The Fellowship

God is a creative Being, and it gives Him pleasure to create. God is a personal Being, and it gives Him pleasure to have other beings He can have a genuine relationship with.

Being made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27), human beings have then the ability to know God and therefore love Him, worship Him, serve Him, and fellowship with Him. God did not create human beings because He needed them. As God, He needs nothing.

In all eternity past, He felt no loneliness, so He was not looking for a “friend.” He loves us, but this is not the same as needing us. God doesn't need to have fulfillment, God is already complete in and of Himself. Nevertheless God created us, and when He did He put with in us a desire to have fellowship. (Relationship)

Later on God created another special thing where there could be fellowship with God and fellowship with man and that thing was the church.

Now we talked two weeks ago about the founder of the church, Jesus Christ and then last week we talked about the foundation of the church, the Word of God which is the apostles and the prophets' teachings that make up the Word of God.

The Scripture says the church is built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets through whom the Holy Spirit gave the Word.

Now today we are going to talk about "The Fellowship of the Church".

Now fellowship is more than coffee and donuts and potluck luncheons in the fellowship hall. Fellowship is more than just friendship.

Fellowship is a special word that God gave in the New Testament called Koinonia.

Koinonia is a word that communicates more than friendship. It communicates a unity, a oneness based on certain beliefs and sealed by the Holy Spirit.

Now to have fellowship there must be seven common beliefs that bind believers together in the unity of the Holy Spirit.

And these seven pillars of truth are essential if you are to experience fellowship with God and fellowship with other believers in the body of Christ known as the church.

The reason fellowship goes far beyond friendship is because you can be a friend to someone and not have these common beliefs. But you cannot have fellowship with someone without these seven beliefs, these seven pillars of truth on which fellowship is built.

The day of Pentecost has happened. There have been 3,000 people saved and they have joined the church, having been baptized, they have been added to the church. So in Acts 2:42 it tells us what happened immediately upon being added to the church.

Acts 2:42 NKJV

And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

So they continued steadfastly in fellowship.

Then if we go to Ephesians 4:4-6 the apostle Paul tells us the seven basic truths on which fellowship is built.

No before we read this passage lets understand something first. This Eph. passage is all about Church unity. Building upon the same founder and foundation which the true church in made.

It is Upon the firm and unchanging ground of God’s completed work in Christ, Paul now urges his readers to a life together worthy of their calling (4:1).

Look how the Evangelical Commentary on the Bible puts it...

Evangelical Commentary on the Bible A. Creating Unity: The Body Forged (4:1–16)

The foundation of the unity of the new family of God lies in eternally changeless facts (v. 4), all emphasizing the oneness of God, the church, and the faith.

So now lets read together Eph. 4:4-6

Ephesians 4:4–6 NKJV

There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Notice how many times he says "one" here.

Seven times, one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God, and Father.

So these seven things are the essentials that you must believe in order to have fellowship in the body of Christ.

Now, there are many other things that you can believe or not believe that are not essential. There are many other things that you may disagree on or agree on in interpretation of the Bible, but these seven things you MUST agree on, because these are seven things that bind us together in the body of Christ.

The object of your faith is vitally important. You must believe in the right person, you must believe in the right book, you must believe in the right things.

Now these seven things are vitally important.

I. ONE BODY

First of all he says there is one body.

The Bible says that the church is the body of Christ.

Christ is the head (v.15) ; we are the body.

In the Old Testament, God had a temple for His people. In the New Testament, God has a people for His temple.

The Bible says we are the temple of the Holy Spirit and God indwells us. (1 Cor. 6:19)

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NKJV

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

So our body is His body. And when we meet together, we are the body of Christ present. But when we scatter out, we are the body of Christ scattered.

1 Corinthians 12:13 NKJV

For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.

He says all of us have been baptized by one Spirit into one body. Here he is talking about spiritual baptism. And he is saying we got into the body by spiritual baptism.

When you accept Christ as your Savior, when you are born again by the Holy Spirit, when you believe upon Jesus and you are truly saved, truly born again, the Holy Spirit baptizes you, into the body of Christ. We will talk more about that here in a few moments.

This body of Christ is heavenly in construction.

God created the body of Christ. It was conceived in the heart and the mind of God before the foundation of the world.

This body of Christ is divine in creation.

The Scripture says that we are born again not of corruptible seed but of incorruptible seed by the Word of God that lives and abides forever. God creates the body of Christ.

This body of Christ is supernatural in constitution.

Colossians 3:11 says, "that in Christ there is neither male nor female, there is neither bond nor free, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision..., but Christ is all and in all."

What this is saying is that the Body of Christ is not made up of hierarchy, God doesn't play favorites, there is no partiality in the Body of Christ.

Now the Body of Christ is everywhere around us. It is not just a some building with the name Church on it. It is the believers and followers of Christ who are all around us each and everyday. Even though we are many scattered everywhere we are still ONE body.

II. ONE SPIRIT

Secondly he said there is one spirit – verse 4 – and that is the blessed Holy Spirit of God.

He is the person who makes the body alive. There has to be life in the body and the thing that makes the body live is the Holy Spirit.

Now when the life is gone from the physical body we call it death. And when the Spirit is gone from the church it is dead! It is lifeless as a corpse. There is no power.

But when the Spirit is there, the body is alive, the body is active, the body is moving, the body is dynamic, the body is working, the body is touching, and the body is reaching out. It is the one Spirit.

The Bible says we need to be filled with the Spirit of God. We need to be dependent on the Spirit of God.

Ephesians 2:18 NKJV

For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.

Ephesians 2:22 NKJV

in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

And when I met a believer and they are right with God and I am right with God, the Spirit in me loves the Spirit in them.

And I can fellowship with them if I have never met them before, why? If I have never seen them before, the Jesus in me loves the Jesus in them and the Jesus in them can love the Jesus in me.

And I have fellowship with them because of one Spirit. And that one Spirit makes us one.

Romans 8:16 NKJV

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

III. ONE HOPE

Number three, there is one hope.

There is one hope, which all believers have in common regarding their future with God, a confidence that began at the time they were “called”

Ephesians 1:18 NKJV

the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

Before conversion, an unregenerate person, is without hope and without God in the world (2:12).

Ephesians 2:12 NKJV

that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

Now having been brought near to God, united into one body in Christ and reconciled to God (2:11–3:13), they have hope.

Since both believing Jews and Gentiles have “one” (or “the same”) hope, it further supports the concept of unity portrayed in these verses. It is a true fellowship. A oneness in body, spirit and in hope…but it doesn't stop there.

IV. ONE LORD

Now number four, you must believe there is one Lord. Lord is His sovereign name. That means He is King. He is boss. You remember the writer of Philippians the apostle Paul says, "That God has highly exalted Him and given Him a name that is above all names."

We sing about worshipping His name, the name that is holy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain. Paul said,

Philippians 2:5–11 NKJV

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Here is something you and I need to understand. You can't make Him Lord, He is Lord already.

But you must acknowledge Him as Lord if you are to have fellowship.

He is Lord of all. For every time He is mentioned as Savior, He is mentioned as Lord twelve times. The emphasis in the Bible is more on His lordship than on His savior-hood. Jesus Christ is Lord. That is His sovereign name.

There are those today who teach that Mohammad is just as good a way to heaven as Jesus, that Buddha is just as good a name as Jesus if you want to be saved, you can trust in his name. There are people today who teach that your religion, whatever it may be, is just as good a way to heaven as the name of Jesus.

No, There is only one Lord. Jesus is His singular name. There is no other name under heaven unto which men may be saved.

If you believe in that name you will be saved and you must believe in that name to have fellowship.

V. ONE FAITH

Then there is one faith. And that one faith is the Bible, the Word of God.

The Bible is perfect. It is a perfect word.

The Scripture says "the law of the Lord is perfect".

The Bible is a powerful word. It is the power of God unto salvation. Romans 1:19

The Bible is a profitable word. II Timothy 3:16 says, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for reproof, for rebuke, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be perfect."

The Bible is perpetual. That means it will last forever. Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away but my Words will never pass away."

The Bible is a purposeful word. Its purpose is to bring salvation.

The Bible is a purifying word, how will a young man purify his way or cleanse his way, by taking thereto, heed thereto according to thy word.

The Bible is a personal word. It becomes personal to you when you receive it.

The Bible is a prophetic word. It tells the future before the future comes to pass.

There is one faith. He is not talking about faith as a verb but faith as a noun. He is talking about what Jude 3 says, "contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints."

The Bible says in the Book of Revelation that you are not to add to this Book, you are not to take from this Book. This Book is complete. It is finished, it is over.

I hear people talking about their experience. You want to be very careful about your experience. You want to test your experience by the Word of God, not the Word of God by your experience.

I hear people talk about their vision and their experience. Dear friends, we have been given a perfect word. This perfect word is final. It is authoritative. It is complete.

Don't put your experience above the Word of God. The Word of God is final, it is complete. It is the authority. That is what you are to place your faith in, His Word.

VI. ONE BAPTISM

There is one baptism. In verse 5 he is talking about the baptism of the Holy Spirit, spiritual baptism. That is the one baptism he speaks about, baptism in to the body of Christ.

But there is also scriptural baptism, baptism in water as an act of obedience.

Baptism is not optional. It is commanded. Baptism symbolized the greatest truths, justification, sanctification, and glorification.

Baptism illustrates the greatest message.

Immersion symbolizes the death and burial and resurrection of Christ.

And then baptism symbolizes the greatest example.

Jesus Himself was baptized to set the example for us, and to declare why He came into this world. He was baptized at the first of His ministry, why? He was saying this is why I came into the world to die on the cross, to be buried and on the third day I will rise again.

Baptism, to be scriptural baptism, must have the correct meaning.

That is a profession of your faith in Christ. You don't baptize to get saved, you baptize to confess that you are saved, to confess your belief in the death and burial and resurrection of Christ.

Baptism must have the correct mandate.

That is to obey Jesus Christ.

Baptism must have the correct model.

That is immersion. You won't go to hell if you are not baptized by immersion but immersion is the correct model. It is not scriptural baptism unless you are baptized by immersion. Why, because the Greek word baptize in the New Testament means to bury or to immerse.

Romans 6:4 NKJV

Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

It means to plunge under. You are symbolizing a death and a burial. When you bury somebody you don't go and sprinkle a little dirt on them. You put them under the ground. Jesus wasn't placed on the ground and dirt sprinkled on Him, He was placed into the heart of the earth. And stone was rolled over His tomb.

And then you have to have the correct meaning. The meaning of baptism is that you are putting an end to an old life. And Jesus has given you a new life – to walk in newness of life.

VII. ONE GOD

Then there is one God. Lets read again the this passage in Eph.

Ephesians 4:6 NKJV

one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

God is the Father of all by creation, but God is only the Father of all spiritually through redemption.

God is not the father of the devil's children.

Jesus said to the Pharisees,

John 8:44 NKJV

You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.

Listen to me; you are only a child of the one true God by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And you must put your faith and trust in Him to be a child of His. You need to understand that this passage doesn't mean that you are not automatically a child of God because you were born into this world.

You must be born again. John 3

And then you become a part of God's family. To get into a family you must be born into the family or adopted into the family.

And the Scripture gives both symbols. You are born into your family or you are adopted in to the family of God. God will adopt you into His family when you trust in His Son Jesus Christ. You will be birthed into the family when you receive Christ as your Savior and your Lord. Both are true and both are one in the same. Those descriptions of salvation are metaphors to try to describe the relationship we will have with the Father as a result of us placing our faith in Christ Jesus.

So if you have never done that today you can do that.

And in heaven we will be together one day because we are in this family of God, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And everybody is somebody in His body. And all of us have a part and none of us are bigger than the other and none of us are more important than the other, but we are all children of God by faith.

We have the same Father. Heaven is our home. The Bible is our guide. The Spirit lives within us. And we have the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are here to encourage one another, to love one another, to help one another, to hold up one another, to support one another.

And we are here to do it as long as we are on this earth until Jesus comes back. And I want to exhort you today to take advantage of what you have in the body.

Let's pray together.