2021 ICSC - 4

Message Title: the Intrinsic Fellowship of the Churches for Their Organic Relationship 

the growth of the church, as the Body of Christ, is intrinsic and organic. 

I. we need to see and enter into the intrinsic fellowship of the churches

the fellowship is the flow of the eternal life within, through, and among all the members of the organic Body of Christ, which is typified by the flow in Revelation 22:1 which says "And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street. "

this flow is also like the circulation of blood in our human body. this flow is the circulation of the divine life in the Body of Christ and we are all members in this Body.  

how do we know whether we are in this flow or not?

we need to be under the throne of God and of Lamb. we need to walk in the pure golden street, which signifies the divine nature of God, which governs our daily living and walking. 

Acts 2:42 And they continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles, in the breaking of bread and the prayers. 

this is the first time the Bible mentions "fellowship", during the time of the beginning of the church life. after the Lord become the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit, and poured Himself down on the day of Pentecost, He baptized all the believers into His Body. that was the beginning of the church life of the early days of all the saints. 

this divine fellowship is an interwoven fellowship, including two aspects: vertical and horizontal:

1. vertical fellowship: with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ

1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we beheld and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life

1 John 1:2 (And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us);

1 John 1:3 That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.

2. horizontal fellowship: with all the saints, which will also bring us to the vertical fellowship.

it is hard to tell which aspects comes first or later, because it is an interwoven fellowship. everyday, we should experience both aspects of the fellowship. 

this divine fellowship is the divine life itself. the divine fellowship is everything in our Christian life, because when the fellowship disappears, God also disappears, which means that God comes as the fellowship. 

II. we need to see and enter into the organic relationship of the churches; this is the unique relationship of the unique church (the universal church composed of all the local churches); "the church" in 1 Corinthians 12:28 refers to the church in both its universal and local aspects

the intrinsic fellowship helps to build up the organic relationship. 

all the local churches are one church; their organic relationship is based upon the organic fellowship of the divine life. every local church has such an organic relationship with other local churches. so whenever we are thinking to do something, we need to consider how the other local churches will feel, because we are a part of the unique Body of Christ. 

if we stay in the unique fellowship of the Body, we can receive the rich bountiful supply from the Head which is for the Body, and we also are in the protection from the Lord. 

III. the divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ in the oneness of the Spirit

the divine fellowship blends us; that is, it adjusts, harmonizes, tempers, and mingles us together into one Body. to be blended is to go through the cross and do everything by the Spirit to dispense Christ into others for the sake of the Body of Christ. we should not do anything without fellowshipping with the other saints. fellowship requires us to stop when we are about to do something. 

we need to imitate the apostles to bring the local churches into the fellowship of the Body of Christ, and follow the apostles' footsteps to bring all the saints into the blending life of the entire Body of Christ.