The Christadelphian October 1945, John Carter

“Our Fellowship”

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (for the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1 : 1–3).

Careful discrimination between the pronouns of the above quotation shows that “our fellowship” is the fellowship which the appointed witnesses had with the Father. The “we” who saw, handled and talked with the risen Lord are the apostles, as the gospel history of the contacts with the Lord shows; the “you” are the general believers. The apostles gave their message that those who believe may have fellowship with them; and he indicates the value of that fellowship with them by adding, “truly our fellowship is with the Father”.

John’s thoughts are strictly equivalent with the record by Luke in Acts 2: 42: “They (the believers) continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship.” Through the apostles’ doctrine, heartily received and obeyed, believers had fellowship with the Father. The apostles themselves as men, were not the medium of association; Christ is the propitiation for our sins; but God has arranged that by means of faith in the testimony mediated through apostles, men can draw near to God. Fellowship with the Father has conditions which are revealed. We know by our acceptance of the conditions—and only thus do we know—that such fellowship exists. All who comply with the conditions share in the fellowship: but when the conditions are not observed there is not fellowship, no matter what a person may claim.

John puts the matter in characteristic form when he says, “If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin” (verses 6, 7). Darkness is error in belief or practice, as light is truth in both doctrine and practice.

It is evident that John’s approach to the subject is practical. He does not deal with fellowship with God apart from the conditons whereby that is possible; the existence of fellowship may be known by the practical test: are the conditions observed? The conditions are laid down by God: men’s actions decide their relationship to Him; and men’s actions are within the range of human experience and can be tested.

There is a temptation to some minds to approach the subject from the opposite end. If we say that fellowship is between God and man and therefore the relationship is unaffected by what others may do, we merely express a platitude, and one which does not provide any basis upon which “our fellowship one with another” is established. It is true there is fellowship with the Father, but at once we have scripturally to define when and how, by adding, if we obey the truth (using the word “truth” in its comprehensive Biblical sense). When we add the definition, we bring the question into the realm of human experience where test, both of self and others, has to be be made. That is also the plane on which the apostle John unfolds the subject.