The term “fellowship” has as synonyms words like partnership, sharing, communion and partaker. Fellowship indicates a spirit and bond between two or more people which exists because of what they do together or believe in common.
Consider our Christian fellowship:
- The Apostle Paul says to the church at Corinth that he will take their financial gift and engage in “the fellowship of ministering to the saints” (2 Cor 8:4). So Corinth was one of Paul’s partners in supplying for the needs of the poor saints in Jerusalem. This was fellowship.
- When James, Cephas and John understood that Paul was called to preach among the Gentiles, they extended “the right hand of fellowship” to Paul and Barnabas (Gal 2:9). In this case, it is evident that James, Cephas and John were of the same spirit and mind as Paul in his efforts to preach to the Gentiles. This was fellowship.
- The apostle John reminds us “if we say we have fellowship” (with God) “but walk in darkness”, that we “lie and do not the truth” (1 Jn 1:6). It is clear that God has no fellowship with darkness and that if we are in fellowship with Him we are not to walk in darkness.
- In Acts 2:42 we find the Disciples/Christians continuing in fellowship with one another concerning doctrine, eating and worshiping together. This is fellowship.
If Christians partake of a meal together, they have fellowship. If they partner together in some ministry effort, they have fellowship. When Christians are persecuted they join with Christ in the “fellowship of
His suffering” (Phil 3:10). And when we gather for worship on the Lord’s Day we are in fellowship with one another and with Christ. The Hebrew writer tells us to not neglect this fellowship (Heb 10:25). May we continue to fellowship with one another as a church family and may our fellowship always be with God.