Fellowship in the
Gospel
A Series on Church
Membership
Do you have someone who has greatly influenced you? Do you have someone who, when you think of
them, you have to thank God for him/her?
Do you thank God for the gifts, the influence, the blessings, the
love? The Philippians were just that for
the apostle Paul. Every time Paul went
to prayer he spoke up in behalf of the Philippians. He wanted God to pour out mercies on
them. He wanted great spiritual
blessings for them.
What was it that bound them together? What was it that could cause great fellowship
between people of very different life-situations? The Gospel is our fellowship. The Gospel is what unites us. It has brought us together. From the first day until that present, joy
had filled their hearts, and it was centered on the Gospel. We have the same bond. We have the same fellowship. God has poured out joy in our hearts because
of the Good News of Jesus Christ. The
same joy fills each one of us.
This is a great motivator for church membership. We have the same faith in the Gospel, and
there is so much joy in finding a group of people to share that with in
Christian fellowship. We can celebrate
the Gospel together. We can thank the
Lord together. We can live out the
Gospel together.
So, let us be charitable toward one another and, thus,
motivate thanksgiving. When other
believers think of you, what do they think?
Is it positive or negative? Are
people thankful for you? Now, not
everything we do will receive a pat-on-the-back or a thank-you-card in return,
but are you being charitable toward others and giving others a reason to be
thankful for your presence in their life?
Also, be thankful for those around you. Be specific when you go to God in
prayer. Who has been there for you in
the hard times? Who has supported you
when you needed it most? Who has gone
out of their way to help you? Name them
to God, and like we said before, be one of those people for others.