Fellowship, does it help us overcome sin?

[Whyme]

3 hours ago, Sower said:

1 John 1:7    
"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"1

 

Thank you Whyme.......

 

 

You are welcome and thank you. That scripture is what i was thinking about when i posted this thread. 

[Whyme]

39 minutes ago, The_Patriot21 said:

yes...as long as its fellowship with other strong believers, and theyre willing to hold each other accountable. Can online fellowship play a part in it? yes absolutly, but it CANNOT replace real, in person fellowship, and if you try, it will do more harm then good.

I struggle with anxiety in social situations, that has caused me to seek out online fellowship. Maybe one day i'll go to church, but till then my fellowship is fine. I can go to church once ot twice a week or come here daily. Daily is better than once a week dont you think?

[walla299]

44 minutes ago, Whyme said:

Call me the lone ranger i guess, but im not alone, i mentioned online fellowship. How do you know this lone ranger thing is all bad? Have you tried it?

You may want to have a look at the earlier posts before this one. Lots of good wisdom there.

Have I tried it?   I'll be 60 in November and my brother just reminded me recently that our High School graduation was over 40 years ago.

So, yes, I have tried it - off and on for most of my adult life, in the military and out, and all over the planet in quite a few different places and/or languages that I didn't speak. The Lord usually made a way for some face to face fellowship with other believers, but not always. Sometimes I had to sit in a Central American forest with a bunch of unbelievers for reasons I likely won't understand in this life. Other times more often than not I was the only believer around, and I didn't like it much because it really wears you down like a burning coal pulled from the fire: separated from the others the coal will burn out and go cold.

There are certainly times when we need to get alone with the Lord, and He never leaves or forsakes us, we still need face to face human contact. Even Jesus drew away from the crowds with the disciples for rest and refreshment before resuming ministry.

A good example is working from home: I don't miss the commute but I miss "see people in 3 dimensions" as someone said and learning from each other while working on projects together. Same thing for the church: believers work better together. Online fellowship is a good addition, but not a replacement for, face to face fellowship as a general rule. I'm sure there are situations where that's all a person can get . . . like during a Covid lockdown, for example but it is not the norm.

I can only suggest having a look a Paul's letters and see how many people he names as friends and fellow workers. He was not always alone either and God used him greatly. Acts is another one. How many times are people together as you go through Acts?

 

[walla299]

35 minutes ago, Whyme said:

You are welcome and thank you. That scripture is what i was thinking about when i posted this thread. 

There you go! 

Lots of other good scriptures in the thread too.

 

[Whyme]

14 minutes ago, walla299 said:

You may want to have a look at the earlier posts before this one. Lots of good wisdom there.

Have I tried it?   I'll be 60 in November and my brother just reminded me recently that our High School graduation was over 40 years ago.

So, yes, I have tried it - off and on for most of my adult life, in the military and out, and all over the planet in quite a few different places and/or languages that I didn't speak. The Lord usually made a way for some face to face fellowship with other believers, but not always. Sometimes I had to sit in a Central American forest with a bunch of unbelievers for reasons I likely won't understand in this life. Other times more often than not I was the only believer around, and I didn't like it much because it really wears you down like a burning coal pulled from the fire: separated from the others the coal will burn out and go cold.

There are certainly times when we need to get alone with the Lord, and He never leaves or forsakes us, we still need face to face human contact. Even Jesus drew away from the crowds with the disciples for rest and refreshment before resuming ministry.

A good example is working from home: I don't miss the commute but I miss "see people in 3 dimensions" as someone said and learning from each other while working on projects together. Same thing for the church: believers work better together. Online fellowship is a good addition, but not a replacement for, face to face fellowship as a general rule. I'm sure there are situations where that's all a person can get . . . like during a Covid lockdown, for example but it is not the norm.

I can only suggest having a look a Paul's letters and see how many people he names as friends and fellow workers. He was not always alone either and God used him greatly. Acts is another one. How many times are people together as you go through Acts?

 

Thank you. The only benefit i see in face to face fellowship that i dont see in online fellowship is you can help each other in physical ways. Like i could help you fix your house or your car, but i cant do that online. But what besides that makes face to face better? What if I'm blind? I cant see you, am i missing out on something? Perhaps a hug? I dont really do hugs anyway. Just a few thoughts. Thank you for yours.

[Whyme]

47 minutes ago, walla299 said:

There you go! 

Lots of other good scriptures in the thread too.

 

Yes agreed. What do you think of the scripture that says God cleanses us when we fellowship? Do you think this refers to forgiveness or God actually removing that sin in our lives? I guess thats the question i am wondering about. Many scriptures about cleansing sound like they are talking about forgiveness. Here are a few i found. I like John 1:9. It says that he forgives and cleanses us.

 

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Isaiah 1:16 “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean;
Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight.
Cease to do evil,

2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

 

[Sower]

44 minutes ago, Whyme said:

Call me the lone ranger i guess, but i'm not alone, i mentioned online fellowship. How do you know this lone ranger thing is all bad? Have you tried it?

In the past like you I have set myself apart for a season, and eventually knew I was missing just too much of my fellowship with our Christian family. Didn't much like it (while I was stewing in the pot:)
It is normal among friends to have something misunderstood, confusion or a different view.
This means we're human. God knew this, so He gave us the word.

"A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity"
Proverbs 17:17

"Faithful are the wounds of a friend"
Proverbs 27

"Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed"
Proverbs 15:22

"Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.
For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth;
for he hath not another to help him up"
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

 

Even Kemosabe was not alone......

 

 

[walla299]

24 minutes ago, Whyme said:

What do you think of the scripture that says God cleanses us when we fellowship? Do you think this refers to forgiveness or God actually removing that sin in our lives? I guess that's the question i am wondering about.

Quote

 

The term "sanctification" is used to describe the process of becoming more Christ-like as the Holy Spirit works to renew our minds and hearts and conform us to the image of Christ. Its a lifelong process that will only be completed in glory. I'm not a theologian, but a big part of that is actively applying the Scriptures in our lives. In other words practicing God's Word can help make us more Christ-like.

Fellowship with other believers helps with that because:

As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. (Proverbs 27:17 NKJV)

Also

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:1-2 NKJV)

 

[Michael37]

15 hours ago, Whyme said:

Does fellowship help us overcome sin in our lives? And, does online fellowship help us to do this? Sorry folks, i know i post a lot of threads, but this has been on my mind and i want input. Thank you.

Hy Whyme. I believe fellowshipping with members of the body of Christ should be a positive experience, whether it be in person or online, but like Paul, I have found there are perils involved, and wisdom is required. I wouldn't rely on fellowship alone to overcome sin, but spiritual armour and support from fellow-Christians are both Scriptural, so we ask the Lord to keep us supplied with these.

2Co 11:13  For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.

2Co 11:26  In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

[Beckett]

All human communities are problematic, both religious and non-religious. Cause after all they are human in nature, but there certainly are better or worse communities. And some communities might be very beneficial to oneself, others will only cause suffering, pain and hell. As long as one understands that human communities are not perfect and is able to distinguish a boat that will sink from one that gets you to the other shore, then it´s fine. 

 

But closeness to the divine is not the same as closeness to any human community. A community and other people might help you get there, but ultimately, closeness to the divine is not the same as say closeness to your priest. How to say this ... closeness to the divine is a "inner hierarchy" out of this world, not any "outer hierarchy" that expresses itself as a plurality of humans. 

 

Having this inner hierarchy working properly within you, the divine will help you to overcome all your lacks, lusts, problems etc. But having the inner hierarchy working from within, is not nescesarely something you will enjoy. Cause repairing you might mean purgatorial experiences, which are not pleasant at all. But they are states one gotta go through to learn. 

 

I have seen heroin addicts, beggars, "crazy people" etc. people that society would consider lost forever be much closer to the divine than the ordinary person. Cause they are going through a purgatorial experience. But lets hope one does not have to go through such horrible experiences, by instead acting in accordance with the divine, so that ones actions and thought are not misled by the world, and the dark forces that wants to rule it, to think and do stupid things.

 

But if you, God forbid, find yourself in hell, or in purgatory some day. Seeing demons, and all that, The metaphysical realm. Do not fear it. Go through it, and learn from what it wants to show you. You are not crazy. 

"See the ships sailing along, and Leviathan, which you made to play in the sea"

Edited April 21, 2021 by Beckett