Fellowship

When I'm in the car and have a long distance to go, I try to get into the habit of redeeming the time. For example, I try to take this time to pray on my journey. This morning God touched me particularly on the subject of fellowship . I thought back to my evening of prayer the night before when I had shared special moments with sisters in Christ. I realized how important fellowship was in our Christian walk. In fact, it is still a gift from God. Are we doing this? God did not create us to be sufficient beings, but rather relational …

God, in creating Adam, allowed him to have a relationship with Him for quite a while, but God saw that it was not good for man to be alone, he saw that he something was missing from his side. It was then that he created a mate for him, a woman, "flesh of his flesh and bone of his bones": a human like him. Often times, this text is used in connection with marriage and that is good, because that is precisely what it was written for. But let me introduce you to another dimension, which is the importance of interpersonal relationships in Christian walk and church life, the body of Christ.

Several Bible passages demonstrate how important it is to look after one another, to watch over one another, to pray for one another, to do good, to nurture together. But why is that?

When one experiences true fellowship , a heart to heart with a sister, one immediately understands why God said "it is not good that the man [woman] is alone". For my part, when I can confide in a sister by sharing my weaknesses, my struggles, my requests for prayers, my joys and my sorrows, it touches me enormously. I feel immense well-being. First, it allows me to free myself from certain things that weigh on my heart; and moreover, it allows me to gather advice and encouragement. There is the whole spiritual dimension which relates to fraternal communion . “Bear one another's burdens, and thus you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Gal. 6.2) By doing this, dear friends, we are fulfilling the law of Christ. This is not an easy task! Jesus coming to earth came to demonstrate the importance of interpersonal relationships by overturning the ideology of the time by preaching "love one another" (Jn 15:17). In addition, Paul builds up throughout these epistles by commanding Christians of different churches to exercise this brotherly love by supporting one another, forgiving one another, confessing, exhorting each other, edifying themselves, and exercising hospitality to one another. towards others…

We can therefore notice that the notion of fraternal communion (from the Greek koinonia [assistance, liberality / gift]) is present more than once in the New Testament and that it is taught by Jesus himself. The church is a place created to encourage, help, rejuvenate, and serve one another. fellowship is therefore the very essence of the church. Let’s not abandon our congregation, but let’s be excited in this love! (Heb. 10.24,25) In the days of the early Church, Christians cultivated this notion of koinonia , we see in Acts 2 in verse 42: “They persevered in the teaching of the apostles, in fellowship [koinonia], in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.»We must therefore understand that we need each other to survive, and not only because it is pleasant, but because it is vital for the Christian If we think we are sufficient we will achieve sooner or later that we are, in the end, lonely and unhappy to be so.

Knowing that we can count on one another, knowing that someone is on their knees to intercede for our personal difficulties or to rejoice with us in the graces and blessings that the Lord grants us is one thing among the many. most beautiful on earth in my opinion. Knowing that we are not alone in our faith or alone in the face of our difficulties is reassuring and comforting. Who wants to be alone in life? Nobody (to my knowledge). fellowship makes us grow as a person, but also as a group (church). It comes from God and has a specific purpose for each of us.

Do you have a friend you can tell anything to? A friend to rely on who is available to talk, listen, pray, encourage, and also a friend who is sincere at all times ... (even when walking in error)? If not, I think there is something missing from your Christian walk. In fact, are we ourselves a quality friend to someone? Many people deny themselves deep friendships for fear of judgment or the hurt that can follow. I would like to encourage you to put your fears (and / or pride) aside and put it before the Lord. I pray that God can provide a sensitive friend for you so that you can enjoy this fulfilling experience desired by Him.

In closing, here are a few verses to encourage you to live out Christian friendship, the precious fellowship . Because: "The friend loves in all circumstances, and in times of trouble he shows himself a brother [sister]" (Prov. 17.17). It is good to remember that "the wounds of a friend prove his faithfulness" (Prov. 27.6). Because true friendship tells the truth, exhorts, repeats for the good of the other. She is not a hypocrite, she loves and does not buy peace at the expense of what God says. What is our attitude when a friend takes courage in telling us our "four truths"? Are we happy that this friend wants to steer us towards sanctification or are we angry and embittered when we hear something that is wrong with us?

Remember this, “Two are better than one, because they get a good salary from their work. For if they fall, one picks up his companion; but woe to him who is alone and who falls, without having a second to raise him up ”(Ecc. 4.9,10). Loneliness never wins.

Finally, let us realize the richness that koinonia ( fellowship ) brings and let us count the benefits associated with it.

* Comment to share your experiences related to fraternal communion if you feel like it…

In all humility,

AM - xx -