Why is Christian Fellowship so important

Why is Christian Fellowship so important is the topic that will be discussed today on RIOT Podcast, a Christian Discipleship Podcast. God never intended for His people to be separate. In the very beginning, God said, “It is not good for man to be alone.” That has not changed. It is even more important for the followers of Jesus to come together. Terms such as “family,” “together,” and “fellowship” are all important concepts in the New Testament for us to gather together and encourage one another. Fellowship is the relationship that we have with one another as Christians. It is based on the relationship we have with Jesus Christ. When you and I became Christians, three relationships changed: Jesus became our Savior; God became our Father, and the church became our family. In other words, believers are now my brothers and sisters in Christ and accepted into the family of God. To help us set up why Christian fellowship is so important. Let’s read Acts 2: 41-47. Peter has just finished preaching and here is what happens:<br /> “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” So today we want to help answer the question, “Why is Christian fellowship so important?” The 1st reason why it’s so important is that FELLOWSHIP GIVES US A PICTURE OF GOD Each of us coming together shows all of God’s graces to the world. No one is perfect. We all sin, but each one of us has a purpose here on Earth and that is to show aspects of God to those around us. Each of us has been given specific spiritual gifts. When we come together in fellowship, it’s like us, as a whole, demonstrating God. Think of it like a cake. You need flour, sugar, eggs, oil, and more to make a cake. The eggs will never be the flour. None of them make up the cake alone. Yet together, all those ingredients make a delicious cake. It’s like that with fellowship. All of us together show the glory of God. The 2nd reason is that FELLOWSHIP MAKES US STRONGER No matter where we are in our faith, the fellowship provides us with strength. Being around other believers gives us the chance to learn and grow in our faith. It demonstrates to us why we believe, and sometimes it is an excellent food for our souls. It’s great to be out in the world evangelizing others, but it can easily make us hard and eat away at our strength. When we deal with a hard-hearted world, it can become easy to fall into that hard-heartedness and question our beliefs. It’s always good to spend some time in fellowship so that we remember that God makes us strong. The 3rd reason is that FELLOWSHIP PROVIDES ENCOURAGEMENT We all have bad moments. Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a failed exam, money problems, or even a crisis of faith, we can find ourselves down. If we go too low, it can lead to anger and a feeling of disillusionment with God. Yet these downtimes are why fellowship is essential. Spending time with other believ