wonder why the book of Acts comes on the scene with story after story of Jesus’ followers meeting around tables; they were practicing these New Passovers just as Jesus’ instituted. These Gatherings were thickly practiced around dinner tables until the Constantinian turn in the fourth century, and then were intentionally pressed out of the life of the Church until uttering its final gasps at the end of the seventh century, never to return to the Medieval Church.
Dinner Churches that are rebirthing today are not innovations, they are a theology that dates back to Jesus’ formal institution of the New Passover that first Holy Week. This is not only the scriptural warrant for Dinner Churches the world over, but something worthy of prayerful meditation for all Holy Week participants. “Lord, thank you for giving us the New Passover table before going to the Cross. We are forever blessed by this vision of gathering with each other and with you at these tables.”
#DinnerChurchQuotes: When Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of me” he meant ‘Do table in remembrance of me’. (Leonard Sweet)
#PracticalStuff: How are you training your new team members? And how are you keeping your current team members inspired and refreshed? We can help with that. May 14th, we will be having a virtual Team Training/Refresh Day from 9am – 2pm (pacific time)/12 Noon – 5pm (eastern time). This will be a great chance for you to gather your team in a room, watch the 45-min sessions on a big screen, then engage in discussion questions with your team four times throughout the day. What do you think about ordering snacks and pizza and having a team refresh day on May 14? Registration for this event will be available @ www.DinnerChurch.Com next week. Click Training button. Does your team need this?
Blessings & Boldness,
Verlon
Dr. Verlon and Melodee Fosner have led a multi-site Assemblies of God Dinner Church in Seattle, Washington since 1999 (www.CommunityDinners.com). In this decade when more churches in the U.S. are declining than thriving, and when ninety-six churches a week are closing, Verlon and Melodee sensed that a different way of doing church was needed for their 100-year old Seattle congregation. It soon became obvious that they were not the only ones in need of a different path. They joined the FX team in 2016 and founded the Dinner Church Collective. And then in 2019 founded the Dinner Church School of Leadership. There is a lot to be gained when church leaders begin to see open doors in the American landscape that they had previously overlooked. Therein lies the journey for those who will forge a new future for the American Church.
Categories: Uncategorized
04.14.22
By: David A. Brakke
I have always loved that a meal centric church is not a new idea, but rather a very ancient one. Maybe it’s safe to say that the meal centric church is ancient and yet cutting edge in modern day relevance.
PS. I love Leonard Sweets quote, “Do this in remembrance of me” he meant ‘Do table in remembrance of me’.
04.16.22
By: Julie
This and School of Dinner Church has given meaning to the Last Supper that I hadn’t realized for many years. Thank you for the work you have done to research and share this. To encourage and equip others to reignite the dinner table!
04.18.22
By: Anthony Johnson
I love this! We’re launching a Dinner Church here in Akron this week (just a few days after Easter) and I love how in line it is with the early church: celebrating His resurrection then gathering around the table to talk and be about it!
04.18.22
By: Jorge Hernandez
I’ve been meditating on this over and over (since our class started) and it still blows my mind! What a powerful shift took place that faithful Thursday night. An entire new agreement between man and God was being instituted! And what a simple and practical way to remember it, by using common elements over a dinner gathering.
This refocusing on the Last Supper has forever changed the way I will do ministry from now on. Jesus knew what he was doing. And I want to follow his leading in every way.
04.20.22
By: Kristina Meece
I am going to echo a sentiment here, this class has thoroughly changed my mind and heart on how I see the Lord’s Supper. It had taken a radical change when I was in school for spiritual formation. God keeps blessing me with peeling back even more revelations into this sacrament. The profound in such a sacred moment.
04.25.22
By: Angel Porubsky
It’s interesting to see (and learn) how much our culture has shaped the modern church. Jesus was intentional with His final moments. He could have spent them on the hillsides preaching, as he regularly did. He could have spent them in the streets or synagogue as he had spent many important hours. Instead, when He knew His final moments were arriving, He spent them with his disciples–both those who would continue His work and those He knew would betray Him. He taught us in those moments what communion looks like, how the church would expand to reach billions around the world, and He started it around the table.
To answer the question about training, we are being intentional to train our leaders how to facilitate and lead conversations around the dinner table.
04.30.22
By: Debbie Wilkerson
What an amazing thing it has been for me to look at the Last Supper with new eyes this Easter season, since learning this new perspective of it in DCSL! I especially love how Jesus shifted the theme of the usual Ha Lachma – remembering that they were slaves in Egypt and now are free – to the idea that we now think of how He has set us free from slavery to sin, and the idea that it’s not necessarily remembering just the specific things like the cup and the bread, but the whole idea of gathering around a table to remember Him.
05.19.22
By: daryl miller
the dcsl certainly opened my eyes to practices lost to time.