Common Grounds Unity Blog

Anonymous, April 17, 2021

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles.  And all the believers were together and had all things in common” (Acts 2:42-44 NASB 2020).

Those early days of Christianity must have been so exciting. So much joy and anticipation. The miracles and signs. The togetherness and love. The earliest Christians lived in exciting, dynamic times. They were growing, learning, sharing, praying, worshipping, and even eating together. Pure, exquisite fellowship.

Luke lists several things to which they were devoted, one of which is fellowship. Fellowship is not a word we hear much outside of a church context. Its usage is nearly unique to a church setting. It describes the close interaction amongst believers, the unique bond formed by people who have given up much, believed much and loved much.  

The Greek New Testament uses a specific word for fellowship: koinonia. It is used twenty times in the New Testament: once by Luke in Acts, once by the writer of Hebrews, four times by John in his first letter and the other fourteen times by Paul across several of his letters. As with many Greek words, there is no direct, simple translation of koinonia. Its nuance and depth renders its full meaning unable to be fully captured by just the word “fellowship,” as the word also includes the ideas of “association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse.” The core root of koinonia means “common.” That exact idea is evident in Acts 2:44:  “the believers had all things in common (koina).” Commonality creates great fellowship. The early believers focused on what they had in common. Luke did not take the time to list all of their differences, but we know they had language and cultural differences. As Gentiles were added to the church, the dissimilarities were even starker; however, the bond forged through the shared experience of salvation through the blood of Christ proved greater.  Were there rifts, divisions, factions, tensions, frictions, and misunderstandings borne along by pride, insensitivity and fear? Yes. Yet the fellowship out of love that Jesus calls us to persuades us, to lay aside our differences and focus on our sameness. Our common bond.

In today’s church, we celebrate diversity, independent-thinking and innovation. Across our many fellowships we hold to many different values and practices, forms of worship, teaching styles and even biblical interpretations on specific challenging passages of Scripture. When our common faith becomes the backdrop for our fellowship, we can set aside the values and traditions that we hold most dear and have unburdened fellowship with each other. I may have different viewpoints about singing, worship, clapping, communion, preaching, leadership roles, etc., but am I going to allow what I value or prefer to create a schism in my family? Is being “right” more important than being in a relationship?  How quickly we forget the encouraging words Paul wrote to the church in Philippi:

Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete  by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.  Phil 2:1-4 NASB 1995

Fellowship is not just about having everything in common; it is about being together at the same time in the same place. “And all the believers were together and had all things in common” (Acts 2:44).  This is very important and I think we have all felt the affect the pandemic has had on our ability to fellowship, to one degree or another. Even within the framework of “togetherness” fellowship was not just “hanging out.” The dynamic activity of the early Christians is notable. They learned, prayed, worshipped and ate together. Paul’s desire for Philemon and the church in Colossae was “that the fellowship of your faith may become effective…” (v.6). We will feel closer to each other when we are laboring and serving together. Many of the issues that seem so important to us begin to lose intensity when we are evangelizing and serving the poor. As we emphasize our common purpose, the differences we have are diminished.

Common faith and common purpose are where we find common ground. Once we establish that commonness, we will have fellowship with each other. Love, faith, and maturity will bind us together as we navigate through the places where we differ.