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Fellowship With God!. Certain words conjure up a well spring of emotion. These words, improperly used , can give a person false assurance. Matthew 7:22,23. A mind-boggling thought – I can be in fellowship with God!
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Fellowship With God! • Certain words conjure up a well spring of emotion. • These words, improperly used, can give a person false assurance. Matthew 7:22,23. • A mind-boggling thought – I can be in fellowship with God! • Fellowship with the Father and Son was the object of 1st Century preaching! I John 1:3; I Corinthians 1:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:14.
What Is Fellowship? • Koinonia, I Corinthians 10:16. • “Fellowship, association, communion, joint participation,” Thayer. • Koinonos, 2 Corinthians 8:23; Philemon 17. • “A Partner, associate, comrade, companion.” • Metoche, 2 Corinthians 6:14. • “A Sharing, Communion, Fellowship.”
Five Synonyms,2 Corinthians 6:14-16 • V. 14. “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? • V. 15. “And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? • V. 16. “And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
The Five Synonymns: • Fellowship, v. 14, from metoche. • Communion, v. 14, from koinonia. • Concord, v. 15, sumphonesis, from which we get the English word symphony, denoting a sounding together, agreement. • Part (“in common,” NASV, v. 15. • Agreement, v. 16.
Fellowship with “God” –Denoting all the persons of the Godhead • “God,” on occasion, denotes a plurality of Divine Beings. Cf. Genesis 1:1 (Elohim); not also Genesis 1:26; 3:22. • Three Divine Beings called “God.” • The Father, John 3:16; I Thessalonians 1:1. • The Son, John 1:1-3,14; Hebrews 1:8. • The Holy Spirit, Acts 5:1-4.
By “Fellowship With God” • I refer to association, communion, joint participation, companionship, and partnership with: • The Father! • The Son! • The Holy Spirit!
An Amazing Fact! • All three Persons of the Godhead worked together to make it possible for me to be their partner, companion, associate! • The Father Conceived the scheme of redemption, Ephesians 3:3-9. • The Son Executed this Plan, Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 12:1,2. • The Holy Spirit Revealed this Plan, Ephesians 3:3-5.
Because of What “God” has done for me, I can: • Be a child of God, John 1:11,12; I John 3:1. • Be a joint-heir with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Romans 8:16,17. • Have the in-dwelling of the Holy Spirit, Romans 8:9-12. • Note: one of the most amazing facts of the Bible is that it is a record of God seeking man; not that of man seeking God!
Fellowship With God Depends on God’s Provisions. God Provided: • Jesus Christ, John 3:16. • He died for us, John 10:11; Hebrews 2:9. • He took on our nature, Philippians 2:5-8. • We are to take on His nature, 2 Peter 1:4. • In Him are “all spiritual blessings,” Ephesians 1:3. • The Gospel, Romans 1:16; 2 Timothy 1:9,10; I Corinthians 1:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:14. • The Church, Ephesians 3:3-6,10,11.
Fellowship With God Depends on Man’sResponse to God’s Provisions! • Must Obey Jesus Christ, Hebrews 5:9. • Must Obey the Gospel, 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9. • Must be “added” to the church, Acts 2:47, wherein is “reconciliation,” Ephesians 2:16. • Therefore, fellowship with God is a Divine/Human Arrangement, Ephesians 2:8. • The provisions are wholly of God. • The response is wholly of man.
If I am in Fellowship With God, I Can: • Communicate with Him at any time! Luke 18:1; I Thessalonians 5:17! • Work with God in a common cause, I Corinthians 1:9; 3:9; 2 Corinthians 6:1! • Be a partaker of the divine nature, 2 Peter 1:4! • Anticipate receiving a new body, I Corinthians 15:49-53! • Live in Hope, Titus 1:3! • Die in Peace, Revelation 14:13!
Conclusion – Two Important Questions: • How do I obtain fellowship with God? • By obeying the gospel, 2 Thessalonians 2:14. • How do I maintain fellowship with God? • By walking “in the light,” I John 1:5-7. • Note: Fellowship with God is not accidental nor merely coincidental. God has done His part; I must comply with his terms of pardon, and then walk “in the light…”