fellowship Archives - Page 10 of 10

Andy Sochor July 1, 2007

Fellowship with One Another

Fellowship is a word that we often hear, but a topic that we do not hear discussed as often. When we discuss fellowship, we must understand the basis for our fellowship. Why do we have fellowship with one another? That question leads us to another question: Why do we not have fellowship with certain ones? This is the question many are uncomfortable with or are uninterested in discussing. So we frequently hear of fellowship, but not about fellowship. In this article, we will discuss fellowship, the basis for it, and the dangers of being too loose or restrictive in it.
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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: error, false teachers, fellowship, sin, unity

Andy Sochor May 1, 2007

Fellowship Questions and MDR

Marriage, divorce and remarriage (MDR) has been and always will be a source of controversy among God’s people. Some have taught that those who have divorced and remarried prior to becoming a Christian can remain in their current relationship after obeying the gospel. Recently there has been controversy over whether or not one who has been put away by his/her mate for just any cause can put away his/her spouse for fornication and remarry. There are other MDR questions, but recently I have seen these two lumped together and placed in the category of Romans 14.

Whenever questions like these arise, it is important for us to determine whether or not a certain disagreement relating to MDR ought to be a test of fellowship. Can we agree to disagree? Or must there be division? There are times for both. In matters of opinion, we must agree to disagree. In matters of the faith, we must not tolerate sin and error.Continue Reading

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: divorce, fellowship, marriage, opinion, putting away, remarriage

Andy Sochor May 1, 2007

Romans 14

The “grace-unity” doctrine is one of the biggest dangers facing the church today. It is sometimes called “unity-in-diversity.” It is the old denominational concept that we can each have our own understanding of the Bible and we cannot say that one is right and the other is wrong. Sin and error can be overlooked because of spiritual weakness and differences of understanding. This idea is popular among the religious world. As time goes on, its popularity is increasing in the Lord’s church.

Romans 14 is often used to try to defend the concept of unity-in-diversity. Because of the sharp disagreements that exist, I believe many brethren think that Romans 14 is a difficult passage to understand. It may be true that it is not as simple as some passages (i.e. Mark 16:16), but we certainly can understand what Romans 14 is teaching. I hope this article will help make it a little clearer.
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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: error, faith, fellowship, opinion, sin, unity in diversity

Andy Sochor October 5, 2006

“Now Concerning the Collection” – Part 5: Correlation Between Giving and Fellowship

Various works are carried out using the funds collected by the church. Since all the brethren at a local congregation make contributions into the treasury, they are working together in these activities. In Scripture this is called fellowship – joint participation. Paul warned, “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness” (Ephesians 5:11, KJV). Another translation says, “Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness” (NASB). When we participate together in a work, we have fellowship with one another. When we place funds into a common treasury, we are working together in the works that are supported out of the treasury. Therefore, our giving on the first day of the week is one way in which we have fellowship together.
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Filed Under: SERIES: Now Concerning the Collection Tagged With: fellowship, giving

Andy Sochor September 1, 2005

Of What Kind of Church Are You a Member?

In Matthew 16:18, Jesus promised to build His church. In Acts 2 we read about the establishment of that church. Throughout the book of Acts, we see how the church grew from its beginnings in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. The New Testament as a whole provides us with a picture of the church our Lord purchased with His blood (Acts 20:28). Several times, we read about a congregation being rebuked for problems that existed there. It can be profitable for us to consider the issues that affected these churches and compare them to the church where we are members. Every problem in every congregation in the New Testament will not be discussed in this article. But as we look at some of these, think about the congregation where you attend. Notice if there are things there that may need to be addressed as well.
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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: apostasy, church, error, fellowship, sin, tolerance