The Necessity of Christian Fellowship

Fellowship. To share in common.  So vital to anyone's life, but especially to the Christian, that is to the one who is in a right relationship with God, only by God's grace alone and only through the finished work of Christ alone. 

There are different types of fellowship groups people are a part of. There are gym fellowships where people go to the same gym to work out. There are quilting fellowships where ladies gather on weekends to create their favorite designs. There are golfing fellowships where men and women get together regularly at their country club. Though people may not call them fellowships, but gym memberships or quilting clubs or golf buddies, they are fellowships because they share something in common, whether a desire to live a healthy lifestyle, or a passion for quilting or spending time with their friends on the golf green.

But the most important fellowship is genuine Christian fellowship because of what we share in common. 3 things.
1) Our Salvation
Jude talks about "our common salvation"(Jude 3) The Greek term for "common" is koino, the root for our term fellowship. Of all things that binds us, it is the salvation we share in common. All believers have been saved by grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone. We were all once dead in trespasses and sins(Ephesians 2:1). But God made us alive(Ephesians 2:5). We all possess all the same spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ(Ephesians 1:3). What great a salvation to share with other believers.
2) The Gospel
In His prayer for the Philippians, the apostle Paul thanks God for their partnership in the Gospel.(Philippians 1:5) The term translated "partnership" is the Greek noun for fellowship, koinonia, to share in common. As believers we were saved by the Gospel, the power of God(Romans 1:!6) and it is this same Gospel we are to proclaim to a lost a dying world. 
3) The Sufferings of Christ
In His testimony, the apostle Paul said that He wanted to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship(there it is again, Greek koinonia) of His sufferings(Philippians 3:10) That is why Jesus said "If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you."(John 15:20)

This leads us to the title of this blog post, The Necessity of Christian Fellowship. In times of persecution, what kept the early church persevering through those trials? Certainly one aspect of their perseverance was their Christian fellowship. Furthermore, their fellowship was strengthened and forged in the fires of persecution.

When the religious elite commanded them not to teach in the name of Jesus, the apostles responded unequivocally that they cannot stop speaking what they have seen and heard(Acts 4:18-20). Upon their release, what did they do? They went to their fellow Christians. Why? To report what happened.(Acts 4:23). And then Luke pens emphatically, "And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God..."(Acts 4:24, emphasis added) Note the togetherness of the scenario. In this time of persecution, the believers relied on their fellowship with each other to share and to pray.

So why the necessity of Christian fellowship? Here's the first reason. In order to persevere through the persecution that awaits us today. Even the blind man of John 9 would be able to see what's going on in our day, that we as Christians, though not yet under full persecution like the early church, are certainly headed there.  We, the Christian community, the church, are already marginalized, that is treated as insignificant and peripheral. After all, we live in the day of CANCEL CULTURE. People on social media are cancelled for what's labeled HATE SPEECH, and that most definitely includes pastors, who are not giving their own opinion, but simply declaring what God Himself clearly says in His Word concerning homosexualiy(Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9).  And isn' it funny that this is happening in the age where the watch word is TOLERANCE. Yes, there is a double standard. Not only are we to not speak out against the LGBTQ  community, but we are to applaud them. But yet on the other hand,  if we believe what the Bible says and declare it, we are considered intolerant, when in reality, let's be honest,  those who are intolerant are those who are...well...blind. And such were some of you, that is blind, But God... And for this reason alone we need to stoke the fires of Christian fellowship and not neglect it so that we can stand together when our towns, cities, states, government, schools, neighbors, etc. try to shut our voices. Now is the time to speak out.

This leads to the next reason for the necessity of fellowship and that is for the sake of evangelism. When the apostles gave the report to their Christian friends and together they prayed, the content of their prayer was first acknowledging that the death of Christ was in God's sovereign predetermined plan(Acts 4:27-28). Then note what their prayer request was, "grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,"(Acts 4:29). They did not ask that God would stop the persecution, but that He would strengthen them to continue to speak with boldness. After they prayed they continued to speak the word of God with boldness(Acts 4:31), which was specifically exemplified later(Acts 5:17-29)

One of the primary means of perseverance, in times of difficulty, that God gave is fellowship. And one of the primary means that God gave for you to evangelize, in a hostile world, is fellowship as together "you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents."(Philippians 1:27-28). 

Are you neglecting Christian fellowship?