Breaking Of Bread - A Covenant - Zac Poonen
When Jesus instituted the 'breaking of bread', He used a word that He never used before - the word `covenant'. A proper understanding of this word is essential if we are to partake in the Lord's table meaningfully. A Covenant Relationship With God The first mention of the word 'covenant' is found in Gen. 6:18, where God promises to establish a covenant with Noah (Gen. 9:9,11). God had judged the whole world because of man's sin and now He made a covenant with Noah that He would never again judge the world with a flood as He had just done. God gave a sign to mark the covenant that He then made. It was what we now call the 'rainbow'. God, however, called it 'My bow in the cloud' (Gen. 9:13). The word used for 'bow' there is exactly the same word as is translated elsewhere in the Bible for the weapon, the bow. A bow is always aimed in the direction of the one who is to be shot with the arrow. The significance of the bow in the cloud p...