Five-Fold Koinonia and Complete Cleansing

In the Light

(1 John 1:7, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, January 31, 2016)

[7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Koinonia reviewed

This word (see etymology back from “fellowship” to “partner” to “common” to “with”) is barely used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament (LXX), and was only tasted by prophets and worshipers prior to the incarnation of the Son of God. It comes to life in the New Testament community and appears about twenty times, with this rich theology. This fellowship includes:

GOD koinonia: Through gospel faith in Christ, it is possible for humans to have a real koinonia with God including all three persons of the Godhead (1 John 1:3, 1 Cor. 1:9, 2 Cor. 13:14).

CHURCH koinonia: This fellowship with God results in a deeper fellowship with others who share in this koinonia with God, His message, and His mission in the world (1 John 1:3, Phil 1:5).

LORD'S SUPPER koinonia: This church connection with God and His people of faith is reflected in a sacramental koinonia that we experience at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 10:16).

GIVING koinonia: That sacramental communion is to shine forth in a living and giving togetherness that is an essential part of what the church did from the beginning (Acts 2:42-47).

SUFFERING koinonia: All of this rich theology and Christian experience leads us to view even our sufferings in a very new and powerful way because of our fellowship with Jesus and His church (Phil. 3:10, Phil 2:5-11).

If

“If we walk in the light...” Remember that John has an expectation that the people receiving his letter ARE engaged in the spiritual battle of the Christian life, and they are WINNING that battle. (2:12-14) Can we have that same understanding of our own condition, that we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us? If so, we understand the warnings in this letter not as a condemnation of ourselves, but as an aid in the fight against sin (2:1) for all believers.

Walk in the light as He is in the light

What does it mean to walk in the light? We have already been told that God is light. We certainly know that He is in the light, with all of the moral excellence that this includes. We understand that the Lord has commandments, and that we are called to follow His Word. We do that by the power of the Holy Spirit. Walking in the light is the same thing as living by the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). It is also what Jesus calls us to do when He says to His disciples, “Follow Me” (Mark 1:17).

Even without these other equivalent expressions, there are other beautiful passages that tell us more about what it means to walk in the light of the Lord using the words “walk” and “light” such as Isaiah 2:5, John 8:12, and Ephesians 5:8. But here is one passage from James 3 that gives us a good picture of the Christian life contrasting the good conduct that flows from the wisdom that is from above with its earthly counterpart:

[13] Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. [14] But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. [15] This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. [16] For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. [17] But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. [18] And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

This is what it means for us to walk together in the light of the Lord. Back to 1 John 1:7, if we walk in the light as He is in the light (and we will), we should expect two wonderful results.

Fellowship with one another

First, we have koinonia with one another. We were made by God to bond with Him and with one another, not to be isolated, despite the fact that we may frequently choose what is not good for us—a reclusive life. A life without fellowship may seem safe or just plain restful, but it is not what is best for us. [New understanding of addiction: Not all chemistry. Bonding choices.]

The bonding of koinonia is more than the togetherness that the world can provide. All five elements of the kingdom of heaven life are supposed to be evident in the church. They are a package deal, and that is what makes koinonia so special. God, His people, the Lord's Supper, ministry and mission, and even suffering—Where else can you find this? But we have it in the body of Christ. It comes to those who walk in the light as Jesus is in the light.

The blood of Jesus, the Son of God, cleanses us from ALL sin

Second, we have the antidote for ALL sin—the blood of Jesus, the Son of God. The blood of Jesus is not some magic substance or incantation. It refers to the death of Jesus as our substitute. Jesus, the Son of God, with all the moral light of full divinity, became man, lived for us and died for us without any sin. But that was not the end of the story of His fight against sin in our lives. In His current place of authority at the right hand of the Father, He sends forth the Spirit of holiness to His koinonia people who walk in the light as He is in the light.

In an amazing process that we call sanctification, or growth in holiness, the Lord works mercifully in us to expose wrong thinking and living. He not only provides forgiveness, but cleansing for us. And look at the extent of this great work of moral renewal. He “cleanses us from ALL sin.”

Many people are so ashamed of who they are that they feel that they cannot tell the truth. Some refuse to join into the Lord's koinonia, because such intimacy and honesty seems like it could never work. What this means is that they cut themselves off from the Lord's people before they even have an opportunity to experience what God has for them within the body of Christ.

James 4:17 says, “Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” Too many people dwell in their sin without any experience that the blood of Jesus could truly cleanse them from all sin. They choose death and darkness rather than life and light. You don't have to make that choice. You can see the light, come to the light, and walk in the light as Jesus is in the light. You can have the gift of belonging to something that is bigger than yourself and that will never end. You can experience justification, adoption, sanctification. Do you want that? Start with the message of the gospel and surrender to Love Divine. Then walk in the light of Jesus as He is in the light. Receive the gift of five-fold koinonia and complete cleansing from all your sin.

Old Testament Reading—Deuteronomy 30:11-20 – The Choice of Life and Death

Gospel Reading—Luke 4:14-30 – Rejected at Nazareth

"... was blind, but now I see."

The Lie of Ethical Apostasy

(1 John 1:6, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, January 24, 2016)

[6] If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

Koinonia reviewed

This word (see etymology back from “fellowship” to “partner” to “common” to “with”) is barely used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament (LXX), and was only tasted by prophets and worshipers prior to the incarnation of the Son of God. It comes to life in the New Testament community and appears about twenty times, with this rich theology:

1. Through Christ, it is possible for humans to have a real koinonia with God including all three persons of the Godhead (1 John 1:3, 1 Cor. 1:9, 2 Cor. 13:14).
2. This fellowship with God results in a deeper fellowship with others who share in this koinonia with God, His message, and His mission in the world (1 John 1:3, Phil 1:5).
3. This church connection with God and His people of faith is reflected in a sacramental koinonia that we experience at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 10:16).
4. That sacramental communion is to shine forth in a living and giving togetherness that is an essential part of what the church did from the beginning (Acts 2:42).
5. All of this rich theology and Christian experience leads us to view even our sufferings in a very new and powerful way because of our fellowship with Jesus and His church (Phil. 3:10, Phil 2:5-11).

“If we say...” It is not enough to be able to say that we have this koinonia. There needs to be plain evidence in our life that we are walking with the God who “is light” in whom is “no darkness at all.” The light that is the true light of God is not just ceremonial. It is a moral light. If we say that we are walking with the God who is light, then we must love the light, and we cannot walk in darkness.

What does it mean to walk in darkness?

If the whole direction of our life is moving toward what God hates, how can we claim that we are followers of Jesus? But there is hope for people who will receive the powerful grace of God, turn around toward Him, and walk in the light of His Word. (1 John 2:4-5)

In trying to understand John's point in today's verse we need to remember that he states his purpose for writing plainly in 2:1. “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” He knows that we will have struggles and moral failures, but the clarity of this verse will help us to be honest in the fight against our sin, and that honesty can be a very powerful weapon. (2:12-13)

Steps of sin are lies for the one who claims koinonia with the sinless Jesus and His church. When we yield to temptation over and over again we lie over and over again and we become morally weak. We need to be clear that we are talking here about real sin according to God's Word and not about false guilt which is often based more on what someone else might think of me. False guilt is not our friend. A true recognition of sin is. But if we ignore the entreaties of a good friend and continue to walk in darkness, after awhile we may not be able to see the friend's face or to hear his voice. We are walking in one direction and he is walking in another. Both of us have destinations, but they are not the same. One road leads to the fullness of grace, the other leads to ethical apostasy. The word “apostasy” has to do with a defection or a revolt from something that a person once claimed to be true. We most frequently think about it in terms of our beliefs, but it can also be ethical. “Walking in darkness” is equivalent to the willful rejection of God's commandments. When entire churches begin to reject the clear moral teachings of the Lord, we have full-blown ethical apostasy. Then instead of two individuals that no longer can see eye to eye, we could instead have whole denominations that are moving toward different destinations. If a church willfully claims the right to reject the beliefs or the ethical practices of the Scriptures, that body is no longer in koinonia with the truth of Jesus. That should be obvious.

Before we get insensitive or just plain annoying about this, we need to distinguish between “walking in darkness” and struggling with remaining sin. Walking in darkness is also different from the horrors of ongoing addiction. But where we love sin, rejoice in sin, and despite every warning inside and outside of us, continue making progress toward perfect sin, we are most definitely walking in darkness, and heading toward a very dangerous destination. Then we have to ask ourselves, “Is this really wise? Could it be that I am going in the wrong direction?”

None of us are claiming sinlessness, least of all the apostle John. Saying we have no sin is a lie. More on that another day. But neither are we asserting a right to cling to sin and to become more and more sinful. Remember John's purpose in writing these things: “that you may not sin.” His clarity regarding these matters here and in other places is powerful. His goal is not self-accusation followed by self-condemnation, nor is it the accusation and condemnation of others. Only that we “may not sin.” Would that not be good for all of us? Wouldn't it be great for us to make good progress in grace?

Why is it inconsistent to walk in darkness and to have koinonia with God?

If God is perfect light, including moral holiness, of course he cannot have fellowship with sin. But then what kind of God would think it would be OK to get closer to Him and to ignore what He says more and more? What kind of Lord would say it was OK to have fellowship with Him and also have more and more signs that our life is largely consistent with the deeds of the flesh rather than with the fruit of the Spirit? (Galatians 6 – These helpful lists give us some specifics to consider.) And what kind of divine Friend would let us keep on walking on the same dangerous road without saying a thing about it until we were so far away from Him that we could not even hear His voice? Do we really want a God who thinks that progress in sin is fine?

The dangerous lie of ethical apostasy

Hardened and deliberate ethical apostasy is inconsistent with true Christian spirituality. Lord have mercy on us if we are stuck in this mess. May God help us to see His glory again today and to walk in the light. But how can we do that?

Consider the illustration of a movie that you love. You remember not only the words but the way that they are said. You walk in that movie by continually watching it and even thinking about it. Somewhere at the core of our life we need to have the Jesus of the gospel there, the Jesus who healed the man that was born blind. (John 9)

The Pharisees who were against Jesus healing on the Sabbath were convinced that Jesus was a sinner (John 9:24), but they were quite wrong. He came into this world that “those who do not see may see.” (John 9:39), We need to see. We need to yield to His way of life. We need to acknowledge even our worst moments of sin as sad and foolish missteps away from a general path of following the Lord, and then we need to get back on the path of the grace of the God who is perfect light.

Old Testament Reading—Numbers 12:1-16 – Miriam and Aaron Oppose Moses

Gospel Reading—Luke 4:1-13 – Temptation of Jesus

Light of the World in the Light of the Word - Bite-Sized Pieces

The Light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ

(1 John 1:5, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, January 17, 2016)

(5a) The source of the apostolic message

[5a]  This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, …

Jesus came to us as the perfect ambassador from the Father. His teaching was a message to us, but then so was His entire life. John writes as one who heard that message and passed it on.

John 20:21 “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”

1 Corinthians 5:20 “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

John does not invent an original message. Neither should we. We proclaim the Word of God to those who have ears to hear. There is nothing lacking in God's message that requires any new idea. The coming of Christ was a perfect message. So was His suffering. So too His miracles. His compassion told an important story that reached its culmination in the events of His death. The entirety of what God has to say to mankind finds its greatest expression in Jesus.

(5b) The essence of the apostolic message

[5b]  ... that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

What then is this message that Jesus displayed to us? John summarizes it in this verse with the word “light”—not partial light, but perfect light—the kind of radiance that has “no darkness at all.” God is perfect light. What does that mean? Consider these biblical properties of divine light:

1. Perfect light is physical (Matthew 17:2)
2. Perfect light is morally upright (John 3:19-21)
3. Perfect light takes what is hidden or obscured and reveals the truth (Luke 2:32)

So then, 2 Corinthians 4:6 “God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

Perhaps we can understand more about what John is saying about the divine light here if we consider the history of the light of the Lord that is encapsulated in 2 Corinthians 4:6.

1. God is and always has been the eternal physical, moral, and revelatory light (James 1:17).
2. As the Father of lights, He created light when He said “Let there be light,” in Genesis 1.
3. The divine light in the world has been obscured through sin, which is darkness. After sin entered into the world, sinful mankind could not stand direct contact with the glory of God. Moses had to wear a veil over his face after He met with God lest the Israelites be undone by even the reflected glory of God in the face of Moses (Exodus 34:29-35).
4. Jesus came into the world as the Light of the world. He has lived as the divine light and has “shone in our hearts” giving us the light of “the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Through Jesus, the light of God's glory is more and more for us.
5. One day we will live well in a world of perfect divine glory (Revelation 21:23, 22:5).

How can we live in the light of the Lord? His Word reveals His light in bite-sized pieces, aiding us in a progressive work of increasing Christlikeness. Example: OT Wisdom books and “exile.”

Old Testament Reading—Exodus 40:34-38 – The Glory of God in the Wilderness

Gospel Reading—Luke 3:23-38 – Genealogy of Jesus Christ

Happiness Under Exile—Lessons from the Old Testament Wisdom Literature

Resources:

1. Happiness, Randy Alcorn, (Tyndale, 2015)
2. John Piper's Lecture on C. S. Lewis and Joy,
   http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/lessons-from-an-inconsolable-soul
3. Harvard Study of Adult Development, http://www.ted.com/talks/robert_waldinger_what_makes_a_good_life_lessons_from_the_longest_study_on_happiness?language=en

Bible Survey Class on Home and Exile

1. Law                         5. Gospels
2. History                    6. Acts and Epistles
3. Wisdom                  7. Revelation
4. Prophets

What can we learn from the books of Old Testament wisdom that would help us to honor God and live well in a time when we may be a despised minority group within an ungodly world?

Psalm 137 – The Bitterness of Exile

Where do we find wisdom for survival?

Is it possible to flourish under conditions of exile?

What are we to do with our longings for vengeance?

What about the teachings of Jesus concerning enemies?

Job: 19:23-27 – Resurrection hope

29 – What once was

30 – What now is

37:5 – Redirection toward the Almighty

42 – Job's repentance and restoration

Psalms:

1 – The righteous and the wicked: The way things are and the way things ought to be

22 – The suffering and glory of the coming Messiah and King

150 – The worship of the Almighty

Proverbs:

3:1-12 – The wisdom of God's discipline

16:4 – Why the wicked?

Ecclesiastes:

1:2, 12:8 – Hevel

6:1-2 – Rise and fall, the disappointment of losing everything to the unrighteous

7:2 – The universal experience of mankind—losing it all

9:7-10 – Enjoy what you can.

11:1-2 – Be generous, even to enemies.

12:13-14 – Fear God. He will judge.

Song of Solomon:

8:13-14 – The best imagination - true myth

The Joy of Hearing the Voice of God With Friends

Have You Not Known? Have You Not Heard?

(1 John 1:4, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, January 10, 2016)

(4a) The apostolic writings

[4a]  And we are writing these things …

There is eagerness and passion concerning the Christian message when people hear it well and receive it as truth from God. We see this throughout the New Testament among those who were chosen by Christ to be apostles. These men were sent out by the Lord with a message and a mission regarding the good news of the forgiveness of sins. We see this in John's gospel as the resurrected Lord of the church speaks to the first church leaders concerning the trust given to them.

[19] On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” [20] When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. [21] Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” [22] And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. [23] If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (John 20:19-23)

This important commission reiterates Jesus' earlier commission to Peter in Matthew 16. This role of the apostles was not just to preach and teach, but also to write. Because of this we have four gospels, one account of the earliest history of the work of the Lord's church, 21 letters to churches including the one we are considering, and finally one apocalyptic book of revelation given to the elderly “beloved” disciple when he was an exile on the island of Patmos.

This heritage of speaking, writing, and living out the faith continues all over the world to the present hour. The things that are written, if they are at all like 1 John, include important truths about the person and work of Jesus Christ, whom we confess to be the Son of God and our only hope both in life and in death. We, like the apostle John, believe that the promotion of these truths is important not only for pioneer evangelism, but also to strengthen people in their faith and obedience.

(4b) The fullness of apostolic joy

[4b]  ... so that our joy may be complete.

To bring this message to the churches, like any good endeavor in this world requires sacrifice. But this is not the message of the verse before us. Instead John wants those who receive this letter to know he is serving the Lord in this way not according to some begrudging act of slavish obedience but because he expects that this will bring him overflowing joy. Some early manuscripts have an alternate reading, “so that your joy may be complete.” There is no doubt that this is also a great motivator. We can comprehend both of these reasonable expectations by taking the translation as it is and understanding “our” to refer to both those who bear the message and those who receive it and believe it.

There are about a dozen passages in the New Testament that speak of overflowing joy using the particular words of our text. Let me make three simple points from the teaching that comes to us from these verses:

1. There is an overflowing joy that comes to those who hear and obey the voice of the Lord in His Word. (John 3:29, John 15:10-11)
2. That overflowing joy can and does coexist with deep trials and even disappointments. (Acts 13:49-52, 2 Corinthians 7:2-4)
3. This overflowing joy is associated with committed godly friendships that make sanctification (growth in holiness) seem very plausible. (2 Timothy 1:4, 2 John 1:12) [Note the 75 year long Harvard Study of Adult Development that demonstrates the tremendous health and happiness benefits that come from the security of long-term committed friendships. But we have so much more than even the blessings of the best friendships because of the content of the message that we share together.]

The effectual proclamation of the apostolic message is central to the joy of the one who truly hears and believes the good news of Jesus Christ.

The message that John refers to in this verse is the best news that could ever bind friends together. It is a more lasting news of salvation than that which made Moses and his sister Miriam sing and dance in Exodus 15. The struggle between Israel and Egypt in those days had led to so many years of oppression. Relief from that evil was very good, but Christ has delivered us from a far more serious and longer-standing danger. The removal of an earthly adversary is a great help, but it will do nothing toward providing us with the righteousness that we need in order to have safe fellowship with God forever. Christ has given us credit for all the obedience that we will ever need through his own life and death for us. [An early hint of this came in His baptism.]

As great as all this is, we experience these blessings with real people who have actual weaknesses that can make relationships tricky. People who have had the blessing of even the best marriages know that they are not living in fairy-tale pretend relationships. Though both parties are sinners, they learn to give each other the support of lover and beloved and to say in the words of Song of Solomon “I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine.” In that assurance of true commitment there is health and life. How much more in relationships where God gives us the privilege of communicating the truths of real forgiveness from Him and the blessings of heavenly glories through Jesus?

But will we focus on the positive? In our marriages and in friendships of all kinds are we able to catch the truth of John's idea that we have the privilege of communicating with each other with the confident expectation that our words and lives will bring both lover and beloved great joy? This positive news can revitalize our marriages and friendships. Then add the gift of the Lord of glory Himself into the many wonderful relationships that we can enjoy with His people all over the world and we surely have a most amazing gift. [Candy's recent experience of joy with a new GirefShare friend from another church who had read her book.]

Isn't a healthy family relationship better than anything that money or fame could buy? Isn't the good life of godly friendship over the passage of decades better than the anonymity of consumer religion? “Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.” (Isaiah 40:28)

Old Testament Reading—Exodus 15:1-21 – The Songs of Moses and Miriam

Gospel Reading—Luke 3:1-22 – Jesus baptized by John

A New Life Beyond "Progressive" or "Libertarian"

Fellowship

(1 John 1:3, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, January 3, 2016)

(3a) The honest eyewitness proclamation

[3]  that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you,

Last Sunday we saw how serious God was in His Immanuel project. This amazing heavenly endeavor has always been so shocking that many throughout the centuries who wanted to be considered “Christians” by the church have nonetheless felt compelled to find a way to reject the apostolic teaching that Jesus was really there as a full human being. They wanted to assert that the Son of God was real, but that He only seemed to be a man. See “docetism” for more.

John's response to this false teaching was to assert the apostolic witness that those who were with Jesus during his brief earthly ministry and even in his days of resurrection not only heard and saw the Lord, but even touched Him with their hands. They knew Jesus with their senses, and therefore they were unwilling to deny His full humanity. Furthermore, the Jesus that they had seen and heard was the same Savior that they proclaimed to all who wanted to know more.

(3b) The sincere desire for inclusiveness

so that you too may have fellowship with us;

The goal of this proclamation, according to 1 John 1:3, was “koinonia” or fellowship with those who had already received the message of Jesus. This person to person sense of belonging is a very special gift, but it is not limited to those who are Christians. A band of brothers can have a common endeavor involving great sacrifice that causes them to have a shared life. Certainly this is supposed to be one of the joys of life within a healthy extended family or community.

(3c) The startling truth of fellowship between God and people

and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

Yet John goes far beyond this horizontal experience of koinonia to one that was both vertical and horizontal, built upon the foundation stone of the koinonia man who was and is both fully God and fully man. To have fellowship with Jesus is to have fellowship even with the Father, and then in a completely unheard of way, to have fellowship with all those everywhere who have become a part of Jesus koinonia.

This word (see etymology back from “fellowship” to “partner” to “common” to “with”) is barely used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament (LXX), and was only tasted by prophets and worshipers prior to the incarnation of the Son of God. It comes to life in the New Testament community and appears about twenty times, with this rich theology:

1. Through Christ, it is possible for humans to have a real koinonia with God including all three persons of the Godhead (1 John 1:3, 1 Cor. 1:9, 2 Cor. 13:14).
2. This fellowship with God results in a deeper fellowship with others who share in this koinonia with God, His message, and His mission in the world (1 John 1:3, Phil 1:5).
3. This church connection with God and His people of faith is reflected in a sacramental koinonia that we experience at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 10:16).
4. That sacramental communion is to be lived out in a living and giving togetherness that is an essential part of what the church did from the beginning (Acts 2:42).
5. All of this rich theology and Christian experience leads us to view our sufferings in a very powerful and new way (Phil. 3:10, Phil 2:5-11).

Those who respond to the message of the apostles by receiving and resting upon Christ alone as He is offered in the gospel have fellowship with the church and with the Lord God Almighty. Our fullest fellowship with God is a most important human need that can only come through embracing the apostolic message recorded for us in the Scriptures.

Living out koinonia is essential to Christian theology and experience. It sounds so different from normal life that it may sound like communism. The truth is that Christian koinonia is an indictment upon our over-identification as either “progressives” or “libertarians.” Progressives tend to see ultimate authority and ownership in the collective, with the collective granting rights to the individual. The libertarian starts with the assumption that human beings own themselves, and that any role for the collective is granted by the free choice of individuals with constitutional protection against an overzealous majority. Both miss the biblical importance of the words of 1 Corinthians 6:19-20: “You are not your own. You were bought with a price.” and Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.”

Our identity is not in any political movement, but in the God of Christian koinonia who gave Himself for us, and who owns us and everything else.

How then does this Christian koinonia work. Consider this testimony from Bill and Beth Spead's daughter, Elizabeth: “As this year comes to a close, I had originally been planning on posting a "good riddance" type of status. This has been a very hard year for our family (immediate and extended, and continuing right up to the final hours with mom's fall and breaking her back today!), a year that was difficult for our marriage, a year that has been more stressful than any other year we have lived through, both emotionally and financially, and a year in which several close friends experienced huge doses of physical and relational pain. However, God is Good, ALL THE TIME, and this year we have felt the outpouring of His blessings and protection over our family in ways that we would have never seen if He has chosen an easy path for us in 2015. We have had friends come around us, lifting us up in prayer, providing tangibly for our family in many many ways, and allowing us to show others a visual testimony of how Christians are called to care for one another. In many ways I'm glad 2015 is drawing to a close, but I can honestly say that I'm humbled and honored that He has taken our family through these trials this year, so that we can grow closer to Him and to our church family. Here's to 2016 hopefully giving us more opportunities to do the same for others!”

Consider also the experience of early Christians recorded for us in Acts 2:41-47: “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. [42] And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. [43] And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. [44] And all who believed were together and had all things in common. [45] And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. [46] And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, [47] praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

Above all consider the incarnation and the cross, and let Jesus' mind be in you. (Phil. 2)

Old Testament Reading—Genesis 28:10-22 – Stairway to heaven

Gospel Reading—Luke 2:41-52 – The boy Jesus at the temple