FELLOWSHIP

^[p. 87] FELLOWSHIP

Acts 2:42; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 1 Corinthians 10:14 - 22; 1 John 1:7

JT During recent years the subject of fellowship has very rightly been receiving consideration amongst the people of God, as a right understanding of this subject is essential for the maintenance of our position in relation to the assembly. There is really only one fellowship, which we may view in its general and also its local setting; naturally it is the general bearing of it which comes first. It should be noticed that in 1 Corinthians 10 the apostle speaks of “the cup of blessing which we bless”, and “the bread which we break”. It will be noticed that the apostle frequently uses the word ‘you’ instead of ‘we’ in this epistle. When he says we, as in chapter 10, he is speaking in general terms: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of the Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of the Christ?” All this refers to what is general, whilst chapter 11, verse 18, refers to what the Corinthians were doing locally, “when ye come together in assembly”. In chapter 1, verse 9, he says, “God is faithful, by whom ye have been called into the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord”; the saints local in Corinth had been called into the general fellowship; that is to say, the fellowship of God’s Son.

Rem This fellowship includes “all that in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”, 1 Corinthians 1:2.

JT Just so, it is the general idea, “all that in every place”.

Ques Does local fellowship depend on universal fellowship?

JT Yes; we should begin with this great thought, the fellowship of the Son of God; it is the same fellowship everywhere. There is only one fellowship, the ^[p. 88] fellowship of the Son of God, but it comes into expression locally. The first thing to be noted is that in the beginning it was called the “fellowship of the apostles”. The three thousand persons who were converted on the day of Pentecost “persevered in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles”, which implies that there were other fellowships in the world, but the fellowship of the apostles was established authoritatively.

Rem The apostle John says, “Our fellowship is indeed with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ”, 1 John 1:3.

JT Showing that their fellowship was on a higher level than the ordinary fellowship in which we have part; it refers to the testimony. He wrote to the saints in order that “ye also may have fellowship with us”; then in verse 7, he speaks of having “fellowship with one another”.

Ques It refers here to fellowship “with the Father”; is there a difference?

JT Yes; it is God revealed in grace; it does not say “our Father”, but “the Father”, that is God known in grace maintaining His testimony down here, the Father and the Son working together in it, and They introduced the apostles into it.

Ques Does the expression, “persevered ... in the fellowship” indicate that we have to strive to maintain this fellowship?

JT The idea of perseverance indicates that there is opposition. The teaching of the apostles had greater authority than that of Moses, and their fellowship was the outcome of their teaching. What does the word ‘fellowship’ mean practically? What do the brethren understand by this word?

Rem We possess the same things and we enjoy them together.

JT In other words, we form an association, and all the members of the association are governed by the same thoughts and ^[p. 89] feelings.

Rem It is an outward link in the testimony.

JT Just so; hence in chapter 10 we have its bearing on our everyday life and walk. The breaking of bread is the expression of it, but the thing expressed there must exist before we can have the breaking of bread.

Rem It is good to add that it is the public and practical expression of our bond.

JT In everything I do, I am under obligation to my brethren locally and generally, as if each member of the association informed the others of what he is doing so that they could participate. Hence, if I am honest, my conscience will not permit me to do anything when my brethren are not looking, that I would not do when they are looking, for I involve them in all I do.

Rem In other words we break bread once a week, but we should maintain the fellowship every day.

Rem We think of one another as being in fellowship with one another.

JT All those breaking bread form part of the association, as we all partake of one loaf. It should be noted first that it is the apostles’ fellowship, that is to say, it has divine authority; there are other fellowships, such as freemasons, and similar societies, but this one has divine authority, according to what we have read in the Acts. The fellowship of the apostles is authoritative because the apostles represented the Lord, and their fellowship included their doctrine. Other details are then added which show that the thing was put into practice in Jerusalem. It was evident that they were all one: “All that believed were together, and had all things common, and sold their possessions and substance, and distributed them to all, according as any one might have need. And every day, being constantly in the temple with one accord, and breaking bread in the house, they received their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people; and the Lord added to the assembly daily those that were to be saved”, Acts 2:44 - 47. There ^[p. 90] was a practical expression of the fellowship, and each day the Lord added to the assembly.

Rem This fellowship excludes all others.

JT Yes; if one, two or several persons form something themselves it cannot be compared with this fellowship. In 1845, a great division took place (at Bethesda) in which the principles of fellowship were ignored; by their independence those people ignored the fellowship of the Son of God; for if it is the fellowship of the apostles, their doctrine must govern it.

Rem The fellowship cannot be varied according to circumstances; it is the fellowship of every day.

JT Just so, like Noah’s ark, it passes through the scene of judgment, for it is the fellowship of Christ’s death. In Acts 2 we have the authority emphasised, and in 1 Corinthians 1:9 the dignity attaching to it is stressed, it is the fellowship of the Son of God.

Rem It is the “fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord”.

JT “His Son” refers to His dignity, and “our Lord” to His authority. Then in chapter 10, we have the communion of His “blood” and the communion of His “body”. In 2 Corinthians 13 we find the “communion of the Holy Spirit”, and in John’s epistle we “have fellowship with one another” (persons are involved).

Rem So it can be truly said that fellowship originates in the communion of His blood and of His body.

JT That is to say, of His death. If anyone entered the meeting room in Corinth on the first day of the week, he would see the emblems on the table. He might ask, What are these emblems? No doubt other fellowships had their emblems also; in the same street in Corinth there might be a Jewish synagogue, a heathen temple and perhaps a christian meeting room, and all three might be visited in succession. In the heathen temple, sacrifices were offered to idols; in the Jewish synagogue one might easily understand what was happening, but on entering the christians’ meeting room, the elements would be seen. This is the main point of chapter 10; what do they mean? The apostle speaks to the saints “as to intelligent persons: do ye judge what I say. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of the Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of the Christ? Because we, being many, are one loaf, one body”. The thought is expressed there in a most concrete way, and wherever you find a company of true christians you will find this. Believers are identified in these emblems with the death of the Lord Jesus. The blood is separate from the body. What a solemn matter for us to be identified with the One whom the world has rejected and put to death.

Ques Is that why the cup is referred to first here?

JT It is a higher thought, as the cup is witness of the love of God; but the two together represent Christ as having died. The blood being separate from the body is a symbol of a dead Christ, but we have part in this communion; accepting it and being identified with it. But there is more than that in this fellowship, for Christ is raised and has ascended to heaven. The gospel is more than a testimony to a dead Christ, it is a testimony to Christ living and glorified, and in virtue of this, the Corinthians were saved, as the apostle said, “Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures, and ... he was buried; and ... he was raised the third day, according to the scriptures”, 1 Corinthians 15:3,4. This testimony is for faith. The whole world can see the emblems, that is why we are publicly identified with a dead Christ, and the emblems signify that believers should walk in accord with that. If the emblems refer to the Lord Jesus as being dead, the question might be asked, Are the saints dead? The teaching of the epistle to the Romans runs parallel to the Corinthian epistle, and it says, “As many as have been baptised unto Christ Jesus, have been baptised unto his death. We have been buried therefore ^[p. 92] with him by baptism unto death, in order that, even as Christ has been raised up from among the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also should walk in newness of life ... . So also ye, reckon yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus ... . Neither yield your members instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but yield yourselves to God as alive from among the dead, and your members instruments of righteousness to God” Romans 6:3 - 13. It is thus that the fellowship is maintained in a practical way.

Rem Within the fellowship, each member is bound to the other as being delivered from the will of man.

JT That is why it says, “Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy?” If I exercise my own will, I provoke the Lord to jealousy; hence a person who partook of the Lord’s supper in Corinth would be inconsistent if he went into a Jewish synagogue or heathen temple and took part in the services there. So it says, “Ye cannot partake of the Lord’s table, and of the table of demons”.

Ques What is meant by “the table of demons”?

JT Simply what the heathen were engaged with.

Rem It is most important to understand rightly the Lord’s table.

JT The apostle said, “I speak as to intelligent persons”: he is speaking thus to each one of us. Each should ask himself ‘What do I know of these things?’ This epistle was not written to the elders in Corinth, but to all the saints at Corinth; that is why the apostle speaks to us as to intelligent persons, implying that we ought to know. He appeals to each one of us to judge what he says. Someone may say, ‘I am not intelligent, I know nothing about these things’. It is good to confess that we do not know, but why do we not know?

Rem All he says is connected with the Lord’s table.

JT Evidently, only the Lord’s table here alludes to the bread as distinct from the cup.

Rem In connection with intelligent persons, you just said that we may say, ‘I am not intelligent’, but 1 John 5:20 says, “We know that the Son of God has come, and has given us an understanding”.

JT Yes, that is to say, the ability to understand things. In this epistle it says, “We have the mind of Christ”, (1 Corinthians 2:16) the thinking faculty like Christ’s. It is a christian characteristic, signifying that those having the Holy Spirit are taken account of in this way.

Rem The fact that we have the Spirit should hinder us from saying that we are not intelligent.

Rem Speaking of the teaching of the apostles, Paul said, “Think of what I say”. This is important.

JT Why is it then that we are not all intelligent as to this great subject of fellowship? I think that the Spirit of God foresaw that it would present some difficulty, so He puts it as an obligation upon intelligent persons, and He appeals to us to judge what He says, to consider it, to analyse it, and to seek out its meaning.

Rem It says that the Berean believers were “searching the scriptures if these things were so”, Acts 17:11.

JT It is as if Paul had said, ‘I do not want you to accept these things because it is I who say them; use your intelligence and carefully analyse what I say’.

Rem It is an individual exercise, “do ye judge what I say”.

JT It means judge what the apostle is saying here; he invites you to measure it and to understand. In the following chapter he says, “Let a man prove himself” (1 Corinthians 11:28) before partaking of the Lord’s supper; but here, “Do ye judge what I say”.

Ques Is intelligence connected with affection?

JT Yes, it involves the Spirit too.

Rem Mary became intelligent because she loved the Lord.

Rem But here there is also the question of subjection.

Rem With Lydia, the Lord opened her heart to attend to the things spoken by Paul (Acts 16:14).

JT It was the Lord’s work, but here it is you who do it. There is one other thing: fellowship with one another. John says, “If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another”. It does not say ‘we should have’, but “we have”.

Ques Do we walk in the light as individuals?

JT As each walks in the light it follows that we are all in fellowship.

Rem I was thinking of Achan’s dark deed. Joshua said, “How hast thou troubled us!” Joshua 7:25.

JT A striking and solemn example of the thing we are speaking of; he was walking in darkness. “I saw among the spoils a beautiful mantle of Shinar, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a golden bar of fifty shekels weight, and I coveted them and took them; and behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it”, Joshua 7:21. That corresponds to what may happen in our houses today, to what is hidden there: the result of it is that there is no power in the meeting, and the thing is exposed, brought to light. If God is not helping a meeting, it is because there is something there not right, some evil that is not judged.