Common Fellowship (What a Fellowship!)
That which we have seen and heard we
proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed
our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And
we are writing these things so that our[a] joy may
be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and
proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we
walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the
light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son
cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:3-7
When we
look around in today’s churches we see a diverse group of people: young and
old, rich and poor, locals and foreigners, new believers and those who been
around for a while. A collection of different people with different backgrounds
but through the fellowship with Jesus Christ we can become one in the Spirit of
the Lord. That’s what we call Communion or Fellowship and in Greek koinonia. This
word koinonia came right from the ancient Greek culture and it was a term used
for business partnership, to fellowship of life in marriage, and now with the
advent of Christianity it refers to a spiritual relationship with God and
fellowship between friends in the Body of Christ. Isn’t that beautiful? Jesus
said: By this all people will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) And that is the LOVE
(Agape) that came from the Father that he shared His only Son to an undeserving
world.
The Pagan
World was attracted by this example rather than the preaching of the Word in
the early church. As we read in Acts 2: 42 and they
devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and
signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who
believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And
they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the
proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending
the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food
with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor
with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who
were being saved. I believe that today we can do more effective evangelism, by
applying this example todays church. Don’t you think the same?
What I liked to do is to suggest just
a number of words that categorize this commonality, this fellowship, this
koinonia, this communion, this partnership.
First
of all, as we are seeing so obvious, we have a common faith. As we
have seen in 1 John 1:3 3 that which we have
seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship
with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus
Christ.
This
faith brings us together in harmony with each other. Paul
writes in Ephesians 4:4-6 4 There is one body
and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your
call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, 6 one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all. The key to be in harmony with each
other is to have closeness to God
My second point in the fellowship of our Lord
is to have a common Family. God is
our Father not only by creation but through the redemption through Jesus Crist
our Lord. We become children of God through His sacrifice and obedience through
Baptism. In John 1:12 say But to all who did receive him, who believed in his
name, he gave the right to become children of God. Even Jesus states that his
real family is to do the will of God. And stretching out his hand toward his
disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven
is my brother and sister and mother Matthew 12:49. As you see brethren we are a
forever family. We fellowship just like a family that have dinner together at
the table and share their experiences throughout the week. According to the
bible the church is considered as a family: So
then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to
those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6:10)
Thirdly,
when we fellowship we should have the same focus. In
Philippians 2:3-5 - Do nothing from selfish ambition or
conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own
interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have
this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. The next chapter
states that I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward
call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14). We need to be connected
to Christ in order to be connected with one another. He said that he is the
True Vine (John 15:1) and If anyone does not abide in me
he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered,
thrown into the fire, and burned (John 15:6)
There are things that hinders the
fellowship with the Lord and one another. Put your hands together like
this. After this dance lesson make some
friction now. The division is the main cause of breaking the fellowship we
should have together. When people get disconnected with Christ they get
disconnected with each other. We lose focus, we lose the feeling, we lose the
sense of family and we lose our faith. The bible tells us how to handle with
division. When we done apply discipline the church would be the laughing stock
of the world. And the fellowship, the growth, the spirituality will
disappear. Don’t let happened to you.
Beloved ones, we
live in a cruel and lonely world. People are fragmented, living in fear, lost
and lonesome. Let us devote ourselves to the Fellowship of Jesus so that we can
be the hands and feet of the Master in reaching into their lives. If you are in
need of this awesome fellowship please come forward and if you haven’t done so,
come meet Jesus at the waters of baptism, He’s waiting to have fellowship with
you. Come as we sing together in fellowship of the Lord.
The Sanford Church of Christ Hispanic Fellowship meets at
1500 S. PARK AVENUE
SANFORD, FL 32771
Sunday: Bible Classes: 9:30 AM & Worship 10:30 AM
Life Group: 4:00 PM at Homes
Wednesday: Bible Studies at 7:00 PM
ALL ARE WELCOME
