i can think of SO many times in my life where i have thought to myself "i will go & i will love & i will testify." going into high school, that was why i told God i wanted to be on the cheer squad - to 'be a light.' looking forward, i have had this idealistic perspective of my future as a potentially isolated Christian in Europe - not that it would be easy, but that i would be able to shine for Jesus & that others would come to know Him by His love as demonstrated through me. after listening to a certain sermon for at least the second time, though, the other day, i am not so sure.
not that i doubt myself (or more-so God's ability to use me), but i think i have greatly underestimated the power of fellowship. sure, i've known that it's good, but in my analysis of it & in my own personal growth from people- towards Christ-dependency, i may have let the pendulum swing a bit too far in the opposite direction... i guess i just never realized the power of love demonstrated between members of the body/church. my perspective has become one of "oh that's good too/as a backup when doing things alone doesn't work" rather than seeing fellowship as crucial. i now contend that loving fellowship is not just optional, it is His ideal.
"Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment." - Proverbs 18:1, ESVfor one, there's the fact of the Trinity: God is Himself in loving community as the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit... so it is not just a nice thought, it is our example. we are designed in His image, meaning that we too are intended for community.
what struck me most about what i heard was this: we CANNOT demonstrate Christ's love alone. obviously, if someone is not connected to Christ, the inability is logical... but what if there's more to it? how about what the Bible says:
"For where two or three come together in My name, there am I with them." - Matthew 18:20the benefit of the plural is that God shows up in a more powerful way, both offensively & defensively. He is still present with the singular in a completely sufficient way, but there's more potential that comes from relationship bound by the Holy Spirit.
"Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." - Ecclesiastes 4:12
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." - Proverbs 27:17
with regards to joy, ever heard the saying "shared joy is double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow"? well now you have. the only complete joy comes from God... but that joy was intended for more than selfish ambition could explain away. interestingly, in the Bible, when it talks about our joy being complete, it is described either in the context of fellowship or tied closely alongside it:
(here are all of the passages i found that contain both the words "joy" & "complete" in the NIV)
Deuteronomy 16:14-15 speaks of a feast between members of a greater community:
"Be joyful at your Feast — you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites, the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns... For the LORD your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete."John 3:29 refers to the joy of John when he hears that he is ministering alongside Jesus (literally - baptizing on the other side of the same river).
"If you obey My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father's commands & remain in His love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command... This is My command: Love each other." - John 15:10-14, 17 (again, deeply connected/paralleled with fellowship)John 16:22-24 speaks of the joy that will come first with Jesus's return & then as the disciples' labor together beyond the resurrection, calling upon God:
---> i will come back to this if you read on...
"I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask Me anything. I tell you the truth, My Father will give you whatever you ask in My name. Until now you have not asked for anything in My name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."in summary, it appears that fellowship produces strength/power (offensively & defensively) & joy... but how about fruitfulness? ah yes. the effect of that power & joy. the point: to testify to His love & sacrifice, to free the captives, to bring Him fame...
"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make My joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." - Philippians 2:1-4
"We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make [y]our joy complete." - 1 John 1:3-4
"I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete." - 2 John 1:12
"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." - Acts 2:42-47one of my Bible studies recently went through John 15 & verse 8 resonated a bit differently than it had before:
"This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples."John 13:34-35 tells us how we show ourselves to be His disciples.
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another."to send this point home, Jesus ends this section of John 15 (entitled The Vine & The Branches, all about bearing fruit) with verse 17:
"This is my command: Love each other."alright, so all of these verses may or may not have my head spinning right about now... BUT here is what helped it make sense in my mind: at fall conference this past month, the speaker, Matt Letourneau, spoke about a young man he had been meeting with to read through one of the gospels. the guy had "the bridge illustration" (an abbreviated illustration of the message of the Bible) posted on one of his walls & they had been meeting for several weeks to read through this book of the Bible together. one night, Matt & his wife had the guy over for dinner. while Matt & said guy were playing ping-pong, Matt's wife called him to come upstairs & help a bit, so he went up & pulled the lasagna out of the oven & helped out for a minute before they all sat down for dinner. then, Matt thanked his wife for making them such a delicious dinner. fast forward a few days... the next time he went to meet up with this guy, he told Matt that he had prayed to accept Jesus. Matt was excited for him of course & asked him what it had been that had spurred him to make such a decision. was it something they'd read in the Bible together? was it the illustration - did it finally click? no. it was the way Matt had loved his wife in the time they had this guy over for dinner. "i pulled the LASAGNA out of the OVEN." but that's the power of Him - who is so unlike anything our world has to offer - testifying through love in community.
it makes sense that the two greatest commandments are to love God & love each other.
we are powerless without God, but we are weak without the body. what good is a part that was intended to serve the rest of the body if it is disconnected? now that i am convinced, the next step is to figure out how that looks in my daily life... [baby steps]
"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." - 1 Peter 4:8what i, in my sinfulness, am incapable of showing others, He is capable of showing them through our love for each other.
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