Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labour: If either of them falls, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
If Jesus conducted His earthly ministry without the disciples, would the Gospel have spread as it has? A similar question would be if He had introduced His earthly ministry in 2019 would the Gospel have spread even further?
Both are loaded questions because the timing and methodology were ordained for specific reasons. We can speculate what they are because we have the luxury of hindsight. We do know that from the beginning God has shared that unity and harmony are Kingdom values modelled on the Trinity’s relationship and interaction with each other. Fellowship is key to encouraging, supporting and growing the community. The clear message from God is that we are not designed to “do it alone”; we are stronger together.
The term fellowship is used in scripture to describe honouring relationships. It is experienced in two directions, upwardly with God and outwardly with fellow Christians. In the beginning, God and man had unbroken fellowship. However, after the Fall and throughout the Old Testament record, individuals still chose to live in fellowship with God. We know Jesus exemplified a life of fellowship with his Father. One of the first effects of Pentecost was that the believers lived in fellowship: they accepted one another. They held things in common and were partners together in the ministry of the gospel. They grew stronger, not only as individual believers but as a community.
God’s people are called to work together especially in the task of mission, to recognize one another’s gifts and to give support to one another’s ministries. The Military Fellowship of Canada are participants in God’s mission to the world. We specifically target the serving and retired. We are a fellowship comprised of men and women across the world who want to let our military family know that Jesus loves them. We want them to hear about the hope and joy offered by God. In February we had our Annual General Meeting which was open to all interested persons. It was a good opportunity to let God stir your heart. He may be calling you to partner with the MCF’s 2019 objectives.
When fellowship is powerful the world outside takes notice. When we fellowship together, we are stronger.