Biblical Fellowship
Fellowship is a widely used term in religious circles. Sadly, it is misused and misunderstood. Many, when they speak of fellowship refer to potluck meals, game nights, birthday parties, baking contests, sports events and the like. are these things fellowship? Yes, in the secular sense of the word, but our concern should be 'what is Bible fellowship'?
Fellowship With God
The Bible speaks about our fellowship with God. Notice:
God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:9)
Again,
...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death... (Philippians 3:10
And once more,
If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. (1 John 1:6
Fellowship with the Lord is not about baseball games and cherry pie. It is the establishment of a relationship with Him through faith in His Son and obedience to His word. It doesn't involve playing Dominos or Euchre, but will result in us suffering persecution as we walk in the light of His way. Maintained and sustained, fellowship with God brings with it the hope of eternity with the Lord.
Fellowship With Brethren
Those who obeyed Peter's message at Pentecost,
...continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. (Acts 2:42)
This describes the activities of fellowship which belong to the church; activities that are spiritual in nature, not carnal.
Don't misunderstand, there's nothing wrong with Christians enjoying time together with meals, games and such. However, secular fellowship is NOT the 'Christian fellowship'. Fun and games belong in the realm of the family and community, not the activity of the church. It is not a function of the church.
Again, we read of the fellowship of the saints:
...they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. (Galatians 2:9)
“...the activities of fellowship which belong to the church... are spiritual in nature, not carnal.”
Paul speaks in Ephesians 3:9 about "the fellowship of the mystery", namely, that Jew and Gentile are brought together in the same body of believers in Christ - the church.
John declared what he had seen and heard from the Christ to his hearers and readers, "...that you also may have fellowship with us..." (1 John 1:3). The basis of this fellowship between Christians is our fellowship with the Father and His Son (v 3), and us walking "...in the light as He is in the light..." (v 7). It is a spiritual fellowship based upon a spiritual relationship.
No Fellowship With Darkness
The New Testament cautions us not to have fellowship with things or persons contrary to the Lord. Regarding meats which are sacrificed to idols, Paul said "...I do not want you to have fellowship with demons." (1 Corinthians 10:20). Again, the apostle warned, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers..." (2 Corinthians 6:14). Ephesians 5:11 tells us to "...have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them."
John admonishes,
If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine (the doctrine of Christ, wjs), do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds. (2 John 10-11)
Friend, we need to be aware of what biblical fellowship is. It is not games and parties and picnics and such. The Bible consistently uses the concept of fellowship to speak of a spiritual relationship and spiritual activities. As we have seen, we must have fellowship with God. This requires that we submit ourselves in obedience to His will, and receive of His grace and mercy. We must continue to walk in His ways if we are to remain in fellowship with Him.
If we have fellowship with God, that is the basis for our fellowship with other Christians. Many will speak of various activities which they enjoy in their "fellowship hall". Friend, Christian fellowship is not playing cards and eating crumpets. We engage in the fellowship of the saints when we sing praise to God together, when we share in Bible study, when we gather around the Lord's table, when we come before the Lord in prayer.
The biblical "fellowship hall" is any location where the saints are gathered to engage in true Christian fellowship. Leave secular activities and facilities to secular organizations. The church has no place in such.
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Answering The Atheist
The Atheist's Complaint:
Has the sun ever stood still in the sky for 24 hours? Joshua 10:12-13 says that God made the sun stand still for 24 hours so that Joshua could finish slaughtering the Amorites, but Genesis 8:22 says that there never has been, and never will be, an unusually long day. Is there a contradiction?
Response:
Does Genesis 8:22 reveal that "...there never has been, and never will be, an unusually long day"? Here is what is recorded there:
While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.
I must have missed it. Where is the clause that rules out the unusual or abnormal? In the area of Canada where I live, we experience what is called a "January thaw" each year. For about a week, the temperatures are abnormally high. It is still winter time, but it doesn't feel like winter.
There have been cases in Canada of snow storms in the middle of summer. On rare occasions, it has snowed in tropical regions. Weather abnormalities have occurred, and are likely to continue.
Does that violate the statement of Genesis 8:22? Not at all. Though these freakish weather events happen, "...seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night..." still happen. They have not ceased. What appears to be a winter day in the middle of summer is strange, but it doesn't mean that the seasons have ceased.
Joshua 10:12-13 tells of a day on which God caused the sun to stand still for an entire day. Joshua 10:14 tells us, "...there has been no day like that, before it or after it..." Because the LORD caused the sun to stand still until the Israelites were victorious over the Amorites, did seasons and days cease? No. After the victory was won, the sun went down, the moon came up.
Was it an abnormal occurrence? Absolutely. Was it outside the realm of natural law? Yes. Did the sun standing still that day contradict Genesis 8:22? No. There is no contradiction.
This article is in response to Skeptic's Annotated Bible.