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You can have a Relationship without Fellowship, but it’s not what God wants (1 John 1:6-7)

By Jeremy Myers
4 Comments

You can have a Relationship without Fellowship, but it’s not what God wants (1 John 1:6-7)
http://media.blubrry.com/one_verse/feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/575014575-redeeminggod-145-relationship-vs-fellowship-1-john-16-7.mp3

There are many words in the Bible that often get confused with the concept of โ€œgaining eternal life.โ€ The word โ€œsalvationโ€ is the primary word of this sort, but the word “fellowship” is similar.ย Often, when people read in Scripture about “fellowship with God” they think it is referring to having eternal life or being born again.

But the word fellowship doesย not refer to gaining eternal life, but to the experience of life within the family of God. This is especially true for the word fellowship.

The word fellowship is a translation of the Greek word koinลnia (2842). โ€œFellowshipโ€ is a good translation, but not if we think of โ€œfellowshipโ€ as what typically happens on a Sunday morning in most church buildings.

fellowship 1 John 1 6-7

Your Church is Not Really a Fellowship

Though many churches call themselves a โ€œFellowship,โ€ the people who gather there are not often good examples of genuine fellowship. The term refers to a friendship, a community, a partnership, of having common interests, desires, goals, directions, and even possessions.

The term “fellowship” is a favorite expression for the close, intimate friendship that exists between a husband and wife, and also for the unity one experiences in the context of brotherly love. So the word fellowship is not about gaining a relationship, but rather about maintaining the friendship, love, and unity within a relationship.

Relationship vs. Fellowship

To understand how this works, it is helpful to think of our relationship and fellowship with God as we think about these with other person.

There is a vast difference between being born into a family, and having a positive experience within that family.

For there to be a positive experience in a family, certain things need to happen. Everybody in the family needs to participate, help out, contribute, love, forgive, and work together as a team.

friendship fellowship

It is a lot of work to maintain harmonies and loving fellowship within a family.

Sometimes the friendships that are to naturally exist within a family begin to break down. A son might rebel against his parents. Parents might abuse or neglect their children. Such activities will result in a loss of fellowship, friendship, or “togetherness.”

It is even possible for families to be so broken that people who are related to one another by blood might not see or talk to each other for years at a time. In some cases, family members might spend most of their lives apart, such as when a parent abandons a child or gives them up for adoption, or when a child runs away from home and severs all contact with his or her family.

But note that even in these situations where the families are severely broken, this does not cause the relationship itself to stop.

From a biological, or โ€œblood relativeโ€ perspective, children are always related to their parents, and vice versa, even if they break off contact for years at a time or never know each other at all. This is not an ideal situation, nor is it the way God intended families to function, but it is a very common situation for many people.

We could say that in such situations, while the relationship itself continues to exist, there is no fellowship or friendship between the separated family members.

They are related, and nothing can ever erase that relationship, but they do not have fellowship.

Even if someone changes their last name, considers their family members as dead, or gets legally-binding court documents to change their identity, the biological fact of the relationship remains unchanged and unchangeable.

This is exactly how it works with the family of God.

Once a person is born into the family of God, they cannot be unborn. Once a person is in the family of God, they have entered into an unbreakable and unchangeable relationship with God and with every other member of the family.

Even if this person says they hate God, hate Christians, and wants nothing ever to do with God or His people ever again (just as nearly every teenager says or thinks from time to time about their own parents or family), the fact of the relationship remains unchanged and unchangeable.

The relationship is eternal even if the fellowship is not.

But again, this is not Godโ€™s ideal, and this is not what God wants or desires for the people who have an eternal and unbreakable relationship with Him.

family fellowshipGod desires both relationshipย and fellowship with and between His children.

This also is the healthiest and happiest way to live within the family of God. This is why the Bible contains so much teaching about how to have fellowship with God and with one another.

In fact, it is not an exaggeration to say that most of the Bible contains teachings of this sort. Though the word โ€œfellowshipโ€ is not always used, the vast majority of Scripture is not about how to join the family of God or be born again into the family, but about how to live within the family of God so that we can have the healthiest and happiest relationships possible with God and with each other.

So when the Bible talks about fellowship with God, it is not telling non-believers how to gain eternal life or join the family of God, but is instead telling believers (people who are already part of the family of God) how to enjoy and fully experience their relationship with God and with other Christians.

One key passage that is helped by this understanding is 1 John 1:6-7.

Fellowship in 1 John 1:6-7

If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

If someone confuses the two concepts of fellowship and relationship with God, then passages like 1 John 1:6-7 will be radically misunderstood.

When people think that 1 John contains โ€œTest of Lifeโ€ then they read 1 John 1:6-7 as teaching that if we claim to have eternal life and a relationship with God, but we walk in the darkness by sinning, then this proves that we are a lair and do not actually have eternal life.

This is a very dangerous teaching.

In fact, since John goes on to say that we all still sin (1 John 1:8), then if John is saying that the presence of ongoing sin proves that a person really isnโ€™t a Christian, then nobody is a Christian.

Thankfully, a proper understanding of the word fellowship helps clear up any confusion about this text.

John is giving instructions about fellowship with God rather than about gaining or keeping a relationship with God. He says that if we claim we are friends with God, but we walk in sin and darkness, then weโ€™re lying, because God only walks in the light.

walk in the darknessOne cannot walk in the darkness and also be a friend with God.

While a person can be a child of God and walk in the darkness, such a child is living in rebellion and is not abiding with Christ or living in fellowship with God.ย  If we walk in the darkness, we obviously cannot be walking with God, because God does not walk in the darkness but in the light.

But if we walk in the light, then we will obviously be walking with Godโ€”going where God goes and doing what God does, because God walks in the light.

Walking in the light, however, leads to fellowship both with God and one another, as Jesus works to cleanse us from sin and help us live in unity and peace with each other.

This is a much more encouraging and helpful message, as it does not lead to doubt and fear about our standing with God or eternal destiny, but instead helps us move forward in our life with God on the basis of His infinite and undying love for us (1 John 4:7-19).

walk in the light 1 John 1:6-7

Fellowship vs. Relationship

Recognizing the difference between fellowship and a relationship is key to properly understanding several passages from Scripture. To see this difference, it is helpful to consider the difference between these two words in our normal, everyday relationships.

It is quite common for people to have a biological relationship with someone without participating in any fellowship with them at all.

It is not uncommon for some related family members to go days, weeks, months, and even years without eating meals together, celebrating holidays together, or even speaking to each other. In such tragic situations, the relationship still exists, even though fellowship is absent. Even where there has always been a complete lack of fellowship, the relationship remain intact and nothing can dissolve or break it.

It is the same in our relationship with God and other Christians.

All who have believed in Jesus for eternal life are part of the family of God. These relationships exist eternally and cannot be broken or dissolved. But this does not mean that all who belong to the family of God will live and exist in fellowship with God and with each other. For that to happen, we must seek to live in peace and unity with each other, while extending love, grace, and forgiveness toward others.

This is the only way to experience fellowship and friendship within the family of God.

Does this understanding of the difference between relationship and fellowship help you make sense of 1 John 1:6-7? There are other texts in the New Testament that are helped by this as well, which I discuss in my online course,ย The Gospel Dictionary.

The Gospel DictionaryUnderstanding the Gospel requires us to properly understand the key words and terms of the Gospel. Take my course, "The Gospel Dictionary" to learn about the 52 key words of the Gospel, and hundreds of Bible passages that use these words.

This course costs $297, but when you join the Discipleship group, you can to take the entire course for free.

God is Redeeming God, Redeeming Scripture, Redeeming Theology, z Bible & Theology Topics: 1 John 1:6-7, fellowship, Good News for Believers, gospel, relationship, salvation, The Gospel Dictionary

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What is Great Faith and Little Faith? (Matthew 8:10; 15:28; Luke 7:9)

By Jeremy Myers
16 Comments

What is Great Faith and Little Faith? (Matthew 8:10; 15:28; Luke 7:9)
http://media.blubrry.com/one_verse/feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/547521867-redeeminggod-139-what-is-great-faith-and-little-faith-matthew-810.mp3

(#AmazonAdLink) What is FaithIf faith is best understood as reasonable certaintyย then this means that we either believe something or we don’t. If we doubt something, then we don’t believe it.

If we think of our network of beliefs as a vast Excel spreadsheet with each individual cell holding a single statement that we either agree with or not, then this means that there are no degrees of faith. You cannot have 10%, 50%, 90%, or even 99% faith. Each individual belief on the spreadsheet of faith is either “On” or “Off.”

But if this is true, then what are we to make of the statements by Jesus about people having “little faith” and “great faith”? (cf. Matt 6:30; 8:26; 14:31; 16:8; Luke 4:14-30; 12:28).

There are also numerous passages in the Bible which seem to indicate that we must have โ€œenough faithโ€ before God answers our prayers (cf. Matt 13:58; 21:22; Mark 11:24; Luke 7:9, 50; 18:42; Jas 5:15-16).

But if there are no degrees of faith, then what do these descriptions of faith mean?

What is “Great Faith” and “Little Faith”?

The terms “Great faith” and “Little faith” simply mean this: Some truths are easy to believe while others are difficult. If you believe something that is difficult to believe, then you have great faith. If you do not believe something that is relatively easy to believe, then you have little faith.

Since faith is the conviction or persuasion that something is true, people who have little faith have not been persuaded or convinced of even the basic truths, whereas, people who have great faith have been persuaded or convinced of some of the hard and difficult truths which few people come to believe.

You and I do not have faith containers in our souls which overflow when our faith is great, but are nearly empty when our faith is little. Faith does not work like that.

Great faith and little faith have nothing to do with the size, amount, or degree of faith.

Rather, the terms โ€œgreat faithโ€ and โ€œlittle faithโ€ describe the difficulty of the truths that are believed.

When a person fails to believe even some of the simple or easy truths, this means that some of the basic, fundamental cells in their network of beliefs are turned โ€œOff.โ€ Since they do not believe these simple truths, vast segments of their spreadsheet are also turned โ€œOff.โ€

Their spreadsheet is darkened with unbelief because they donโ€™t even believe some of the simple, foundational, basic truths of life or Christianity.

They have little faith, that is, an undeveloped and unexamined spreadsheet of beliefs. On such a spreadsheet of faith, most of the basic truths are still turned โ€œOff.โ€

On the other hand, there are some people who have great faith. These are those people who are persuaded or convinced of some difficult things to believe.

People who have great faith believe truths and ideas that relatively few people understand and believe.

There are truths in Scripture, life, and theology that are hard to believe, but people with great faith believe them. Such ideas often take great thought, insight, understanding, research, investigation, or deep spiritual experiences in order to believe them.

When people come to believe these things, they believe something that few others believe, and can therefore be described as having great faith. Vast segments of their spreadsheet of beliefs are lit up with the light of the truth of God.

faith

Some examples about great faith and little faithย from Scripture

There are numerous truths from Scripture that are easy to believe.

These might include the statements that โ€œA man named Jesus existedโ€ or that โ€œI am a sinner.โ€ Almost everybody believes these, including most non-Christians.

Yet people with little faith do not even understand or believe these truths. People with little faith have trouble believing some of the simple, elementary, and introductory truths of Scripture, such as โ€œGod is loveโ€ or โ€œJesus gives eternal life to anyone who believes in Him for it.โ€

It is a telling fact of the condition of faith in our churches when most Christians donโ€™t truly believe these things. As simple as these truths are, many do not believe them.

However, there are other truths in Scripture which are hard to believe. People who believe these difficult truths have great faith. For example, it is difficult to believe that โ€œGod will supply all of your needs according to His riches in gloryโ€ (Philippians 4:19).

Frankly, since I often worry about tomorrow, this means that I donโ€™t believe this promise. I donโ€™t believe that God will supply all my needs, and often find myself trying to supply for my own needs. So this means I donโ€™t yet believe this statement. But those who have great faith believe it. (See “Now That’s Faith!“)

So great faith and little faith have nothing to do with the amount of faith one has, or the percentage to which one believes a particular fact. Faith does not come in degrees or amounts.

great faith

An Example of Great Faith from Matthew 8:10

There are two kinds of faith that amazed Jesus: great faith and little faith. As seen above, there were times when Jesus marveled at the little faith of His disciples (cf. Matt 6:30; 8:26; 14:31; 16:8; Luke 4:14-30; 12:28).

But in Matthew 8:10, Jesus was impressed by the great faith of a Gentile. He said, โ€œI have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!โ€ (See my sermon on Luke 7:1-10 for a longer explanation of this text.)

In Matthew 8:10, Jesus praises a Roman Centurion for having great faith.

What did the Centurion believe that few others believe? He believed two advanced truths that are quite rare for people to believe (even today).

First, he believed in his own lack of merit. Though he was courteous, humble, and a good man, though he loved the Jewish people and built a synagogue for them, he knew he didnโ€™t deserve anything from God, or from Jesus Christ. Despite his high standing and all he had done, he knew he was unworthy to meet with Jesus (Matt 8:8).

Most people do not believe this.

Most people think they do deserve favors from God. Most people think they are pretty good people and that God owes them something. It is much harder to believe that all we have and all we are given is simply and only by the grace of God. But the centurion believed this, and told Jesus that he was not worthy to have Jesus visit his house.

The second thing the Centurion believed is that healing could be done at a distance. He believed in the divine authority of Jesus, even over sickness and disease through space and time. He likened Jesus to a military commander who simply had to give orders for them to be followed (Matt 8:9).

The Centurion knew that what Jesus commanded would be done, even if Jesus was not present where the healing was to take place. He knew that the words of Jesus were sufficient to accomplish whatever He said.

Most people do not believe this. Most people believe, even today, that if a person is going to be healed, they need to be touched by the person praying for them. They believe that they have to go visit the healer, and have the healer lay hands on them, say special prayers over them, and anoint them with oil.

If a person was seeking healing for their friend and they went to one of the โ€œmiracle healersโ€ of today for help, and the healer said, โ€œGo home, your friend will be fine,โ€ that person would feel like they had been ignored, slighted, or brushed off.

But this Centurion knew differently. The Centurion believed some truths that few others believed. He believed that if Jesus wanted to heal someone, He could do it with a simple word and from a great distance.

He told Jesus, โ€œOnly speak a word, and my servant will be healedโ€ (Matt 8:8).

This truly is great faith, and few believe such an idea, either in the days of Jesus or today. As a result, Jesus marveled at this manโ€™s great faith, and healed his servant from a distance, simply by the power of His word.

All of the other โ€œgreat faithโ€ passages in the Bible can be understood in similar ways. The context always reveals that someone is believing something that is difficult to believe, and that few people do believe.

So great faith is not a large amount of faith or a high percentage of faith. Great faith simply believes truths that are difficult to believe.

Do you have more questions about faith, how it works, and what various passages in Scripture teach about faith? Try taking my online course, The Gospel Dictionary:

The Gospel DictionaryUnderstanding the Gospel requires us to properly understand the key words and terms of the Gospel. Take my course, "The Gospel Dictionary" to learn about the 52 key words of the Gospel, and hundreds of Bible passages that use these words.

This course costs $297, but when you join the Discipleship group, you can to take the entire course for free.

God is Redeeming God, Redeeming Scripture, Redeeming Theology, z Bible & Theology Topics: faith, great faith, little faith, Matthew 8:10; Luke 7:9, The Gospel Dictionary, what is faith

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