My subject this morning is Christian
fellowship. Sounds like something you might
hear in the average Southern Baptist pulpit. What is Christian fellowship? What is that? We hear people
talk about it. When we gonna have another fellowship? Huh? You may have asked that
question. I may have asked that question. How often are we gonna have a
fellowship? What is Christian fellowship?
It is the unity of mind and heart around the truth of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. christian first john chapter
one verse seven says but if we walk in the light as he is the light we have fellowship
one with another there's no mention of drinks or food or any kind
of sporting event You know, the young people of
the church, we used to get together back in religion and we'd go
fishing or we'd go horseback riding and we called that fellowship.
There's no mention of that here. What it does say is if we walk
in the light, is he is the light. We have fellowship one with another,
whether we know it or not. We have fellowship one with another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanseth us from all
sin. All of us. Because we all believe
the same thing. We've all come to the same one. We've all come the same way. Brother Mahan used to tell us
this. He said, fellowship is fellers
in the same ship. That's what it is. Fellowship
is not in the banquet or in the get-togethers, but it's in our
mutual hopes and beliefs in the Lord Jesus Christ. We can eat
together and not have fellowship, and sometimes do. We can get together and not be
together. We can play games and have recreation
and have no fellowship whatsoever. We can make professions of faith
and attend worship in the same building and have no fellowship
at all. Fellowship has to do with our
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and our trust in our covenant
God of whom Christ is the revelation and the source. John gives us
several things to consider here in chapter one of his first general
epistle to the churches. And the first thing he tells
us is this, that fellowship finds its beginning in God. Now if we can't have fellowship
with God, you don't have a prayer having fellowship with one another.
1 John chapter 1 verse 3, he said,
that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you in order
that ye also might have fellowship with us. We've seen it, we've
heard it, we've bowed to him, we've touched him, we've handled
him, we know him. He's chosen us, revealed himself
to us. We know him and we have fellowship
with him. And therefore we're telling you,
That's why we preach. That's why we preach this gospel
that others might have fellowship with us. And truly, our fellowship
is with the Father and with his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. You hear what John's saying?
Beloved, eternal life is to know God. It's not how long it lasts. Religion sets it forth always
as everlasting life, and that truly is, according to the scriptures,
it does last forever. But that's not the basis of eternal
life. Eternal life is the quality of
it. Eternal life is to know God. And to know God is to fellowship
with God, that is to being brought into harmony with God, to know
Him as He is and walk with Him as He is. He doesn't say if you
know light, that we have fellowship one with another. He said if
you walk in the light as He is the light. If you've experienced
this light in your soul and it's moved you and you walk accordingly,
then we have fellowship one with another. Turn with me to John
chapter 17. Eternal life is to know God and
to know His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Look here in John chapter
17, I begin reading in verse 1. This is our Lord's high priestly
prayer before He went to the cross. These words spake Jesus
and lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has
come, that hour determined before the foundation of the world,
that hour of which he spoke often when he was on this earth. It
said they would have taken him out. That said he was on a hill,
and he offended them in his speech, and they would have taken him
out and threw him over the brow of the hill. But they could not,
because his time wasn't yet come. He said, Father, the hour has
come. Glorify thy son, that thy son also may glorify thee. That is, through His substitutionary
death, bearing our sins and His own body on the tree. That is,
to show Himself just and righteous in His remission of sins. To
accomplish our redemption. To usher in the righteousness
of God. And Jesus Christ was glorified
by the Father with the glory of His justice and His righteousness
and his love and his mercy and his grace all coming together
in a true revelation of God on the cross. That's what he's praying
for here. Glorify your son that in such
glorification, in such manifestation of your glory that your son may
also glorify thee. Verse 2. As thou hast given him
power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as
many as thou hast given him. That's how that glory's gonna
be manifested, in particular, redemption. I don't know of another
passage that states it any clearer than this one right here. There
can be no doubt about the hour that he's talking about, there
can be no doubt about the glory of which he's talking about,
and there can be no doubt about this. those for whom He was about
to lay down His life. And this manifestation and revelation
of God shall be seen in the particular redemption of God's elect as
He redeems them to God by His own blood. Now watch this, verse
3. And this is life eternal, that
they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom
thou hast sent. How are they going to know that?
Because he's about to manifest it with the glory which the Father
is going to give to him and manifest it on that cross. Eternal life
is to savingly know God. It's not to know about God, it's
to know God. It's to savingly know God by
the manifestation of himself and revelation of himself in
Christ our Redeemer. And we cannot have fellowship
with one another. Now I'm talking about believers.
I'm not talking about this world. This world has perfect fellowship
with themselves. They get together all the time
and rejoice, but not around the Christ of the Bible. Not around
the God of Scripture. When we talk about the God of
Scripture and we're talking about believers, We cannot have fellowship
with one another and not have fellowship with God. He's the
source. He's the source. 1 John 1 verse
2. Listen to this. For the life
was manifested and we have seen it. And we bear witness and show
it unto you. We show unto you that eternal
life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us. Eternal life, the revelation
of it, God's purpose to reveal it, and the means to bring it
to pass has always been the Father's purpose. And it's with the Father, our
covenant God, to which we've been called into fellowship. Fellowship begins with God. Before
we can ever hope to have fellowship with one another, we must be
reconciled and received and called into fellowship with God. All right, here's the second
thing. How is this knowledge of eternal life given? Well,
it's given, first of all, by the word of God. I used to, but I don't care much
anymore what people think. Just don't even come to me and
start telling me what you think. Tell me what you read in the
Word of God. Tell me what God says about that
subject. Well, why don't you want to hear
our thoughts? Because the Scripture said your thoughts are not His
thoughts. That's why. Let's find out His
thoughts and they will discern our thoughts. Let's look at our
thoughts in the light of His thought. You see what I'm saying?
Walking in the light as He is the light. Let's do that. Paul,
he went so far as to put it this way. He said, let God be true
and every man a liar. So let's just enter into the
thing saying we're liars. Find out what God says. So we
find out first of all by the word of God. John said, that
which we've seen and heard declare we unto you that you might have
fellowship with us. God has chosen certain men and
blessed them to write with the infallibility of the Holy Spirit
of inspiration. And that's how this book come
to be. This is not just a group of men
who over so many thousands of years, we compiled their testimonies
and their ministry and their little books and things that
they read. And we approved some and didn't approve others and
the church voted on it on Wednesday night and said, we're gonna put
it all together and staple it together and we're gonna call
it the word of God. No, that's not how it comes. All scripture
is given by inspiration of God. These men in old time, Peter
said, they didn't write according to their will. It wasn't their
will to do this, this was God's will. And he overrode their will. And He gave them such an inspiration
of His Spirit as to write with infallibility in the Word of
God. 2 Timothy 3.16 All Scripture is given by inspiration
of God, and therefore it's profitable. What's it profitable for? Doctrine. You wanna establish a doctrine?
Establish it in the Word of God and let others say what they
will. You build your hope on the Word of God. God said, God
said. It's profitable for doctrine.
It's profitable for reproof. You wanna reproof somebody? Use
the Word of God. It's profitable, he says here,
for correction. It's profitable here, he said,
for instruction in righteousness, to tell people about the righteousness
of Christ and how this righteousness can be obtained. It's profitable. The Word of God is for these.
And all these writers were accompanied by miracles and wonders and signs
and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to God's own will.
And therefore, we have no reason to doubt who they were or the
infallibility of what they've written. God confirmed them by
these things. Well, we can't have fellowship
with God and not be in harmony with His Word. I must be in harmony
with His Word. because that's the foundation
of our faith. We can't get together and believe
two different things in the word of God. It's not gonna happen,
at least not of the essential thing. And if we say we have
fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie. Just that
simple. We lie and we do not the truth. Well, first of all, that knowledge
which brings to us eternal life and brings us into fellowship
with God comes by the word of God. I wouldn't give you two
cents for a preacher who don't point me into the word of God
and establish the basis in the word of God for what they preach. Turn with me to Titus chapter
one. Here's the second thing I want
you to see about this, this eternal life and how it comes, this fellowship. It comes through the preaching
of the gospel. Titus chapter 1, beginning with
verse 1. Paul, a servant of God and an
apostle of Jesus Christ according to the faith of God's elect and
the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness. in
hope of eternal life which God that cannot lie promised before
the world began. Now watch this. But hath in due times manifested
his word through preaching which is committed unto me according
to the commandment of God our Savior. How is this word going
to be made known? Through preaching. Who's preaching? Are you saying that the people
shouldn't read the Word of God? Not at all. I encourage everybody
in here to read the Word of God. But don't read the Word of God
and go off and hide in a corner. Read the Word of God and then
come and hear it preached and taught. And prove all things
and hold fast that which is good. In Romans chapter 10 verses 13
through 15, Paul shows us both the necessity and the purpose
of God in the preaching of the gospel. And then he sums it all
up like this. So then, faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God. What's that preacher preach?
He preaches the word of God. If he preaches grace, he takes
you over to Ephesians chapter two, verse eight, and says, by
grace are you saved through faith. He don't just say grace and go
on. He establishes that grace as a doctrine in the Word of
God. Now my friend, let me tell you
something. Don't waste your time trying to justify any experience
you've ever had. Some are good and some are bad. And especially such an experience
that's contrary to the Word of God. If it's contrary to the
Word of God, turn it loose. Turn it loose. It pleased God
through the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. That's
1 Corinthians 1.21. God hath from the beginning chosen
you to salvation through sanctification of spirit and belief of the truth,
whereunto he called you by a gospel. 2 Thessalonians 2.13 and 14. My friend, there's a fellowship
with the God of glory and with his people even in the means
of their calling. We have fellowship. We're called
in one hope of our calling. And here, and have one Lord, have one Lord, one faith, and
one baptism. We don't have two or three baptisms,
we just have one. We don't have two or three Lords,
we have one. And they're not two or three
faiths, they're just one faith. Peter tells us we have like precious
faith. What's he mean like? Does that
mean we like it? No, it means it's the same. It
means it's the same. And Paul said Timothy was his
spiritual son after the common faith. That is, it's the same. So this fellowship is likeness
of mind and heart, this knowing God in Christ comes by the word
of God, and it comes by the preaching of the gospel. And thirdly, it
comes by the presence and power of the Holy Ghost. It's not something
you can go pick off the wall and have it. It's not something
you carry around in your pocket. And when you need it, you can
get it out real quick. Faith is given, it's given, it's
the gift of God. By grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of
works, lest any man should boast. And this gift is given by the
word of God through the preaching of the gospel and by the presence
and power of the Holy Ghost. Just as false religion under
the deceit and influence of Satan has misrepresented God the Father
and God the Son, even so they have misrepresented the Holy
Ghost in His work. There's three things which primarily
make up the ministry of the Holy Ghost. The first is the preaching
of the Gospel. Paul said, He hath made us able
ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the
Spirit. For the letter killeth, but the
spirit giveth life. And we preach to men who are
dead in trespasses and sins and depraved in their natures and
at war with God in their minds. And I don't care how cleverly
you arrange your words, they are but words apart from his
presence and power. The Holy Spirit works in conjunction
with the preaching of the Gospel. Secondly, the Holy Spirit is
the power behind the new birth. John plainly tells us in chapter
3 of his Gospel that we must be and are born of his Spirit. Have to be. Have to be. And I
cannot explain how we're born any more than I can explain my
physical birth. I had no mind and conscience
to even know it. One day I wasn't and one day
I was. And I know it requires a seed,
but the rest is a miracle of God. And I know Paul said he'd
prevail concerning the Galatians until Christ was formed in them. How's that forming done? What's
he talking about being formed? He's talking about Christ as
he's testified in the word of God and testified of the Father. That Jesus Christ is formed as
he is in you. Until it becomes a part of you. Until it becomes you. Paul said,
for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. Listen to how Isaiah says it.
Isaiah 43, verse 6. He said, I'll say to the north,
give up. I'll say to the south, keep not
back. Bring my sons from far and my
daughters from the ends of the earth, even everyone that's called
by my name. For I have created him for my
glory, and I have formed him. Yea, I have made him. The Holy Spirit's the power behind
that, Russell. He's the power behind that new
birth. I can preach words to you all day long, but I can't
bring about that birth. But the Holy Spirit can. And
then thirdly, the Holy Ghost seals in our hearts the promises
of God in Christ that confirm to us our adoption. Listen to
this, Galatians 4 verse 6. And because ye are sons, God
has sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying,
Abba, Father. Abba, Father. Oh, my soul. That's not the old me that cries
to God the Father. God my Father. That's not the
old me, that's the new me. You can't do that apart from
the Spirit of God. You just can't do it, can't do
it. So fellowship finds its beginning
in God, who is the source and object of our fellowship. And
if we have fellowship with God, we can have fellowship one with
another. And we can have it in anything
we do. We can have it when we go back
yonder to eat. We can have it when we're baptized.
We can have it when we're working. We can have it on our daily lives.
We got fellowship one with another because our fellowship is with
Him. It's with Him. And we know primarily how this
fellowship comes. It comes through the Word of
God, the Gospel of Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost.
What else does John have to say about this fellowship? Well, he tells us, first of all,
what the trouble is with those who will not fellowship with
us. That's the first thing he says
about it. 1 John 1, verse 6. If we say we have fellowship
with him and walk in darkness, we lie. Why can't I have fellowship
with this man? Because he's a liar. That's why.
He's a liar. He won't get in line with the
word of God. He won't get in line with the way of God. He
won't get in line with the doctrine of Christ. I have no fellowship
with him. I can't have any fellowship with
him. He's a liar. He won't walk in the light. To have fellowship with God assumes
an inward work of grace. Paul describes this work in 1
Thessalonians 1, verses 5 through 10. We're talking about fellowship.
We haven't left our subject. We're talking about fellowship.
But I'm telling you this fellowship comes when we have an inward
work of grace in the heart. And he begins in verse 5, telling
us that the gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in
power and in the Holy Ghost and in much assurance. You know,
the first work of the Holy Ghost is to convict a man of sin. I'm
going to let you in on something. If God himself ever convicts
you of sin, he'll have to convict you of righteousness. Because
you're not going to see anything but sin in yourself and in the
world and in everything you ever did, in your best prayers, in
your best time of worship. All you're going to see is sin.
Sin, sin, sin. Everything. All around sin. How can this world, how can a
man who's born into this world be righteous? Job prayed, he
wanted to know that. How can man that drinks iniquity
like water be righteous before God? In Christ, the only way. And that's how he convinces you
of righteousness, by another, not by you. And when he does, you'll cry
with Paul, oh, that I might be found in him, not having my own
righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ. Nothing else can or will bring
peace to a convicted sinner except the gospel of Christ, our Redeemer
and righteousness. And when the gospel comes in
power, it performs these things in the heart, and the heart receives
them. The heart's justified. He justifies
you, because you see yourself justified in Christ. You see
God satisfied with Christ, and it satisfies that new heart.
Secondly, 1 Thessalonians 1, verse 6. Here's the second thing
in that work of grace in the heart. You become followers of
us. Let me read that again. You become followers of us and
the Lord. Are you trying to put yourself
up on the same plane as God? No. I'm trying to put myself
where he put me, as his ambassador. No higher than that. His ambassador. Without him, I'm nothing. Without
his authority, I don't have any. But in him, I have authority. And this is what Paul said, I
know your election of God, and I know it because of this inward
work of grace. The gospel came unto you, not
word only, but it came to you in power. And when it did, you
become followers of us and the Lord. Why would you follow us?
Because we're telling you the truth and God confirming it in
your heart and mind. That's why. He didn't say you become followers
of us and then somewhere down the road you become followers
of the Lord, you become followers of us and the Lord. And when a man or a woman comes
to Christ, he comes in submission. He bows down. He bows down to
the sovereign king of glory and submission, not only to Christ,
but to all his delegated authority. He bows. He bows. People who will not be ruled
over in love have never bowed to Christ, and therefore cannot
be in fellowship with us. You become followers of us and
the Lord. And then thirdly, in verse 7,
First Thessalonians 1 verse 7. You become examples to all that
believe. You're the example of a believer.
Boy, you don't want to look in the mirror and say that, do you?
But you are. You are. You're an example of
His grace. Oh, my soul. I sometimes can't imagine how
the God of glory could fellowship with me. But I know how, by grace. By grace and through the Lord
Jesus Christ. We're examples in that the Spirit
of God, the Gospel of God, and the Word of God are all one and
in harmony with one another. We rest in those things. In Ephesians
4, Paul spoke of endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. How do we keep the unity of the
Spirit in the things that I just told you? Huh? He works in your heart so that
you can cry, Abba, Father, because you're a son. He works in your
mind and heart, teaching you and giving you an understanding
that the rest of this world don't have. And He does it through
His Spirit. And so that there is a unity
of spirit among believers. There's a spiritual union between
God and His people, and between Christ and His spiritual body,
and between saints and saints. There's a unity. And by way of
this union, there is a peace that follows that passes all
understanding. Christ is our peace who hath
made both one. broke down the middle wall of
petition between us, and made in himself a twain one new man,
so make him peace." They just warned her, not Jews, and you
all worship over here on the other side of the petition, and
we got this wall built, and us Jews gonna worship over here.
No, he took the wall down, and he took both peoples and made
one people. He called some of the Gentiles and some of the
Jews, and made a one new man. and there he made peace. And
all those men have fellowship one with another. Believers are
all examples of the sovereign grace of God in all things, in
their election, in their redemption, in their calling, in their ministry,
in their preservation, and in their perseverance. We're examples. Fourthly, 1 Thessalonians 1 verse
8, For from you sounded out the word of the Lord, Not only in
Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place, your faith to
God will be spread abroad. All believers have a common interest
and fellowship around the gospel of Christ being preached. I'm
asked all the time, if you ever go over there, I'd like to go
over with you. Why? Because we have a common interest.
We have a common interest. I want this gospel to be preached
wherever God opens the door. Verse nine, for they themselves
show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you and how you
turn to God from your idols. What's that talking about? That's
talking about leaving religion. That's what that's talking about.
You turn from your idols. That God, that religion of works,
and that God who, you know how Isaiah, through the spirit of
God, defined false religion? He said, they pray to a God who
cannot save. So any religion that prays to
a God who can't save, unless you let him, or whatever, that's
false religion. That's what it is. Our Savior
came to save, and He saved. His redemption redeems. His righteousness
covers completely. His atonement put away sin, and
there's no adding to it. And then, sixthly, He tells us
in verse 10, this inward work of grace causes the believer
to wait for his son from heaven. He walks, Brother Don says, on
the tiptoes of faith, waiting for the return of the Son. And this work leads us to walk
in the light as He is the light, and in so doing we have fellowship,
one with another. And the benefits of this is that
the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin. Oh, my soul, what a precious
thing to have Christian fellowship.