1 John 1:1-4(NKJV) 1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life— 2the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us— 3that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. 4And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.
This week we have been looking at the relationship between the amount of fellowship the saints of the first church had and the amount of power that was manifest in the church. Two things stand out in the accounts of the church in the book of Acts. One is the amount of time they spent together and the other the many signs and wonders that occurred in their midst. The bible tells us that there were daily additions to the church in the form of those who were born again. This is what we all want to see in our churches today.
Yesterday we focused on the thought that agreement and love are fertile ground for the release of faith and faith is what produces a flow of God’s power. The fellowship enjoyed by those in the first church produced the atmosphere that encouraged a release of power on a scale yet to be reproduced in today’s church. If we follow the practices in our local churches that they followed, we will see fellowship increase and this can contribute to a greater manifestation of the power of God among us.
In today’s scripture, we will begin to look at fellowship from another point of view. This point of view comes to us from one of the apostles, namely John. In verses 1-4, we find some interesting statements about fellowship. He begins his letter by reminding the readers that what he is about to share with them is a product of personal experience. John was the “disciple that Jesus loved.” He had placed his head on Jesus’ breast. He enjoyed a fellowship with the physical Jesus that no one else ever had.
There is something about being with someone who was there at important times. My wife and I went on a cruise some years ago. On this particular cruise line, we were assigned to the same table for dinner every evening. I am not one who easily meets and talks to new people, so this was a bit challenging for me at first. However, as we conversed with the other two couples at our table we found them to be very interesting people.
One couple was in their late 70s and early 80s. The man was an ex-marine who had been at the battles of Tarawa and Iwo Jima. I love World War II history and it was fascinating to hear his accounts of these battles. This was not the “history channel” or some history book. It was hearing from someone who was there what it was like. It really made those battles come alive in a different way for me. You might say that we were enjoying fellowship over those battles.
I have also had the privilege of relationship with some saints who were involved in previous moves of the spirit. I love to listen to them tell of times when the Holy Spirit was moving in powerful ways. One friend tells of a time when, for several years, there were no messages preached in their church. He is a man of the Word of God, so I know it was not because of neglect in the area of teaching. It was a sovereign move of God in the area of praise and worship.
This move did not take place in a great city. Although it was part of a greater outpouring of God’s spirit, it happened in a town of 500 people. I live in a small town myself, so this interested me greatly. If God could move so powerfully in one small town, he could do the same in my small town.
In this move of the God, the church would begin to worship in the spirit. The worship would take hold and people were so caught up in the presence of God that that they forgot about time. Hours would pass as the saints entered the heavenly thrown room through worship in other tongues. No one really led the worship except the Holy Spirit. Healings would occur spontaneously. People would come into the church, run to the altar and cry out for salvation with no one saying anything to them at all.
This is not the “norm” for a local church. It was a move of God that lasted for a season and then ended. It is the kind of manifestation of the power of God that all of us would like to see. To hear of it from one who was there gave me hope that God could still do such things and indeed would do them for our church. Fellowship with one who was there during that move of God created a connection, a communion if you will, with that particular move of God itself.
Imagine having that kind of relationship with one who “laid his head” on Jesus’ breast. Imagine the stories told by one who walked the shores of Galilee with Jesus. Imagine the insight that John could give his readers into the things Jesus taught. In verse three, John tells us why he is sharing what he has “seen” and “heard.”
1 John 1:3(NKJV) 3that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.
By communicating to them his experiences with the Lord, he was able to deepen the fellowship between he and them. However, it also deepened everyone’s fellowship with The Lord. His perspective of what he knew of Jesus by experience caused them to better understand who Jesus is and made a connection that nothing else could.
None of us has been with Jesus. We cannot share with one another how we physically put our heads on Jesus’ breast. We have not heard his teaching with our physical ears or been in a meeting such as the one where he preached the “sermon on the mount.” However, every one of us has had some kind of experience with Jesus. My experience is probably different from yours. You may have a testimony of deliverance from some extreme lifestyle. My testimony is how God preserved me from such a lifestyle. Each story enhances the other’s understanding of Jesus.
It is not just by telling our stories that our fellowship with Jesus enhances our fellowship with one another and, by extension, our corporate fellowship with the Lord. Our experience with the Lord shapes who we are. It shapes our understanding of the Bible. It affects our character and lifestyle. As we interact together, those things are an influence on each of us. It is as if 100 different aspects of Jesus’ life and character were manifest in our midst.
We all know that the most important thing in the life of any believer is to cultivate our personal relationship with the Lord. What 1 John 1:1-4 reveals to us is that an integral part of that relationship is found in our relationship with the rest of the body of Christ. I can never really know Jesus unless I know him in you as well as knowing him in myself. When I see and experience the Lord in you, it enriches me and strengthens my faith in him.
As this process plays out in our fellowship, more of Jesus is also released in our ministries. We build a sense of connection to him through our connection to one another. In that sense of connection, our faith to see him live through us is enhanced and more of his power flows to meet the needs of those around us.
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