How you doin? We had a young couple over for dinner last night and our fellowship was refreshing. The husband of the couple is eerily like me. The poor girls hardly got a word in edgewise. It's very enjoyable being around people on fire for the Lord. This couple isn't church-ed or influenced by the demonic spirit of religion, unbelief, or doubt. We were able to speak freely and edify each other. Most of all we loved our precious Jesus together. This couple attends Christ Fellowship were the Doug Addison conference is being held. 1 John 1 today. I must confess, I've been looking forward to getting to this book.
Verse 3, "-what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." I find myself throwing the word "fellowship" around freely. In my Bible's dictionary it's defined, "friendship; association; companionship". I claim to fellowship with a lot of people. I claim to fellowship with Jesus. Can I/we comfortably say that we fellowship with each other or, ten times more then that, with Jesus? Am I friends with the folks that I "fellowship" with at church? Am I a friend to Jesus? Webster's defines "association" this way,
1
2
: an organization of persons having a common interest : society
3
: something linked in memory or imagination with a thing or person
4
: the process of forming mental connections or bonds between sensations, ideas, or memories
5
: the aggregation of chemical species to form (as with hydrogen bonds) loosely bound complexes
6
: a major unit in ecological community organization characterized by essential uniformity and usually by two or more dominant species
Numbers 2, 4, & 6 stood out to me. Do we as a church truly have a common interest. Do I/we truly form mental connection or bonds between sensations, ideas, or memories with Jesus. Perhaps this are tough questions, but the Holy Ghost has the answer to tough questions. "Companionship" is defined, "the good feeling that comes from being with someone else; the fellowship existing amongcompanions : company". Jesus seeks fellowship with me/us. He wants to keep us in in His company. SO GOOD!!!!!!! I spent this much time on fellowship for the following verses.
Verses 5-7, "This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him andyet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." HOLY MAC A LOLY!!!!!!! I think I'm going to be careful about tossing the word "fellowship" around like it means nothing but hanging out in light meaningless conversation. Verse 7 is referring to the way that Jesus was "in the Light", as a man. Association is heavily linked to unity, "common interest". As we become like Christ, we take on His thoughts, characteristics, and nature. If we individually become like Him, we consequently have unity and fellowship. In this Scripture "fellowship" with each other is connected to cleansing from "all sin". The second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. COME ON!!!!!!! I'm having trouble landing this, so I'm just going to stop. Fellowship with Him today.
PS I do believe that fellowship with Jesus needs to come first before we can fellowship with each other. Having fellowship with Jesus will give me common interest with Him. He's interested in love. On the heavier side of things, verses 5-10, John confronts 3 false teachings, 1) that can have fellowship with God and go on living in spiritual darkness, 2) that people had no natural tendency toward sin, that they were without sin, and that they were incapable of sinning. That Christ death wasn't needed., 3) they denied that sin breaks fellowship with god and they denied that their conduct involved any sin at all. Dig into that while thinking about fellowship with God. WOW WOW WOW!!!!!!!
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