{"id":828,"date":"2009-07-21T04:01:41","date_gmt":"2009-07-21T04:01:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/07\/the-christian-life-as-intimate-fellowship.html"},"modified":"2009-07-21T04:01:41","modified_gmt":"2009-07-21T04:01:41","slug":"the-christian-life-as-intimate-fellowship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/07\/the-christian-life-as-intimate-fellowship.html","title":{"rendered":"The Christian Life as Intimate Fellowship"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 5 of series: What is the Christian Life?
\n<\/em>Permalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nIn my last post in this series, I asked: What is the life revealed by God? The answer of John in his first letter is: Jesus Christ. Through the one who is the Life, we experience the fullness of life. In the first chapter of 1 John we learn much more about the essential character of this life.
\nJohn explains his purpose in telling his spiritual children about God’s life this way: “We are telling you about what we ourselves have actually seen and heard, so that you may have fellowship<\/em> with us. And our fellowship<\/em> is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ” (1:3). Faith in Jesus, the eternal life that was with the Father, opens up a way to experience eternal life now, a life that John describes by the word “fellowship.” In fact he uses this word four times in the first seven verses of 1 John:<\/p>\n

The one who existed from the beginning is the one we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is Jesus Christ, the Word of life. This one who is life from God was shown to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and announce to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was shown to us. We are telling you about what we ourselves have actually seen and heard, so that you may have fellowship<\/em> with us. And our fellowship<\/em> is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
\nWe are writing these things so that our joy will be complete.
\nThis is the message he has given us to announce to you: God is light and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship<\/em> with God but go on living in spiritual darkness. We are not living in the truth. But if we are living in the light of God\u00e2??s presence, just as Christ is, then we have fellowship<\/em> with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from every sin. (1 John 1:1-7, emphasis added)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What does John mean by this word “fellowship”?
\nWe associate fellowship with camaraderie and informal friendliness. At Irvine Presbyterian Church, we had a “fellowship hall.” It was a place for church potlucks, wedding receptions, and casual conversation on rare rainy days. But our sense of fellowship fell far short of the word \u00e2??fellowship\u00e2?\u009d as used in the New Testament. (Photo: The Family Christimas Celebration in the Fellowship Hall of Irvine Presbyterian Church.)
\nThe Greek word translated as “fellowship” (koinonia<\/em>) means far more than hanging out with friendly people in a comfortable place. Koinonia<\/em> literally means “holding something in common.” Among Greek speakers in the Roman Empire, it was used in business to refer to partnership or joint-ownership, a relationship in which two people held business interests and assets in common.
\nEarly Christians used koinonia<\/em> for their celebrations of the Lord’s Supper, that which we call “communion” (a word that is based on koinonia, <\/em>coming to us through the Latin communio<\/em>). By taking bread and wine in memory of Jesus, the first Christians were “sharing together” or “having communion” in him (1 Cor 10:16-17). Marriage could be called “the fellowship of life.” Sexual intimacy between spouses could be called simply koinonia<\/em>. Clearly, therefore, koinonia<\/em> implies a depth of relationship we don’t usually associate with a fellowship hall.
\nIt’s hard to find an English word that unites the various and deeper connotations of koinonia<\/em>. “Fellowship,” “partnership,” and “sharing” highlight limited facets of the word’s meaning. “Communion” gets much closer, but has a religious tone that might obscure the original sense of koinonia<\/em>. The best translation I can conceive for koinonia<\/em> in 1 John uses two words, “intimate fellowship.”
\nGod’s kind of life involves, neither a casual relationship with him such as one might experience in a fellowship hall, nor a deep relationship that happens only when we “receive communion” in church, but intimate fellowship available at all times and in all places. God desires our kinship with him to consist of far more than a few rushed prayers or cameo appearances at Easter and Christmas services. The Creator of Heaven and Earth seeks an intimate, personal relationship with you and me. God wants us to share deeply in his life, both now and forever.
\nWhat a wonder! In our preoccupation with our personal search for God we can easily forget that God is searching for us too. That’s one of the major narrative themes of the Bible: God’s search for humankind, God’s effort to reestablish the fellowship between himself and his human creatures that was broken because of sin. Jesus Christ came, not only to save us from sin and death, but also to lead us into close, lasting relationship with God. As the source of eternal life from God, Jesus welcomes us into koinonia<\/em>, intimate fellowship with God . . . but not with God alone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 5 of series: What is the Christian Life? Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series In my last post in this series, I asked: What is the life revealed by God? The answer of John in his first letter is: Jesus Christ. Through the one who is the Life, we experience the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christian-life"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Christian Life as Intimate Fellowship - Mark D. 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}