Fellowship in the Facebook era

Do you know the pleasure of true ‘fellowship?’  That is one of those Christian words that we perhaps fail to really understand. I sat a table with 10 people last night, who are a ‘fellowship.’ They work together, every Sunday evening, to teach children the Scripture, and they profess to love it!  Each of them is a person whose life is packed with responsibility, who have plenty of things to do; but they have formed a partnership of purpose! One of them, in describing his part, said “I often arrive tired, but when I see the kids learning, hear the laughter, and remember what we are doing here, I go home renewed and filled with energy!”  That’s the joy of fellowship.

Are you part of a team about which you can say, " I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:3-6, NIV)?  “Partnership” is the translation of the NT Greek word – “koinonia.”  (Koy-na- nee-a)  It spoke of creating a relationship for a purpose, working together with mutual benefit.

One of the mistakes some make in this era is filling the God-given need for ‘fellowship’ with social media.  We go to our smartphone or PC to ‘meet’ friends on Facebook where we can post pictures, share opinions, rant, and rejoice.  I really do enjoy it, perhaps too much, because it is a way to stay in touch with people that I would otherwise never see and with whom I might only swap Christmas cards.  Some condemn the new human interactions in this digital age.  They are different, not bad. What we can never allow ourselves to think however, is that a post on Facebook can replace getting together to serve, to pray, to worship, to learn, to play.

Part of the reason we like social media is the convenience it offers to us.  That is its weakness. It feeds our selfishness.  If we don’t feel like talking, we just turn it off. If someone rubs us the wrong way, we can just ‘unfriend’ them.  We can say things without being challenged, and choose live in an echo chamber of like-minded people who can strengthen our ignorance instead of increasing our understanding. Real fellowship drags us out of our living room and gets us involved with people who are sometimes less than wonderful (yes, even me! Smile).  Another upside are the surprises that emerge as we are together,  the unplanned moments that bring us delight, that enrich us.

Make the choice for fellowship. Commit to a ministry that lets you serve.  Get involved with a small group of Christians that meet regularly.  Be part of a church, where you can give, worship, and pray with imperfect Christians in ‘koinonia.’  

Here is a word from the Word.  Jesus said, "I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." (John 13:34-35, NLT)  "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 (koinonia) with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship (koinonia) with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." (1 John 1:5-7, NIV)

The kind of love that calls us into the ‘fellowship’ is not without cost, it never easy, and often demands more than we want to give!
It's committed, sometimes inconvenient, and is part of how God brings us to mature, rich lives that are marked by the character of Jesus Christ.