Tag Archives: walk in the light

RELATIONSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP

Bible Study, ,

There seems to be confusion, in our understanding of the Christian life, between relationship and fellowship. What do I mean?

How many families on earth have many members in a family relationship, husbands and wives, parents and children, siblings and siblings, aunts and uncles, cousins, etc., and yet they have little or no heart connection with one another. They have relationships but no fellowship. They live together but don’t communicate. They speak but don’t listen.

Once a couple has married, they are legally bound together in a relationship no matter what happens in their home. Children born of that marriage are sons and daughters and can never be “un-born”, no matter how they behave. Even if they no longer live together for whatever reason, they remain in a family relationship. They are always children of their biological parents.

However, fellowship between family members is different. Fellowship means that they are mentally and emotionally connected. They do life together. They share common experiences, interests, and goals. They have empathy and concern for one another. They function as a unit. They quickly correct what goes wrong to keep peace and harmony in the family. Most of all, they respect the order of authority and submission that maintains the function of those who belong to each other.

So it is with people and God. We are assured of a relationship with Him when we believe in Jesus. He receives us into His family permanently, and changes our status from slave to son. The Bible calls this miraculous transformation “adoption”.

Ephesians 1:4-5 NLT
[4] “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. [5] God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

God planned our adoption in eternity and made it happen through Jesus who reconciled us to the Father through His death. The Holy Spirit in us confirms our status as sons by His inner witness.

Romans 8:15-16 NLT
[15] “So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” [16] For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.”

Does this mean that we can never be “unborn”? In the spiritual sense, I think so.

However, just as it is in a human family, relationship does not mean or guarantee fellowship. Relationship is established once-for-all and is permanent. Fellowship must be maintained by day-by-day attention to the attitudes and behaviour that govern our fellowship.

In John’s first letter, he helps us understand what promotes, and holds fellowship together.

1 John 1:1-3, 5-7 NLT
[1] “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. [2] This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. [3] We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ….
[5] This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. [6] So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. [7] But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.”

Let’s examine, step by step, what John says about fellowship.

To have fellowship with the Father and with His children is a process, beginning in eternity and unfolding in time for every individual who enters this unseen realm by faith.

First, fellowship with God and with one another in God’s family has a beginning in time in the new birth, based on the solid foundation of truth. We can only have fellowship with each other if our relationship is based on common faith in what God has done for us.

John assures his readers that he, (with his fellow disciples, obviously), had personal experience of Jesus who was a real flesh-and-blood human with whom they lived for several years. They saw Him die and rise again. Their faith in Him was based on solid evidence.

Their common faith, then, had a strong foundation on reliable fact. From that fact, they experienced the spiritual reality of new birth, and received new hearts that enabled them to have new relationships with one another.

All believers are now brothers and sisters in God’s eternal family. Human divisions and distinctions fall away and a new species has come into being. We are a new creation and all one in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT
[16] “So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! [17] This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”

Galatians 3:26-29 NLT
[26]” For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. [27] And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. [28] There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. [29] And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you.”

It is this new relationship in God’s family with the common bond of faith in Jesus, love for one another, and common interest in God’s kingdom that constitutes the common life we share in God’s kingdom.

This relationship of family members in God’s family gives each member an opportunity and a responsibility to cultivate fellowship on a deeper level than in an average human family. Membership in God’s family adds a dimension not necessessarily present in a human family, that of relationship with God the Father and the Son, cultivated and maintained through the Holy Spirit in them.

Since we have the foundation, a new life based on truth and held together by God’s love working in and through us, we now have the reason and opportunity for true fellowship. Through God’s power working in us, He has set up this fellowship which is now up to us to maintain throughout our lives.

How do we maintain this fellowship?

John gives us two simple criteria for maintaining fellowship with the Father and with one another.

1 John 1:5-9 NLT
[5] “This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. [6] So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. [7] But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. [8] If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. [9] But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”

Our fellowship with one another depends on our fellowship with God, the Trinity which we maintain by “living in the light”. What does living or walking in the light mean? Since God’s Word is …

Psalms 119:105 NLT
[105]”…a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”

We live in the light by adhering to the requirements of the New Covenant. Again, it’s John who clarifies these requirements (which summarise and replace all 613 laws of the Old Covenant).

1 John 3:23-24 NLT
[23] “And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. [24] Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.”

Do you get it?

Fellowship with the Father is the foundation of our fellowship with one another. To maintain this fellowship, walking in the light with God must extend to walking in the light with one another. This kind of life demands all the grace God provides for living in a loving relationship of caring and sharing without hidden motives and dishonest attitudes which is initiated and maintained as we obey the Holy Spirit in us.

So, Paul counsels…

Colossians 3:5-15 NLT
[5] “Put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. [6] Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. [7] You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. [8] But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. [9] Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. [10] Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. [11] In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. [12] Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. [13] Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. [14] Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. [15] And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.”

In the atmosphere of transparency, genuine love functions in harmony, togetherness flourishes, and fellowship happens.

God’s goal for His children is to cultivate this fellowship, flowing from love and unity, in the body of Christ, because this is the witness to the truth of Jesus’ life and death that is the power of the gospel.

John 13:35 NLT
[35] “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

John 17:22-23 NLT
[22] “I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. [23] I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.”

So, fellowship is the fruit of our relationship with God, and relationship as His sons and daughters in His forever family, the root of our fellowship with God and one another.

HOW DO YOU GET ON WITH YOUR BROTHER?

Christian Life, ,

HOW DO YOU GET ON WITH YOUR BROTHER?

This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out 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, His Son, purifies us from all sin. (1 John 1: 6-7)

Amazing, isn’t it, that so much of Christianity today is about holding to the right doctrine, and not about living the right life! John was a Jew – and a practical man. He gives us a simple test for what He calls “walking in the truth”. How do you get along with you brother or sister in the Lord?

There are two words which John uses to describe the essence of God in a nutshell – light and love. He does not say that God is a light, or even that one of God’s attributes is light. He says that God IS light. What does he mean by light? He is not talking so much about physical light – although God is the source of light which includes physical light. He means that God is the essence of everything that is right, pure, and untainted with corruption or imperfection. God illuminates everything so that no imperfection of any kind can be concealed.

The second word John uses to describe God’s essence is “love”. God harbours nothing in His being that is detrimental to His creation, no animosity, impure motive or attitude that will adversely affect anyone or anything, regardless of their response to Him. His attitude towards His creation is positively good.

God’s essence is in perfect balance: He is good to everything He has made because He is love; He always does the right thing and acts with perfect justice because He is light. He cannot be anything else because He is holy – He is always true to who He is.

Those who do not know, understand or believe the true nature of God, attribute to Him the imperfections of human nature. Many reject God’s forgiveness because they do not understand His righteousness. God is light – He cannot sweep sin under the carpet, but He is also love – He could not ignore man’s plight. He is in perfect balance; therefore He made a way by sending Jesus to become a man, live a perfect life and die as a sinner in our place. It’s as simple as that.

But where does that leave us? I said that John was a practical man. God’s provision for us demands a response. He provided forgiveness for the whole world. There is not a single person who is excluded from returning to the Father and being restored to His family but – and this is where the great divide comes between those who are in the kingdom of God and those who are not – everyone must respond, individually and personally by receiving His forgiveness and coming back under His authority.

God effects a change in our hearts from hatred and enmity towards Him to trust, love and allegiance to Him. The Holy Spirit takes up residence in us as God’s temples, and exerts His influence to guide us along the way of God’s instructions. When we live in obedience to God’s word, we walk in the truth. Part of God’s requirement is that we love our neighbour as ourselves. That means playing open cards with our fellow men as we do with God, desiring and doing what is best for them.

John uses this as a test of our obedience to God’s way of truth, not do we believe the right things but how do we get on with each other? It’s no use claiming to be in fellowship with the Father if we have unresolved issues with His children. John says that’s lying, because fellowship with God and with one another go together. Fellowship implies that we have a common basis for living, allegiance to Jesus as Lord, and that we do life together. That is not possible if we harbour grudges, hide our issues and don’t live transparently with one another.

That certainly does not mean that we drag every little perceived hurt out into the open and make an issue of it. The problem, a lot of the time, is that we imagine things about the other person that are not true because we are self-absorbed. Why do we think that other people are always thinking about us – good or bad – or that they have ulterior motives when they say or ask something? That kind of thinking reveals our hearts, selfish – not theirs!

Paul’s counsel and the counsel of the New Testament writers is “live at peace with everyone; forgive as the Lord forgave you; be tolerant towards one another; love one another; give each other the benefit of the doubt; be honest with each other; don’t put on a show or wear a mask; don’t pretend to be who you are not.” This kind of attitude makes for harmony and shows that we are really walking in the light with each other and with the Lord.

We may slip up now and then but do the right thing – communicate. Admit you blew it and ask for forgiveness, Forgive quickly when another has offended you. The bottom line is – show mercy because you have received mercy. Another’s offence against you is miniscule compared with your offence against God, and He freely forgave you.

This is the acid test of fellowship – not adhering to the right doctrines but walking in the light with one another if you want to walk in the light with God. Take responsibility for your own life before you hold grudges against others. When we do that, we can be assured that the blood of Jesus will perpetually keep our hearts clean.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

THE POWER OF THE CROSS – PURIFED BY THE BLOOD

Gospel, ,

THE POWER OF THE CROSS

PURIFED BY THE BLOOD

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son purifies us from all sin. (1 John 1: 7)

How much truth is encapsulated in this one verse!

First of all, what does it mean to “walk in the light”? Unless we understand the Hebraic thought behind this statement, we will invent our own interpretation and make nonsense of its meaning. To understand it accurately, we must go back to its use in the Old Testament.

“Remember, words used by the New Testament writers were not created in a vacuum. They have their meanings established in the Tanakh. The writers of the New Testament do not spend time defining words or phrases to the reader. The meaning of the terms are assumed. Assumed from where? The Scriptures. So let’s see how the New Testament dictionary defines light.

Psalm 119:105 – Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

Psalm 119:130 – The entrance of thy words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.

Proverbs 6:23 – For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

“This would be the dictionary of the New Testament writers. Their understanding of the words they used came from the Scriptures they already had. When the Bereans were commended in Acts 17:11, it was because they went back to the Tanakh to verify everything that was being taught by these early disciples. Why? Reason number one is because that is all they had. The New Testament had not yet been penned. Reason number two is because the Hebrew people had been taught for centuries that if someone does not speak according to the law and the testimony there is no light in them. So, when the New Testament writers, especially Yeshua‘, used the term light, they used it in a way that was already understood. Let’s go over a few New Testament verses again. This time we will see them in their proper context.

John 8:12 – I am the light of the world …” (i.e. I am the words of ’Elohiym.)

Matthew 5:14-16 – Ye are the light of the world …” (i.e. Now you are the words of ’Elohiym.)

Matthew 5:16 – Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (i.e. Proclaim and DO the words of ’Elohiym, so that the world can see who you are and glorify Him).

http://www.wildbranch.org/teachings/lessons/lesson4.html (-retrieved October 2015)

We have established that to walk in the light means to live our lives in obedience to the Word of God. It stands to reason that, if we are all walking in the light, we will be in harmony with one another. The Greek word for fellowship is koinonia. It means having things in common or being in harmony, communion.

Firstly, to have fellowship with one another, we must be in fellowship with the Father, which He brought about by redeeming us from slavery to sin and reconciling us to Himself through the blood of Jesus.

Secondly, Jesus made peace though His blood, bringing Jew and Gentile together into one family, creating a new race which is characterised by spiritual birth rather than by natural human birth and condition. We are citizens, first, of the kingdom of God which takes precedence over citizenship in the land of our birth.

Thirdly, obedience to Jesus as Lord and to the Word of God brings us together as one. Fellowship with the Father and with His Son, and fellowship with one another is the evidence of a spiritual cleansing by the blood of Jesus. God promises to purify us when we acknowledge our sin, and to keep us pure when we live in harmony with Him and with one another.

The word for “purify” is in the present continuous tense. It implies a continuous action, something like a windscreen wiper that continually wipes the rain off the windscreen. Cleansing by the blood of Jesus is not a once-off action but a perpetual washing as we live in obedience to His word. It cleanses us from our impure intentions, attitudes, motives, and failures to be perfect.

Hallelujah! This lifts the burden of trying to live up to God’s perfection because we are already perfect in Christ. Our job is to keep our eyes on Jesus and His job is to keep us clean and pure by His blood.

What do we have in common? We have a common Father, a common Lord, a common Holy Spirit, a common citizenship, a common salvation, a common hope, a common purpose, a common destiny and a common destination, and even common resources because we are one family.

This is the power of the cross!

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.