The Blessing of Fellowship

1 John 1:3-7

Introduction

Dietrich Bonhoeffer - “the physical presence of other Christians is a source of incomparable joy and strength to the believer”?

Do you agree?

Sometimes it seems less than that… wanting to avoid certain people, uncomfortable conversations.

To those who cannot be with other Christians - the shut in, the imprisoned, the isolated - to simply be with a brother or sister in Christ is one of the greatest joys you can experience.

The message today, my hope is to extol the blessings of Christian fellowship, and to call you into deeper fellowship with the Lord and with one another.

The Blessing of Christian Fellowship

Christian Fellowship Shows God’s Goodness in Relationship

God is Triune - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, in eternal relationship

In and of himself God is the blessed Trinity, completely sufficient unto himself as the everlasting source of every good and perfect gift. 
 Indeed, it is a matter of sheer wonder that this glorious and blessed Trinity would desire anything beyond and outside of His own inherently blissful life. And yet, Scripture assures us that God does desire something beyond and outside of himself and, more than that, that He desires to communicate His own glorious and blessed life to us, in order that we too might have communion and fellowship with Him, that we might become friends of God. 
 The wonder of the gospel is that, in accordance with the divine good pleasure, we have fellowship with the Father and the Son in the Spirit.

Moreover, when God said, “let us make man in our image” in Gen 1:26–27, one aspect of that image is that we are called to live in relationship as social beings.

Besides fellowship with God, what higher fellowship can we have in this life than with our brothers and sisters in Christ?

It is not good for man to be alone. Called out of chaos and isolation and into community.

Marriage; Family; Church; Community.

The extraordinary gift of ordinary life together

God uses ordinary means to convey his extraordinary gifts - don’t diminish the amazing gift he’s given in Christian Fellowship

We commune with God when we commune with other believers

You are looking at an eternal saint - who’s name is known by the Sovereign of the Universe, who’s soul was ransomed by the blood of the lamb, who will one day wear a crown upon his or her head - there are no ordinary people in the household of God

C.S. Lewis - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.

Christian Fellowship Shares in God’s Grace

God is light - in him there is no darkness

What John means by God is light -

Wisdom - understanding, truth, nothing hidden from him, nothing he does not know or understand

Moral - Purity, holiness, without sin, stain, darkness

If we say we have fellowship and walk in darkness, we lie and we do not practice the truth

We cannot claim to have fellowship with God and still continue to “walk” in “darkness.” There is no place for the hypocrite, those who pledging allegiance to God with their lips but trample on his law with their lives. Those who profess to know God are to be distinguishable from the rest of the world—as distinguishable as light is from darkness.

Our relationship with God must be built upon righteousness, holiness, wisdom and truth

The gospel is that God gave His Son, so that by his sacrifice on the cross for us, we would be washed of our sin, and know fellowship with God

Grace is necessary in our Fellowship

We are a gathering of sinners who have been saved by grace, each in the midst of transformation

Like a marriage - joining two sinners under one roof for life is bound to cause some friction

Getting a hundred together on a Sunday morning is just as caustic

We sin against one another, we offend each other, our personal likings, priorities, set us against each other

We share in God’s grace as the heart of our fellowship

When we come to the table, When we bring an offering - we come in peace, because Christ has broken down the wall of hostility that was between us…

Genuine Christian Fellowship is not go along to get along, agree to disagree, but a pledge to love God, to humbly follow Christ, and to be transformed in that love so that we can find unity, agreement, and peace as we stand together.

Rom 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

Christian Fellowship Shines in God’s Glory

We rejoice in the victories of our community

Winning state football, superior in State One Act, individual accomplishments -

These are fading - because we quickly move on to the next thing.

We share the Gospel of Christ’s coming so that our joy may be complete

We tell you the gospel, so that you may have fellowship with us, and with God, and so that our joy may be complete - lacking nothing

What brings us joy in fellowship

Rejoicing when we see others walking with the Lord

When the lost come to salvation

When we see one another grow in their love, make their profession of faith, step up to lead

Rejoicing in the victory of Christ

He has overcome the world, the triumphant Kingdom of our God

Pursuing Genuine Fellowship

Pursue fellowship with Christ

You cannot find the blessing of Christian community by trying to get Church just right - but only by pursuing fellowship with God in Jesus Christ.

a Brakel… You must be on guard for sins which overtake you by surprise, and even more for presumptuous sins, those things that would come between you and the Lord.

Let the Word guide you; believe it, follow it, and wait upon the fulfillment of the promise. Be reminded that bliss is reserved for heaven, and that this life is a time of battle in which the victory is an absolute certainty.

Seek Out Fellowship with One Another

Share in life together

Walk with others, share their lives, share yours,

Tell others how you came to know the Lord, what your life of following him as been like

That you might be encouraged, and be encouraged in the company of the saints of light

Extend grace and forgiveness to one another

Like the servant who was forgiven much, forgive those around you - let mercy and grace flow freely

Rejoice in the grace God has given, and in the victory we have in Christ.