True Fellowship

God and I have been discussing how people define that word “fellowship” differently, but we need to see it biblically. Like an aging tire on your car, it may be losing its true impression, becoming threadbare. So let us see if we can take a few steps to rescue the word “fellowship. After all, we want a high-quality biblical word like fellowship to stay in circulation as long as possible.

The word “fellowship” means "to have in common." However, proper Christian fellowship is a lot deeper than sharing coffee over a blog, or even in person. In most churches "fellowship" is no more than acquaintanceship or friendship. You see, a person cannot have fellowship with another person unless they have something in common. For true Christian fellowship to occur, each person engaging in the fellowship must be a born-again spiritual Christian. Unless a person has trusted Christ as his or her Savior, that person cannot know anything of "the fellowship of the Gospel." According to Romans Chapter 8, an unsaved or carnal person cannot experience this fellowship. In Philippians 2:1, Paul writes about fellowshipping “with of the Spirit," because when a person is born again he receives the gift of the Spirit (Rom 8:9). There is also "the fellowship of His sufferings" (Philippians 3:10).

So, true Christian fellowship is much more than a church dinner. It is far more than having one’s name on a church roll or being present at a meeting. Many Christians want the church dinners, but how often do you hear church members asking for wanting to fellowship with the Spirit or experience the “fellowship” of the sufferings of Christ?

It is possible for a person to be close to others physically and still be miles away from them spiritually. One of the sources of Christian joy is this fellowship that believers have in Jesus Christ. Paul was in Rome, his friends were miles away in Philippi, but their spiritual fellowship was real and satisfying. When you have the single mind, you will not complain about circumstances because you know that difficult circumstances will result in strengthening the fellowship of the Gospel. It is the fellowship of the Gospel that is important. So, get another cup of coffee and join me in this fellowship of the Gospel.