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Virtual Christian Magazine Editorial What Is Real Christian Fellowship? By Dean R. Wilson Fellowship can be a key to spiritual growth -- or a stumbling block. Here are KEYS to positive Christian fellowship!
hink for a moment of all the challenging, inspiring times you have fellowshipped with brethren and talked about uplifting things, and gone away feeling greatly inspired. Fellowship is vitally important to spiritual growth! God says in the book of Proverbs, "Be with wise men and become wise. Be with evil men and become evil" (Proverbs 13:20, The Living Bible Paraphrased). Our fellowship has a lot to do with whether we become wise or foolish, righteous or evil. Says the New English Bible, in another place, "Make no mistake: 'Bad company is the ruin of a good character'" (I Corinthians 15:33). This is, of course, one basic reason good fellowship is vitally important to Christians. God knows right spiritual fellowship with other brethren is important. That's why He commands us in the book of Hebrews, "We ought to see how each of us may best arouse others to love and active goodness, not staying away from our meetings, as some do, but rather encouraging one another, all the more because you see the Day drawing near" (Hebrews 10:24-25, New English Bible). The Living Bible says, in modern phraseology in the book of Malachi, "Then those who feared and loved the Lord spoke often of him to each other. And he had a Book of Remembrance drawn up in which he recorded the names of those who feared him and loved to think about him. 'They shall be mine,' says the Lord of Hosts, 'in that day when I make up my jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares an obedient and dutiful son'" (Malachi 3:16-17). God places high value upon those who fellowship and think about Him and His plan often, and who inspire each other with sound spiritual conversation. Right spiritual fellowship, as Solomon wrote in the book of Proverbs, "A friendly discussion is as stimulating as the sparks that fly when iron strikes iron" (Proverbs 27:17, The Living Bible). Spiritual conversation can uplift, sparkle, inspire and energize people to greater spiritual action in their lives. How well we have seen this principle illustrated when visiting God's people! Some people are just filled with enthusiasm, zeal and questions when visited by God's ministers -- they even inspire the ministers who visit them. Right spiritual fellowship consists of the positive, uplifting kind of visiting, associations and conversation -- not negative grumbling, complaining, gossiping or carrying rumors. Such negative fellowshipping is Destructive to spiritual character, and is also destructive to the Work of God! When we get together we should do as the Apostle Paul commanded, letting our conversation be seasoned with salt. "No bad language must pass your lips, but only what is good and helpful to the occasion, so that it brings a blessing to those who hear it" (Ephesians 4:23, New English Bible). Discouraging remarks, vicious rumors, evil gossiping and slandering can not only wreck the character of those engaged in it, but also ruin the lives of other people! As Christians, we have an opportunity to make our conversation positive, constructive, helpful and edifying to others. Purpose in fellowship In I Peter 2:17 we are told to "Love the brotherhood." God's greatest single attribute is love -- outgoing concern for others. And He desires that each one of us develop this same attribute in our own lives to the full. He wants us to learn to give and share with others -- to become outgoing and concerned about the needs of others. But this attitude of outgoing love and concern is totally contrary to our own human nature which is selfish, self-centered and hostile toward others! And so God wants us to overcome our inherent selfishness by learning to share our personality and possessions with others. He wants us to learn how to serve others by giving ourselves in service. Most people in the world don't know it, but the key to happiness is learning how to give -- learning how to love! We should become well acquainted with this great spiritual lesson -- and Christian fellowship gives us an op portunity to put it into practice! Did you ever think about it that way? Now what's wrong with this world's fellowship? When we analyze it, there is one basic thing. The essence of the world's fellowship is vanity! The world's constant rigmarole of tea parties, cocktail parties, card games, sports activities, social luncheons, etc., generally speaking, are not held in order to serve or help others. The worldly spirit of backslapping camaraderie is usually motivated by a desire to get, or acquire something from the other individual. In other words, the whole basis of the world's fellowship is to flatter the ego, to elevate the self, to get ahead for self or to make a business deal favorable to self! Fellowshipping for vanity obviously is wrong in God's eyes. God doesn't want His people to get together to see who can be "the life of the party," or who can stay in the "limelight" the longest -- to see who can gain the most admiration from the others. The question is, do we ever allow such motivations to creep back into our minds! The answer, unfortunately, is yes! Fellowshipping, if not handled properly and with wisdom, can and often does cause problems. All too often some of God's people, with a complete disregard for all decorum and respect, trample under foot and take advantage of the hospitality and cordiality of others. Take a good look at yourself and analyze your own situation. How many times have you taken advantage of a brother's hospitality and did not pass on hospitality to others! How to serve in fellowship It is not wrong to enjoy the company of particular people. Even Jesus Christ, who never sinned or was in error, had a special closeness to the Apostle John above the other apostles (John 21:20,24). But does this mean that we should be respecters of persons and only associate with those we particularly like? The obvious answer is no! Declared the Apostle Paul: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction..." (James 1:27). Godly fellowship must include the widows and orphans. It should also include others who may otherwise have very few friends. You must not neglect fellowship with these, to encourage them, to make them feel loved, wanted and appreciated. You can serve and have fellowship by purposely and openly sacrificing your time and personal enjoyment to encourage or help a brother or sister who is ill or alone or afflicted in some way. Visit with the widows and the fatherless because they have less opportunity to get out and be with others. And visit the sick or afflicted in order to encourage and inspire them. This kind of fellowship is well-pleasing to God. God desires that we be hospitable, friendly, sociable, courteous and considerate. But these good fruits must be intensively cultivated; they don't grow up wild like weeds. Our most important fellowship is with God! Important as right fellowship is with our fellow human beings, our most important fellowship is not with them. Our greatest fellowship is with God the Father and Jesus Christ. The Apostle John makes this truth clear. He writes: "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes...that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ" (I John 1:1-3, RSV). John continues, "If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth; but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin" (verses 6-7). Our fellowship with each other--as branches of the one vine, Christ (John 15:5) -- is only in and through our fellowship with Christ and the Father, who have called us into the way of truth. This fellowship comes through drinking in of God's Word by daily Bible study, and through fervent, earnest Prayer several times a day. If we truly walk with Christ and with the Father, then we will surely "become wise," and inherit the Kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world! Copyright 2001 by United Church of God, an International Association All rights reserved. |
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