Christian Fellowship
Fellowship, in the New Testament, derives from the key, kingly word of koinonia. From the scholarly works of Thayer, Bagster, Vine, Woods and others we discover that fellowship is an association, a partnership, a joint sharing or participation, a communion, a contribution, etc. These definitions, if applied accurately, will enable us to understand the fellowship the early believers had in Acts 2:42; the fellowship bond that existed between Paul and the precious people at Philippi in Philippians 1:5 and 4:14-17, the fellowship that permeates the two great chapters of giving in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 and that fervent fellowship that the apostle of love portrayed so ardently and attractively in 1 John 1. In this article I plan to address my remarks to the limits of Christian fellowship. Obviously, it is limited to the circle of pure, unadulterated, unblemished and pristine New Testament Christianity. There is a twofold concept of Christian fellowship. God's full counsel in this momentous matter is not reached until both concepts are accepted and acted upon in responsible fashion.
Christian fellowship is limited to those who have obeyed the Gospel. Christian fellowship is based on faith - not flesh. There is a marvelous passage in Matthew 12:46-50 wherein our Lord's physical mother and fleshly brethren came and desired a conversation with Christ. Jesus asked, when informed of their nearby presence, "Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? and he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, my sister, and mother" (Matthew 12:48-50). At this time his fleshly brethren even denied his Deity (John 7:5). To do his will was/is the important thing. James and Jude, his half brothers and writers later of two New Testament epistles, evidently learned this, for both emphasized their spiritual link with Christ in their literary productions and ignored totally any fleshly connections.
To do the will of God initially means to obey the Gospel and to do so in a framework of Truth - not denominational dogmas and dogmatism. It means to hear or read correct doctrine (Rom. 10:17). It means to believe the correct teaching about Christ's Deity (John 8:21, 24; Matt. 16:16; Acts 8:37). It means to repent correctly (Acts 2:38; 17:30). It means to confess correctly Christ's Deity (Matt. 10:32; Acts 8:37; Rom. 10:9-10). It means to be baptized correctly (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16; Rom. 6:3-4; Gal. 3:27; 1 Pet. 3:21). Correct baptism means correct (not corrupt or denominational) teaching precedes it; it means one is a correct candidate; it means the correct action (a burial or immersion) occurs; it means the correct purpose motivates: i.e. to be saved, to come into the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, to receive remission of sins, to enter the kingdom or the church. People who are immersed with little or no awareness of these imperatives are not like those in New Testament times, and nobody in New Testament times was ever baptized to be a Christian plus something else; some of our popular young preachers to the contrary notwithstanding. Obedience to the Gospel puts us in that regal realm.
Christian fellowship is limited to those who continue in faithfulness. This is really the bottom line of 1 John 1:7 which states, "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." To walk in the light is the equivalent of doing the Father's will. It means faithfulness in the development of personal righteousness and godliness; it means regularity of worship; it means diligence in our work for the Lord; it means proper preparation in our waiting and watching for the Lord's second advent. It means faithfulness in our becoming carriers of redemption's sweet story to alien sinners; it means faithfulness in our efforts of reclaiming apostates (James 5:19-20) and those who stumble due to sudden temptation that overtakes them (Gal. 6:1).
It is not enough to say we fellowship all who have obeyed the Gospel. Past obedience to the Truth does not always add up to present fidelity to Truth. Christian fellowship is limited to those who have obeyed the Gospel and who right now are continuing to walk in the light as the Lord is in the light. This is not a two fold limitation we have imposed; it is one the Lord has imposed and we had better respect it and act upon it in responsible fashion.
From Our Archives, 1987
By Robert Taylor