Koinonia

Acts 2:42

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

⁴² They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.


My first blog entry of the series of preachings from the Sunday services. I'd love to share my thoughts and my understandings while at the same time having people to react and correct me. This acts also as a record of all my learnings a journal if you will. :)


Last Sunday Pastor Doy preached on a topic that I feel is being strongly promoted in the church (which is Bread from Heaven Christian Fellowship) and this was the importance of Koinonia and one that has to be avoided was the 2nd generation syndrome which meant the loss of koinonia among the 2nd generation of worshipers and leaders. As defined it was this event in history of the Christian church where the next generation of Christians were bringing other ideas into the church that they gain from the world  that brought negative effects and gave them a different perspective altogether and because of this they lose this important part of Christian living which is having constant fellowship with your families or with your brothers and sisters in faith which in effect loses connection with the church and not being able to serve faithfully. 


This preaching is taken from 1 John and it was emphasized that churches nowadays neglect the idea that 1st generation worshipers and leaders forget to pass down their experience with God that the 2nd generation may also experience that same grace; be able to transmit that same level of faith that the church does not fall apart and parts of the congregation strays away. It is then essential that we ask ourselves 3 questions to check ourselves if we really are acquiring the 2nd generation syndrome.


1. What is it that you are not doing that is increasing the power and presence of sin in your life?


As a Christian or maybe as a Sunday goer what have you been doing consistently that is keeping you apart from God. What is it that you are not doing or what is it that you neglect that instead of doing the Lord's work or instructions you are stuck with all this earthly obligations and activities. We all know they perish and will mean nothing in the end why do we insist to live a life of complacency and compromise that the power and presence of sin is dominating you in every aspect.  


The answer is found in 1 John 1:5-7 saying that:
 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

God Is Light

 ⁵ This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; ⁷ but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.


In my notes it says: Our sins have already been forgiven but through fellowship we decrease the power of sin.
Logically the more time we spend with our counselors and peers from church through Bible studies or even a simple dinner or just hanging out we put ourselves in a better place. Not only do we avoid evil but we enrich ourselves with God's Word and we enjoy more of God's blessings and presence when we are with the right people. The power of fellowship and communion is so important that if we continue as individuals we might just stray away and join wrong company.


2. What is it that you love that reduces the love of God the Father in you? 


So what is it that's occupying you more now than God. What's keeping you from loving God that you spend more time in this object or activity?


Well an answer for this has to be 1 John 2:15 which states: 
¹⁵ Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.


Again this is related to what mentioned awhile ago about how this earth is passing away. Why do we set our eyes on the world that is temporary and is only the creation when we can look up to what is eternal who is the Creator of all things. All material things and all earthly thing for that matter will pass away and will have no significance to what you really are destined for. To be consumed by greed, the pride of life, and all the lust of the flesh is to live without purpose.  What we have now we can not take in the after life. At the same time we cannot say that because life is short we make the most out of this world and forget that we have a higher being to serve. It is to say we love this world more than the Father and if this culture is brought to the church then we lose our touch with God. We indulge on something we only are supposed to appreciate and be thankful for and forget that we are to soak ourselves with God.


3. What are the specific steps that I should take to purify myself with God?


So what steps are necessary to rid yourself of all this evil and neglect?


The verse is taken from 1 John 3:1-4 which say: 

Children of God Love One Another

 ¹ See ^[a]how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. ² Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when Heappears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. ³ And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. ⁴ Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.


In my notes its says:
a. Have gratitude for the fact that God made me His own
b. Accept that sometimes my friends will not take me as their own
c. Purify myself through obedience with the specific will of God


I think what Pastor Doy gave is pretty self explanatory. To thank God that we(all those who have accepted Him as Lord and Savior) are called His children. That when He comes we will look like Him and that we have represented Him well here on earth. And because of this people will reject us, our own friends that do not understand us will reject us just the same as Jesus was put to shame and rejected when He was here on earth. We need to understand that we are different and we are citizens of heaven that we live a different lifestyle and we do not live a life of compromise. Meaning we are obedient to God's will. We will stand to follow God's will no matter how this world will test us and through this we are purified and we bring a pleasant aroma towards heaven.


As part of the youth/young adults and the 2nd generation as part of a Joshua Generation koinonia will be essential in keeping this church together. We are able to increase in number and the congregation gets to grow in harmony. What a sight it would be that friends and families with the church leaders maintain fellowship and studying the Word as one. Breaking bread, comforting one another and uplifting those in need, singing songs of worship are examples of fellowship that we can do. It would be great that the church would be consistent with this practice that in the future it may also be passed on to the next generation of worshipers and leaders.