Fellowship
“Sharing, participation, communion”
Summary
Association and communion with God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and fellow believers, characterized by shared participation in the divine life and mutual support in faith, love, and service.
☩Fellowship with God and Christ
Fellowship is primarily a religious fact: communion with the heavenly Lord who, though hidden in heaven, is sensibly present to His followers. St. Paul speaks of fellowship with Christ's sufferings, which allows his own sufferings to participate in the saving power of Christ's afflictions. To be with Christ forever is the whole desire of the Apostle; in the present time he has but a foretaste of the joy to come. St. John emphasizes that this present fellowship with Christ is fellowship with the Father and with the Son.
☩Fellowship of the Spirit
Since it is the Holy Spirit who mediates between Christ and His believers, St. Paul speaks of 'fellowship of the Spirit' as well as 'communion of the Holy Ghost.' Fellowship with the Spirit is realized in certainty of salvation and boldness in prayer, in moral strength, and in miraculous gifts—the ecstatic gifts of prophecy and tongues, and natural gifts such as governing and helping in the Church.
☩Fellowship Among Believers
Fellowship of the faith is fellowship of the faithful. This is an exclusive fellowship: 'what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity? or what communion hath light with darkness?' To be of one accord, to have the same mind, to love the brethren are oft-repeated commands. 'Bear ye one another's burdens' is a law of the Church; all are members of one body, and so all have joy and sorrow in common. Signs of this fellowship include mutual intercession and the kiss of peace.
☩Expression at the Lord's Table
The Lord's table is where the fellowship of Christians is expressed—all there being associated in the fellowship of Christ's death. 'The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?' Being thus associated, proper Christian fellowship is in the light of God fully revealed.
Related Verses165 mentions
See Also
References
- 1.James Hastings (ed.), "Fellowship," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. I (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).
- 2.James Hastings (ed.), "Fellowship," in Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, vol. I (T. & T. Clark, 1906–1908).
- 3.George Morrish, "Fellowship," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).