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Once we believe into the Lord, we have a union with Him in life. This life then brings us the fellowship of life in which we should live, fellowshipping with God and sharing in all His riches. We ought to know this, pay attention to this, and practice this immediately after we are saved.
1) “We...report to you the eternal life...that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed the fellowship which is ours is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” (1 John 1:2-3).
Once we believe in the Lord and receive the eternal life, which was reported to us, it brings its fellowship of life, its flow of life, to us, that there may be a fellowship, a flow, between us and God. This fellowship carries God Himself and all His riches into us for our sharing and partaking.
1) Having fellowship with the apostles and with the church, which they represent — “...we...report to you the eternal life...that you also may have fellowship with us [the apostles]” (1 John 1:2-3).
The fellowship which we have through the entering into us of God’s eternal life is of two aspects. On the one hand, we have fellowship with the apostles and with the church, which the apostles represent (1 Cor. 12:28); that is, we have fellowship with all those who possess the life of God. On the other hand, we have fellowship with God and the Lord. The aspect of our fellowship with all those who have God’s life is called the fellowship of the apostles (Acts 2:41-42). All those who have believed into the Lord to have the life of God participate in this fellowship. The Lord’s life is reported by the apostles to those who believe into the Lord that they may become the church, the Lord’s Body, and the apostles are the representatives of the church, which is brought into being through the Lord’s life. Hence, the fellowship of life in the church is called the fellowship of the apostles. When we have fellowship with the apostles, we have fellowship with the church.
2) Having fellowship with God and with the Lord Jesus — “That you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed the fellowship which is ours is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).
The other aspect of our fellowship in the Lord’s life is our fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. The life to which this fellowship of life belongs is the life of God. This life is also the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Himself. Thus, this fellowship of life enables us to have fellowship not only with those who jointly possess God’s life but also with God and the Lord Jesus. In this fellowship of life, there is a mutual fellowship and flowing between us and God and the Lord Jesus, and between us and all the believers. All these parties jointly participate in the Triune God and in the church, which is His organism, thus mutually sharing in one another.
1) “The fellowship of the Holy Spirit” (2 Cor. 13:14).
Since the Lord’s life is in the Holy Spirit and has entered into us through the Holy Spirit to be in us, our fellowship in the Lord’s life is by means of the Holy Spirit. Hence, this fellowship is also called the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. In the Lord’s life, both our fellowship with God and the Lord and our fellowship with the church or the saints are in and by means of the Holy Spirit.
1) “And even as it [the anointing] has taught you, abide in Him [the Lord]” (1 John 2:27); “Abide in Me [the Lord]...for apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5).
As branches of the Lord, the vine, we must abide in the Lord and not be separated from Him. To thus abide in the Lord is to have fellowship with the Lord in order to practice the fellowship of the Lord’s life, absorbing all the riches of the Lord as the branches absorb the supply from the vine.
1) To continue steadfastly — “Continuing steadfastly in...the fellowship” (Acts 2:42).
Once we receive the Lord’s life, we enter into the fellowship of His life. From then on, we should continue steadfastly in this fellowship of life.
2) To obey the teaching of the anointing — “And even as it [the anointing] has taught you, abide in Him [the Lord]” (1 John 2:27).
For us to continue steadfastly in the fellowship of life, we must abide in the Lord as taught by the anointing, and we must obey the teaching of the anointing.
3) To walk in the light — “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another” (1 John 1:7).
The fellowship of the Lord’s life brings us into God’s light. We must walk in this light that we may have fellowship with God and the Lord and with all the saints, and that we may maintain the fellowship of the Lord’s life.
4) To confess our sins — “But if we walk in the light...we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His [God’s] Son cleanses us from all sin...if we confess our sins, He [God] is faithful and righteous that He may forgive us...and cleanse us” (1 John 1:7-9).
If we live in the fellowship of the Lord’s life, the Lord’s light of life within will show us our sins in the fellowship of His life. We will sense our sins and confess to God, and He will then forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness that we may more deeply live in the fellowship of His life.
The preceding four items are our responsibility toward the fellowship of life.
1) Receiving God’s light — “God is light...if we say that we have fellowship with Him...if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another” (1 John 1:5-7).
This word shows us that when we have fellowship with God, who is light, we will surely receive God’s light and walk in it that we may have uninterrupted fellowship with one another.
2) Being cleansed by the Lord’s blood — “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
When we are enlightened by the Lord’s light of life in the fellowship of life, and thus realize our sins and confess them to God, we are cleansed by the Lord’s blood.
3) Having the Lord abide in us — “He who abides in Me and I in him...” (John 15:5).
When we abide in the Lord to have fellowship with Him, we have the Lord abiding in us as our enjoyment of life.
4) Bearing much fruit to glorify God — “He who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit” (John 15:5); “In this is My Father glorified” (John 15:8).
When we abide in the Lord as branches in the Lord, the vine, and have an uninterrupted flow with Him, we receive the supply of the rich sap from Him as the vine to bear much fruit that the Father may be glorified.
The above four items are issues of our living in the fellowship of the Lord’s life.
1) The relationship of life between the believers and God being eternally unbreakable — “They shall by no means perish forever, and no one shall snatch them out of My Father’s hand” (John 10:28-29). The relationship of life between the believers and God will never be broken, because they have received the eternal life from God, which causes them never to perish. Moreover, since God’s hand is mighty, nothing can snatch them out of His hand.
2) The fellowship of life between the believers and God being breakable — “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another” (1 John 1:7). The word “if” in this verse indicates that the fellowship of life between us and God is breakable. If we walk in God’s light, we will live in the fellowship of God’s life. However, since we often fail to live in God’s light, often disobeying and sinning, we often lose the fellowship of God’s life, thus causing it to be broken.
1) By the confession of sins — “If we confess our sins, He [God] is faithful and righteous that He may forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Thank God that although our fellowship of life with Him can be broken, it can also be restored. If we are willing to confess our sins to God according to His shining, He will forgive us and cleanse us from our sins. This is according to His faithfulness based on His word and according to His righteousness because of the Lord’s blood in order that our fellowship of life with Him may be restored.
1) The Lord’s life in us not only has its fellowship but also has its sense. This sense of life is for the fellowship of life. The fellowship of life is maintained in the sense of life. Whenever we neglect the sense of life, the fellowship of life is broken and lost, and the sense of life thus becomes dull.
2) If we will once again care for and obey this dull sense of life, the fellowship of life will be restored, even deepened, and the sense of life will also be keener. These two — the sense of life and the fellowship of life — reciprocally affect each other in a continuous cycle, causing the believers to grow in life.
1) Losing the supply and function of life and suffering loss — “Every branch in Me [the Lord] that does not bear fruit, He [God] takes it away” (John 15:2); “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is dried up; and they gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:6). If a saved person, who is a branch of the Lord, the vine, does not bear fruit, he will be taken away. The reason for his fruitlessness is that he does not abide in the Lord, in the fellowship of His life. Hence, he is taken away, cast out, dried up, gathered, and cast into the fire to be burned. If we do not abide in the Lord and live in the fellowship of life, we will run a great risk of being cut off from the Lord and of losing our supply and function, thus suffering loss. However, this is not to perish but to suffer loss, to be punished (1 Cor. 3:15), because here the Lord is not speaking about the conditions of salvation but about the conditions of fruitbearing.
2) Being fearful and put to shame — “Abide in Him [the Lord], that if He is manifested, we may have boldness and not be put to shame from Him at His coming” (1 John 2:28).
If we abide in the Lord and have fellowship with Him, we spontaneously walk before the Lord and live in His will. This will cause us to have boldness and not be put to shame at the Lord’s coming. Otherwise, when we see Him, we will be in fear and will be put to shame, being separated from His presence. Such danger should warn us to live in the fellowship of the Lord’s life.
