FELLOWSHIP
". . . fellowship is not conditioned upon conformity of opinion, unanimity in every
interpretation, or equality in knowledge. We are not brothers because we see
everything alike but because we have the same Father. Fellowship is based upon
sonship, brotherhood is based upon fatherhood, fraternity results from paternity."1
"Our obedience to the demands of the gospel, introduces us into that state or condition
called fellowship with God. We are in fellowship with each other only because we
sustain the same relationship to Him."2
"1. Fellowship with God is not contingent upon a perfect knowledge of the divine
revelation.
2. It is not contingent upon attainment to a life of sinless perfection.
3. It is not contingent upon an ability to explain or expound every point of doctrine."3
"On the divine side, fellowship is a union with and a participation in the life of Christ
through the Spirit; on the human side it is a communion with brethren whose mutual
relations were transformed by the Spirit."4
"One of the most tragic misconceptions is based on the idea that fellowship is
synonymous with, or equivalent to, endorsement of everything the other 'fellow' may
hold or advocate."5
"Every baptized penitent believer on this earth is my brother, and we are in fellowship,
because we are a part of the brotherhood of Christ. . . I am in fellowship with every
saved person on this earth, that is, if I am saved!'6
"(1 John 1:3). . . Now, if God being perfect, can fellowship us in our ignorance and
imperfection, why do we set up a standard for others which he did not set up for us?"7
"The fact is that fellowship of the new covenant is not based upon unanimity of opinion,
interpretation, or even understanding of scriptural doctrine. It does not imply nor
indicate endorsement of the position of one with whom we may differ. Fellowship is one
thing; endorsement of a position taken by another is a wholly different thing. Fellowship
of Christ, and in Christ is a state or condition into which we are called by God through
the gospel; endorsement of an interpretation or idea of one in or out of that fellowship is
a rational act of our own minds. "8
"We do not come into the fellowship because we are of the same mind, or have the
same love; but we come to be of the same mind and have the same love because we
are in the fellowship. God brings us into fellowship through grace; we grow together by
mutual eagerness to maintain that unity. "9
"We have no right tomake anything a test of fellowship which God has not made a
condition of salvation. . .
"As for me, I shall make no demands which God has not made. I shall create no tests of
fellowship which God has not made conditional to salvation."10
"We should guard against any future division among believers by resolving never to
make anything a test of fellowship which God has not made a condition of salvation.
This one principle accepted now, will guarantee that no other cleavage will ever occur
among earnest believers in the Savior."11
"Fellowship is not endorsement of another's views. It is not agreement with opinions of
another, but love for the person which transcends his views and yours. It is a state or
relationship in Jesus. We are called into fellowship by the gospel. Nothing should ever
be made a test of fellowship which God has not made a condition of salvation. We do
not come into the fellowship by agreement upon opinions; we should not disrupt it
because of disagreement over such. If fellowship in Christ was conditioned upon
perfect agreement, there would be no place for forbvear-ance, and the instruction to
'forbear one another in love' would be useless."12
"Must we conclude that a physician endorses illness because he visits among them and seeks to help the sick? . . .
The problem of many of my brethren is the same as that of the scribes and Pharisees
who could not understand how Jesus could fraternize with the publicans and sinners
and yet not endorse sin."13
"If fellowship is based upon equality in understanding and perfection in interpretation
how can we be in fellowship with God until we know as much as God?"14
"Just as the fellowship is not entered by a view of these (controverted) issues, and
because of that, it is our contention that it is not broken or destroyed by an opinion on
these matters. Fellowship is brotherhood. Brotherhood is the result of a common
Fatherhood. Disagreements with each other about certain things do not remove us from
the family. The term used to describe the family relationship of God's children is
'fellowship'."15
"Fellowship is not endorsement. It is not unanimity of opinion or conformity in
interpretation. We do not come into the fellowship because we see everything alike, but
because we are in fellowship we strive to see things alike. Fellowship is a reality into
which we are introduced by God, harmony is an ideal toward which we are to strive in
that relationship."16
"Anyone who predicates fellowship upon unanimity of opinion or understanding lays the
foundation for the dissolution of all fellowship. Such a position is unscriptural,
impractical, and impossible of attainment."17
"Let us grant that brethren are wrong in their reasoning when they adopt individual
cups, Bible classes, uninspired literature, instrumental music, etc., still these do not
destroy the fellowship for it is not based upon any of them, nor upon all of them put
together. Those who adopt them are still brethren if they were before. Fellowship is not
something we can extend or withdraw. It is a divine relationship which God has created.
It is a brotherhood!"18
"I simply say, as did Brother J. N. Armstrong, late president of Harding College, I will
make nothing a test of fellowship which God has not made a condition of salvation'. To
be in error is not necessarily a sin unless it is voluntary, else all of us will be damned,
for none of us know it all. Only those doctrines which separate us from God should
separate us from each other. One comes into the fellowship of God and Christ through
faith in the Sonship and acknowledgment of the Lordship of Jesus over his life. Only by
renouncing that lordship through denial of Jesus in word or conduct is that fellowship
broken. God never disinherits any of his children because they are honestly mistaken
and we should not divide them."19
"I shall love all of my brothers and move among them as they will allow, sharing in what
they can convey, sharing with them what little I have learned. I shall receive them as
God received me, not because of perfection, but in spite of imperfection."20
"My appeal to the brethren all over the world is very simple. There is nothing complex
about it. It is merely a plea that we recognize all of our brothers as brethren and treat
them that way. Surely if a man is a son of my Father he has a right to talk to and call
upon my Father."21
"If you are good enough for God to receive, you are not too bad for me to accept. If he
welcomes you with open arms it ill becomes me to approach you with a closed heart. "22
"Fellowship is not the endorsement of another's position or views...
We endorse a lot of things done by people with whom we are not in fellowship; we are
in the fellowship with people who do a lot of things we cannot endorse."23
"Harmony is not essential to fellowship but is a goal of those who are in the fellowship .
. . We are not in the fellowship because we walk in peace, but we walk in peace
because we are in the fellowship."24
"Koinonia refers to that which is held in common, and in the new covenant scriptures it
is the sharing of the common life created by the indwelling Spirit of God. Every person
on earth in whom the Spirit abides is in the fellowship with every other such person in
the universe."25
"In our sectarian attitudes with their creedal barriers and legalis-tic lines, carefully
drawn and meticulously defined, it is easy to equate the limits of God's grace with the
boundaries of our acceptance. But God is not obligated to welcome only those we
receive; instead, we are obligated to welcome all whom He receives."26
"If the Spirit has brought us together in one body, let us start right now to enjoy it. We
are coming to realize that oneness is a fact and that encourages me to say that our
problems will be put in proper perspective. They will not be problems of fellowship, but
problems in the fellowship. We can then attack our problems rather than one another."27
"We do not come to agreement in order to be in fellowship. Growing agreement is a
fruit of fellowship, and not the seed from which it germinates. We start with fellowship
and work toward agreement."28
"I can now go anywhere and share with anyone who loves my God. Our differences are
never as great as the welding power of his blood. I will not thwart the work of the cross
to have my way. No opinion, no method of work, no interpretation of some subtle point
of doctrine is as precious to me as my brother. I will hold my opinions in my mind and
my brethren in my heart. I cannot give up my opinions as long as they are mine, but I
will not give up my brothers as long as they are his. It is no longer a question with me of
withstanding my conscience or withdrawing from my brethren. I just retain them both
and cherish them. This is the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in my eyes. "29
"Let's receive our brethren in Christ, in spite of their presuppositions and mental
spectacles, and then we can talk with them the rest of our lives about our differences,
not as warring and hostile tribesmen, but as brethren beloved in the Father."30
"I am optimistic because there is a growing recognition that harmony is not a
prerequisite to fellowship, but fellowship creates the atmosphere in which to labor
toward harmony. Not one command to live in harmony, or to be of one mind, was ever
given to bring men into the fellowship, but every such command was given to those
who were already in the fellowship, and because they were in it."31
"There are some two dozen factions in the non-instrumental segment of the disciple
brotherhood. Each one thinks that it alone is in the light and all of the others are in
darkness. Since 'fellowship one with another' is conditioned upon 'walking in the light'
and since the light is the legalistic code of the faction, fellowship is regarded as
ordained of God to be limited to fellow-partisans."32
Fellowship
| 1Sept., 1964, p. 135
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17July, 1962, pp. 8, 9
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| 2Jan., 1958, p. 3
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18July, 1962, p. 11
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| 3Jan., 1958, p. 3
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19Nov., 1963, p. 164
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| 4Jan., 1958, p. 3
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20April, 1963, p. 54
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| 5Feb., 1958, p. 4
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21Feb., 1963, p. 24
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| 6Feb., 1958, p. 5
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22May, 1966, p. 85
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| 7Feb., 1958, p. 4
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23Dec., 1967, p. 179
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| 8Feb., 1958, p. 4
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24Dec., 1967, p. 179
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| 9June, 1958, p. 1
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25Dec., 1967, p. 179
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| 10Oct., 1958, pp. 12, 13
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26Nov., 1977, p. 162
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| 11Nov., 1958, p. 2
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27Mar., 1972, p. 41
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| 12May, 1959, p. 12
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28Mar., 1972, p. 41
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| 13Mar., 1961, p. 5
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29Dec., 1971, pp. 177, 178
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| 14April, 1961, p. 5
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30Sept., 1952, p 137
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| 15May, 1961, p. 6
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31Mar., 1970, p. 41
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| 16Nov., 1961, p. 3
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32May, 1965, p. 71
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CONTENTS
GOSPEL--DOCTRINE