Last time, we made note of how of verse 25 admonishes us to not give up on meeting together with God’s people. We are told that we must fellowship with God’s people at every opportunity, intentionally, persistently, and habitually. Meeting together with the people is a good habit to develop. Now today, I want us to think together about why fellowshipping with God’s people is such a good thing to do.
The Advantages to Fellowship (READ VERSE 25)
“but let us encourage one another”
The advantage of fellowshipping with God’s people is that we can be encouraged. The purpose of Christian fellowship is that we might be encouraged. Specifically, encouraged toward Christ-likeness. But how does this happen? Let’s think together about it.
1. The focus of true Christian fellowship.
The focus of true Christian fellowship is on encouraging others!
There is an old saying (it’s old because it is true), that says the secret to JOY is all a matter of focus. We must first focus on . . .
J - Jesus; next, we must focus on . . .
O - Others; and then our focus must be on . . .
Y - Yourself.
Interestingly enough, the first three of the five core values we are considering in this series, worship, fellowship, and discipleship; each correspond to this three-fold focus.
In worship, the focus is on Jesus - exalting Him, responding to Him;
In fellowship, the focus in on Others - how we might encourage them;
In discipleship, the focus is on Yourself - applying God’s truth to life.
Our consideration today is on the advantages to fellowship; and it is important to understand that if I am going to be advantaged by meeting together with God’s people, it will only be as my focus is on others.
It has been said that there are two ways a person can enter a room. One way is to enter a room with an attitude that says, “Here I am!” The other way is to enter a room with an attitude that says, “There you are!”
If I am participating in fellowship with God’s people by focusing on others as verse 25 tells us, then I will be the kind of person whose presence will encourage others. Paul tells us to be this kind of person.
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” - Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)
If we are going to be advantaged by our participation in fellowship with God’s people, we must understand that the focus of fellowship is not on me, but on others. This is a basic principle of kingdom living. Jesus emphasizes this principle in Luke 6:38, where he says:
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (NIV)
The imagery is striking. Remember, in Jesus’ day, men wore robes. The picture is of a man using his robe to form a “bag” into which another might pour grain. As the grain is poured into his lap, the man presses it down and shakes the grain so he might hold as much as
possible, but the blessing is such, there is too much to contain!
This verse is commonly used to speak giving financially to God’s work. But that takes it out of context. Jesus isn’t speaking about money here, but relationships. Verse 38 is a contrast with what He said in verse 37 about having a judgmental attitude. Eugene Peterson captures the essence of our Savior’s teaching in The Message:
“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults - unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don’t condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you’ll find life a lot easier. Give away your life; you’ll find life given back, but not merely given back - given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity.”- Luke 6:37-38 (The Message)
If, when we gather, we each think only of ourselves and what we can receive, then no one will be blessed, because no one will be giving! But if we come thinking how we might encourage others, our fellowship will overflow with blessing!
By encouraging others, we can be encouraged.
One interesting thing about Paul’s admonition in Ephesians 4:29 is what he says in the very next verse:
“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God . . .” - Ephesians 4:30 (NIV)
Since our attitude toward others can grieve the Holy Spirit, perhaps the question we each must consider is, “Am I the kind of person whose presence with God’s people invites the presence of the Holy Spirit?”
Are you a person who encourages others by your presence? Or are you a person others hate to see coming?
“One of the highest of human duties is the duty of encouragement. It is easy to laugh at men’s ideals; it is easy to pour cold water on their enthusiasm; it is easy to discourage others. The world is full of discouragers. We have a Christian duty to encourage one another. Many a time a word of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer has kept a man on his feet. Blessed is the man who speaks such a word.” - William Barclay
“The really great man is the man who makes every man feel great.” - G.K. Chesterton
If we are to be encouraged by our fellowship with one another, then we must understand that the focus of true Christian fellowship is on others!
2. The foundation of true Christian fellowship.
The foundation of true Christian fellowship is the truth of God’s Word. True Christian fellowship can only really occur around a consideration and application of the Word of God.
“Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” - Ephesians 4:15-16 (NLT)
In encouraging one other, we “speak the truth in love.” This tells us the nature of Christian encouragement.
Love alone leads to license - an “anything goes” attitude that dishonors God and does not promote Christ like living.
Truth alone leads to legalism - a judgmental attitude that also is dishonoring to God and does not promote Christ like living.
But Christian encouragement is a proper combination of truth and love, which always honors God and promotes Christ like living.
“Spiritual encouragement is applying biblical principles to every situation with a view toward bringing each person into right relationship with God.” - Richard Roberts
“Without the message of the Scriptures we would have nothing with which to encourage one another. We would have no purpose for meeting together. Our knowledge of God would be so limited we would have no rational object for our faith, no doctrine on which to build our hope, and no way of even knowing the meaning of genuine love.” - Gene Getz
Of course, this presupposes that we are first applying Scripture to our own lives so we might be equipped to encourage others with God’s truth. In fact, this is how we can make sure we follow Paul’s admonition to “not let any unwholesome talk come out of (our) mouths.” Joshua 1:8 (NIV) tells us: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth . . .” Everything we say should be tempered by the truth of God’s Word and everything we do should be a
demonstration of God’s love.
When we fellowship in this way, we will encourage one another, as Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:15, to grow “in every way more and more like Christ.”
Conclusion: But I want to point out yet another advantage to our participating in fellowship with one another with our focus being on how we might encourage one another by speaking the truth in love. Paul speaks of this in 1 Corinthians 14:24-25:
“But if some unbelieving outsiders walk in on a service where people are speaking out God’s truth, the plain words will bring them up against the truth and probe their hearts. Before you know it, they’re going to be on their faces before God, recognizing that God is among you.” - 1 Corinthians 14:24a-25 (The Message)
The advantages to participating in true Christian fellowship with God’s people is that believers will be encouraged to become more like Christ and unbelievers will be encouraged to come to Christ.
“The ministry of encouragement is open to Christians as it is to no others. Christians have a new life in Christ, an all powerful Holy Spirit to lead them into all truth, and a Heavenly Father who will protect and bless them eternally. If any people anywhere are qualified and equipped to a ministry of positive and healthy encouragement in a desperately discouraging world, it is the Christian church. Christian disciples, Christ said, are the ‘salt of the earth.’ They should make life tasty! They should be, above all else, encouragers.”- Derick Bingham
