First Corinthians, Chapter 1. While you're turning there, there's
a sign-up sheet in the back for April 8th. Whoever can go boldly,
we need to know, so sign up so we can know how many lanes to
rent on April 8th. Just a second Corinthians. I
meant 1st Corinthians. If I said 2nd Corinthians, so hopefully
I said 1st Corinthians. OK, here it is, verse 9. God is faithful. By whom? You were called. Unto the fellowship. Of his son. Jesus Christ. Our Lord. Now I want to preach upon this
subject. Fellowship with Christ. Fellowship means a sharing in
common. It doesn't simply mean sitting
around talking to one another and having a good time. It means
an actual sharing in common. It means communion. Fellowship
with God's Son, who is equal with the Father, the second person
of the Blessed Trinity, a sharing in common with Him. Fellowship
with Jesus, the Savior. Fellowship with the Christ, God's
anointed prophet, priest, and king. fellowship with our Lord,
not merely the Lord, but our Lord. As John said, or Thomas
said, my Lord and my God. What an awesome thought, fellowship,
an actual sharing in common communion with Christ. Now, this is what
you and I are called to if we're believers. Fellowship with the
Lord Jesus Christ. If you are struggling with meaning
and purpose in your life, what about this? Fellowship with the
Son of God. Communion with the Son of God. God is faithful who hath called
you unto fellowship with his dear Son." Now, the fellowship
spoken of here is the result of union with Christ. That is what fits us for fellowship,
union with Christ. And God gives marriage to picture
and to typify this union. Turn over to Ephesians chapter
5 for just a moment. Verse 31, Ephesians chapter 5, verse 31,
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall
be joined unto his wife, and they too shall be one flesh. Now, this is a great mystery,
but I speak concerning Christ and the Church. Now, here Paul
tells us, I'm not really so much talking about the man and woman.
I'm talking about Christ and the church. The two become one. The marriage consummation illustrates
that. In this marriage, we're not two
people who are very close or even two glued together, but
one. Both he that sanctify and they
who are sanctified are all of one. For the witch cause he's
not ashamed to call them brethren." Now in being one with Christ,
not too very close, but one, union, one, not joined together
real tight, but one. That's what union with Christ
means, one with Him. If I'm one with Him, that means
my sin actually became His. Really was his. That's why I
died. If I'm in union with Christ,
his perfect righteousness, his law keeping, really is mine. Not as if it were mine, not just
like it were mine, it is mine. Union with the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, the scripture says
we are seated together in the heavenlies in Christ right now. If he's in heaven and he is. If I'm a believer, I am too. I'm not there with him. And this
is mysterious. It's a mystery and the Bible
calls it a mystery in Ephesians chapter three, verse nine. We
read of the fellowship. There's the word, the fellowship
of the mystery. which from the beginning of the
world had been hidden God who created all things by Jesus Christ. Fellowship. A sharing in common
with Jesus Christ. A sharing in common with God
the Father. A sharing in common with the Holy Spirit. A sharing
in common with one another. Through fellowship. Fellowship. Not being held off. Did you read
that description? that the church gives of the
Lord, we just read about in Song of Solomon, chapter five. This
is a whole lot more than giving a cent to some things, isn't
it? I mean, the church looks at him as the altogether lovely
one. Fellowship, not being held off,
but drawing near, allowed like John to lay our head on his bosom. And that's the fellowship we're
speaking of. God is faithful. who had called you unto fellowship
with his dear son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, a sharing in common
with Christ. People who have fellowship share
the same things in common. Now. Usually, when we think of
fellowship, we think of getting together with somebody we enjoy
being around and talking to and having common interests and we
enjoy that and that is part of fellowship, but it's not really
the main part of what this means. It means an actual sharing in
common. Now, what do we share in common
with Christ? I mean, he's the eternal son of God. What do we
actually share in common with him? He's got it, I've got it. Well, turn to Hebrews 2. Let
me show you some things. Verse 14. For as much then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood, we have that, don't we? We're
aware of it. He also himself likewise took
part of the same, that the dread he might destroy him that had
the power of death, that is, the devil. We have fellowship
in this sense. We both have flesh. We're sharers
in that. Turn a few pages over to 2 Peter
chapter 1. I want you to see this. If it
didn't say this, I wouldn't believe it. This is just one of those
things that are just so incredible. 2 Peter 1. Verse four, whereby are given
unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these ye might
be partakers, sharers is what that word is. Sharers of the
divine nature. And is that incredible or what? Sharers, partakers of the divine
nature. That's what's given to the believer
in the new birth. That which is born of the flesh
is flesh, but that which is born of the spirit is spirit. This is what John was speaking
of in 1 John 3, verse 9, when he said, Whosoever is born of
God doth not commit sin, for he cannot sin, for his seed remaineth
in him. He cannot sin because he is born
of God. Now, do I comprehend all this?
Obviously not. Do I believe it? Absolutely.
Partakers of the divine nature. We have a common father. You
know, we have the same father as the Lord Jesus Christ. This
is a wonderful thing to think about. Listen to these scriptures.
He is the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he is
our heavenly father. Our Lord said to his disciples,
I go to my God and your God. I go to my father and your father. He said, when thou prayest, Enter
into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy
Father." The Lord Jesus Christ says He's our Father. You pray
to thy Father, which is in secret, and thy Father, which seeth in
secret, shall reward thee openly. We have the same Father. Now,
that's sharing in common, isn't it? You know, here's something
we share in common. His name. In Jeremiah chapter
23, verse 6, we read, this is the name wherewith He shall be
called Jehovah's at Kindle, the Lord our righteousness. But Jeremiah
33, 16 says this is the name where with she shall be called. That's me and you. What's her
name? Exact same thing. The Lord our
righteousness. We share His name. There is a sharing of inheritance. He is called the heir of all
things. And we are called joint heirs
with Christ. Whatever he has coming to him. Whatever he has coming to him,
every believer has coming to him. There's a sharing of inheritance. I want you to look at this with
me. Turn to John 17. This is another one of those
scriptures where if it wasn't in the Bible, you just say that
just couldn't be so. But look what our Lord says here in John
chapter 17. Verse 20. Neither pray I for these alone,
this is the words of our Lord. Neither pray I for these alone,
but for them also which shall believe on me through their word,
that they all may be one as thou father art in me and I in thee,
that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe
that thou hast sent me and the glory which thou gavest me. Now you think of that glory.
I can't describe it, but here it says the glory which Thou
gavest me, I have given Thee. Sharers in His glory, that they
may be one even as we are one. Now, this is this is a sharing
in common with Him. Actually sharing His glory. Fellowship.
It means communion with Christ. We speak to It means more than
sharing in common. It also means an actual communion
where I speak to him and he hears me. That's an awesome thought
to think that God actually hears you, Christ hears you. He hears
my prayer. I speak to him and he speaks
to me through his word. And he does speak to me through
his word. There's an actual fellowship,
an actual communion with one another. It's a fellowship of
sympathy. And what do I mean by that when
we think of sympathy? Well, when you love somebody,
when they hurt, you hurt. And when they're exalted, you
feel like you're exalted if you love them. You think of the way
you are with your kids. If your kids are honored, you're honored
just as much, aren't you? And if they're hurt, you're hurt
maybe even a little bit more. There's a fellowship of sympathy.
The sympathy of Christ to us, we have a high priest, which
is touched by the feeling of our infirmities. He was in all
points tempted like as we are. There's nothing that you've experienced
that he can't deeply sympathize with. Now, I might not sympathize
with you. I might think, man, they need to get a life. They
got problems. I mean, come on, grow up. That's
the way I'll take my life. The Lord's never like that. He
has a sympathy, just a deep sympathy. And we have sympathy with him
in this sense. When he's glorified and exalted,
we really are happy. And when he's blasphemed and
dishonored, it grieves us. There is a true fellowship of
sympathy. There is actually a fellowship
of motive. and a fellowship of desire and
a fellowship of design. My motive is the same motive
his motive is. You know what that is? His own
glory. We have the same motive. You
know, truly, we can say this as a believer. Paul said this.
We have the mind of Christ. And that's said of every believer.
We have the mind of the Lord Jesus Christ, true fellowship. And this fellowship that we have
comes to us as a result of the fellowship of his sufferings. That's the word that's used there
in Philippians chapter 3, verse 10, where Paul said, Oh, that
I may know him, that I might know the fellowship of his sufferings. I want to know that I had a share
in his sufferings. That's what he's talking about.
Yes, this could refer to the sufferings the believer experienced
as a result of their confession of Christ. You know, Paul did
say it's given unto you not only to believe, but also to suffer
for his sake. But I don't really think that's what this passage
of Scripture is talking about. When he talks about the fellowship
of his sufferings, he says, I want to know that when he suffered,
I was in him and that I had a part in his sufferings and that he
was suffering for me. And then he was dying for me.
Paul put it this way in Galatians 2.20. He said, the Son of God
who loved me and gave himself for me. I want to know my fellowship,
my partnership in his sufferings. And you know, that would be meaningless
if he died for everybody, wouldn't it? Well, sure. Everybody has
a fellowship in sufferings. But no, he died for his people.
He died for the elect. He died for those who believe.
And I want to know I'm one of them. I want to know I have some
part, the fellowship of his sufferings. I want to be a partaker. I want
to have a share in what he did and every blessing that I enjoy
regarding fellowship with his person. And it's amazing to me
to think of fellowship with Christ. The fact that he actually hears
me. Isn't that amazing? He hears me. He loves me. He
hears what I've got to say and it means something to him. How? Well, because of union with Christ
is how. Because of fellowship with him and fellowship in his
sufferings, if he suffered for me, my sin really became his. He really died because my sin
really was his and his righteousness really becomes mine. Now, remember this idea of union.
This is what fellowship is all about. You can't understand it
without this thing of union and sharing in common. He said, in
as much as you did to the least of these, my brethren." What
are the next words? You did it to me. He didn't say it's as if you
did it to me, did he? He didn't say it's just like
you did it to me. He said in as much as you did it to the
least of these, my brethren, you did it to me. And in as much
as you did it not to the least of these, my brethren, he said
you did it not to me. You remember when Paul was stopped
on the road to Damascus by the Lord Jesus Christ and he said,
Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? Now, wait a minute. He's
at the right hand of the Father. How can he be persecuted? He's in control of everything.
What do you mean, why persecutest thou me? He's far beyond the
ability of Paul to get hold of him. Yet when Paul persecutes
any of his people. The Lord said, you persecuted
me. That's how close and that's how
real this union is. Now, if we have fellowship with
him, we necessarily have fellowship with one another. There is such
a thing as the communion, the fellowship of the saints. How would you think about this? We're different. We're individuals. I'm the only Todd Knobbert there
is. You're the only Mitch Bryan there is. We're individuals. We're different people with different
interests. And there isn't any doubt if you get a bunch of people
together, I'm sure I can irritate you.
And you don't irritate me ever, but I'm sure I irritate you. We can be so different, even
if in one another. But, you know, we're still one
in Christ Jesus. There's a true fellowship, a
true communion of the saints. Turn with me to First John, chapter
one. Verse seven. But if we walk in
the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. And it's a true and a real fellowship. It's a fellowship of light. Look
at verse 5. What's He talking about when
we walk in the light? This then is the message which we have
heard of him, and declaring to you that God is light, and in
him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship
with him, and isn't that what about every religious person
says, I have fellowship with God. I speak to him, he speaks
to me. We have communion. We're on speaking
terms. We're good buddies. He hears
my prayer, I hear what he's... He even speaks to me. He says,
it's my name. Every religious person will make statements like
that. I've heard it so many times. I have fellowship with God. He
says, well, if we say that we have fellowship with him, and
walk in darkness. We lie. It's just talk. We're not doing the truth. Now,
is he talking about somebody who says he has fellowship and
in the dark where nobody sees and nobody knows what he's doing,
he practices sometimes secret seeing? Is that what he's talking
about? Now, I'm not in any way advocating the practice of secret
seeing, but that's not what he's talking about. What he's talking
about when he talks about if we walk in darkness, the darkness
of how God saves sinners, being in the dark concerning that.
It's a belief in salvation. My wife says what he's referring
to. If we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness,
the darkness of religious superstition and error, the darkness of our
natural religion, what's he saying we do? We lie. Simple as that. We lie. And we don't know the
truth. We're not practicing the truth.
It's all just talk. If we walk in the light, the
light of what? The light of have God save sinners
by Christ. The light of the precious blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ. The light of the gospel. He is
the light of the world. That's the light he's speaking
of. Now notice what he says in verse
7. He says if we walk in the light, As he is in the light,
we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ,
his Son, cleanses us from all sin. He doesn't say we don't
sin anymore, but he says the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses
us from all sin, and we have fellowship. We have true communion. There's a sharing in common with
one another. Now, if you're somebody who really
believes in your heart that Jesus Christ is everything in salvation. If you really believe that, and
if I really believe that, well, we have something called to know
Him. He that loveth Him that beget loveth Him also that is
begotten of Eve. Now, this is what true fellowship
is. It's a fellowship in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, we have the same faith. You know, there's only one faith,
and if I'm a believer and you're a believer, you know what? We
believe the same thing. I remember hearing a song once, a religious
song, that goes, we all believe, but not the same thing. No. If we believe, we believe the
same thing. We believe the same gospel. Turn
over to Ephesians chapter 4 for a moment. Verse 1, I therefore, the prisoner
of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation
wherewith you were called. How do I walk worthily? With
all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one
another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity, the oneness
of the Spirit in the bond of peace. And he tells us what that
unity of the Spirit is in the following verses. There's one
body, that's the church. One body. You know, there's only
one church. It's the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, there's
local churches in different places, I realize that, but the Lord
only has one body. And we're all members of the same church.
Anybody that's a member of a church where the gospel is preached
is a member of this church. I mean, there's one body. There's a true unity
here. There is one spirit, even as
you're called, in one hope in your calling. There's only one
hope. What's your hope? What's the hope? Mine is, if
you're a believer. Same hope. There's only one hope. Verse
5. There's one Lord. There's one
faith, not two. There's one faith, the faith
of God's elect. There's one baptism, there's
one God and Father of all, who's above all and through all and
in you all. There is a unity of faith. If
we have fellowship with, you know, the scripture says, how
can two walk together except they be, anybody know the next
word? Agreed. There's a true fellowship, a
true unity of spirit and faith. You know, when we observe the
Lord's table together, let me show you something. Turn first Corinthians
10. I love the service of what we observe the Lord's table,
but look what he says here when we when we do this in First Corinthians,
chapter 10, verse 16. The cup of blessing, which we
bless, is it not the communion, that's the same word, the fellowship,
the sharing. The sharing, the cup of blessing,
which we bless, is it not the communion, the fellowship of
the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is
it not the communion of the body of Christ? You know, when you
take the Lord's Sabbath, you can't take it by yourself, can you? You take it as a body. Together, there's a sharing in
common. There's a true fellowship going
on. We have fellowship together with
the Father and with the Spirit. 1 John 1, verse 3, John says,
Truly our fellowship, our sharing in common, is with the Father
and with His Son, Jesus Christ. Our Lord. Now that's true concerning
all of God's people. That's our fellowship. We read
in 2 Corinthians 13, verse 14, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the love of God and the communion, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with you all. There's a true communion with
God and one another. Hall speaks in Galatians 2, 9
of the right hand of fellowship. We extended to them the right
hand of fellowship. We're talking about shaking hands.
We shake hands with people. That's not really what it's talking
about. It means we're walking in the
same direction. We have the same goal. We have
the same Lord. We have the same purpose. Our
purpose is the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is His glory more
important to you than anything else? It is me too. We have a true
fellowship in that sense. The right hand of the fellowship
going in the same direction. You know, this is special. There's
nothing in the world like this, this fellowship we're speaking
of. The world can't reproduce this. It can't duplicate it.
We read in Second Corinthians, chapter eight, verse four of
the fellowship of the ministering to his saints. The fellowship
of the ministry to the saints. Now in the context, he was speaking
of helping and giving to poor believers. And he calls that
the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. But the main point
is we're called upon to be servants one to another. That's what fellowship
is. It's a fellowship of service,
actually being servants to one another. Now, here's the point
I'd like to try to make about this. A fellowship of service
is where I am not thinking about how you can serve me. But how
I can serve you. And if I hear of the fellowship
of the ministry of the saints, and I start thinking, well, you
know, they they need to hear this, they need to serve me more.
There's more they need to do for me. I mean, they're weak
in that area. Well, I've missed the point altogether. I'm to ask, not how you can serve
me, but how I can serve you. There's a true fellowship of
the ministry to the saints. It's a true communion. And this
is a fellowship of love. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians
chapter 13. Now, what is the evidence of the Lord doing something
for you? What did he say? By this shall
all men know that you're my disciples. What? That's the evidence the
Lord gives. And we would have said, by this
shall all men know you are my disciples, by your doctrinal soundness and
so on. And I'm not taking away from
the importance of that. But when the Lord gives the evidence of
being a true believer and having fellowship, what does He speak
of? By your personal love. one to another. Now, look here
in 1 Corinthians 13. This is such a wonderful chapter. We would do well to read this
over and over and over again. Now, Paul had been speaking of
gifts. Look in verse 29 of chapter 12. Are all apostles? Obviously
not. Are all prophets? Obviously not. Are all teachers? No. Are all
workers of miracles? No. Have all the gifts of healing? No. Do all speak with tongues?
No. Do all interpret? No. I covet earnestly the best
gifts, and yet show I unto you a more excellent way. You know, I covet the ability
to preach the gospel as clearly as any man has ever preached
it. I desire to do that. I covet
that. But you know, there's something
that I'll have to covet even more than that. Something that's more
excellent. You know what that is? Well, he tells us. Let's go on
reading. 1 Corinthians 13. He said, Though I speak with
the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become
as a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the
gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge
and know I have all faith so that I can remove mountains and
have not charity. You know, he's speaking of the
possibility of having all those things. And yet having no love. He said, I'm nothing. And though I bestow all my goods
to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned and
have not charity, it profits me Nothing. Now he goes on to
describe charity. Charity suffers long. If I love
you, I'm going to put up with a whole lot. If I don't love you, I'm going
to lose my temper quick. I'm not going to put up with
much. I'm not going to take that. But if I love you, I'll suffer
long. It's kind. It's not mean-spirited. It's kind. Love is kind. Charity
envieth not. You don't envy somebody you love.
You're happy when they're exalted. You're happy when they're honored.
You never envy somebody you love. If you envy somebody, you don't
love them. Now, you can just write that down. Charity vaunteth
not itself. It doesn't push itself forward.
It doesn't try to take the spotlight. It would rather the object of
its affection have the spotlight. It's not puffed up with pride. It doesn't behave itself unseemly.
It's not rude. It seeketh not her own. It's
not seeking its own self-interest. It's not easily provoked. It's
not touching and irritable. It thinketh no evil. It's not
always suspecting evil and suspecting people's motives and suspecting
why they do what they do. No, it doesn't think evil. It
rejoices not in iniquity. It doesn't rejoice in the fall
of somebody. It rejoices in the truth. Charity bears all things. That's a powerful statement,
doesn't it? If you love somebody, you bear all things. It believes
all things. It hopes all things. It endureth. all things. Charity never fails. But where there be prophecies,
they're going to fail. Whether there be tongues, they
shall cease. Whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when that which
is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away
with. He's talking about the full canon of the scriptures there.
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child,
I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish
things. For now we see through a glass,
darkly. Well, isn't that the truth? We
have dim vision, very dim vision. The more clear we think we see,
probably the more blind we show we are. We see, even Paul was
speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says we see
through the glass darkly. Our views of Christ, but then.
Face to face. Now I know in part, but then
shall I know even as also I'm known and now abideth faith,
hope, charity. These three, this is what's left.
Faith, hope and charity. But the greatest of these is
charity. Follow. Chapter 14, verse 1. Pursue after. Make this your
aim. Make this your objective. Follow
after charity. This is a fellowship of love. I love what John said, beloved.
love one another. For love is of God. He that loveth
not knoweth not God. For God is love. And this is a fellowship of love. Fellowship is fellows in the
same ship, isn't it? I want you to think about what
you share with the people sitting in this room. Got the same father. Got the same nature. Got the
same hope? Got the same Lord? Got the same
faith? You know what else you share
with them? You know how bad you are? You know your evil nature?
They've got the same thing they're dealing with. We truly have something in common,
don't we? There's true fellowship, and
this is what Paul calls in Philippians chapter 1, verse 5, the fellowship. of the gospel. What a privilege. As we saw this
morning, the sacred trust, that's what a privilege that what the
Lord has entrusted us with himself. But what a fellowship, fellowship
with him, fellowship with one another. It's true that the world
doesn't have anything that can compare to this. And if you experience
that fellowship, You know, it's true. And if you haven't experienced
it, you think I just don't see it. But if you've experienced
it. Nothing like this, I feel so
privileged to be part of God's people. Members of the same body. Praise the Lord for that. Let's
pray together.