Prayer: Lord we crave fellowship with you every moment of every day. Forgive us for our shortcomings, that we might connect with you continually. We know that you are there for us when we go through the difficulties of life. We pray that you would convict us in the times that we stray. Instruct us that would look inside to you for our strength and the assurance of our salvation and not look outside seeking external rationalization and gratification. Walk with us God. Amen.
Main Scripture:
We have fellowship with one another (1 John 7c)
Associated Scriptures:
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves (Philippians 2:1-4).
Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen (2 Corinthians 13:11-14, NKJV).
Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:14-16).
Correlative Quotes:
Those who are in the light shall not be alone. God Himself will be with them and be their God. The words, “we have fellowship with one another,” constitute a wonderfully condescending expression. John would not have dared to coin such an expression; it must have been minted for him by the Spirit from above.– Charles Spurgeon
Having fellowship…koinwnia, communion, with God, necessarily implies a partaking of the Divine nature.[1] – Adam Clark
There can be only one sphere of real communion with God - the light itself. Thus, John insisted that this is where a Christian will find that communion.[2] – John Walvoord
Study:
Walking in the light of Christ builds community. When we walk in the light hoping to conform to Jesus who is the light, we have fellowship with each other. The word “fellowship” in 1 John 1:7 has a dual message for us. First, it refers to a vertical relationship between God and the believer through the blood of Jesus and in the presence of the Holy Spirit. However, as believers, the verse also communicates a closeness and fellowship with each other. When we are redeemed and begin walking with God, we not only desire a deep relationship with Him but also with other believers. This relationship is horizontal.
Walking with God, in our vertical relationship, suggests that we are walking with Him and not against Him. This life assumes that we are for God and not opposed to Him. This vertical relationship requires obedience. Walking in the light, by the very nature of the definition of light, is predicated on our being obedient to Him (2 Corinthians 6:14). We can’t serve two masters at the same time (Matthew 6:24). It means we are living in a way that is pleasing to God. When we please Him, we have fellowship with Him. When we are disobedient, that have fellowship with Him. When we are disobedient, that fellowship is broken (Psalms 137:1-4).
As we are walking, there is a presumption that we are both moving in the same direction. God is the one who directs and we follow in obedience. In our journey together, we have the same goal, purpose, and destination. 2 Corinthians 6:17-18 (NKJV) says this of the relationship that God wants with us, “Therefore, ‘come out from among them and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.’"
I walk with my wife almost every morning. At our age, walking is somewhat difficult but the fellowship that we have, the time that it allows us to spend together, and our conversations make it all worth it. The pain is something we push through and the discomfort we feel as a result of our aging bodies becomes secondary. When we walk, we are naturally headed in the same direction. You could say, as far as our walking is concerned, that we are in one accord or attuned to each other.
Our spiritual walk as believers is much the same as our physical walk. While the vertical relationship is established with God, the horizontal interpretation of 1 John 1:7 suggests a relationship with other Christians. When we walk in His light or truth, believers experience a horizontal relationship with each other. Again, we are walking in the same direction with the same plan, purpose, and same destination, Heaven. We are becoming one with God during this walk and we are also becoming spiritually one with each other.
Just as with the pain of our physical walk, our spiritual walk may experience some pain and suffering. However, it is much easier to survive pain and suffering, trials and tribulations, when sharing your time with a loving and serving God and with compassionate, understanding friends.
Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind (Philippians 2:1-2).
Unity is the reward for spiritual relationships. Whether it is with Jesus and the Holy Spirit or with a spouse or close friend, or in the church as a whole, the harmony in any relationship is built on a common bond. In this case, the common bond is established through obedience, integrity, and honesty. God will convict you of your habitual weaknesses and only a good friend or loving spouse will tell you when the “secret sauce” leaking from the paper holding your hamburger has found a new home on your chin.
Summary Statement:
When we believe in Jesus, we establish a new relationship with God. To build on that on contact with God through the study of His word and works that glorify Him, we move closer in that relationship. However, since it is our nature to sin, that relationship will never be a close as we desire.
Lesson within the Lesson:
Explain how walking with God is a vertical, spiritual relationship?
Explain how walking with other believers is a horizontal, spiritual relationship?
What is the basis for a vertical relationship with God and how is it maintained?
What is the basis for the horizontal relationship with spouses, close friends, and others and how is it maintained?
[1] Adam Clarke, The Adam Clarke Commentary on Revelation, Volume 6, Public Domain, © 1836, Thomas Tegg and Son, 73 Cheapside, London. godrules.net/library/clarke/clarkegen1.htm, P. 862.
[2] John Walvoord, Bible Knowledge Commentary/Old Testament Copyright © 1983, 2000 Cook Communications Ministries; Bible Knowledge Commentary/New Testament Copyright © 1983, 2000 Cook Communications Ministries. All rights reserved.
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