Unwavering Fellowship

Unwavering Fellowship Hebrews 10:23-25 Today, I want to encourage you with the good news of fellowship. One of the most important realities about the church of Jesus Christ is that anyone who is a child of God is also related to the entire family of God. That’s why the Bible says Ephesians 4:25, “We’re members of one another.” Believers are sewn together forming a bond of family fellowship that’s critical to the church’s function. Nobody is in this thing alone because fellowship is doing life together. Life is far too tough to attempt to conquer it alone. All of us need somebody to help us get through life’s challenges. When we go through a broken relationship, when a career ends, when the economy empties our pockets, or when we experience the loss of a loved one, people bring indescribable comfort when they come alongside us. We value the people who are there for us and take the time to listen and share in our feelings. And sometimes what gets us through is just having someone there for us. As Rick Warren said, “Fellowship is the place of grace, where mistakes aren’t rubbed in but rubbed out. Fellowship happens when mercy wins over justice.” Verse 23 in today’s Scripture says, “Let us hold tightly without wavering to the one we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise.” Just like a boat on choppy water, life has a way of tossing us around. But verse 23 tells us to “hold tightly without wavering because God can be trusted.” God always keeps His Word! The true question is not how rough life becomes, but how much you trust God when life becomes choppy! It’s when we deal with the practical challenges of life that we find comfort in having another Christian nearby to simply “do life” together. In a way, you can think of fellowship as a marriage. Now I’ve heard of marriage as an institution of 3 rings: engagement ring, wedding ring, and suffering. And what’s funny is some people see church the same way. They become a Christian and look for that perfect church. When they find that church, they make it official and join it. But after a while, as life happens, they begin to understand that no church is perfect, and suffering begins. The church expects more and more outta them, but they feel too busy or too ill-equipped to succeed. You know, those who fail at fellowship are likely to give up in the face of temptation, discouragement, or other problems as well. That’s why fellowship, like a good marriage, is so important. What the husband lacks the wife makes up for. What the wife lacks the husband makes up for. They complement one another. They go through life’s highs and lows together. They share their dreams and ambitions. They realize they're both not perfect, but they work, strengthen, and encourage one another anyway. They know each other on a deeper level then they do just a friend. When talking about the early church, Acts 2:44 says, “They had all things in common and shared everything they had.” Just like a good marriage, good fellowship does life together. The same support system applies to our spiritual development. In our walk with Christ, this support system needs to be thoughtful, prepared, and tied to the Word of God, so when life gets choppy, it’ll support us with unshakable truth. But problems arise when we separate ourselves from God’s Word and from each other. When we’re cut off from one another and we don’t “do life” together as we should, the separation between us grows wider every day. And even amid the crowd, without proper fellowship, it’s just noise. One day a family went to the movies. On the way in, a young man of the family stopped at the snack stand to pick up some popcorn. By the time he got into the theater, the lights were already dim, and he couldn’t find his family. He paced up and down the aisles in near darkness, peering down each row. Finally, in desperation, he stopped and asked out loud, “Does anyone here recognize me?” You know, even though it’s well-lit in here, there may be someone in this church who feels like that young man--lost, isolated, disconnected from everyone. Deep down, you’re silently crying out, “Does anyone here recognize me?” You’re longing for true Christian fellowship. So allow me to comfort you with this word: Koinonia. Koinonia is the Greek word for fellowship which means “to share” or “hold in common.” The 1st occurrence of koinonia is in Acts 2:42 which says, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Our faith in Jesus Christ and our communion with Him is what we hold in common. And just the very idea, that we, who have been separated from God by sin, could be both forgiven and restored, and could have fellowship – could share together – not just with each other, but also with God Almighty, should forever overwhelm us! So the good news about fellowship isn’t that we can have fellowship with just each other, but also with God! That’s why biblical fellowship has 2 dimensions, the vertical and the horizontal. 1 John 1:3 says, “Our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.” That’s the vertical aspect of fellowship, while the horizontal is about our relationship with each other. Both aspects are very important. For instance, if there is no vertical fellowship with God, then whatever we do on earth is without real meaning because it’s not based upon Truth. That’s why the Bible says in 1 John 1:6, “If we say that we have fellowship with God and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.” If we have horizontal fellowship but no vertical fellowship, then we’re not holding to a common faith, which is the very foundation of biblical fellowship. But if we have vertical fellowship without horizontal fellowship, then the thing we’re holding in common is not benefiting anybody but us. Another reason fellowship (koinonia) is so important to the church is because God wants to make the invisible visible through us. 1 John 4:11-12 says, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” We can’t see God; He’s invisible. But His presence in your life becomes real as you love your brothers and sisters in Christ. God will make Himself at home in your life through the Holy Spirit, and His presence will become visibly real to you – not through your physical eyes, but in your spiritual life. God will give you the vertical reality you desire as you make the horizontal connection with other believers. And what’s the horizontal connection we need to make with other believers? Our answer is in verse 24 which says, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” The Message Bible reads, “Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out.” In other words, let’s spur one another along. Let’s try new things and grow together. We can only accomplish so much by ourselves, but within Christian fellowship, we can overcome anything. A healthy form of peer pressure can change us when we participate in something larger than ourselves. “Encourage one another” is how we are challenged to grow in Christ. “Spur” others along, and it’ll “spur” you along too! While the local church ought to be the place where you can find genuine fellowship in Christ, all too often it’s lacking. A lot of people have shifted their focus of the church. They view the church as a consumer who is shopping around for a place that will meet their needs. So they try out this church and feel out that church before they finally settle on the one that offers the services they’re interested in. But as soon as an unpleasant experience happens, or if they hear of another church that is doing something better, they stamp their “pew passport” and transfer to the bigger and better church. Sadly, a lot of churches cater to this type of thinking. Books are published describing what one church did to grow; thereby they must have the secret to growth. They teach their way is the way. So other churches copy them. New programs are started that are aimed to reach the “Baby Boomers,” or the “millennials,” or this age group or that class of people. But that’s not the church. That’s human effort and reasoning while leaving God sidelined as a spectator. That’s the church acting more like a business rather than a hospital for sinners. That’s the church competing against itself. But it’s not about who has the biggest building or the largest congregation. It’s not about how much money is in the offering plate or how many ministries the church has. NO. It’s about the fellowship of the church! Believers working together to advance God’s kingdom. It’s about bringing people to Christ. And if you’re primary mission is to bring people to Christ, all those secondary things like bigger buildings, more money, and more powerful ministries will follow. Because when the shape of your church resembles Christ, people will notice. A church that seeks to do the will of God will impact the community and leave its mark. A church's greatness isn’t in the number of ministries it has, but how great it’s ministries impact others. Have one or two ministries and make them great. It’s better to be fully involved in a couple of ministries, then barley involved in many. I firmly believe that every local church is important to God, and that each one has a unique mission that God equips us to fulfill. All of us have different talents and gifts. We have different personalities and histories. We work at different places. Just think about how many people come across your path every day. Then look at everyone sitting around you, and how many people they encounter every day. When you begin to add that up, you’ll soon realize just how far an impact this church can have. And when we don’t waver in our fellowship and work together for God’s glory, it won’t matter how impossible the task before us seems, because our strength is found in Christ and each other. So if you feel weak or defeated, I pray these words encourage you, because you’re strong in Christ. And when you’re in Christ, you’re apart of His family, the fellowship of believers. Fellowship is the Body of Christ working together because it can’t function apart. Think of a wicker chair. One or two strands of a wicker chair can’t hold a person’s weight. But when the strands are woven together, the chair can easily hold someone’s weight. It’s the sum total of the wicker strands joined together in fellowship that provides its strength. I’ve emphasized many times standing up here that you, as a Christian, reflect God’s Light. Like individual candles, we each reflect God’s light. But think of what happens when one candle lights another, then another, then another. It keeps getting brighter because more light is being introduced. Just think about how bright Christ’s Light will be when the church meets for fellowship. When we gather together as the Body of Christ and our light shines so brightly that the world can’t help but notice. But we can’t meet together for fellowship just to gossip or check church off our “To Do” list. All that will do is diminish the light. You might shine as bright as a searchlight, but it’s nothing when pointed at the Sun. We join in fellowship to worship our Risen Savior. To encourage and strengthen each other. To carry each other’s burdens. And to hear God’s Word taught, then go out and teach it to the world! So be encouraged and take full advantage of God’s gift of fellowship. “Don’t neglect our meeting together,” as verse 25 says, “as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of His return is drawing near.” Don’t be fooled; Christ is coming back. But also don’t make the mistake that tomorrow is guaranteed. We never know when we’ll meet our Lord, so be prepared. Don’t neglect each other, but take full advantage of Christ and our fellowship. In closing, Pastor Greg Laurie made an acronym for WELL. Worship, Evangelize, Learn, Love. But I made my own because I don’t want the church to just be WELL, but GREAT. Gospel, Renew, Encourage, Abide, Truth. Live the Gospel, Renew yourself, Encourage each other, and Abide in the Truth. Folks, Christ is the only way to make this possible. Fellowship with each other is only possible when we have fellowship with Christ. So if you’ve ever asked yourself, “Does anybody recognize me?” If you’re looking for meaning or purpose, then come to Christ. Have unwavering fellowship. And be GREAT in koinonia. AMEN Jesus, You say, “where 2 or 3 are gathered together, You are there in their midst.” So fill this church, Your church, with Your holy presence. Just as the disciples gathered together in the upper room and Your Holy Spirit was poured out upon them, pour out Your Holy Spirit upon us too. For we know the Holy Spirit lives within each of us, and because of that, let us go through life together. Show us the importance of fellowship, and guide us all of our days. Let us make the most of every day and of every opportunity, all for Your glory. Lord, we Thank You for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank you that we are one with You and are building us into a spiritual temple of living stones, each with our own gifts. Instill in each of us an increasing thirst for holiness and righteousness, and give us an ever-deepening love for You and for each other. Keep us from careless words so we can minister to each other in Christian fellowship. For You Lord, have not only forgiven us, but called us to share in Your glory, in Your fellowship. This is only possible through Jesus Christ, who also taught us to pray the prayer we always pray: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom the power, and the glory, forever Amen.