What is True Fellowship?

Thank you for joining with me on a discipleship journey of growing in our knowledge and understanding of the Lord . . . “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:13

In addition to spending time in God’s word, studying it and memorizing scriptures, and spending time in prayer with other believers. Hebrews 11:25 tells us to “not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

The biblical meaning of fellowship is “the intimate bond which unites Christians.” Intimacy implies a depth of relationship that requires intentionality.  And I love that Christ prayed personally for each of us to be unified in Him!

“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” John 17:20-21

Our unity as brothers and sisters in the body of Christ IS a witness to others, so “that they may believe.” Fellowship not only helps support each of us but testifies of the Father’s love to the world! That is a win-win!

But true fellowship is far more than just physically gathering together in the same place, like a weekly worship service. In fact, if all you do is attend a worship service each week, you are missing out on the true fellowship for which Christ created us.

True fellowship builds relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We step into each other’s lives. More than knowing someone’s name and face, we need to know their challenges, come alongside them when they hurt, and rejoice with them over answered prayers.

That intimacy requires each of us to be transparent in our own needs and challenges and loving and kind when someone shares theirs.

When someone at church asks “How are you?” do you always answer truthfully? Or do you just say “Fine,” even though your heart is breaking? God has convicted me to not use a “mask” to hide my hurts, but to be real.

At a time when I had a child who was walking far from God (and from me), I would answer the “how are you doing” question with “not great.” Through that, the Lord opened the door for some wonderfully deep and transparent conversations. People joined together in praying for my son, and we became closer by walking together through my challenge. That openness creates the intimate fellowship that God desires for us.

Remember that we do not walk alone! We walk with God, but we also walk with other believers.

A wonderful way to build fellowship is to join a ministry and work alongside fellow believers. The time spent working together draws you closer to each other. My closest friends are those I have served alongside, be it in handbell choir and quartet, Vacation Bible School, or working in the kitchen at our Labor of Love Craft Show raising funds for the student ministry.

In the craft show, students and parents were the volunteer help, and I ran the kitchen. We prepared and served homemade enchiladas, Texas sheet cake, chicken salad, and soup for about 750 people over two days.

The huge number we served required us to get a food permit. One year, on the first day of the show, the food inspector showed up in the middle of the lunch rush and informed us that our refrigerator was not cooling properly and that we needed to throw out all the food stored there: dozens of pans of enchiladas, gallons of soup and chicken salad, etc.! Those parents looked at me, asking “What do we do now?”

After shooting a quick “arrow prayer” up to God asking that same question, I calmly said, “Well, we’re going to make more food. Who can run to the store?” As we got back to work, one parent told me how my reaction witnessed to her about humility in serving Christ and not getting sidetracked by the challenges that come our way . . . and she handed me a $1000 check to pay for the food supplies! Her response witnessed to me the power of intimate fellowship as we all witnessed God’s grace together!

Spiritual growth and life-long friendships are the fruit of serving.

While in-person fellowship is better, it is not always possible. Many will go through seasons where we cannot gather together physically. If that describes you, here are some ideas:

- Gather friends together on Zoom for Bible study or prayer time.

- Find an online in-depth bible study through Community Bible Study (CBS) or Bible Study Fellowship (BSF). These provide both fellowship AND studying God’s word!

- A friend of mine started a daily morning prayer time via phone with a group of friends. They have been praying together every morning for 30 years and have experienced rich fellowship and oneness – and many answered prayers!

I once had a Bible teacher give an illustration of “measuring up to the stature of Christ” that has stuck with me. Picture a boy growing up, comparing his height with his father’s. He’ll ask his dad to stand back-to-back with him, so he can see if he has achieved that goal.

I picture myself standing next to Christ and seeing if I have yet ‘measured up to his full stature’. Not yet, of course . . . but I continue to strive toward that goal. How about you?