The Depth of True Fellowship

God’s Word shows us that ‘fellowship’ within the Body of Christ has intense meaning and a high level of importance. Fellowship (koinonia in Greek) is defined as intimate, spiritual connectedness with other believers, manifesting through us as one mind and purpose, and causing us to live unified as the Body of Christ (Vines NT Dictionary paraphrased). In fact, many Bible dictionaries use the word ‘intercourse’ to describe this fellowship (Thayers, Strong’s), leading us to the idea that we have a spiritual intimacy that goes far beyond natural connections.

The Apostle Paul ranked fellowship equally with baptism, prayer, communion and the doctrine of the Word (Acts 2:42-43); that gives us an idea of how critical it is to the Body. Without this spiritual interconnectedness, which leads to daily, active concern and love for other members of the Body, we are nothing more than a club or loosely connected group with some of the same goals and ideas.

However, when we have this this type of fellowship we become partakers of Christ through His Spirit and through one another. If Christ be in you and we have fellowship, then I partake of Him, in part, through what He has put in you. As a friend once said to me, we are as clay water-pots, pouring back and forth into one another, giving to others of His Spirit and power as He prompts us. This pouring out and receiving of the living water on a continual basis requires interconnectedness beyond human means, and it’s God’s way of supplying the Church Body with all that’s needed, just as blood vessels and capillaries interconnect and supply the human body.

Imagine Body life without deep fellowship, where you simply gather together weekly, speak some encouraging words, then return the next week without having had contact between gatherings. How can the hand get direction from the mind, and in turn put food to the mouth, if there is connectedness for only a couple of hours here and there? It’s not possible - a person would starve or become malnourished while waiting! An army which is not connected in purpose and continually united in its actions has made itself vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy, but one which is moving together in thought, word and deed has formed a wall which is difficult to penetrate. This is the same concept with the Body of Christ, but on a spiritual level.

We were created for fellowship with Christ (1 Cor. 1:9), and it's achieved (in part) by our fellowship with one another. This requires being vulnerable, while also being careful with the vulnerability of others: it’s a powerful, spiritual trust between members of the Body.

Our fellowship with one another is ultimately a picture of the marriage that the Bride of Christ has with our Lord: continual and long term love, grace, patience, consideration and self sacrificial care. This is the fellowship of the believer!