What is fellowship with God?

Is not this marvellous? I challenge you to produce a more important subject in the Christian life than that of our fellowship with God. Fellowship with one another, apart from fellowship with the Father and the Son, would be but a poor human affair, doomed to disappointment and failure spiritually. But fellowship first of all with the Father and the Son makes fellowship with one another easy and spontaneous, pleasant and joyous.

What is meant by fellowship? Two persons or more in fellowship have common thoughts, common feelings, common purposes, common desires. Briefly, those in fellowship are "at one" in all concerning them that matters. Now think of our fellowship with God from this standpoint. I, a poor worm, a creature of the dust, a mote in life's sunbeam, I am by grace enabled to have common thoughts, feelings, and objects with the Father and the Son. Is not this incredible, apart from Scripture?

But what is fellowship? It is, in its very highest expression, having one common object with God, and taking part in the same portion; and that object — that portion is Christ — Christ known and enjoyed through the Holy Ghost. This is fellowship with God. What a privilege! What a dignity! What unspeakable blessedness! To be allowed to have a common object and a common portion with God Himself! To delight in the One in whom He delights! There can be nothing higher, nothing better, nothing more precious than this. Not even in heaven itself shall we know aught beyond this. Our own condition will, thank God, be vastly different. We shall be done with a body of sin and death, and be clothed with a body of glory. We shall be done with a sinful, sorrowful, distracting world, where all is directly opposed to God and to us, and we shall breathe the atmosphere — the pure and exhilarating atmosphere of that bright and blessed world above. But, in so far as our fellowship is concerned, it is now as it shall be then, "with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ" — "In the light," and by the power of the Holy Ghost.

There is great confusion as to what fellowship is. People confound love with fellowship. Sympathy is not fellowship; that is my coming down to your level, suiting myself to you. Fellowship is more the bringing you up to my level. Christ comes down to my level to sympathize with me; but it is to make me superior to my circumstances, and bring me into fellowship with Himself. Fellowship is heart being knit to heart, community of thought, object, aim, desire, interest, and affections. Now just think that God has brought us into fellowship with Himself. It is most overwhelming how He speaks of fellowship in that chapter. Not merely fellowship with the apostles through their writings, but "with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ."

There are two leading thoughts concerned with fellowship, the first, partnership, and the second, communion. When we think of fellowship with each other our minds take in both thoughts, but when we speak of fellowship with God it is communion that we think of. In the New Testament there are a number of passages of Scripture that bring the subject of fellowship before us, and the consideration of some of these should give us God's thoughts on the matter.

Now, one of those forms of expression, most frequently used, and little understood, is "communion." Communion with God is the grand secret of the believer's strength, and it is, therefore, of all importance that he should clearly and distinctly understand what it means, and in what it consists; and, moreover, that he should carefully guard against every thing like a counterfeit of it. If one were asked to give a definition of communion, he might reply, It is simple entrance into the thoughts of God; and as the thoughts of God find their grand centre in Jesus, to be able to enter into His thoughts about Jesus constitutes the highest order of communion for the soul. God has highly exalted the blessed Jesus; and when we are enabled, through the Spirit, to do the same, our thoughts are in happy fellowship with God's; and this is what we should seek for. But we should remember that communion with God is a very different thing from communion with a Christian church, be it ever so sound in doctrine, or pure in practice.

Our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. These Divine Persons have been revealed, and we who have believed the Gospel have been brought to the knowledge of them. It is not only that we have been turned to God, have received forgiveness of sins, are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and have the love of God shed abroad in our hearts, but we have been brought to the knowledge of the Father and of His Son Jesus Christ; and in this knowledge lies eternal life for us. Jesus says: “I am the good Shepherd; and I know mine own, and mine own know me, even as the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father.” We have been brought into intimacy with Divine Persons, and we have the life and nature that is Theirs, and thus is this vital fellowship established; and our affections, thoughts, and actions flow in harmony with the Divine mind. We love the things that are loved by Him, and we hate the things that are to Him abhorrent. His interests are our interests, and His honour and glory are sacred to our hearts.

“ With the Father .” This life on earth was the object of the Father's perfect complacency. “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” There were none then to share the Father's joy, because Christ must be in all, before He can be all. We must have the life before we can understand or appreciate it. Now, however, we have fellowship with the Father in His pleasure in Christ. Again, “ with the Son ,” His Father was ever His object. We too have now an object out­side ourselves. His will is ever our delight. In this we have fellowship with the Son. “ With one another ,” in our life, our hopes, our aspirations, our objects, our worship. Now, if God has given us no less an object than that which fills His heart, it is evident it must overflow ours. Therefore, if occupied with Christ, our hearts must overflow, and the overflowing of the heart is called praise.

This is the character of the ways of God. It is not a question of redemption here. He has brought us to Himself; but, having come, that which weighs with us must be according to the holiness of God. Because we are called to fellowship with God, and fellowship means common happiness, common thoughts, common feelings. The Father's delight is in His Son; and we have fellowship with Him in that. Christ's delight is in the Father; and we have fellowship with Him in that. So our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Christ Jesus. "If we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth." The apostle at once brings the character of God to bear on the person.

In the rich grace of God believers in His Son now walk in the light of the revelation of God that was made in the Person of Jesus here below, giving us the knowledge of God and of His great love, for all that God is in His nature and disposition towards us was seen in Jesus. As walking in the light of this wonderful revelation we have fellowship with God, knowing the Father and the Son, being associated with the Son in His place before the Father, knowing God as our God and our Father. We also have fellowship as having learned the truth through the Apostles, whom the Lord chose to bring the message of divine love to us.

Here it is also that we learn the ways and mind of God. By the teaching of His Spirit, through the written word, our minds become stored with His thoughts, our hearts filled with His love; so that we think as He thinks, hate what He hates, love what He loves; according to our measure walk as Jesus walked, speak His words, etc. This is fellowship; this is the communion of the Holy Spirit.