Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul,
and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own,
but they had everything in common. - Acts 4:32 (ESV)
While many Christians miss getting together in a church service the ‘church service fellowship’ we miss and enjoy is barely a taste of what true fellowship in the Gospel really is. It only scratches the surface of the depth, blessing, and power of what God really desires for us. Many Christians today attend church services week in and week out but never experience the fellowship and unity God wants for us. God, in His sovereignty, has allowed the church service to be taken away for a while. Ironically it is during this time we are seeing some Christians enter into fellowship more than when they met regularly for church services! Some have gone out of their way to make phone calls, to offer assistance, to share resources etc. Also in a strange way using Zoom to hold meetings and discussions has forced a number of us to be patient with each other, listen more, and wait for each other as we are forced to speak one-at-a-time and all be part of the same conversation at once. The New Testament word for fellowship (koinonía) signifies a mutual sharing or participation in something with others. Fellowship in the NT refers to our union and shared participation together in the good news of the kingdom. While we must individually respond to the gospel and each one is called to know Jesus personally, our faith is not individualistic. We are saved into the body of Christ. We are adopted into his household – his church (Ephesians 2 makes this clear). So fellowship is about a mutual family bond and a mutual sharing between brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ (1Cor 12:26, Acts 4:32).
When I think of what the bible calls fellowship I think of the Lord of the Rings movie, 'Fellowship of the Ring". In it a motley crew of very different creatures, some who even consider each other enemies (Dwarfs and Elves) go off on a great quest together to overcome great evil. Their shared quest bonds them together in friendship and even though they are separated for a time their fellowship lasts the rest of their lives and goes so deep they are willing to risk their lives for one another! Isn’t this the kind of miraculous unity and fellowship Jesus was talking about when he prayed for us in John 17
"I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me." John 17:21 NLT
We are called not to some loose association or weekly hang-out but to so much more!
• Greet and accept one another as family (Romans 16:16, Romans 15:7)
• Serve one another (Galatians 5:13) with the Gifts God has given you (1 Peter 4:10)
• Submit to one another and live in harmony (Ephesians 5:21, 1 Peter 5:5, Romans 12:16)
• Honor and love one another above yourself (Romans 12:10)
• Bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2) and Pray for one another (James 5:16)
• Be patient with one another and forgive one another (Ephesians 4:2, 32; Colossians 3:13)
• Confess your sins to one another (James 5:16)
• Comfort and care for one another (1 Thessalonians 4:18, 1 Corinthians 12:25)
• Teach, Encourage and Exhort one another (Colossians 3:16, 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Hebrews 3:13)
You could easily avoid entering into most of the things listed above in a typical church service today but it would be almost impossible not to participate at some level in these things if you went to a church meeting in NT times!
The NT churches did not meet in front of a pulpit, they met around the table. They met often in smaller settings for The Lord’s supper where Jew and Gentile, slave and master, rich and poor met face to face welcoming and accepting one another as family in Christ. The supper was typically followed by a more formal time of sharing, teaching and discussion. And it was expected that families would come prepared to contribute something to the conversation (1Cor 14:26).
The bible presents a smaller more interactive kind of meeting as the main course; the regular meal of the church, while larger gatherings and celebrations are more like dessert. We love dessert. It is good. But we’ve made it the main thing and you can’t expect to grow strong and healthy just eating dessert! This is a big reason why many Christians rarely experience true fellowship in our churches today. A fresh look at the NT principles for church challenges us to view smaller meetings (things like Gospel Communities, Home-Churches, First Principle cohorts) not as optional extras but as official church gatherings that are worth the effort, worth shaping our schedule around, and even more essential, than holding a church service.
Questions:
- How does the idea of making church gatherings easy to attend, with little or no obligation for active participation, compare with the way Jesus went about evangelism and discipleship?
- Can you think of some reasons why we tend to prioritize a typical church service in our culture over meeting more like the NT church did? Which kind of meeting, even if it was done over zoom, would help you practise the one another’s of Scripture and nurture the kind of fellowship God wants for us? Even though it may be messy and difficult what benefits do families and individuals gain from engaging in true fellowship? How might our lives and our witness improve?
- What are some reasons why many Christians tend to avoid participating in smaller more interactive gatherings like the early church did? What challenges would you need to overcome in order to participate regularly in one?
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