Week 2 Day 2 - Accountable in Stewardship

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Day 2 – Accountable in Stewardship

INTERDEPENDENT AS A FELLOWSHIP

(Romans 12:14-16)

     ¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and curse not. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. ¹⁶ Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

(1 Corinthians 1:9-11)

     ⁹ God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. ¹⁰ Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree, and there be no divisions among you but you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. ¹¹ For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you.

The Church Fellowship

         Last week, we looked at Acts 2:42, which said the early church continued in doctrine (we will look at that next week) and “fellowship”. The Greek word for fellowship is “koinonia” or a “common” gathering. Many of the members even sold everything they had, holding all of their possessions in “common” (and some think a tithe or a “tenth” is too much!). Part of membership is that we are accountable to take care of our fellowship. Fellowship means being committed to one another, being united with one another, and sharing with one another.

    Commitment. Someone defined fellowship as “two fellows being in the same ship, going the same direction.” A Christian must commit to Christ. A church member should commit to a local fellowship.

         A Christian without being a part of a fellowship of believers is like a man who wants a relationship with a woman, but is not willing to make a commitment. In a marriage, the commitment is not only going through a ceremony, signing a license, and wearing a ring. It is also a daily devotion to joyfully show loyalty to the person to whom he or she is committed.

         In a fellowship, you cannot have true interdependency among the members without accountability. We must be stewards or “caretakers” of the fellowship by officially joining in church membership.

         Unity. If a church has divisions, quarrels, and disagreements, it does not have true biblical fellowship. Paul would not praise the Corinthians because it had its divisions (1 Corinthians 11:17). Membership in the local church is characterized by having one mind and judgment.

         In our passage today, fellowship with Christ means “that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together”. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian church ends with the command to “be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you”. He even invokes the Trinity, calling on the Father’s love, the Son’s grace, and the Spirit’s fellowship.

         At Philippi, Paul wanted to hear they were of one mind and one spirit, a conduct which would be “worthy of the gospel of Christ”. If there is to be “any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy” (Philippians 2:1-2), we should have a good fellowship together.         

         Sharing. Fellowship means accountability in giving. The verb form of koinonia is most often translated as “sharing” in the New International Version. Romans 12:13, 15:26-27, 2 Corinthians 8:4, 9:13, Galatians 6:6, Philippians 1:5, 4:15, 1 Timothy 6:18, and Hebrews 13:16 all use the word koinonia to refer to financially sharing.

    True, attenders can give without being a member, but the clear command of the Bible is that if you are a member of the Fellowship of Christ, we are to share with the church financially. All deacons and pastors of this church are asked whether they believe in the “ten percent” tithe, and are challenged to practice tithing their income to the Lord.

    Tithing is not a legalistic requirement, but it is encouraged. Malachi states that anything less than a tenth is robbing God. This is not an Old Testament teaching only, as Jesus also said we should not neglect giving a tenth of even the smallest of things (Matthew 23:23, Luke 11:42). The general offering of the First Baptist Killeen budget also practices ten percent giving, with more than a tenth of its undesignated offerings going to missions beyond our church.

Click here for Day 3 Ministering in Service