The Importance of Koinonia (Fellowship)
1 John 1:6-7 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
Looking back on the last six decades of my earthly existence I have come to realize the importance of relationships. Throughout life I have had the desire and even the need to interact with people. Some of those associations were a great help to me while others were a hindrance. All of those relationships affected me either emotionally, physically or spiritually. Then in the early seventies I became aware that the Lord wanted to personally relate with me.
The question I needed to answer was did I want a personal relationship with Him?
Then one day in 1974 at a home Bible study with many people my age I made the decision. I desired this relationship that many there seemed to have. This affected many of the relationships I had already cultivated in my life. Proverbs 13:20 told me that if I associated with wise men, I would become wise or I would suffer harm if I associated with fools.
As I continue on my Christian walk into the 21st Century I have come to a realization. Fellowship with other believers is a vitally important need for me. The Greek word for fellowship, koinonia, essentially means a partnership that mutually benefits all of those involved. Koinonia is being in agreement with one another, being united in purpose, and serving alongside each other. A key aspect of the Christian life is this koinonia that appears seventeen times in the New Testament.
We as believers in Christ are to come together in love, faith, and encouragement.
Our koinonia with each other is based on our common koinonia with Jesus Christ. Those who believe the gospel are united in the Spirit through Christ to the Father. That unity is the basis of fellowship. This relationship is described by Jesus in His prayer for His followers. John 17:23 “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me”. This complete unity is the oneness that Christians experience in koinonia. They have oneness with one another, with Christ and with the Father.
We are also united to one another by common beliefs, purposes and goals.
We see in Acts 2:42 that believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship and to the breaking of bread. So what does koinonia look like? Let’s look at what is recorded by the writers of the New Testament:
- Paul writes in Romans for us to be devoted to one another. Honor one another, to live in harmony with one another and to accept one another.
- In his other letters he exhorts us to serve one another in love. To be kind and compassionate to one another. Teach and admonish one another and to encourage one another.
- The author of Hebrews says spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
- The Apostle Peter encourages believers to offer hospitality without grumbling and to love one another from the heart.
The Apostle John Says That the Purpose of the Gospel is to Lead People to Have Koinonia With Others and With God
1 John 1:3 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:6-7 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
The importance of true Christian fellowship, koinonia, is that it helps us to focus on Christ and His desires and goals for us. True Christian fellowship sharpens one another’s faith. It stirs us to exercise that faith in love and good works, all to God’s glory.
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