What a fellowship

Tolkien and Lewis

I am a big C.S. Lewis fan. From Mere Christianity, The great divorce and even his Sci-Fi trilogy starting with Out of the silent planet.

Here at LBWC we enjoy great fellowship don’t we.

Actually my family eats on Sunday, that way we have a day to recuperate. Sometimes I think, what a weird way to give thanks for all we have. But the truth is in Canada we are a truly blessed people aren’t we?

I have read more from this single author than any other single author. If I had to pick a favourite I would say it is him.

With that said Lewis had a friend. Actually he had multiple friends but one friend in particular you would know also as an author. His name is J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien wrote many books including The Hobbit and LOTR collection and like Lewis Tolkien was also a Christian. In many of his books you will find a vailed telling of the gospel.

I say a vailed telling because C.S. Lewis preferred to use more direct analogies with little to no veiling In fact in his book Surprised by Joy, Lewis recounts that this was the one area where he a Tolkien disagreed. Lewis believed the allegories needed to be more direct which you can clearly see in his most famous collection the Chronicles of Narnia while Tolkien believed a more vailed approach would reach more readers.

C. S. Lewis

But both of these men helped shape the world view of many Christians throughout out the years and even after their passing continue to speak the message of Jesus.

So that was your literary history lesson for the day, now let me tell you why I bring them up. I bring them up because I actually want to talk about Tolkien and his book in The LOTR series titled,

The Fellowship of the ring

Has anyone here read this book? Well I see there are some who have not so I will refrain from spoilers. But this book introduces an epic tail of a group of characters made up of hobbits, elves, dwarfs, and humans who do not know each other but who come together untied by a common goal. To destroy the one ring. And so it is these unlikely cohorts form a fellowship, The fellowship of the ring.

Truth be told this is an amazing story and although I prefer the writings of his friend Lewis, Tolkien also does a great job painting a picture of the eternal struggle of good and evil, light and dark through symbolism. It is a well written classic that has and will continue to be favoured by many readers. But that is not what I like about it. What I like about it is how these strangers can come together overcoming cultural barriers to form a community, a fellowship.

Fellowship

I want to talk to you this morning about this word fellowship. We use this word a lot in our regular church lingo. In fact we use it so much that for some this word has become nothing more than Christian jargon. There are a lot of people even in the church who don’t really understand the significance of this word.

For many many Christians Fellowship has become a synonym for food. Every time we have a pot luck or meal of any kind we make the announcement we will have a time of fellowship ofter the service, and so like Pavlov's dogs every time we hear the word fellowship our mouths start to water. But what if fellowship is more than food? What if fellowship is more important than satisfying hunger?

I want to read you a passage from

Acts 2:42–47 NLT

All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

This morning what I want to talk to you about is the importance of fellowship.

As followers of Christ we talk a lot about the value in prayer, and reading your bible, we talk about the necessity of sharing your faith, but what about fellowship? Does it even deserve to be in the same list as these other things? Yes it does, so today we will answer the question....

Why is fellowship so important?

To answer that we first need to know what fellowship is. Let me start with what it is not.

Fellowship is not...

1. A meal. meals are often shared by a fellowship but the meal is not the fellowship.

2. Just getting together. When I stand in line at the back with a bunch of strangers, we are together but we are not a fellowship.

3. Something you do. How could God add daily people to something they were doing.

So what is it?

close association involving mutual interests and sharing, association, communion, fellowship, close relationship

Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., Bauer, W., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., p. 552). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

A Fellowship is a community. A bunch of close relationships built on a mutual interest. So when we talk about fellowship what we are talking about are opportunities to invest into these close relationships. So we have meals and outings in the hope that these relationships, this fellowship would grow stronger. Which leads us back to the main question.

Why is it so important?

It Brings Unity

Me: Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. You didn’t think I forgot did you? This means over the next couple days families will be gathering to share a meal together. How many enjoy the meal? Me too, I love the meal, but Turkey dinner alone in y room, doesn’t make for a great thanksgiving does it?

We: What makes a great thanksgiving is when we share that meal with those we love. It is in the sharing that families are reunited. Not just the sharing of food, but in the sharing of lives. Telling stories, sharing concerns and sharing burdens, and sharing laughs and sharing hopes and dreams. It is in the sharing that we grow even closer together, strengthening our relationships bonding together over a common interest, Family and Turkey. that is a fellowship.

God: As I looked for a passage that really shared the spirit of Thanksgiving it was this passage in acts. Not only did they share food, and possessions, what they shared was their lives. They were brought together by one common interest, Jesus Christ. And people who were once strangers became the closest of friends, brothers and sisters even. So they formed a fellowship. Gathering together daily to share in worship, The Lord’s Supper and just caring for each other. all the while glorifying God That is a fellowship.

You: So what does this mean for you. Don’t let this Thanksgiving pass you by. You have the opportunity to invest into these relationships. Do you have a strained relationship with a family member? Invest into it. Don’t just eat a meal. Share your life.

We: As for us here today, we form a fellowship. So in a moment we are going to invest into the relationships we have because of a common interest Jesus Christ by partaking in The Lord’s Supper together. It is a chance to join in fellowship, giving thanks to God for what He did and sharing in the experience with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Next Step: Let us fellowship together today and continually as we take this grand adventure called life following Christ Jesus together, because we are Stronger Together.