Troublesome TopicTHERE WERE LARGE MEETINGS AND THERE WERE SMALL MEETINGS

Acts 2:46

Translation

and continuing steadfastly

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in the temple every day with one mind,

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and breaking bread

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in each house, and partaking of food with hearts [full of]  exuberance and without stumbling stones,

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Paraphrase

and they were persistently fixated on [being together] in the temple [courts] with a singular, united purpose, as well as remembering the sacrifice of Jesus together in home meetings, and eating meals together with overflowing joy for what God had done and without any of the things that damage relationships,

There Were Large Meetings and There Were Small Meetings

The meetings at the temple were for every believer who wanted to be there and for every onlooker who was curious about what was going on. So these were large meetings. This verse also mentions that they met in homes; these would probably have taken place on the Sabbath for those who had a long distance to walk to get to the temple, or when going to the temple was not possible due to work schedules they could not control. These house meetings probably consisted of extended family members and possibly a few neighbors who did not have any such group with which they could meet. In Paul’s letters he implies the existence of meetings of differing sizes, but he never states it plainly. Here we read that remembering the sacrifice of Jesus was done in the home setting rather than during the large meetings in the temple courts. To them the home setting was the natural place to do so because everything they needed was already there.

Footnotes

1

This is a compound word that comes from the preposition “towards or with” and the verb “to show steadfast strength.” It can be rendered “to persevere, continue steadfastly, endure, prevail, stay fixed in one direction, keep on, persist, to continue to do something with intense effort, give constant attention to something.”

2

This word means “one passion;” “one mind” is a close parallel. It speaks to unit of purpose and focus.

3

Once again, the phrase “breaking of bread” probably refers to celebrating what we call “the Lord’s Supper, Communion, or Eucharist.”

4

This word means “without rocks, smooth, without stones on which to stumble, without encumbrance or hindrance.”