What a Fellowship
Notes
Transcript
Children’s Sermon
Children’s Sermon
Ice cubes? The more the merrier. One doesn’t make much difference but many totally change their surroundings?
Scripture
Scripture
1 John 1:1-4 - We share with you that which we have heard, seen with our own eyes, looked upon, and touched with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared to us and we testify that we saw it happen! The eternal life that was with the Father has been revealed to us. We saw it, heard it, and now share it with you so you can fellowship with us and with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ. We want you to enjoy this too!
Engage
Engage
You know friends, we are inundated with choices. I can’t say for certain, but it sure seems like we have more freedom of choice than just about any other large group of people in human history. I remember when I was a kid, around E’s age, I had a birthday and asked for a 10-speed bike. Mountain bikes really weren’t a thing yet. Wisely, my folks decided to go with me and let me pick one out. Now, in those days, we had choices. We could’ve gone to Lee’s Bike and Hobby in Shawnee, Ks, just down the street. But he was always a little strange and his inventory didn’t seem to be the highest quality. We could go to Schwinn, boy they were nice, but more expensive. Or, we could go to a department store. I don’t remember Walmart even being a thing by this point yet. So, we went to Montgomery Ward (remember that?) and bought this (PICTURE). The Open Road! Overall, it was a great bike.
When I was writing this sermon, friends, I went to a large online retailer and searched for 10 speed boys bike. Any guesses how many hits my search returned? WAIT....678!
Our expansive choice applies to our time as well. More things compete for our time than perhaps ever before. Outside things, inside things, streaming things, trips…even with worship, we can come in person or watch online.
But friends, fellowship matters! Our choices ought to reflect how important fellowship is to God.
Encounter
Encounter
You can flip open to just about any page of Scripture and find something about the importance of fellowship. We are DESIGNED for eternal fellowship by our creator, God. Some envision heaven as a mansion on a hill…far away from others. I think much closer to reality is a close-knit, tightly bound community of an immense number of people living and sharing together for all eternity. The question for all of us is Why fly solo when God flies Trio? God himself has never been, is not, and will never be less than three persons. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit don’t get any alone time. Any “me” time. They can’t skype or youtube into their relationship with the other two persons of the Trinity. An eternal fellowship.
And, thankfully, they’ve invited created beings into eternal relationship with them. Angels, us, and likely many other created beings as well. Fellowship matters to God and we are designed in a way that we flourish when we partake in it as often as we can.
Our fellowship is with Christ through the Spirit and it can be enjoyed NOW and not just in our after death eternity. We may not get the full dose we’ll get then but we get glimpses, or samples of the full dose, here on earth. There is no better feeling than that which comes from the Spirit. We might have fellowship with Christ when we’re alone, but there’s a much better chance when we’re gathered as believers. Jesus said, “Where two or three are gathered…there I am.”
Our fellowship with Christ and with other Christians is based on relationship. Eternal relationship, not temporal. It’s VERY easy in our world to think of relationships as temporary. But many are far more eternal than we realize.
With all the choices we face, we should choose, as often as possible, things that enhance our fellowship both with Christ and with one another. Attending church as a very high priority, for instance. Praying together, learning together. We truly are a family in the eyes of Jesus, brothers and sisters of his and of one another. Why fly solo when God flies Trio?
And, our fellowship should be different and distinct from the fellowship found in the world. Perhaps in work settings, club settings, team settings, that kind of thing. The fact that our relationships with Christ and one another are eternal should matter. In Christian fellowship, we SHOULD find much less isolation, much less cutoff, much less hate and exclusion. Any group of people in relationship with one another or fellowship are going to have issues. Some people are going to get along better than others. Some are going to fight. Feelings are going to get hurt, actions are going to be misunderstood, people are going to act wicked from time to time. But, our challenge as those in eternal fellowship is to disagree agreeably. To forgive and reconcile whenever possible, even amidst intense difficulty. We should choose to see the best intentions in others and not be too defensive or sure of ourselves. Different, distinct, noticeable when compared to the world.
This doesn’t mean being a doormat. I think John models this attitude in 3 John vv9ff -
New American Standard Bible Chapter 1
9 I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say. 10 For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with malicious words; and not satisfied with this, he himself does not receive the brothers either, and he forbids those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.
11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does what is good is of God; the one who does what is evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself; and we testify too, and you know that our testimony is true.
Finally, back in 1 John, our Scripture today, John gives the reason why he’s encouraging such a fellowship…and that reason is JOY. I translated it en-joy. The infusion of joy, pure joy. John knows this joy and he doesn’t want to hoard it. Have you ever noticed that things Satan wants us to focus on people end up hoarding? When you have the joy that comes from fellowship with Christ and other Christians, you can’t help but want to share it. John wanted it for his audience and he wants it for us, too.
People didn’t have all the choices we have back in the first century but I have no doubt they found excuses to skip out on worship, embrace the lies of the world more fully, and some slipped away just like people do today. The writer of the Hebrews talks about this:
New American Standard Bible Chapter 10
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, through His flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let’s approach God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let’s hold firmly to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let’s consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, 25 not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
The audience of Hebrews had people slipping away…abandoning meeting together. I can only imagine being near the Mediterranean, people can find all sorts of excuses to “meet God” in the beauty of nature without meeting in fellowship. But we need each other. Joy is found most completely in our fellowship with Christ AND with one another. We should make choices accordingly.
Empower
Empower
John hints at something else in 3 John I will touch on. A while back, when my girls were out of town, I went to have dinner at Cheddar’s on Knickerbocker. I sat and ate at the bar. The TV’s were on and there was a football game on, a college game, but I had to stretch my neck one way or the other to see it. On the TV in front of me was the high quality programming of Bachelor in Paradise, or some such. One of the Bachelor’s anyway. Such programming is not terribly redemptive and I can’t recommend it. The food took awhile, so I saw perhaps 20 minutes of this program. But I did notice something. Aside from the crazy open relationships and drama that always come with such trash television, I noticed something about how the show is conducted. The “contestants” or whatever we’re supposed to call them don’t have cell phones. They aren’t usually watching TV. They aren’t typically reading something. They TALK. Face to face. They fellowship…not around Christ, unfortunately, but around whatever drama the producers want them to stir up, I’ll bet. But they talk…a lost art, it seems to me. We aren’t just losing the art of talking fellowship, I fell as though we’re losing the art of writing fellowship…which is better than what we have now…social media and texting fellowship. John adds this at the end of 3 John:
New American Standard Bible Chapter 1
13 I had many things to write to you, but I do not want to write to you with pen and ink; 14 but I hope to see you shortly, and we will speak face to face.
Now, friends, face to face is AWKWARD. Always. As I watched this program, full of supposed “beautiful” people…many with all kinds of dating and relationship experiences, the talk is awkward. It’s hard. It’s confusing. Things get misstated and misunderstood regularly. There is nothing easy about it.
We have a friend who’s a winemaker and rancher. She’s one of my favorite people but she’s quite introverted. She shared this photo recently. PICTURE.
I FEEL this picture, lol. Describe it! Some of you may as well. But don’t give up. True fellowship with Christ and other believers, even though difficult, is where it’s at! It’s a pathway to true eternal joy.
Why fly solo when God flies Trio?
Pray