ME AND MY CHURCH. Message Three: My Church and My Association. Acts 2:41-47

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1 ï» ME AND MY CHURCH Message Three: My Church and My Association Acts 2:41-47 If you ve been with us the first two Sundays of this month, you know we are currently in a series of sermons titled Me and My Church. This is I Love My Church month, and we re looking forward to All Attendance Sunday next week. Thus far in this series I ve preached on Unity in the church under the title, Me and My Cooperation. And I ve preached on Ministry in the Church in the message titled, Me and My Participation. Today I want to address another area of church life that sadly, has fallen by the wayside in many respects. Now that s especially sad for us since our name says it s what we re supposed to be about. With the Lord s help, I want to preach today on Fellowship or Community in the Church, and I ll do so under the title, Me and My Association. The truth is, man was created for fellowship. From the very beginning, God declared that it was not good for man to be alone. Though that statement was actually a prelude to the declaration on marriage, it nonetheless indicates man s need for community. Join me if you would in the book of Acts and chapter 2. This second chapter opens with the spectacular events which occurred on the day of Pentecost. We re talking about the decent of the Holy Spirit and the empowering of the church. Pentecost was not the birth of the church, that occurred during the days of Christ s earthly ministry as He called together those who had been saved and Scripturally baptized by John the Baptist. Acts 2 is about the empowering of the church by the Holy Ghost to do what they had been commissioned to do in Matthew 28 which was to go into all the world, preach the gospel, baptize those who

2 get saved, and then teach them and train them. Following the empowering of the church by the Holy Ghost, Peter stands to preach. And man, what a sermon it was. Many were convicted of their sin and their need of Christ, and they turned to Him that day and received Him as their personal Saviour. And in verse 41 we read... Acts 2:41-47 Go back with me to verse 42, And they continued stedfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. Fellowship. How often do we use these words together; food, fun, and fellowship? We use the word fellowship, but what does it mean? Does it mean a get together where you have something to drink and snack on, play a game or two, enjoy a laugh or two, and then go home? Is that fellowship? Fellowship may certainly contain those elements, but I think the Bible teaches us that true Christian fellowship goes much deeper than that. It has to because even non-christians get together to eat and laugh and have fun. A man by the name of Jim Phillips wrote in his book One Another, The neighborhood bar is possibly the best counterfeit there is to the fellowship Christ wants in the Church. It s an imitation dispensing liquor instead of grace, escape instead of reality. But it is an accepting, inclusive fellowship. You can tell people your secrets and they don t tell others. The bar flourishes not because most people are alcoholics, but because God has put into the human heart the desire to know and to be known; the desire to love and be loved, so many seek the counterfeit of God s fellowship, at the price of a few beers. So again, I say that Christian fellowship goes beyond eating and drinking and laughing together. As we consider the thought of Christian fellowship, let s consider first of all... I. THE BEGINNING OF CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Where did this fellowship that existed among the early members of the Jerusalem church begin? I submit to you that it began the moment they all came into relationship with Christ, and subsequently, into relationship with each other as members of the same spiritual family. That suggests two aspects of fellowship Vertical and Horizontal.

3 John put it like this in 1 John 1:3, That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. A. Vertical Fellowship 1. John said,... and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 2. Paul said this way in 1 Corinthians 1:9, God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. 3. Something we need to understand about our fellowship with the Lord our communication with Him through prayer and His communication with us through the Word is that it s conditional. 4. John goes on to say in 1 John 1:7, If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 5. Our vertical fellowship is with the Father and with the Son, Jesus Christ, and while we are walking in the light, that is, while we are walking or living according to God s Word, this fellowship continues unbroken. But if we begin walking or living contrary to God s Word, that is, in darkness, our fellowship with Him is broken. Our relationship is still, and will always be intact, but our fellowship is broken. 6. What do we do if our fellowship is interrupted by sin? We confess our sin, and God, in His faithfulness, forgives it and cleanses us John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. B. Horizontal Fellowship 1. When we are born again, God becomes our Father and we begin to enjoy fellowship with Him. But not only does God become our Father, we become His children. We become brothers and sisters in Christ. We become one in the Lord. 2. We may be different in personality, background, race, whatever. But in Christ, we are the same. 3. Paul states in Galatians 3:28, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 4. This fellowship or koinonia as it was in the Greek, speaks of a partnership; a bond of intimacy and sharing. 5. That s what I see missing to a certain degree among God s people, even in our own congregation. Believe it or not, right here, in Fellowship Baptist Church. 6. I will blame part of it on our culture and the effect that it has had on us. It seems to have had that effect in many different areas of life. People keep others at an

4 arm s length. We don t want too many people too close to us. There s less vulnerability that way less opportunity for getting hurt. But just because that s the way it is, that doesn t mean it s right. 7. We ought to be busy trying to build our level of fellowship with others. II. THE BUILDING OF FELLOWSHIP I want to share three levels of fellowship with you. We ll start with the shallowest level and move to the deepest level. A. Get Acquainted Level 1. The day those 3,000 people came to faith in Christ, they were all on this level. 2. There is where some of you are right now. It s the Membership level. 3. You re just getting to know people s names and/or their kids names. Just be thankful you didn t join this church with 2,999 other people at the same time. 4. Or, you may not actually know their name, but if you see them out and about you know you go to church with them. 5. This level is where we all started at when we became members of Fellowship Baptist Church, but this is not the level we need to stay at. 6. If you ve been a member here for any length of time at all, you need to be beyond this level, and the way to do that is to get active. That s the next level. B. Get Active Level 1. This is the Partnership level. 2. This is the level you move to when you begin to interact with others socially and spiritually. 3. These people became members in verse 41, but they moved from membership to partnership in verse Acts 2:42, And they continued stedfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. 5. Acts 2:46-47a, And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people Note how they interacted socially, that is, they spent time in one another s

5 houses. They were spending time together on a daily basis, fellowshipping, sharing, building bonds. 7. Did you know that the Bible not only commends this kind of social interaction, but actually commands it? 8. Listen to what Peter said in 1 Peter 4:9, Use hospitality one to another without grudging. 9. The Greek word for hospitality literally means to be fond of guests. What Peter is saying here is that we are to be fond of guests. And note what else he said. He said we are to do it without complaining. 10. Pastor, we do that, we just don t do it in our home. We meet at a restaurant. That s not the same. There s something about crossing the threshold of someone s home that elevates the fellowship experience to another level. 11. Something else it does is counteract the culture s influence on us. When we open our homes to others, we re letting those people into our lives. No longer are they held at arm s length. 12. I have been promoting and trying to encourage this kind of social interaction for years because I know the impact it will have on the overall environment and atmosphere of our church. 13. Not only were these Jerusalem church members active on a social level, but they were active together spiritually as well. 14. Acts 2 talks about doctrine and prayers and being in the house of God. That s ministry. 15. It s on this level that you actually begin to reap the benefits of church membership. 16. At this level you start working together. You start collaborating. You join forces, you pool resources. You partner together for a common purpose. 17. When you partner together with someone for a common purpose, guess what? Your love grows deeper for that person and their love grows deeper for you. 18. Let me just say to those of you who are on this level those of you who are partnering with us in ministry there are others who would move to this level with a little help and encouragement from you. 19. It thrills me when people join our church, but an even greater thrill comes when they take that next step from membership to partnership and actually get involved in a ministry. 20. There are some of you who have been members here for years, and you ve never moved from that level of fellowship. I ll just say this, you don t know what you re missing.

6 21. Partnering with others to accomplish the work of the Lord brings a whole new dynamic to your spiritual life. 22. It s like becoming a partner in a law firm or being made a partner in a business, you move from the outside to the inside. You re not just an employee anymore. You don t just clock in, do your thing, and go home. You now have a greater interest in the success of your firm or business. 23. It s the same way when you get involved in ministry. You don t just come to church, plop down in the pew, do your thing, and go home. You now have a greater interest in the spiritual success of the ministry because you ve invested some time and energy and effort into it. 24. Just over the last six months or so I ve seen people move beyond the membership level to the partnership level, and whether they notice it or not, I m sure they do, they re different. 25. I ve been watching the same thing unfold as families are beginning to interact with each other in one another s homes. It makes a difference. 26. And by the way, God never intended for us to be some kind of Lone Ranger servant. It s never been God s desire for us to work alone. 27. It was Watchman Nee who once said, Alone I cannot serve the Lord effectively, and He will spare no pains to teach me this. He will bring things to an end, allowing doors to close and leaving me ineffectively knocking my head against a wall until I realize that I need the help of the Body as well as of the Lord. 28. So there is the membership level where you get acquainted. Then there is the partnership level where you get active. But there s one more level of fellowship. It s the deepest of the three. It s the kinship level where you get attached. C. Get Attached Level 1. At this level of fellowship you actually begin to Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep (Romans 12:15) because you ve become attached to those same people who you are partnering with to accomplish a common purpose. 2. We ll call this Kinship. 3. Paul wrote about the church being a body and how all the members of the body are to work together, and he wrote this in 1 Corinthians 12:26, And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. 4. It is when we become attached, heart and soul, with our brothers and sisters in Christ, that we begin to live out Paul s words to the Galatians, Bear ye one another s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2). 5. And what law of Christ are we fulfilling when our fellowship reaches this level? The law of love which states that we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

7 6. Here s some folks philosophy, I ll love my neighbor as myself, but I ll not take down the fence. But when you reach the level of Christian fellowship I m talking about, all fences are removed. 7. It s not just our homes that we ve opened up to others, but it s our hearts as well. III. THE BLESSINGS OF FELLOWSHIP A. Fellowship Enhances Maturity (Spiritual Growth) 1. Booker T. Washington once said, Wherever our life touches yours, we help or hinder... wherever your life touches ours, you make us stronger or weaker....there is no escape man drags man down, or man lifts man up. 2. I believe the fellowship of the Jerusalem church members was one that lifted others up and made them stronger. 3. Paul said in Hebrews 10:24 that we are to consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: B. Fellowship Enables Ministry 1. It has been proven that if you take a horse that can pull 9,000 pounds and team it up with another horse that can pull 8,000 pounds, together they can pull 30,000 pounds. 2. That s called synergism. Synergism is two or more agents working together to produce a result not obtainable by any of the agents independently. 3. The word synergy or synergism comes from two Greek words: erg meaning to work, and syn meaning together ; hence, synergism is a working together. 4. Simply put, more can be done in a team effort than can be accomplished individually. 5. In order for the principle of synergism to work, as it should, there must be teamwork. 6. The church is a place where synergism is to take place as well. It is not a one-man show, or solo effort; rather, it is a place of teamwork and fellowship, where we work toward the common goal. C. Fellowship Expands the Body 1. Acts 2:47 tells us that as the Christians in the church at Jerusalem began to increase their level of fellowship from membership to partnership to kinship, the church began to grow. 2. Listen to this quote from the pages of Leadership Magazine, People join churches more because they want warmth than light. We like to think it s our stunning proclamation of the truth that keeps them in the pews. Sermons may get them into church the first time, but what keeps them coming are friendships that foster inward awareness and support. 3. People are attracted to a ministry where they can build relationships with their peers. 4. I will say again what I ve said many times before. People do not join FBC to

8 build a relationship with the pastor. They join so they can build a relationship with you and your family. CLOSING: Let me ask you in closing, Where are you? On what level of fellowship are you currently operating? Is it the membership level, the partnership level, or the kinship level?