Fellowship - What John teaches us

Introduction

Welcome to camp everyone!

So in last year’s camp, we talked about our identities in Christ. Who we are as Christians, as those who have been saved by God. We talked about how we are to think about ourselves as believers in Jesus.

This year, the focus is different. If the focus last year was on ‘being’, the focus this year is on ‘doing’. We have been doing Galatians, and we have seen being a Christian is not just believing. Real faith in Jesus Christ produces a change in your life that results in a change in your ‘doing’. The Christian life is not just about ‘being’ different, but acting or living differently. So in this camp, we are going to talk about 3 topics of ‘doing’ as Christians, 3 different areas in our lives where we can practically change how we live. And we are going to see how 3 different writers speak to us or each of the 3 topics.

So what are the 3 kinds of ‘doing’ that we are going to talk about this camp?

Fellowship - we will see how John speaks to us about fellowship

Speaking - we will see how James speaks to us about speaking

Serving - we will see how Paul speaks to us about serving

Now we are on camp, and we are here to have fun as well, so I’m going to try and keep my talks as short as possible, so we can really have fun and enjoy each other’s company. So because my talks are going to be short, I want you to listen and focus.

So the first topic is fellowship. What is fellowship? Fellowship is not just friendship, it is much deeper than that. It is a deep relationship, a bond of deep love. It is not just a relationship, but it is where you actually share your life with one another. And as believers in Jesus, we are called to share in fellowship with one another.

But this is really hard. How can we share in fellowship? We are all so different. We are different ages, different backgrounds, different genders, and personalities. We get along well with some people, and not really well with others. So how does God expect us to share not only in friendship, but deep loving fellowship with one another? Do we just try harder? That doesn’t seem like it’s going to work.

This where the passage in 1 John is really really helpful. Let’s read 1 John together.

1 John 1:1–3 “1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 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.’

So this passage is a bit hard to understand, but it is telling us that our fellowship with one another, as Christians, is possible because of the ‘Word of Life’. Doesn’t that sound familiar? The Word? Just like in John’s gospel, the ‘Word’ is referring to Jesus. And how does it talk about Jesus?

In verse 1, Jesus is described as the ‘Word of Life’, and in the middle of verse 2 he is described as ‘the eternal life’. Jesus is eternal - he is beyond time, he existed before this world was created. He is the pre-existent Son of God.

And what does it go on to say about Jesus, the eternal, pre-existent, Son of God? In verse 2, it says he ‘was with the Father.’ The eternal Son of God, enjoyed an eternal relationship, with the eternal Father God.

Remember, our God is Trinity - He is 3 in 1. And therefore, because He is 1 God, but 3 persons, by definition, He is relational - He exists in relationship. That means even though God is 1, He is never lonely. And therefore, God by definition is completely for another, not selfish at all - there is no hint of selfishness in him, because God by definition exists desiring to love and glorify another. The Father eternally loves the Son, the Son eternally seeks to give glory and love to the Father, and the Holy Spirit ignites the flames of that love for one another.

And what’s amazing is that, this eternal God, the Trinity, who is beyond space and time, completely beyond our reach and understanding, perfectly overflowing in love and in relationship with one another - what does verse 2 say? He ‘was made manifest’. The unreachable eternal Son of God, took on flesh and came down to us so that we could actually reach him and actually know him.

How do we know that? How do we know that the eternal pre-existent God, beyond time and space, actually entered into time and space in the flesh? Let’s read verse 1-2 - ‘that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it...’

John here is really really stressing that God took on physical flesh, because John was able to detect God with His senses. He was able to hear, see, look, and even touch Jesus!

John is saying, without out a doubt, that the eternal Trinitarian God, sent the Son of God into our human level! And why is this important?? Because God sending his eternal Son into the world, represents God sharing all his riches and love with us - in fact, it is God sharing the greatest thing he Has with us - His very self! And what did I say fellowship was earlier? It is sharing your life with another. And this is exactly what God did for us - He entered into fellowship with us, even though we rejected Him and we were undeserving.

We have done nothing to deserve this. We are just creatures and God is God! But that’s what God freely chose to do.

So God shares himself with us, by sending Jesus Christ His Son, not only to save us from sin, but to actually have fellowship with us. The divine God in heaven, actually comes down to have fellowship with creatures like us.

But if you actually read verse 3, it takes an unexpected turn. The verses talked about Jesus coming down in the flesh and sharing himself with us. And we would expect the next verse to tell us, that the reason that Jesus came down in the flesh, was to have fellowship with us. But that’s not what the verse says. Let’s read verse 3: ‘That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us’ - not God, but with ‘us’. And then the verse says ‘and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.’

Where we expect fellowship with God, John suddenly inserts fellowships with other believers.

And this is because fellowship with God is completely inseparable with fellowship with one another. It comes as one package deal. Our vertical fellowship can never be separated from our horizontal fellowship. They are part and parcel with each other. And it makes so much sense:

Remember, God by definition is fellowship. He is a Trinitarian God, eternally in relationship, and in love, eternally sharing everything with one another, without a hint of selfishness.

So of course when God saves you and transforms you into His image, you will not only share your life and be in fellowship with God himself, but it will overflow and you will share and fellowship with those around you.

God has given you the greatest gift. The gift of himself - God has given himself to you. And even though we are so much lower than him, He brought himself all the way down, so that He can be with you.

And when we know this truth, how humbled are we? How grateful are we? How loving are we to Him?

And coming back to the first question of how do we do this difficult fellowship with one another? How do we do the impossible? We can’t. But God did. And because God entered into fellowship with us, because God shared his life with us, we are able to have fellowship and share our lives with one another.

The more we think about, meditate, and be in wonder, of what it is God has done for us, the more we will be able to share in the same fellowship with one another that God gave us first.

We need to depend on what He has already done through His Son; and we need to continue to depend on Him and the strength He gives us through His Spirit to truly share our lives with each other.

So I know this is a small group. And I know that some of you guys don’t know each other that well. And I know that in some of your friendships, maybe there have been problems. But I really pray that this camp will be a chance for you to overcome any of these human barriers. And we overcome them not just by trying harder, but by realising and holding onto this remarkable and mind-blowing truth: that in Jesus, God has come personally to you, to share everything with you, his very life, even though you are a sinner. He is with you now. So if God has shown us this great love, why can’t we show such love towards one another as well?

It’s a short 3 days, but don’t let it go to waste. Let’s spend this time really putting our Christian lives into practice, by treasuring, loving, and truly deeply sharing with one another.