THEME: UNDERSTANDING CHURCH LIFE
LESSON: SIX
TEXT: Heb 13:1-3, 14-17
INTRODUCTION
Today, we will be looking at the second aspect of the fellowship life, which is, our fellowship with one another in Christ Jesus. Last week, we saw the first aspect of our fellowship; our fellowship with the Lord as individuals and as a Church. We mentioned that either of these fellowships can affect the flow of the other if not handled well as instructed by the Word of God.
The Mind that guides our Fellowship (1 Pet 3:8): As we can bear witness that in all the epistles, we find instructions to church life which we cannot particularly exhaust; but if we can understand the mind of God in this matter and follow it, we would live a proper church life as desired of the Lord the owner of the Church.
- Be ye of one mind: The first part of 1 Peter 3:8, in Greek text would literally be rendered as ‘be ye of equal mind’. The word ‘equal’ is the Greek word ‘iso’, and the word ‘mind’ is ‘psyche’. This refers to the internal mechanism of a believer arriving at a place where it naturally (that’s supernatural) agrees and cleaves with the other brethren; not seeing him or herself different in any way from the rest, rather loving the things of the other. A good example is David and Jonathan. The Bible said that Jonathan’s soul cleaved to David; they were ‘iso-psyche’, i.e., equal soul.
- Be your brother’s keeper: Cain was the first to violate this principle of brotherhood. A brother always looks out for the other. The heart of Cain is a heart condition that cares very little about the well-being of the other. It is a kind of heart that is concerned and considers majorly itself, first, before others. Cain was concerned with his own dreams and ambitions; valuing it higher than the life of his brother.
- Having compassion for one another: The Bible instructs us to mourn with those of our brethren that mourn, and rejoice with those of our brethren that are rejoicing. It is basically connectivity of empathy. A heart that feels for the other and would gladly do anything to bring joy to the brethren and thanksgiving to our Lord through the act of love.
PRACTICAL WAYS OF ASSURING THIS FELLOWSHIP
There are very little things we do that could go a long way to show our heart to others. If we verbally express love and do not demonstrate it in action, it would remain as mere words. The book of James says, ‘Let us love in deed and not just in words.’
- Working together: Giving a helpful hand to another brother. Going the extra mile to ensure that whatever challenge a brother has is tackled, can be one of those things. In working together, we learn each other’s’ personality and our hearts opens up for a better relationship.
- Visiting one another: We live in a city where time is one thing that nobody has. We must not allow ourselves to be cultured by this present time. Visiting can encourage, strengthen and uplift a brother. Satan wants individual saints to be in isolation so that he can preach to them. But we can redeem each other from that trap by visiting each other or even calling via the phone.
- Waiting to fellowship after fellowship: Let us not be in a hurry to go after the end of a meeting. We should wait to greet one another. Apostle Paul would say, ‘greet each other with a holy kiss’. Time spent in fellowshipping after the fellowship can minister further to brethren.
- Bless one another: Basically, it speaks of being a blessing to one another either in words or in deed. 1 Peter 3:9 says we have been called to inherit blessing; our mouths and actions should reflect who we are.
- Sharing with one another: This involves sharing of both our needs and possession with the brethren. Some brethren would not want anyone to know of their needs, and some would not want anyone to know what they have. It is traced-down to the issue of trust.
CONCLUSION
Our life is a life of love generally. We create a conducive atmosphere for spiritual growth and development when we love and allow love to be the motivating factor in all we do.