Exploring 1 John: Our Fellowship
Exploring 1 John: Our Fellowship
1 John 1:3-4 - I struggle with fellowship and overcoming a selfish heart
”what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.“
1 John 1:3-4 NASB1995
The main purpose of 1 John is to explain his first-hand knowledge of the Son and proclaim it, so that those who hear this word may also have fellowship with him (John) and within their church and with the Father and the Son (and the Holy Spirit). John should know what he saw and heard, including this moment right after the Resurrection:
”So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be with you.” And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”“
John 20:19-23 NASB1995
Let’s do a little word study: Fellowship comes from the Greek word κοινωνία or koinōnía, with the following Biblical usages:
fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse
the share which one has in anything, participation
intercourse, fellowship, intimacy
the right hand as a sign and pledge of fellowship (in fulfilling the apostolic office)
a gift jointly contributed, a collection, a contribution, as exhibiting an embodiment and proof of fellowship
Fellowship not only involves sharing in an association or community, it also can be described as a gift jointly contributed, as proof of fellowship. Sitting in a pew every Sunday is not enough - fellowship comes from knowing your fellow congregants, having something in common with them and from contributing to the congregation (offering, volunteering, pledging). Here is what Enduring Word says about this fellowship:
Fellowship: The idea of fellowship is one of the most important ideas in this letter of John’s. It is the ancient Greek word koinonia, which speaks of a sharing, a communion, a common bond and common life. It speaks of a living, breathing, sharing, loving relationship with another person.
“This is one of the greatest statements of the New Testament, and it may safely be said that its greatness is created by the richness of the word which is the emphatic word, viz., fellowship.” (G. Campbell Morgan)
“The Greek word koinonia is derived from the word koinos, which very literally means common, in the sense of being shared by all.” (G. Campbell Morgan) The use of the word in Acts 2:44 is very helpful: Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common. The word common is the ancient Greek word koinonia.
“Those who have a fellowship one with another, are those who share the same resources, and are bound by the same responsibilities. The idea becomes almost overwhelming when it is thus applied to the relationship which believing souls bear to the Father, and to His Son Jesus Christ… The Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and all believers have all things in common. All the resources of each in the wondrous relationship are at the disposal of the others. Such is the grace of our God, and of His Son.” (G. Campbell Morgan)
We have fellowship with the Creator of the Universe! Through His body and blood, we share this common eternal bond with other believers. Here is more (superb) commentary from Enduring Word:
Fellowship… with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ: This simple and bold statement means that one can have a relationship with God. This idea would surprise many of John’s readers, and it should be astounding to us. The Greek mind-set highly prized the idea of fellowship, but restricted to men among men – the idea of such an intimate relationship with God was revolutionary.
Jesus started the same kind of revolution among the Jews when He invited men to address God as Father (Matthew 6:9). We really can have a living, breathing relationship with God the Father, and with Jesus Christ. He can be not only our Savior, but also our friend and our closest relationship.
Actually, for many people this is totally unappealing. Sometimes it is because they don’t know who God is, and an invitation to a “personal relationship with God” is about as attractive to them as telling an eighth-grader they can have a “personal relationship with the assistant principal.” But when we know the greatness, the goodness, and the glory of God, we want to have a relationship with Him.
Other people turn from this relationship with God because they feel so distant from Him. They want a relationship with God, but feel so disqualified, so distant. They need to know what God has done to make this kind of relationship possible.
Fellowship… with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ: The kind of relationship John described is only possible because Jesus is who John says He is in 1 John 1:1-2. If someone invited you to have a “personal relationship” with Napoleon, or Alexander the Great, or Abraham Lincoln – or even Moses or the Apostle Paul – you would think them foolish. One cannot even have a genuine “spiritual” relationship with a dead man. But with the eternal God who became man, we can have a relationship.
The word fellowship has in it not only the idea of relationship, but also of sharing a common life. When we have fellowship with Jesus, we will become more like Him.
The disciples did not have this close fellowship with Jesus when He walked this earth with them. As Jesus said to Philip at the very end of His earthly ministry, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?” (John 14:9) Their true fellowship was not created by material closeness to the material Jesus, but by a work of the Holy Spirit after the finished work of Jesus on the cross. Therefore we can enter into the same fellowship with God that the Apostles could enter.
Do you feel intimidated by the idea of fellowship with God? Do you consider it a “burden”? Or do you feel that He is distant? What about fellowship with others? Interesting thoughts - I have often felt a few things that may be spiritual battles about this fellowship (with other people and with God) since I came back to belief, as listed below. I may not feel this way now, but I certainly have battled these emotions:
I have felt unworthy - I have had difficulty accepting the Grace and Mercy of our Savior. I have felt that I was beyond salvation. I carry a lot of guilt. This might date back to my difficult relationship with my Mother, who said (often) that she would get to Heaven because of me.
I have felt that God is distant - When I read about the size of the Universe or gaze at the night sky, I’m amazed and in awe but I also feel like a tiny creature on a non-descript planet in a generic galaxy (listened to too much Carl Sagan in my younger years). The God that created all that we see is quite intimidating.
This one is a strange confession and one that I have to repent of constantly - I have felt vaguely annoyed sometimes, because before I came back to Him I was living my life to enjoy life. Now that I understand what it means to follow Him and take up your cross, a small part of me can be resentful. The church we currently attend is always raising the bar on how much we give and how much we physically contribute because they are constantly venturing into new horizons. I am an introvert at heart who still is suspicious of other people, so I haven’t found true fellowship yet (with a few exceptions) and I’m beginning to wonder how much above a tithe++ (much more than a basic tithe) is “enough”. I feel immensely guilty for still wanting to do a few things, like leisure travel and buying decent groceries. The enemy has me by the selfish heart (and head) when I feel this. This also blocks true fellowship with other humans.
The last three items make me feel anxiety, which, of course, blocks the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.
I have difficulty opening my heart to loud and fervent worship, coming from an old-school traditional hymn background in my childhood; those Lutheran hymns were never done with any hands uplifted or at a 90 decibel noise level. I believe empirically that God deserves our constant praise and worship, but that scientific and restless side of my brain is hoping that we have other meaningful things to do in eternity, too, that still serve Him and reward us with awe and wonder and knowledge and increase our love of our Creator. Am I really “ME” in eternal life if large parts of my personality (that I call an Engineering brain) are erased? How do I cope with being a curious and inquisitive creature in the next life?
I do believe I have a better sense of the “big picture” and am not afraid of illness or dying because of the promise of eternal life.
Writing these devotionals has done wonders to bring me some of the enlightenment that I crave.
I think far more often about Jesus than I do about God or the Holy Spirit. I also rely on the epistles of the apostles to help me understand God’s love and often neglect the Old Testament. I would be quite happy never reading Leviticus again or even 1 & 2 Chronicles. Oops, more guilt…
So there you have it, a true confessional! I have prayed and had others pray for me, but I’m still a work in progress. Which leads to the last verse in this passage:
These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.“
Leave it to the wonderful David Guzik, in Enduring Word, to help me understand what this joy means (yes, I have written about it and studied it, but it seems elusive at times; when I have truly felt that joy I never want it to leave):
That your joy may be full: The result of fellowship is fullness of joy. This joy is an abiding sense of optimism and cheerfulness based on God, as opposed to happiness, which is a sense of optimism and cheerfulness based on circumstances.
John clearly echoed an idea Jesus brought before His disciples the night before His crucifixion. He wanted fullness of joy for them – even knowing that the cross was directly in front of them.
These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full(John 15:11).
Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full (John 16:24).
But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves (John 17:13).
That your joy may be full: Fullness of joy is certainly possible for the Christian, but it is by no means certain. John wrote with the desire that believers would have fullness of joy – and if it were inevitable or very easy to have, he would not have written this.
The Christian’s joy is important, and assaulted on many fronts. External circumstances, moods and emotions, or sin can all take away our joy. Yet the Christian’s joy is not found in the things of this world, as good as they might be. When John wrote about these things, he wrote about this relationship of fellowship and love we can share in with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ.
Too many Christians are passive in their loss of joy. They need to realize it is a great loss and do everything they can to draw close to God and reclaim that fullness of joy. “If any of you have lost the joy of the Lord, I pray you do not think it a small loss.” (Charles Spurgeon).
One more thing - Enduring Word also summarizes quite elegantly what John is saying in these first four verses of 1 John:
a. John began with the beginning – the eternal God, who was before all things.
b. He told us that this God was physically manifested, and that he and others could testify to this as eyewitnesses.
c. He told us that this God is the Word of life, the Logos.
d. He told us that this God is distinct from the person of God the Father.
e. He told us that we may have fellowship with this God, and that we are often introduced into this fellowship with God by the fellowship of God’s people.
f. He told us that this eternally existent God, the Word of Life, who was physically present with the disciples and others (and present for fellowship), is God the Son, named Jesus Christ.
g. He told us that fellowship with Jesus leads to a life lived in fullness of joy.
h. We could say that in these four verses, John gave us enough to live our whole Christian life on. No wonder one commentator wrote, “Observe the note of wonder in the Apostle’s language. Speech fails him. He labours for expression, adding definition to definition.” (Expositor’s Bible).
John knew how to write and give us what we need to live our lives as believers! Time to memorize 1 John 1:1-4.
My next devotional examines 1 John 5: God is light and in Him there is no darkness.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - In this devotional, I wrote down my observations about myself and how I block fellowship and joy. Please help me to have an unselfish and non-resentful heart that only wants to serve You! I pray this fervently in the name of my Savior Jesus. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
The Blue Letter Bible was accessed on 3/27/2024 to review the lexicon for fellowship.
Enduring Word Commentary by David Guzik is used with written permission.