12 Jul dear john: experiencing the faith that holds us together | part 1 “the satisfaction of partnership with god and his people.”

KEY VERSE: 1 John 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

 

 

Online Giving** Regardless of where and when we will able to gather again, we continue to run our ministries and support our missions which bring the Gospel to a lost and frightened world. We are looking to our church family to continue faithfully giving. For those of you who give manually, please consider giving online at https://waterschurch.org/give/. Otherwise, you can mail checks to Waters Church, 57 John L Dietsch Square North Attleborough, MA 02760 and place your campus’ name in the notation field. We are very thankful for your support and understanding!

 

 

 

 

41411 – text waterschurch (all one word) to stay updated with info.

 

FACEBOOK GROUPS:To join the groups, just go to the Waters Church FB page and go to groups and join the ones you want. Make sure you join the Life Group (group) so we can get people interested in joining a Life group. The Heach Coaches and I will be moderating the group and adding topics for discussion.

 

CLASSES; Baptism class is every 4th Sunday of the Month. at 11:30 / Growth Track runs the first 3 Sundays every month at 11:30 – this is a one and done registrants only need to attend one session / Starting Point runs every 1st and 3rd Sunday at 11:30 – details and descriptions can be found on the registrations which are located under Events on the SGL Hub.

 

 

 

 

 

TELEPHONE LIVE STREAMING – this is now available.  The number to dial is 1-855-352-9749.

 

 

ALL ANNOUNCEMENTS, CLASSES AND EVENTS CAN BE FOUND AT: waterschurch.guide

 

First John is a letter written to the church in the first century. This book is about fellowship. Fellowship is essential to who we are as God’s people.

 

In an artcile from 2008 article regarding a town in London ‘A Small Town Finds a Cure for Sickness’ – the cure is community.

 

When we get together we get healthier.  1 John is written to a church that is being divided and experiencing a lack of unity.  Very common to what is happening in our century, is the dividing of the Church.  We are angry at each other, hating on each other demanding people take sides.  We are isolating from each other like never before.  This is what sin does.  The answer for the Church is that we can have fellowship around the message of Jesus Christ.

John came from an incredibly successful fishing business.  John is dogmatically committed to truth.  John is a bit of a hothead.  John is a bit demanding.  He also has a fatherly spirit and wants to father the Church. We are living in times of great deception.  The Church needs fatherly figures like never before.  When we have division, deception, and desperation what happens to the ordinary church-goer is that they get incredibly lonely. Loneliness is deadly.  The Gospel message is being lost as we chase the message of the world.

Isaiah 59:2 (ESV); Psalm 142:4-7

The devil uses sin to separate us from God. It separates us from each other.  Sin is a divider.  Sin is something we have in us not something we do.

Q. How have ave you witnessed or experienced loneliness due to division, desperation and/or, deception?

1 John 1:3-4 ESV

There is a BIG difference between our idea of FELLOWSHIP and God’s plan of PARTNERSHIP.

Fellowship is not just getting together, eating, and chatting with others, it is participation in something.  John is talking about partnership.

Illustration: Fellowship: going to a baseball game with friends. Partnership: being on the team – participating

Q. How has your idea of fellowship differed from God’s idea of fellowship?

The BASIS of OUR FELLOWSHIP:

1. THROUGH Christ I have a PARTNERSHIP with God and His people.

Jesus is what brings us together (1 John 1:3). We are told about Jesus so we can have partnership in what God is doing in the world.  Through Christ we have access into the Holy Spirit, into the work of God, we have membership into the Body that is Christ, the people of God.

A. Our Fellowship is EXCLUSIVE.

1 John 1:7 ESV

One of the worst mantras of our age is ‘we are all children of God.’  We are not all children of God.  We are children of God only IF we walk in the light as He is in the light, then we have fellowship with God.  Jesus makes us children God.  If we dont have a relationship with Jesus, we are not children of God.  With one confession of faith we can be a child of God through Christ.

Q. Before you became a Christian, what was your idea of who God was in relationship to you?

(Leader: here is an opportunity to lead a member of your group to Christ that does not have a relationship with Him – If you are unsure of how to go about this, just tell them to confess to Jesus they are a sinner and realize that he died for their sins and now desire to follow Him).

B. Our Fellowship is COSTLY.

Verse 7 “and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin”

The Gospel is not that God loves us, the Gospel is that Jesus Christ bore our sins on the cross as an expression of God’s love for us.  By having faith in that we have fellowship, a relationship with God, and partnership with His Church. 

Others have paid the cost for us to be in church today. They believed we were worth it and wanted us to have fellowship with God.

Q. What costs have you absorbed for others to have fellowship with God (not only money but also in other ways)?

The BENEFITS of OUR FELLOWSHIP:

2. In Christ I have the BLESSINGS of PARTNERSHIP with God and His people.

The blessings are not just going to church and being in a building to hear some guy preach.  The great benefit is being in fellowship with God.

1 John 1:1 (ESV)

1. Our Fellowship is SUPERNATURAL.

Walking in the light as He is in the light, it is a supernatural relationship with God.  We want a spiritual experience, what we are searching for is something we were made for but we must be watchful because there are demons out there. We need to be careful we do not give ourselves over to demonic oppression.

B. Our Fellowship is INTERNATIONAL.

The Gospel has got across the world. 

Q. What experience might you have had where you have traveled and met other Christians (other states, on a plane, other countries, etc.)?

The BOUNDARIES of OUR FELLOWSHIP:

“The bar flourishes not because most people are alcoholics, but because God has put into the human heart the desire to know and be known, to love and be loved.  And so many people will seek a counterfeit at the price of a few beers.” – John Stott

Q. What counterfeit have you sought because you desired to be loved?

God made us to be known and he wants us to be known by him and his family.  That is why it is important for us to serve at our church so that others can come and experience Christ. Example: Those who serve in kids are enabling parents who may be far from God to hear the message.

(Leaders: if there are members of your group who are not serving, here is an opportunity to get them connected. They can sign up using their phones and going to  waterschurch.guide).

3. In Christ I PARTNER in the life of God as I am cleansed from my SINS.

1 John 1:6 -10(ESV)

We are all sinners and if we say we have no sin we are deceived. But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

God has a solution to the sin stain in our hearts.  People run from God because they know they are sinners. It is the job of the church to tell them that God has already provided the remedy for their sin.