10 Minutes in God's Word: Reinventing Fellowship

The word fellowship just sounds old. For the “35 and over” crowd—an increasing demographic among youth ministry vets—it conjures up the sights and smells of a potluck dinner. Google “fellowship hall” images, and you’ll see roomfuls of tables and chairs arranged in long, dull rows.

Fortunately, we use better terms now: community, connecting, doing life together. Those are good words; but in its own way, each comes up short in expressing that special word we translate from the Greek New Testament koinonia. Maybe it’s time to revisit an old word.

Scripture

As you read these passages, look for words such as fellowship, participate and sharing (they all come from koinonia). Notice who has fellowship with whom, along with any benefits that come from fellowship (or participation or sharing).

1 John 1:3

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 13:14

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

2 Peter 1:4

Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

Philemon 1:6

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.

Think About It

When first-century Christians heard the word koinonia, they heard sharing, participating, close relationship, partnership. They heard willingness to share their possessions—maybe even their ear buds. Did you notice with whom they had a close relationship, or with whom they were to share their possessions?

God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and each other. That’s a pretty specific fellowship group. Those verses in Philemon and 2 Peter reveal some great benefits from this level of sharing: that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ, and that you may escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

Apply It

So how do we get to those benefits? If you’ve ridden a roller coaster and high-fived a friend (or even a total stranger) at the end of the ride, you’ve experienced koinonia as the first-century Greeks might have understood the word. If you’ve discovered something about a friend or acquaintance that caused you to exclaim in amazement, “You too?” you’ve experienced koinonia.

The first-century believers, however, were the first to experience koinonia on such an exciting spiritual level. Sharing in the transformational message of the gospel was new and full of wonder.

Our students need to explore what they have in common with each other—not a commonness of interests or talents (like athleticism), but a commonness that comes from having the same Rescuer, from being fellow recipients of an extravagant ransom. “You were rescued by Jesus, too? Awesome!”

How to Get There?

1. Share stories:

Allow opportunities for students to remind one another of how they came to have a relationship with Christ.

2. Study the word:

Not only the Word, but the word fellowship. Find the fellowship words in Scripture and dedicate a few Bible study sessions to exploring the who, what, when, why and how of fellowship.

3. Throw an Acts 2:4-2 party:

Do a few of the activities described in Acts 2:42, the church’s purest time of fellowship. A greater understanding of fellowship provides a potluck of spiritual payoffs: resolve against temptation, strength in crisis, gratitude in worship. That’s some good fellowship. You might even say “hip” fellowship, if you don’t mind putting a new spin on an old word.