LESSON EIGHT
THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

1 John 1:2 (And the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and report to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us);

3 That which we have seen and heard we report also to you that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.

THE SOURCE OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

Where does the fellowship of life come from? What is its cause? And from what is it derived? 1 John 1:2-3 says: “We (the Apostles)…show unto you (the believers) the eternal life…that ye also may have fellowship with us: yea, and our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” These verses show that the Apostles preached unto us “the eternal life” so that we may have “fellowship.” (The Knowledge of Life, p. 55)

THE BELIEVERS’ RESPONSIBILITIES
IN REGARD TO THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

If we want to continue in the fellowship of the Lord’s life, we must abide in the Lord according to the teaching of the anointing (2:27). The teaching of the anointing is the Holy Spirit operating in us. We must obey the Holy Spirit’s operation in us and abide in the Lord according to this operation. This way we can continue to live in the fellowship of the Lord’s life without a break. The moment we disobey the operation of the Holy Spirit, our fellowship with the Lord is broken.

Once we see our sins in the fellowship of the Lord’s life because of the Lord’s light of life, we must confess our sins to God. If we are willing to confess our sins to God, they will be forgiven and cleansed by God. We will then be brought more deeply into the fellowship of the Lord’s life. If we do not confess our sins, they will stay on us and cause our fellowship with the Lord to be broken (1:7-10).

THE RESULTS OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

Receiving God’s Light

And this is the message which we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all (v. 5). If we live in the fellowship of the Lord’s life, we are indeed in the Lord’s light of life. The Lord’s light of life within will show us our sins in the fellowship of His life.

Gaining the Cleansing of the Blood

When in the fellowship of life we are enlightened by the Lord’s light of life to see our sins and confess them to God, the blood of the Lord cleanness us from our sins (v. 7).

Gaining the Lord’s Abiding

When we abide in the Lord, we have the Lord’s abiding in us (John 15:4-5) as our life, power, joy, peace, and all the riches of His life in our practical experience.

Bearing Much Fruit to Glorify God

As the branch abides in the vine with no barrier between itself and the vine and thus receives the supply of rich sap bears much fruit, so also we who abide in the Lord and fellowship with the Lord receive the supply of the Lord’s life and bear much fruit (vv. 4-5). (Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, pp. 428-430)

References: The Knowledge of Life, ch. 6; Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, ch. 22; Life Lessons, lsn. 31.