The Fellowship Factor Pt. 2

The Fellowship Factor… Part Two… is where we are in our series today.

Last week, we opened up by talking about the importance of this fellowship - God’s Church - in the specific season we find ourselves in. What season is that exactly? The last days meaning the days before Jesus’ imminent return.

Recall that the Bible tells us that meetings such as this… are essential in these days.

Hebrews 10:23–25 NIV

23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Again, as you read this text, you can see the obvious emphasis on we, us, together, and so on. THIS WAS THE PATTERN FOR THE EARLY CHURCH. AND THIS IS GOD’S INTENDED PATTERN FOR HIS CHURCH TODAY!

But it is a pattern… that is being neglected. It is a pattern that is giving way to modern methods and conveniences.

We are STRONGER TOGETHER. The body of Christ is most efficient when it’s members are unified and on mission.

And when we come together… Jesus is with us in these moments. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus tells His disciples,

Matthew 18:20 NIV

20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

We quote this passage a lot when speaking of the power of God that can be found in fellowship… and for good reason.

When we gather together in the name of Jesus… Jesus IS with us. How large does the group have to be? You… and one other! Christ is there with you!

Remember, the Spirit of God is with all believers in our hearts all the time. God’s power works within us… but His power also works among us.

And in context… Jesus is talking about protecting the togetherness we have in this fellowship. In a day of great divide and discord… WE NEED TO PROTECT THE UNITY WITHIN THE BODY OF CHRIST.

Our common tie is our faith in Jesus. Our standard or foundation for our faith is the Word of God. So long as we stand on this firm foundation… NOTHING can break this body of believers apart… UNLESS we allow something to creep in.

So today, in part two of the fellowship factor, we are going to talk about how we protect the unity in the church.

As meeting together in these last days is essential… so is protecting the unity within the church essential. So with this in mind, let’s first talk about how…

God’s Power MOVES US To Unity.

Unity is not something that happens on accident. Unity is something that happens on purpose.

Unity is something that is worth protecting. Why? Because nothing will bring down the house faster than division.

Division is spreading in our society like wild fire. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. It would appear that the more “informed” we become through social media and the internet… the more divided and offended we are as a nation.

As this division spreads, we need to make sure it finds no open door to bring disunity within God’s church. God’s power moves us to unity, not to division within the church.

How do we know this? Because of the teachings found in Scripture. We need to consider a couple of warnings found in Scripture.

First, God HATES the sowing of discord. “Pastor, that words hates seems kind of strong… are you sure that God actually hates something like discord?” That is not my word of choice… it is the word given to us in Scripture.

Proverbs 6:16–19 NKJV

16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.

Discord defined is disagreement among people. Now, it would be silly to think that there could never be disagreement within the body… in fact we see disagreement in the NT church in Scripture. Disagreement will come and go… it is HOW we deal with it that matters to God.

Stirring it up, spreading it, or sowing it are actions that the Lord… hates.

Secondly, Jesus tells us that division will bring down the house.

Matthew 12:25 NIV

25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.

Division or discord brings destruction. Period.

I once lived in a community that was full of churches… one on every street corner… some next to each other… others across the street from each other. I thought this was a good thing… until I realized that many of them were born not out of mission or vision… but out of division. Very few of them were healthy. It was church against church, body against body… and a lost world watched from afar in disbelief.

This was not good for the church, nor was it good for the community. Christ did not call for a divided body, He calls for a unified body.

Now it would be crazy to think that the church would never have to deal with disagreements. Remember… the church is made up of… people! We all agree in the saving power of Jesus Christ… but sometimes disagreement on other things can rise up! And can I throw this thought at you real quick… most of these disagreements are based on personal preference… or the way WE want things.

But what if disagreement moves into another realm… what if the disagreement involves sin? Well, Jesus gave us the answer for this as well! Jesus not only wants a unified body… He calls for a purified body.

Just before His declaration of two or three gathering in His name, Jesus gave instruction on how to handle this in the church. Matthew 18:15-17 gives us a system of how to deal with someone who sins against you.

Matthew 18:15–17 NIV

15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

First, go to them directly.

Second, bring a witness.

Third, bring it before the church.

Lastly, if they refuse to listen, they are to be treated as a “pagan or a tax collector.” I like how The Message Bible says it, “If he won’t listen to the church, you’ll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God’s forgiving love.”

The aim in this passage is repentance and resolve. Jesus moves the church AWAY from gossip, bad reports, sowing discord, stirring up division… Jesus moves the church AWAY from operating like the world! He moves the church toward repentance and resolve!

AND.. as these meetings take place, per the Word given by Jesus just a few verses later... HE IS IN THE MIDST OF THE CONVERSATION.

IF the meeting happens for the sake of proving a point or pushing an agenda… you’re gonna be stuck in your own power, authority, and understanding.

HOWEVER, IF you meet in the name of Jesus for His cause and glory… then the presence of Jesus will be there with you to bring guidance, repentance, healing, and resolve.

Jesus literally gives us the steps we need to take to protect not only the unity but the spiritual purity of our fellowship!

Why does He do this? BECAUSE HIS POWER AND PRESENCE IS IN FELLOWSHIP! How so? Look at where Jesus goes next in Matthew 18 as we look at…

Examples of Power in Fellowship

Matthew 18:18–20 NIV

18 “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

After reading this passage… can you begin to understand why the enemy would want to disrupt the fellowship among the brethren?

The first example is found in verse 18 - whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

What does this mean? It means that if repentance and resolve is achieved, the repentant individual is loosed or unbound from his/her sin. But, if the person remains unrepentant, that person is still bound in his/her sin.

The goal is to move that person BACK TO JESUS through caring and loving FELLOWSHIP.

The goal is NOT to push an agenda, an opinion, a preference, or a perspective. The goal is NOT to shake a finger of judgement or disgust. The goal is to help restore that person back to fellowship in Jesus. The goal is to reconnect them with Christ!

The second example is found in verse 19, look at the power spoken of when agreement is achieved! “If two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by [our] Father in heaven.”

Alright! So I need a couple of people to come into agreement with me that God is going to give me a super sports car with ALL the features!

Uh… that is NOT AT ALL what Scripture is suggesting… yet we often treat God in this way.

Such action moves us back into our agenda. We must move beyond ourselves and come into agreement with this standard (the Bible), with this story, with this plan, WITH GOD’S WILL.”

God’s standard for His church is UNITY. God’s standard for His church is FELLOWSHIP When we stand in agreement for these things, God is going to move in us and through us! But if we stand divided in this sense, we can expect God to begin closing doors of opportunity. THERE IS NO POWER IN DISCORD OR DIVISION.

Closing

Think about it, church… the whole design and concept regarding God’s church is… RELATIONSHIP. God desires for us to have a relationship with Him… and a relationship with others. God’s power moves in and through relationship.

Relationship is the very reason God gave His Son for us.

In our sin, we stood apart from the Lord. Sin created a gap or a divide with God that we could not overcome on our own. We simply did not have the power to do so.

But… God in His infinite power and love did what we could not do… as we understand there is NOTHING our God cannot do.

He sent Jesus to die for our sins… that the power of sin would be destroyed… and so that our fellowship with God could be restored!

Before we talk and pray about our fellowship in here… how is your fellowship… your relationship with God? Do you have a relationship with the Lord? Have you been cleansed from all sin by the blood of Jesus?

If the answer is no… would you like to be forgiven today? Would you like to take this opportunity to give your life to Jesus?

PRAYER - Salvation.

The blood of Christ is what restored our fellowship with the Father… and it is what holds this body of believers together today.

And I want to give us an opportunity today… get anything that might be causing distance between you and His church… under the blood.

Maybe… you’ve been hurt. Whatever the reason might be… maybe the church did something you didn’t like. Maybe someone said something that you didn’t appreciate. Maybe things did not go the way you thought they should go. Maybe the preacher… this preacher… missed something or said something or goofed up something.

Can I offer this reminder once again? The church is made up of… people. People who are in the process of being perfected by the Word and Spirit of God. As Jesus makes clear in the later verses of Matthew 18, grace and forgiveness go a long way!

First off let me say… I’m sorry for your hurt. I’m sorry for the pain it may have caused you. Sometimes the people closest to you can cause the greatest hurts. But I implore you today: DO NOT LET THAT STOP YOU FROM EXPERIENCING GOD’S BEST FOR YOU. The enemy would love to take that hurt and divide you from the church. He does it all the time.

We are people. Imperfect people. But we serve a PERFECT Savior. And our Savior wants us to forgive others… as He has forgiven us. In fact, He included that phrase in His example prayer in Matthew 6:12-13

Matthew 6:12–13 NIV

12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’

I included verse 13 in there for good reason… we might be tempted to NOT forgive. We might be tempted to hold on to the hurt. Again can I encourage you… do what it takes per the instructions of Jesus to find forgiveness. Have the conversation, make the phone call. SEEK RESOLVE. And the best part is… you don’t have to do this on your own. Jesus WILL be with you.

Christ gave His life for forgiveness, that we might be reconciled to God. And… He instructs those who have been forgiven… to forgive as well.

Why? For the sake of fellowship… for the sake of Koinonia fellowship formed by a common tie - for the sake of protecting and investing in the unity of the body.

So as we get ready to close I ask all of you today… to give some reflection on areas… or people… that have brought you hurt… that have offended you. Chances are, they don’t even know that hurt exists! Chances are… they would jump at the first opportunity to offer an apology!

But the enemy wants you to sit back in your own thoughts… in your own hurt… divided from those Jesus said we need to forgive.

So my closing prayer today is this: God, give us the ability to forgive. Help us to have the conversations we need to have in the name of Your Son as we seek resolve. Help us to fight the temptation to not extend forgiveness. Be with us as we protect and purify the fellowship we have in this church. Guard our hearts against division and discord. In Jesus’ name we pray.