Intro: This morning, we want to talk about the purpose of the church. We’ve been talking about this the last few weeks. When we think about the church, we remember that God set up the church. He gave a Great Commandment: to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and strength. He also gave the Great Commission: To go and make disciples, to baptize them, and to train them.
We find in these two commands the purpose of the church. We talked in previous weeks about worship: to express our love for God and to celebrate his presence among us. We talked about evangelism: to share the message of God’s free salvation to everyone we meet. We talked about discipleship: to help members of Christ’s church to become spiritually mature. Just as a father provides teaching, correction, and tenderness, as a church we need to help one another to grow spiritually.
This morning we want to talk about the step between evangelism and discipleship: Fellowship. Once a person comes to faith in Christ, they don’t automatically sign up for a discipleship program. They need to get connected to the body in some way. That is where “fellowship” comes in.
Now, often when we think of fellowship, we think of food and fun. I think one of the churches I worked in during grad school exemplified this well. Calvary Community Church in Statesville, NC had a handle on what we traditionally think of as “fellowship”. They didn’t have “pot-luck dinners” - they had “dinner on the grounds.” Basically the same thing, but there was not “luck” about it. They spread out big tables: normally about 4 tables of meats and veggies, and two tables of desserts: and all this for a church of about 100 people!
They knew food: they also knew fun - they had a softball league in the summer that about half the church came out for. The would hoot and holler and cheer and everyone enjoyed themselves, even when they lost.
Now, listen to me this morning! Fellowship is more than food and fun. We want to look at what this purpose of fellowship is REALLY all about. In the Great Commission, fellowship is seen by baptism. What is baptism? To find out, let’s look at the scriptures. In 1 Peter 3:21 we see the example of Noah, being saved in the ark, and it says this is a picture of baptism. It says, “baptism is not a removal of dirt from your body, it is an appeal to God from a clean conscience.” Baptism is a form of identification. We are baptized as a sign for all the world to see that we are placing our faith in Jesus Christ. Romans 6 tells us that we are buried with Christ in baptism, and raised to walk in newness of life. Baptism is an act that shows we are dying to our self and willing to live for Christ. So, baptism is an act of fellowship, an act of identification in the body of Christ.
Let’s talk about what FELOWSHIP really is. Eph. 2:19 LB - Now you are no longer strangers to God and foreigners to heaven, but you are members of God’s very own family . . . and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian.
In our society today, we still show the world we are followers of Christ through baptism. I wonder this morning if there’s anyone here who has never been baptized. We practice immersion, going down into the water, and coming out to signify the change in our lives. See me after the service if you have never been baptized, but would like to be obedient in this area.
We identify with the church as a whole through baptism: we identify with this local church through membership. We see the early church was connected by local congregations.
There are three parts to the Christian life:
Believing - Acts 16:31 - believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved
Belonging - In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the
others. Rom 12:5
Becoming - Rom 8:29 - From the very beginningGod decided that those who came to him . . . should BECOME like his son. (LB)
Our belonging is accomplished through fellowship in the body, through membership and commitment with one another. Membership is a step of commitment whereby one says, “You can count on me: I’m on board.” It’s sort of like the difference of someone who’s on a cruise and someone who is a crew member. Churches all across america today don’t stress the importance of membership enough. Not just the idea of joining the church, but the idea of commitment to the church. There an 80/20 principle. 20% of the people do 80% of the work. Are you in the 20 or the 80? Commitment and membership is a step to get into the 20%.
In the NT the word “koinonia” is used many times - it is the word translated fellowship
In Acts 2:42 we find a picture of the early church. Look there with me.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Here is just one example of fellowship. The early Christians were devoted to fellowship. What is this? It’s not the idea that they all went out to see the olympic games together. It is the idea of sharing oneness with each other. Throughout the NT we see commands to minister to “one another.” Love one another, be kind to one another, forgive one another. Bishop Miller will talk more about that when he comes in two weeks.
True fellowship is being as committed to one another as we are to Jesus Christ.
Now, I’ll admit that that is easier to say than to do. We all have things we’d rather be doing. We often don’t like to take the time to reach out to one another. In the church building, and outside of this building we need to build a climate of love and acceptance for one another.
Jn 13:35 - By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
Rom 15:7 - Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
Why don’t people want to go to church? Often they come in and no one talks to them. No one shakes their hand and introduces themselves. They slip in late, leave early, and have not felt any love or acceptance. As a church and as individuals we need to do a better job of show love and acceptance as people come and visit our church.
A few months ago I went to Ronda’s brother Rick’s church in Ohio. All during the tim before the service, people were going around greeting one another. We were made to feel very special and loved and welcome. The people there do it not because they are a “greeter” but because they know it is each of their jobs to express that love and concern for one another.
The purpose of the church is fellowship. That fellowship is identification with the believers and commitment to the believers. People come to a church for many reasons; but people stay at a church for relationships. If there is not a connection with others, normally people leave.
The biblical idea of fellowship - commitment to one another - is expressed through the image of the body. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 12:12 - The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don’t need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don’t need you!" On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honourable we treat with special honour. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honour to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
We are all part of the same body. Each of us has something special to add.
We are all on the same team. One of us might be a pitcher, one a catcher, one might be out in left field, but we are all on the same team. We work together for the sake of the kingdom.
Fellowship is really identification. We identify with Christ - a Christian is a “little Christ” - we are to be conformed to the image of Christ - to suffer for the sake of Christ - to be a witness to the world.
We also identify with one another. The idea of fellowship is the idea of “community”.
Now, in the church, how do we build fellowship? That’s the big question. We see from Acts 2:42 they were committed to fellowship. The early churh mt aily and went from house to house. In our culture though people don’t want others coming into their homes every day. It’s hard enough to get Christians out for a Sunday once in a while.
First, we need to raise the level of expectations: As a body we need to say that we expect something out of you if you want to commit to this church. I desire to see us make more and more demands of those who want to identify with this church. Anyone can live together without getting married, they come and go as they please. Yet, if one is to get married, a great commitment takes place. If you are going to be a member at Union Chapel, I would like to see a commitment to the body take place. It’s not good enough to say I’ll see you next Sunday: we need to be committed to one another.
How do we show that commitment? It will express itself by our personal involvement in the lives of one another. The ideal is for this to take place naturally. We call up one another or stop by each others homes to see how we are doing. When there is a need, we do what we can to help with that need.
#Charlie Goetz - helping Mike Rockwell & wife - hospital, gas car, money, kids
Sometimes, we get too busy to think about being involved in the lives of one another. I realize as our church grows, we won’t be able to be involved in the lives of everyone. So, we need help.
Being involved in a small group is the ideal way to maintain community and fellowship in the church. Now, I realize that as a church we have not had many small groups, but this is something that we need to develop. These are not just groups that meet for a deep Bible study, but groups that meet to share burdens with one another, encourage one another, have fun together, etc. In the future, I want to see Union Chapel become a church that has many small groups functioning. If you are interested in being part of a small group like this, we will have a sign-up form up soon.
Concl: God calls us to fellowship - to identification and community in the lives of one another. It’s how we are to function. Anytime one of us doew not do his or her part in the body of Christ, we handicap the body. We are to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep.
Are we willing to accept the responsibility to make this happer here at Union Chapel.
Prov. 18:24 - A man [that hath] friends must shew himself friendly
We all are looking for friends. None of us can ever have enough true friends. Yet to get friends, we have to be a friend. This morning the question before you is not whether you believe the church should be about fellowship: I’m sure we all agree. I’m not asking if you want a friend: I know you do. I’m asking, will you be a friend?
Will we take the initiative to reach out to one another and invest our life in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ?
Shall we pray!
baptism - never been baptized?
membership - want to join the church?
fellowhip - will you take the initiative to be a friend?
