Christian Fellowship Addendum

Christian Fellowship

https://bible.org/article/christian-fellowship

ACTS 2:42 They were devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 

Introduction

In Acts 2:42 we read that one of the four things the early church devoted itself to was “fellowship.” Fellowship was a very important part of their reason for meeting together. It was one of their objectives. But our modern ideas of fellowship have become so watered down that the word no longer carries the same meaning it did in New Testament times. We often view fellowship as what we do in “fellowship hall.” It’s the place where we have casual conversations and savor coffee and donuts.

We are not surprised that the early church devoted itself to “the apostles’ teaching” and also “to prayer.” Apart from the ministry of the Holy Spirit, these are the two most important means of growth, power, and effectiveness in the Christian life and this is everywhere evident in the rest of Scripture.

But Luke tells us these early Christians also devoted themselves to fellowship. They just didn’t have fellowship; they devoted themselves to it. This means that fellowship was a priority and one of the objectives for gathering together. They made fellowship a priority.

Fellowship is much richer and deeper than mere social activity. True fellowship involves getting together for spiritual purposes: for sharing needs, for prayer, for discussing and sharing the Word to encourage, comfort, and edify one another. It is an area of fellowship that is often lacking in the church today and one that needs to be remedied. But even this does not comprehend or grasp the full and rich meaning of “fellowship” in the New Testament.

In order to grasp its meaning and relate our lives to its truth, we need to study two Greek word groups, koinwnia, and its derivatives, and metocos, a word which will come into importance because of its spiritual relationship to koinwnia.

English Definition of Fellowship

According to Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary it means: (a) companionship, company, associate (vb.); (b) the community of interest, activity, feeling or experience, i.e., a unified body of people of equal rank sharing in common interests, goals, and characteristics, etc.; (c) partnership, membership (an obsolete usage but an important one. It shows what has happened to our ideas of fellowship).

There are three key ideas that come out of this:

(1) Fellowship means being a part of a group, a body of people. . It is opposed to isolation, solitude, loneliness, and our present-day independent kind of individualism.

(2) Fellowship means having or sharing with others certain things in common such as interest, goals, feelings, beliefs, activities, labor, privileges and responsibilities, experiences, and concerns.

(3) Fellowship can mean a partnership that involves working together and caring for one another as a company of people, like a company of soldiers or members of a family.

Greek Words for Fellowship

THE KOINWN WORDS

(1) Koinos (the root word)

The language of the New Testament is called koinh Greek because, through the conquests of Alexander the Great, it was the common language of Christ’s day for Romans, Greeks and Jews alike. Koinh means common. Koinwnia comes from koinos which means “common, mutual, public.” It refers to that which is held in common.

(2) Koinwnia (n) and Koinwneo (vb) (primary words)

There are two main ideas with this word: (a) “to share together, take part together” in the sense of partnership or participation, and (b) “to share with” in the sense of giving to others. As we will see, there are four key ideas that come out of these two meanings according to New Testament usage.

(3) Koinwnos, Koinwnikos (secondary words)

Koinwnos means “a partner, associate, companion” (2 Cor. 8:23; Luke 5:10; Phil. 1:7) or “a partaker, sharer” (1 Cor. 10:18-20; 2 Cor. 1:7; 1 Pet. 5:1; 2 Pet. 1:4).

Koinwnikos, is an adjective meaning “characterized by koinwnos, ready to share or partake” (1 Tim. 6:18).

THE METOCOS WORDS (METOCOS, METOCH)

These words come from meta, “with,” plus ecw, “to have.” The basic idea is “to have with” or “to have together.”

Metocos means: (a) “a sharing in, a partaking of” (Heb. 3:1, 14; 6:4; 12:8); and (b), “a partner, associate” (Heb. 1:9; Luke 5:7).

Metoch means: (a) “sharing, fellowship”; or (b) “partnership” (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14 where it is used with koinwnia).

Based on the meanings and uses of these words, four key ideas develop that are important if we are to grasp the richness the New Testament’s teaching on “fellowship.” If we understand these four concepts we will begin to have a grasp of the doctrine of fellowship and its implications and demands on our lives.

Concepts of Fellowship in the New Testament

A. RELATIONSHIP

In the New Testament, what is shared in common is shared first of all because of a common relationship that we all have together in Christ. It always had a spiritual significance and base. The idea of an earthly fellowship founded upon just common interests, human nature, physical ties like in a family, or from church affiliation was really rather foreign to the apostles.

In the New Testament, believers can have fellowship and share together because they first of all have a relationship with Christ and share Him in common (1 Cor. 1:9; 1 John 1:3). The New English Bible translates 1 John 1:3 as follows: “what we have seen and heard we declare to you, so that you and we together may share in a common life, that life which we share with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.”

Fellowship is first the sharing together in a common life with other believers through relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Fellowship is first and foremost a relationship, rather than an activity. The principle is that any activity that follows, should come out of the relationship.

In Acts 2:42 the early church was not merely devoting itself to activities, but to a relationship. Fellowship means we belong to each other in a relationship because we share together the common life and enabling grace of Jesus Christ.

There is also, however, a negative aspect. Because of our relationship with Christ, there can be no legitimate fellowship with the world, demonism, idolatry, or anything that is contrary to Christ and our relationship with Him (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14f).

B. PARTNERSHIP

Both koinwnia and metocos mean to share together in the sense of a partnership. As sharers together of the person and life of Christ, we are automatically copartners in His enterprise here on earth. Biblical fellowship incorporates this idea of an active partnership in the promotion of the gospel and the building up of believers.

We are responsible to share with Him in the work He is now doing on earth so we can share in the blessings of the future by way of rewards (cf. Luke 19:11f; 1 Cor. 3:12f). A steadfast confidence in Christ is vital or we will defect and fail to carry our responsibilities as His companions. As those who share in His life through faith, we are also partners with Him in His enterprise and purposes here on earth. We are His representatives on earth (cf. 1 Pet. 2:5f).

DISTINCTION BETWEEN RELATIONSHIP AND PARTNERSHIP

Relationship describes what we are: a community of people bound together by our common life and blessings that we share together through our relationship with Christ. Partnership describes how we are related to each other in that relationship: we are partners in an enterprise and calling in which we are to work together in a common purpose to obtain common objectives for the glory of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ (cf. Phil 1:27).