Fellowship

JULY 7, 1980, 6:04 AM
W. WILLOW, STUDY

You heard and saw the theme immediately today, o son, and after the last somewhat disastrous teaching/learning experience you are eager to write fully and copiously. I would say that you shall hear Me well this morning.

Let us talk of fellowship, that term which has special significance for the social relating of the people of God – My people. You experienced Christian fellowship yesterday, and then another kind of fellowship in the evening. That should be an interesting starting example.

Your church group came together, and first there was worship. There were hymns, prayers, Scripture, sermon, and, importantly, confession and forgiveness. Yes, read that over again. It was a good confession… the basis for an important meditation and, importantly, the basis for real fellowship. It was symbolically there, and each of you repeated the words, but some meditation upon it would have enhanced the later fellowship. For the most fundamental basis for fellowship is the clear recognition of having sinned, individually and as a group, and then receiving the forgiveness and absolution that comes with My Grace… to you as individuals and to you as a group of Christians.

Duane’s theme was Celebration, and that was a good and apt one for the day. It was a day to celebrate… to remember your heritage as Christians and to celebrate that past, the future ahead, and the incomparable now.

So fellowship begins best with worship. Then came the games, and then the noon meal. These also enhance fellowship, for those who participate, and for those in proximity during the meal.

Then there was the fellowship of competitive volleyball in the early afternoon heat. That is a special kind of fellowship for you, and it was a joy. And yet the quality of the experience was enhanced, unconsciously, by the worship and meal that preceded.