Fellowship of the Believers
Notes
Transcript
Introduction -
Describe the scene from the Lord of the Rings. They don’t have a common goal or plan - no reason to come together; until, Frodo stands up and says “I will take it.” At this point eight others devote themselves to Frodo to see him through to Mordor.
Just like those Christians described in Acts 2:42 they had no common reason to come together; until they all accepted Christ Jesus. Then everything changed. Then:
Scripture Acts 2:42
42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
Last week we took a look at devoting ourselves to the apostles’ teaching - in other words studying God’s word. Today we are going to take a look at - Fellowship. To do this we will look at:
Fellowship: What is it?
Fellowship: what’s the big deal?
Fellowship: How to participate here at the Chapel
Fellowship: What is it? κοινωνία koinōnia -fellowship; participation
Secular answer - friendly association, especially with people who share one's interests
(This is the Fellowship of the Ring)
Biblical answer - participation fellowship n. — the act of sharing in the activities or privileges of an intimate association or group; especially used of marriage and churches.
Fellowship: what’s the big deal? (Basically we will answer the who, when, where, and why of Fellowship.)
Who needs fellowship?
Everyone and anyone who believes on the name of Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior. In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul describes the fellowship of the believers as the body of Christ. A body has many parts and we each are a needed part of that body.
13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one member, but many.
Explain 1 Corinthians chapter 12 (the whole chapter)
The nine members of the Fellowship of the ring all had something to bring to the whole. Frodo would carry the Ring, His hobbit companions would provide friendship, the wizard Gandalf would provide wisdom and power, Aragon protection, the human his sword, the Elf his bow and the dwarf his axe. Together they would be stronger, but...
We all have a part to play, a gift to share we are a fellowship and each have a way to participate.
When do we need fellowship?
All the time. There is never a time when we should feel like we need to go it alone. The storms of life are always raging around us which requires us to anchor ourselves to the rock of our salvation for help. However, we also need each other during these tough times. Fellowship gives us the opportunity encourage and strengthen each other. We can help each other pull through these storms. None of us needs to stand alone.
Just like the fellowship of the ring. Frodo couldn’t do it on his own. He needed others who understand what’s going on and are willing to help him to the very end. Even though the group broke up as they got closer to the goal they each had a part to play. But then there was Sam, the one who was closer than a brother.
Don’t walk away from the fellowship - don’t stop participating the in ministry of the body of Christ. Standing alone is not necessary, nor is it fun.
Where do we get fellowship? Basically I have to answers for this question.
Anywhere - Remember it is a friendly association with a shared interest. So we can find fellowship almost anywhere you can have a friendly association with people who share a common interest as you. You can share an interest in golf and spend time with your golf buddies - but this generally this fellowship is simply about golf, or bowling or cutting wood. It can be something more if you make a point of spiritual growth within the group. Make it about Jesus while you are chasing the little white ball around.
Within the ministry of the Saints - this is what makes our fellowship different from just hanging out together and chasing little white balls. Because the ministry of the Saints is what brings us together in fellowship. 1 Cor 1:9 says:
9 God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
This is the real reason we fellowship together. Jesus Christ our Lord. If it weren’t for a common faith in Christ Jesus there might be very little common between a lot of us. Our circles of influence might never cross. This is the ministry of the Saints. He is our reason for being in fellowship together. Common faith. Common belief. This commonality holds us together as a body, a family. We both need to be a part of the body and to participate in the workings of the body.
With our Fellowship of the ring there was almost nothing in common. Gandalf was probably the only point of commonality in the group. They had all meet him at some point, after all he was the wandering wizard. If it weren’t for the purpose of destroying the one ring they probably wouldn’t have ever meet. Why would the hobbits leave the shire or the elf his woodland realm.
Sometimes fellowship becomes a necessity, sometimes we have to join together for a common purpose with people you may not necessarily stand with. Fellowship in the ministry of the saints is that way. We have our commonality in Christ Jesus and the Kingdom of God. So embrace the it, join with it - don’t stand apart.
Why do we need fellowship?
No man or woman is an island. Islands get beaten and destroyed by storms. Islands are generally incapable of providing the necessities for living. However, continents have extra help during a storm, Continents can provide for the whole because of what the different parts can provide. A continent is a fellowship.
If you are an island you are like the leaf or branch of a vine. Set apart and alone - you won’t receive what you need and you will wither and die. But as a part of the whole when we stay attached to the vine we receive the nourishment we need; we need to stay attached to the vine.
5 “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
Remain a part of the fellowship and participate so that we can do something together. We can help bring the lost to Jesus that they to may know the power of the fellowship of the ministry of the saints.
What do you notice about this picture? There is one horse working to pull the load. It’s not a very big load, but the horse is doing all the work alone.
Now what do you notice about this picture? There are 6 horses pulling this load. The load isn’t that much bigger. The wagon is a little bigger and there are 2 more people, but there are 6 horses now. No one horses is pulling all that much. The horses are in fellowship, they are participating in the work of pulling that wagon. It makes the work much easier to bear.
What about the Fellowship of the ring? When they begin there are nine, the load on each of them is not so heavy. But then they begin to fall away, Gandalf falls into darkness, Boromir dies, the two hobbits are carried away and Frodo and Sam take off on their own. Suddenly the weight of the ring falls almost completely on Frodo. If it weren’t for Sam Frodo would be all alone. Nobody wants to be all alone when they are pulling or carrying a heavy burden.
Fellowship: How to participate here at the Chapel
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), was a renowned Christian minister and seminary professor, was imprisoned and ultimately executed by the Nazis for his resistance to Hitler. He wrote a number of books before his death just before the end of WWII. One of them was titled “Life Together.” In this book he explores the concept of Christian community and fellowship.
Some of the ideas he had in the book were:
We should live through and in Jesus Christ, we should pray together, read the scriptures together, sing together, eat together and work together. We should live in fellowship together as a family, not just as a community of strangers with a common point of interest. Some other ideas are that we should spend time alone to meditate, pray, and most of all intercede for each other.
In practicing these things we could live in community with others as individuals with a commonality in Christ, or we could live in fellowship as brothers and sisters in the family of God. In other words in practicing fellowship with our bothers and sisters in God we can find life and peace in this life and in the life to come.
Here at the Chapel we all participate in the fellowship of the saints when we gather together for corporate worship. But that isn’t the only time we can fellowship together. We have different activities going on all the time as ways to help each of us bring friends and neighbors to Christ. We are having a concert in a few days, VBS in a couple months, men’s breakfast, ladies brunchfest and tea gatherings, card making, bible studies and prayer meetings, Sunday School, movies, campfires, LEAH, the Boy Scouts and a whole lot more. We also have teams, or committees as they used to be called, set up to help keep the workings of the Chapel going smoothly. These teams can be little pieces of the family working together for the benefit of the whole to bring the lost to Christ.
If you truly believe yourself to be a part of this body then you have a part to play in the functioning of the whole. Even if it is a small part, you still have a part. The key is to figure out what part you can and are willing to play. Don’t wait for me or someone to figure out what you can do and ask you to do it. Step up and say I can do that, fulfill your calling within the body of believers. We all have a part to play. We want to hear your opinions, your ideas and to hear your voice. Don’t hide in the shadows and live in the fringes of the fellowship, step out into the light and participate.
Even though Gandalf fell into darkness he returned to provide wisdom and guidance to others, Aragon, Gimli and Legolas led the fighting as the war began to rage and Pippin and Merry the two hobbits helped to destroy Saruman the wicked wizard who turned to the dark side. But Sam, good ole Sam stood by Frodo to the end and made sure he completed his work of destroying the ring.
Exit -
So, while you are figuring out how to be in participation with the body; remember we are stronger together. We are stronger together because we are a family. We are bothers and sisters in Christ. We have the same Father but different mothers. We are a body, a fellowship, a family; these things should hold us together through tough times and through easy times. But our κοινωνία koinōnia, our fellowship should always be strong no matter what is going on around us. We should be learning and growing together, praying together, breaking bread together, mourning together and praising together. Don’t try to pull the load by yourself or live this Christian life alone - participate in the fellowship of the believers.
Pray