I. Pray

II. Introduction:

A couple of weeks ago, the deacons put together a bowling night for the Church. So, we all signed up, gathered at the bowling alley downtown, and spent some time together discovering who was the best (and who was the worst) at throwing a heavy ball down a wooden lane trying to knock over ten pins at the end. Seemingly, this night was a very spiritual occasion for the Church, right? Why in the world would the deacons organize such an event like this for our Church (or other events such as picnics or hay-rides or whatever)? Well, the purpose of our bowling night is what we want to discuss this morning in our time together, namely, we want to look at the issue of fellowship in the Community of God.

III. What do we mean by fellowship?

A. In Greek the word koinonia is used. This particular word is interesting in its uses throughout the New Testament. At times it refers to participation, impartation, partnership, and communion. We are said in the New Testament to have fellowship with the Son and with the Father (1 John 1:1-4, see discussion below) and with the Holy Spirit (Philippians 2:1). The word is also used in relation to the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 10:16) and in the passage concerning being unequally yoked (2 Corinthians 6:14). Whitney discusses the word in his chapter on fellowship in his book Spiritual Disciplines within the Church and concludes that the word carries the idea of 'sharing in something' (189). Obviously much time could be devoted to simply looking at this particular word in the New Testament, but rather, I simply wanted you to understand the broader meaning of this New Testament word used for fellowship so that we could better understand what Paul and the others were trying to communicate in the passages that call us to fellowship with one another (again, see 1 John 1:1-4 and Acts 2:42).

B. Our goal this morning is not to just speak generally about fellowship but rather to understand what the biblical writers meant when they talked about fellowship. Maybe a better way to say this is to ask, 'What is meant by Christian fellowship?' The first characteristic of Christian fellowship is that it takes place among believers. In looking at Acts 2:42ff. we see that it was the believers who were gathering together to devote themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship. Likewise, in 1 John 1:3, John encourages his readers to join with them in fellowship and then tells them that their fellowship is with the Father and with the Son. Thus, there is a distinctive Christian fellowship that is reserved for those who believe in Christ (we will speak more about these distinctions below). Since it is based on our relationship with Christ, a second characteristic that we can identify is that it involves spiritual as well as physical. This is what we want to spend some more time fleshing out this morning.

IV. How does fellowship differ from socializing?

A. Is fellowship limited to gathering together in fellowship halls for the purpose of eating, hanging out, and talking about the game? Is fellowship just a fancy word we use to describe bowling nights or hay-rides? How can we distinguish between what the Church does when it meets together for fellowship and what other groups do when they meet together? It is important for us to consider these questions as we think about Christian fellowship.

B. Let me say first that all of these activities and others may be involved, yet, they do not guarantee fellowship. This is the error that we are often guilty of in our Churches. We cannot think that simply planning and participating in these types of events will produce fellowship in our Community. However, fellowship can exist in these activities. What do we mean by this? Whitney calls us to consider the relationship between socializing and fellowship by thinking of two circles of different sizes. Socializing represents the bigger circle and fellowship represents the smaller one inside of the bigger socializing circle. In this way we can illustrate what we mean in saying that true Christian fellowship can occur within a social event, while at the same time demonstrating that is possible to have a social event that does not include Christian fellowship.

C. So, then, what is it that distinguishes the two? I think the major difference is that true Christian fellowship involves content and subject matter. Again, it is easy for us to get together as Christians and simply mimic the world in our conversations and time spent together. We may talk about the weather, or sports, or something else with absolutely no consideration of how our belief in the Christian world-view impacts these discussions. In doing this, I do not think that we can say that we are enjoying true Christian fellowship. Rather, I think as Christians gather together for fellowship the content and subject matter should include (but is not limited to) God, Jesus, theology, the Bible, spiritual disciplines, family, loving your spouse, etc. Our mistake with fellowship is that we often have the social events without the content. We may talk about politics but never from a Christian world-view. We may talk about our jobs, but never about being intentional about sharing the gospel with our coworkers. We may talk about our families but never about loving our wives as Christ loved the Church or raising our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord. This is a great error in our Churches. Many a member at many a Church attend all the meetings of the Church, but never enjoy true Christian fellowship because they are never involved at the content level. In this practice, we really miss out on the blessings of being in Community together as the people of God. It is a great blessing to enjoy true Christian fellowship in the Church.

D. Thus, we need to rethink our definition and idea of fellowship. We cannot point to a few events on our Church calendar and think we have accomplished true fellowship in our Church. Rather, as individuals we need to take responsibility for involving ourselves in true Christian fellowship. This leads us to our next question.

V. So, then, how do we participate in true Christian fellowship in the local Church?

A. First we need to realize that in order to get fellowship we must be willing to give fellowship. Fellowship does not just fall into our laps, we must be willing to work at it. Thus, we need to pursue meaningful relationships with people by making time to spend with them dealing with important issues. These are the bare essentials for true Christian fellowship. We cannot experience fellowship without being willing to spend quality time with fellow believers. Thus, time with people is vital.

B. Second, we need to be intentional with our time with people. Our time together needs to include the content and subject matter of Christian fellowship. I am not saying that every time we see someone we need to immediately quote them a passage and ask them what it means. It does not have to be forced or manipulated. Yet, talking with people about what God has done in their life or is doing in their life does not have to be manipulated. In fact, if we are truly seeking to build a covenant Community, then these types of discussions should be common in our Church. If we are really seeking to raise our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, then at some point we are going to need to talk with those who have gone before us or who are presently laboring in the same task. The same could be said about marriage, Bible study, theological issues, praying, etc. It will take time and effort to develop this, but it will be time and effort well spent.

C. My last encouragement is for you to be involved with special events in the Church. Our deacons are doing a great job in planning activities for the purpose of fellowship. They are purposely trying to plan a variety of activities for the whole Church to be involved in. You should do your best to take advantage of these activities and to seek fellowship through your involvement. Let these times be purposeful times of true Christian fellowship that the Body may grow together in maturity in Christ.

VI. Conclusion:

Our hope here at Cornerstone is that we will develop into a people of God who love each other and spend time in fellowship together. We want our kids to grow up together in a Community that is centered and filled with the content of the gospel. We want each person to see every other person as a gift to them and to this Church. We want to laugh together, celebrate together, mourn together, suffer together, and overcome together. This involves time and commitment devoted to the idea of fellowship. May God grant us grace to labor to this end. Amen.

VII. Close in prayer

Fellowship and Community