2. Acts 2:37-42
Now when they had heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren,

3. Acts 2:37-42
what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the

4. Acts 2:37-42
forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children, and for

5. Acts 2:37-42
all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself.” And with many other words he solemnly testified and

6. Acts 2:37-42
kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” So then, those who had received his word

7. Acts 2:37-42
were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they were continually devoting themselves

8. Acts 2:37-42
to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

10. What does it mean to be devoted?

11. Devoted: to commit by a solemn act; to give over or direct time, money, effort, etc. to a specific person or cause.

12. G4342 προσκαρτερέω pros-kar-ter-eh'-o To be earnest towards, to persevere, be constantly diligent, or to attend assiduously all the exercises, or to adhere closely to (as a servitor): - continually, continue (in, instant in, with), wait on (continually).

13. Webster declares that in its simplest form, devoted means to be faithful to a vow.

14. Devoted = I’m all in!

15. Believers in Christ Jesus are called to be all in.

16. John 8:31
So Jesus was saying to those who had believed in Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;

17. John 8:32
and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

18. Have you said, “Yes!” to Jesus?

19. Are you all in?

20. We’ve already talked about the first two items on the list.

21. Acts 2:37-42
were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they were continually devoting themselves

22. Acts 2:37-42
to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

23. What did the apostles teach?

24. The apostles had been entrusted with the words and teachings of Jesus Christ.

25. Jesus taught straight out of the Old Testament Tanakh.

26. He taught the Tanakh correctly and instructed faithful followers to do the same.

27. The religious leaders were teaching takanot and ma’asim.

28. Takanot: Rules enacted by the Pharisees which change or negate biblical law.

29. Ma’asim: Acts of the Rabbis which serve as legal precedent for right behavior.

30. Jesus wasn’t interested in doing what man had added to or put in place of the Word of God.

31. He was interested in doing exactly what His Father said to do.

32. Likewise, we shouldn’t do what seems right, we should do what God says is right.

33. Then we talked about true Biblical Fellowship.

35. Is it just about hanging out together?

36. Is it just talking about the weather, work, the war, shopping, politics, family, sports, school, etc.?

37. Is it about staying busy and active in each others lives only to stop short of real transparency?

39. It’s really about the journey of sanctification and holiness.

40. It’s about going on that journey of transformation together and learning how to love and care for each other God’s way.

41. If we never choose to live by the Word of God, we’ll never know what true fellowship is all about.

42. We talked about how hard it is to achieve, but that it’s extremely worth it.

43. Today we’re going to take a closer look at the third item on the list.

44. Acts 2:37-42
And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and

45. Acts 2:37-42
to prayer.

46. What is the Breaking of Bread?

47. Is it simply a reminder to eat some food or you might die?

48. Does it refer to the importance of sharing meals together?

49. Is it trying to remind us to feed the poor?

50. The breaking of bread is specifi-cally referring to the Lord’s Table.

52. Being devoted to the breaking of bread means that we will never forget about Jesus Christ.

53. We will never forget about His life, death, burial and resurrection.

54. We will never forget that we deserved death and He took our place.

55. 2 Corinthians 5:21
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

56. We will never forget that He paid the full price for our sin.

57. We will never forget that His blood was shed so we could be forgiven.

58. We will never forget that His body was broken that we might experience life more abundantly.

59. We will never forget!

60. From where did the Lord’s Supper come?

61. Luke 22:14-20
And when the hour had come He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. And He said to them, “I have earnestly

62. Luke 22:14-20
desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the

63. Luke 22:14-20
kingdom of God.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves; for I say to

64. Luke 22:14-20
you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.” And when He had taken some

65. Luke 22:14-20
bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in

66. Luke 22:14-20
remembrance of Me.” And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out

67. Luke 22:14-20
for you is the new covenant in My blood.”

68. We need to remember that at this time, they were still slaves in bondage and servitude to Rome.

69. They knew by heart and would have quoted Exodus 6 during the meal.

70. Exodus 6:6
Say therefore to the sons of Israel, “I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and

71. Exodus 6:6
I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.

72. Exodus 6:7
Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God,

73. Exodus 6:7
who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.

74. They are eager for the Lord’s deliverance.

75. They want to be redeemed and brought out of captivity.

76. They long to live under the rule, authority and covering of the one true King.

77. But the timing of it all is extremely important.

78. So when it comes to the death, burial and resurrection of Christ…

79. They will not forget the price that was paid.

80. They will not forget the forgiveness they enjoy.

81. They will not forget the new life they can now live.

82. They will not forget the kingdom that is to come.

83. But what are the purposes of the Lord’s Supper for us today?

84. Purposes: To remember we were once dead in our trespasses and sin.
To remember that Jesus sacrificed Himself so we could have forgiveness and abundant life.

85. Purposes: To thoroughly examine our hearts and repent.
To rededicate ourselves to learning His ways and walking in them with His help.

86. Purposes:
To remember that we are one in Christ and we should forgive each other.
To remember the level ground at the foot of the cross.

87. Purposes: To worship Him in Spirit and Truth.
To proclaim the good news of Jesus until His return.
To prepare for His coming kingdom.

88. Does frequency have anything to do with devotion?

89. How often did they partake of the Lord’s Supper?

90. What does it mean to devote yourself to the breaking of bread?

91. Keep a very short list when it comes to unrepentant sin
Keep a very short list when it comes to unrepentant sin. Don’t delay it or put it off.

92. Refuse to go back into bondage. Romans 8:12-15

93. Don’t let bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, anger, hatred, etc
Don’t let bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, anger, hatred, etc. slip into your relationships. Ephesians 4:31

94. Be committed to go to your brother or sister in private to make things right. Matthew 18:15-17

95. Be sure you’re not just going through the motions when it’s time for the Lord’s Supper.

96. Be sure you examine yourself thoroughly and repent of any known sin
Be sure you examine yourself thoroughly and repent of any known sin Corinthians 11:27-32

97. Never bring pride or unrepentant sin, like unforgiveness, to the table of forgiveness.

98. Never bring doubt and unbelief to the table of faith.

99. Always keep the Lord’s return in the forefront of your mind.

100. Stay ready for His coming.

101. Are you all in?

102. Have you said, “Yes!” to Jesus in a way that is completely yielded to Him as Master instead of continuing to be the boss of your own heart and life?

103. Are you devoted?