 Gracious God, Heavenly Father, in Jesus' name, I just implore you, I beseech you, in behalf of this dear brother who has been a valuable messenger in equipping saints for decades. I pray, Heavenly Father, that once again you would pour out the blessing through him. Father, I pray for a clear and clean channel that might be used by you for your glory as we worship together in this place again today. Bless him as he speaks to us about encountering Christ and the fellowship of the saints. I pray, Heavenly Father, that you would quicken his tongue. May it not be dull in any sense that you would heal his body that has been afflicted to some degree this past several days and just use him as a vessel for your praise and for your glory. Bless us each one as we listen to this message as we take it in as we drink of the fountain. May we worship the old Father in spirit and in truth during this service. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. God bless you. It is certainly a great blessing to greet you in Jesus' name this morning and we welcome all of you here. It has been a very humbling experience for us during this weekend to be together and I realize that all of you were here through all the sessions but the Lord has been working here among us and they say the title of this message is Encountering Christ and the Fellowship of the Saints and I just want to call attention to the fact that you have a folder, a program and at the beginning of that program it says KFW and do you know what the letter F stands for in those three initials? And then I'd like to do something with that word fellowship, Kingdom Fellowship weekend. For as much as we appreciate the fellowship we have here, as much as we appreciate the blessing of being together in this way. For as viable as this is to us to be here for the equipment that God puts into our hearts because we're together here. Our goal is this year in Kingdom Fellowship weekend that we take that F and take it back home. There is where fellowship is truly tried. There's where fellowship is truly tested. There's where we find out if our fellowship is with the Father and with the Son. It is back home. There's a tremendous amount in my life that I can hide from you on a weekend. I don't hide it from my brothers and sisters at home. I don't want to hide it from my brothers and sisters at home. In fact we only have fellowship one with another to the extent that we don't hide it. So I want to make that point at the very beginning here. What we're experiencing here, hearing here, what God is filling our hearts with here, we must take back home to our local assemblies and there we must live it. Now, a good sermon is supposed to have three points in it. Mine does not. I only have one point. I'm going to try to get this point across. You won't have to listen very long this morning until you'll find out what that point is if you're extremely discerning. I will not ask you to raise your hand as soon as it dawns on you what this point is. But if you're paying attention you will get it and then throughout the rest of the time we're together here we will try to reinforce it. But there's only one point this morning. Encountering Christ in the fellowship of the saints. If you would desire to meet Christ today where would you go to find him? If you for 12 years would have wasted all of your substance for an embarrassing medical problem that didn't allow you to mingle with the public where would you expect to find Christ so that you could reach up and touch the hem of his garment? Where would you go to find that? How many of you know where we are by now? Did you figure it out yet? You know where we are don't you brother Joel? You follow me here. If you would desire to present your smoke child to Christ where would you go to do that? If you were burdened with sin and hoped to find cleansing and forgiveness where would you expect to find Christ and you will not find him in Simon the Pharisee's house you can't go in that door and kneel down at someone's feet he will not be there but where would you go? If you would be a little stature would you climb a sycamore tree in order to be able to see Jesus? Where can Christ be found? And now I'll make a first point someone told me this morning yeah we we have a little house church and I didn't say it to the dear brother but I thought it there was a time when this bible was being written that's all they had was house churches that is they had house meetings and we have meeting houses but they had house meetings and yet as biblical as it is to have house meetings many of those house meetings did not work they are of short duration and people find themselves migrating from house meeting to house meeting and after a time of disillusionment they they they make an interesting decision they decide to start their own and then invite people to their version and usually the results are about the same and I will tell you why there's difficulty there the reason why there's difficulties is because the purpose for which we've done it the purpose for which we're migrating and checking it out and the moving van goes from place to place there's nothing wrong with moving is because I'm trying to find something or I'm trying to get away from something but it's not our heart's desire and effort it's not the purpose and as brother John said our passion to be sure that anyone ever runs into us ever encounters us ever comes in among us finds one thing when they get there the greatest need that they have is to find Christ in that fellowship of the saints and that is where the world should encounter Christ and that's where I need to encounter Christ because though the lady was is burdened with her physical maladies or though there are sins that she cannot take care of in her life and she brings an alabaster box and brings tears and hair in order to worship him in many many ways I'm the same way in an assembly of God's people I must find Christ there I can't make it without it and that is where Christ is found he is encountered in the fellowship of the saints and then we should certainly support that with scripture this is not the text this morning but I'm going to turn to several verses this is still introduction between Matthew 18 this is Jesus speaking here I'll read two verses 19 and 20 again I say unto you that if two of you shall agree on earth is touching anything that they shall ask it should be done for them but my father which is in heaven for where two or three are gathered together in my name would someone like to finish that verse there am I and so if someone's looking for word to encounter Christ that that's where he is and then the question is what should be the nature of that fellowship so that he is there in the midst and anyone that comes would discover that first quick is 14 another text that indicates this again very very clearly and jumping in the middle of a sentence here if you don't mind me doing that verse 23 if therefore the whole church become together into one place and I'll speak with tongues and there come in of those that are unlearned and or unbelievers well they not say that you're mad but of all prophesy and there come in one that believe it not or one unlearned he is convinced of all he is judged of all and thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest and so following down in his face he will worship God and report that God is in you of a truth these are powerful words from scripture and tells you that Christ will be found there Ephesians chapter 3 these are again beautiful words verses 16 through 21 that he would grant you according to the riches of his glory to be strengthened with all might by his spirit and the inner man that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith that she being rooted and grounded in love they be able to come to him with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height and to know the love of Christ which past knowledge that she may be filled with all the fullness of God now to him that is able to exceeding abundantly above all that we ask her think according to the power that worketh in us to him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages world without end amen the church is a body of Christ the church is his life his power his love and his healing the church is the place of his victory of his forgiveness his peace his fullness are found in the church of Jesus Christ that was Ephesians 3 this is Ephesians 4 verses 11 through 13 and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ till we all come to the unity of the faith and to the knowledge of the Son of God onto a perfect man this is plural this is corporate this is your assembly this is your fellowship this is where you're committed onto the measure of the statue of the fullness of Christ that's what the congregation is that's what the church is that's what the local assembly is so we're preaching there and someone had this great big this great beautiful white board there that you could draw a lot and write all kinds of notes and there was an artist in the audience so I asked him to come up front here and draw a rather rapid version there of the statue of liberty and so that was done and we and he did a very very good job doing that in the few moments that he quickly drew that up there he's a he's an artist and just there there all of a sudden the statue of liberty appeared in front of us and so now you see that illustration to illustrate this verse and so here's this assembly of saints and here's the edifying the body of Christ here's the one soul ministering to another one here is the love flowing here is life moving from heart to heart and something strange is happening this whole thing is growing as this is happening this thing is growing and it's not growing because 25 more moving bands moved in the community in the past year this thing is growing what is happening this image is being perfected and we have this glorious representation we have this glorious presence of Christ in the midst and we grow up to this stature we grow up to this fullness we grow up to this representation we grow up into and to the point where we are here in this world ministering the way Christ ministered and doing for people with Christ did for people and this is the local assembly this is what the church is for and there's no other place to get this done there's no other place that meets this need there's no other place to go to find the image of him that filled with all things and his glory fills the house and so these scriptures find the greatest fulfillment in that local assembly that local gathering together of God's people the church of Jesus Christ wherever that happens to be in the culture community in isolation wherever it is where it finds itself and that's why I think the competition between churches is such a foolish thing that's why I am better than you are it's such a terrible attitude that's why me needing to stand in the pulpit and condemn other groups who did not do it like we do it seems like such an awful violation of the glory that our Lord is worthy of it just seems like something terrible is happening when I need to do that because we have the greatest opportunity in all the world to let this stature and fullness in Christ Jesus grow into an image of holiness unto our Lord a testimony of his presence among us and I know we don't all do it the same way someone has called my attention this weekend to the tremendous variety of people that are gathered here I know that everyone that's here is welcome to be here you're here because we want you to be here you're all welcome here if each of us would concentrate on this one thing if anyone in our communities if anyone of our neighbors if anyone that's driving on the highway if anyone becomes aware there's a little church over here if anyone that would drive past would discover that there's a little group of God's people gathered together and they would have one of the greatest needs in their life that that you've ever found in Matthew, Mark or Luke or John and they would they would choose to come to your assembly and get out of their vehicle and then come into your meeting house and say I hope that here could happen I hope that here I'd be a joy of here and they don't know what to expect if you would think of gathered together with that in mind we represent the Christ of the gospel in this community where we are what kind of a powerful testimony what kind of word for the Lord what kind of work a witness would go out from your place if that would be spread abroad if you ever need to meet Christ go over there you'll find it there and I don't have to go any further before my heart begins to burn I'm not to go any further before I seek great needs in our congregation at home the things we need to be proved to so this stature can grow so men can find this kind of help we tend to think of church too often as a gathering in a building as in this expression for example and just where do you go to church that question was asked many many times since Friday afternoon on this campus and that's an interesting question and we understand what you mean when you ask that question we tend to think of Sunday school with which no one in the book of Acts ever thought about they didn't know that that existed we might think of bringing a bible and a hymn book along with us or maybe there's one in Iraq at the church where you go we might even think of this well let's see whose turn is it to preach on Sunday these are things we think about but we think of church but the church is the embodiment of Christ as we have fellowship one with another we have fellowship with Christ listen to this very very well known verse in as much as you've done it onto one of the least of these my brethren you have done on to me does the gathering of saints where I assemble reflect the person of Jesus Christ that's the only place to find him and you know I realized that a person could get on their knees any place at all and have an encounter with Jesus by faith I know the person can find a bible someplace they never had one read in a bible that has happened in all kinds of interesting ways throughout history the prisoner in Vietnam during the war that had to clean the the the trains the trains in the prison camp they found these papers that were used there they were soiled with because they were used for they're in the toilets they saw writing on those papers and he tried to clean the dirty away so he could read what was on those pages and he did not know what he was reading but he was reading pages of a bible someone were tearing pages out of a bible to use for that and he started collecting these papers and when his week was up that he was this but not supposed to clean it anymore and somebody else could do he asked his prison responsible person there if he could keep on doing that for a while longer to get more papers the person could find Christ that way and many have but there's something unique about finding saints gathered together where there's love flowing where there's deep appreciation where there's a humble spirit towards one another there's a beautiful thing happening when someone notices someone cares someone asks someone invites someone offers word of hope the beautiful thing happens and the needs no matter how seriously are and how crippling and debilitating them might be can be brought into this assembly and God uses those brothers and sisters there to minister to my heart to my needs and as you hear those words this morning I wonder if your heart burns do you desire that in your life I'd say is that missing in your life you might meet with a group of 300 all alone you're all alone why are you all alone it's a terrible thing to be alone you see the church was birthed by the twin dynamics two things happening to happening together that brought the church into existence we have the united prayer of the few chosen ones the few gathered ones we have that united prayer and then into that united prayer meeting the holy spirit descended I'll just read that for you there in Acts chapter one verse 14 they're in an upper room here it says in verse 13 these all continue with one accord in prayer and supplication with the whim of Mary the mother of Jesus and with his brethren chapter 2 verse 1 says that when the day of Pentecost was fully come they were all with one accord in one place and suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind and it filled all the house where they were sitting and there appeared unto them cloven tongues like a fire and suddenly each one of them they were all filled with the holy ghost that began to speak with other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance in the church with birth here and we have a unique and beautiful result of that recorded verses 42 through 47 and some of you may not have been here when this package has several times been read in this assembly and they continue steadfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship and in breaking of bread and prayers and if you're came upon every soul and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles and all that believed were together and had all things common and sold their possessions and goods and part of them to all men as every man had need and they continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house they eat their bread with gladness and signals of heart praising God and having favor with all the people and the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved so we have this beautiful word fellowship here in verse 42 and some of you might know Spanish here in this audience I just thought I would tell you that the difference between the Spanish version of verse 42 here and this that I just read is this that our Spanish Bible says and they all continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine and in fellowship one with another that's in Spanish it's not in English and in breaking of bread and prayers fellowship one with another fellowship with the saints fellowship is a distinctly New Testament word fellowship is dynamic dynamic means that something is happening there's a function something is taking place what when there's fellowship it's not just the two people are together it's just not the one is here and one is here that if there's fellowship something is going on between those two people there there's an activity there's action that's why I use the word dynamic there's power here there's something is functioning life is flowing I will show you a little word picture of this and mark chapter five and some of you might not have bibles but if you do not read it to you but this lady I referred to her in the introduction she had issued blood for 12 years I think it was 12 years this it says 12 years in verse 25 but I want to read verse 30 and verse 30 comes to us after she already touched him and she's worked her way through that crowd and come up with me behind where she said if I may touch but his clothes I shall be whole this is amazing thought that she had and straight way the fountain of her blood was dried up and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague and I want you to notice verse 30 and Jesus immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him turned him about in the press and said who touched my clothes the disciples thought it was a unusual and and a wrong kind of question to ask but Jesus felt something going out from him Spanish Bible says he felt power going out from him and that's fellowship and so brother Leonard asked us to stand and shake the hand and wish a blessing and when we were having true fellowship one another something is flowing something is happening something's happening to my life and something is happening to your life it's not just a static experience it's not just a social club it's not just a toast as we snap the edges of the glasses together over the top of the table it's not just a coffee seat though it's not a snack there's fellowship that means it's something's happening for one person to another person that means the cords that are broken can vibrate once more it means it's something that is ruined and depressed and lonely and rejected find strength new encourage to try to start over again this happens time and again in our services this happens in ways we know nothing about but virtue is flowing in the worship service it's flowing in the between the aisles after the service we usually have three church services every Sunday morning in our congregation usually the people meet out behind we don't have a four-year in our building it's just a little tiny room but there's a little bit of a porch out there and it rains a lot in Costa Rica so you have to have a room a roof because it's a lot of rain we get 220 inches a year we live so the first services out there and everyone's so glad to meet each other it may be a be a couple days since we've seen all those people and we there's not very many of us but we're all glad to be together and after after a period of time everyone goes inside the building and sits down and then we have a second service in there and then when that's over we get back out there again a third one I don't know how long that one's gonna last but some very very beautiful things happen in the first service and the third one and I think sometimes some things happen in the middle service too but something's happening between people and and for virtue to flow from us for power to go out from us it takes a commitment there and if I have some kind of resentment in my heart towards a brother that's there some kind of jealousy I feel somehow another threatened by what he's doing threatened by his gift threatened by his contribution if I feel that in my heart uh no it will not happen I'll miss the opportunity I won't even become aware and not only that but my very nature my very spirit being wrong as it is and prideful as it is and selfish as it is without that person wouldn't even dare to sneak up behind and touch the bottom of the garment well wouldn't feel free to do it and what matter person should we be in our assemblies what kind of church service should we have how should this local assembly look so that the person with the greatest need that can pass me be stepping into that building this day could feel free I this this is what I'm facing this is what happened to me I am a mess I am not fit just like someone said in our service just a few surfaces back I am not fit to be a mother I'm an awful wife for my husband I am a mess could somebody please pray for me could somebody help me I am a mess if you're not experiencing that in your church if in your assembly somebody would not be free to say that I'd like to ask you something why not because I will assure you you you have that in your church just like we have it in ours I will assure you these people are needed up here just like they're needed down there that's not all I will assure you I'm the one that needs it I am the needy one I'm the one that's having a church like that so I'm trying to help you understand what this means when it says encountering Christ in the fellowship of the church in the fellowship of the saints it's a very very beautiful concept concept virtue moves from one to another first John chapter one yes that which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes which we've looked upon our hands of handled of the word of life see Jesus was here then he was physically here on the earth the life was manifested that we have seen it and bear witness and show unto you that eternal life which was with the Father has manifested unto us that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you how you do that that you also may have fellowship with us and truly our fellowship is with the Father with the Son Jesus Christ and these things right we unto you that your joy may be full this that is the message which we have heard of him and declare unto you were she declared that God is light and in him is no darkness at all if we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness we lie and do not the truth but if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship one with another the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin brother Joe what is that Greek tense that we have here in the word cleanseth which means it's continually progressive actions or as tense there is tense that he said in Greek heirs tense I will say this that fellowship is always an heirs tense that's just the way it is fellowship is continuous action fellowship is the transmission of life fellowship is a parallel circuit we're all united with Christ if you're electrician you know what I mean I mean you have a parallel circuit you can put as many light bulbs as many whatever you want to on that circuit as you wish and each one receives an equal amount of it and all you're doing is just magnifying the effect of it and no one loses any of the put the potency of it it's a parallel circuit we're all united with Christ it's an impossible it is impossible to fellowship one another without having fellowship with the Christ with Christ at the same time what is this fellowship whereby we encounter Christ let's talk about that in just a little bit this fellowship and it could be that you have the saints of God in this fellowship union with each other and at the same time you might have unconverted people some neighbor some stranger someone who doesn't understand this thing some needy person who maybe has their fellowship with God broken for who knows whatever reason and then they're observing this dynamic that's going on here and you need to think about this as you're leading the singing you need to think about this as you're choosing the hymn you need to think about this as you're leading congregation prayer you need to think about this as you're preparing the sermon for the Sunday morning you need to think about this as you meet with your brother in the aisle after church service you need to think about this that something's happening here and there's someone here needs to encounter Christ someone here is observing is is desiring to feel to touch to understand what is this fellowship whereby we encounter Christ whereby the lost and the needy around us can encounter him whereby the unlearned and unbelievers may come to know him and again I want to remind you as we heard him Friday night then this sense in a very true sense this fellowship of which we speak is a is a strong evangelism power it's an evangelism tool well they tell me the this word and again Joe would you help me one more time here I don't know the word is pronounced cononia or cononia cononia and so that's the Greek word for it thank you brother and this word is not really hard to understand although I've never seen as clear a description or definition of this word in this language as I would like to have learned but let's talk about the word participation it's comes very very close to our English word participation participating in something something that we share mutually it's something we have all received and it's an identifying factor that brings us into oneness now I'll use this illustration where we live up there in the mountain in Costa Rica there are just little dairy farms up there you can't farm this ground up there it's too steep and there's too much rain no one needs a tractor to plow fields no one needs a ford to harvest through the cut drain or chop silage no such thing exists all you need is a cow that go out there and eat her and grass and and this is this is dairy country it's not really good for anything else and so cows are up in that grass all of our neighbors are dairy farmers so this one little road will winds its way up through these mountains and climbs higher and higher and that little road unites everyone together but there's something unique that identifies each one lives up there there are dairy farmers and so it kind of makes a you know an artificial little identification that brings us all together there uh and dairy farming is not easy there sometimes it rains too much and then the grass doesn't grow and we don't have any silos or any haymows you can't bail hay when it rains 220 inches a year the grass must grow for the cows every day so we have this united united factor that kind of holds us together but in fellowship there's something else that's a uniting factor it's an identifying factor that just brings us all into unity with each other and that is the fact that we've all participated in Christ we've all participated in his sufferings we all have met at that crucial juncture between our will and God's will and we've met Christ there and and that factor does something to each one of us and the backgrounds might be different and languages spoken are not the same culture is vastly different but this one unifying factor does something to these people that are gathered together in Jesus name with Christ in the midst that does something to between them then nothing else could do it brings us into oneness it is the one thing that makes us all alike and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch and this was interesting this I don't think they named themselves that I don't think the people back Jerusalem said oh interesting over in Antioch they've got Christians over there I believe this name came from the neighbors observing them it it's the means by which I seek Christ in my brother I'll stop right there by which I seek Christ in my brother my brother and think of the thoughts that are conjured up and think of the image that comes to your mind when all of a sudden you think of that one with whom there's a tension and whom there's a breach of fellowship and there's an avoidance and sometimes unkind words said and you hear that person's name and someone tries to give a little word of credit for something that that person has done and they appreciate so much and you can already stand that that's that someone is speaking well of one with whom your own heart is not at all agreement and you find it somehow interesting to try to project some kind of contradictory and balancing word in there that kind of takes some of this prestigious way and and reduce this person to the little closer to the sides that you think you ought to be and and yet I just said I seek Christ in my brother and I wonder how we can do that and would you try to explain to me what's going on in our hearts that this kind of thing takes place time after time day after day in our local assemblies immediately there's love and life and peace there's unity and there's cohesion you know the difference between cohesion and adhesion when there's cohesion you don't need to put anything or artificial around it to hold it together you only take adhesive tape to tape it together because it's cohesively bound together the molecules hold together and there's cohesion in the church there's cohesion and fellowship it's something internal there is a union of lives and this beautiful beautiful word that takes us from the word common to the word communion to the word communication to the word community these are beautiful words which mean we all participated in something similar the company of the committed and it means that I'm no longer alone it means that I've accepted and wanted and though I cannot explain it I am needed and included for the first time in my life and I find out that I can do something that I've never been able to do in this environment it is safe for me to allow somebody to love me it's a terrible hard thing for many of us to do allow someone else to love us and this explains the the cafes that were in the new testament those those love meals that they had it explains the united prayers that there were the willing offerings that there we see here the meetings and the being frequently together explains it why they were able to confess things one to another why there was forgiveness why there was this gift of restoration in the church in the brotherhood because Christ excuse me because what Christ did what he was here we do now and what he was in this world for we are in this world for and as the father sent him even now he sends us that's why we are here can you imagine your church here assembly your local body being in your community where you are in your culture area island what you call your place where you live but you are there because Christ is not there but you are there not you individually you corporately you in this fellowship of the saints you in this union with one another and that is why this is such an important thing on Christ's heart that's why the prayer that we prayed back to Christ this morning the importance of it but it's imperative that we do do anything we do not do anything to hinder the image of Christ the power of Christ the life of Christ in our assemblies who does not want to be part of a church like that and it grows the Bible tells us Ephesians a spiritual house a holy testimony and of the many pictures we have of this gathered brotherhood this gathered body one of them i've read it to you right this morning i'll just read it again you don't need to turn to it but i've read it in Matthew 18 it said verse 19 again i said to you that if two of you shall agree on earth that word agree is such a beautiful word in our bibles at home de acuerdo and it's a picture in the greek language of a symphony the word is that's that's what the word is in greek it's a symphony this church and here though you don't know anything at all about london philharmonic orchestra though you've never heard of serb knock on sergeant you are a symphony and there's a harmony that is so very very beautiful there are triads there's the great chord coming out from this assembly there are only two or three or ten or maybe four or five families but there's a great chord coming out there a great chord is interesting eight tones that cover two octaves and you take this chorus of people 200 voices and they sing there's one chord it you can lift you out of your seat if you've ever heard that great chord sung by a group of people symphony and there's another word in the new testament that also just gives us a beautiful image imagine the people of the world being drawn to this imagine your children raising your children up in this church they turn to the they turn to the young adults their youth and they're drawn to this they hear this symphony and they see this tapestry not a string or a thread but a woven knitted mural where all the individual strings form this beautiful woven picture picture of the church we have union there we have something strongly united get together knit together in love and as we heard last night me I borrow a beautiful phrase we were hearing last evening fellowship is the shared communion in daily practice and that was already read to us I'd like to read it again for 1st Corinthians 10 just to put this image before us versus 16 and 17 and brother John was certainly right about the fact that there's more than symbolism involved here there's something that you get if you do it that you missed if you don't there's there's there's something different happens to you and the participation that is not taking place with you if you're not there there's something and I guess I'm going to not use the word mystical but there's something spiritual that's taking place in your life and it's not only between you and God it has a horizontal aspect there with other brothers and sisters the cup of blessing which we bless is not the communion of the blood of Christ that's where the word Eucharist come from the bread which we break is not the communion of the body of Christ for we being many are one bread and one body for we are all partakers of that one bread that's why there's fellowship because we're all partakers of it and we're strengthening fellowship every time we do it it's just that that nithic is stronger and tighter that symphony is a is gloriously repeated and so I need to ask a question are we experiencing a Christ encounter in our local assemblies do we truly have fellowship one with another do we meet come face to face come heart to heart with the virtue and power and holy life of Christ that flows from our brothers into ourselves do we experience that in our services I was preaching in a state here in the states one time some distance from here quite a distance from here Pennsylvania brother called me and said would you have time to visit with my wife and I this afternoon if we would come over there and they were living in another state too but they came to where I was and then we met there and he sat there and and the story he told me was something like this yeah for the last two years of our lives something serious was wrong but we didn't know what it was and his wife is sitting there beside him and he's trying to find ways to explain this to me I want you to listen to her closely he said we discovered that for two years we had no fellowship I thought brother may god bless you someone who had enough of bible understanding to know that there was no fellowship there there were meetings there were church services there was preaching there was eating food together without fellowship at first he did not know what was was missing I don't know if we would recognize it if we were living without fellowship or not many years ago a man was dying in his bed he was dying of cancer he looked up with his with his uh his his flesh was wasting away he looked at me and said brother Dale fellowship is where fellowship is and fellowship isn't where fellowship isn't I'm not forgotten those words one time I heard a person say these words yeah you can visit with him all day but you can't have a fellowship with him I'm using these some of these expressions to wake us up to something he has to think about something are we experiencing fellowship and and would others be able to have fellowship with me and if they cannot have fellowship with me then what is wrong where is the problem what is blocking what is what is wrong if that virtue does not flow if someone cannot come up and touch that hymn if someone if that power does not go out to meet a need over here what is hindering it no one has fellowship with pride and selfishness no life flows there come and learn of me that I am meek and lonely of heart and you should find rest for your souls I don't know if this is appropriate to say at a place like this the time is rapidly going by we have in our congregations at home we have several congregations we work with a responsive for try to provide oversight for we have in our congregations at home some congregational positions some brotherhood agreements that not all of our congregations have we have felt in some of our congregations that we would like to represent some things identify with some things and not everyone in Costa Rica feels but maybe it's quite as important as we feel they are and so we're not the same in everything we have people come to visit us from other countries where their practices and some of their focus is different from our own I don't ever feel need to ever say to our congregation I've never done it I don't think I ever will do it I've never done it until now I've never needed to say that that's a direction we will not be going I thank you Lord that we are not like they are we should close the door to those people so that they don't we just can't bring any of that in here we have never done that we've never held up our congregation or our expression or our identification as something that's superior to others this is just what we have felt the Lord wanted us to do and the people are glad to do it and we try to teach them to be able to appreciate those who maybe see some of these things differently we don't need to change because that they have it that way because we're thankful for what we have and we're together on it and it's been such a blessing and we're raising our children together and the community community knows what to expect of us and we can do that with grace with blessing with victory without putting down anybody else tremendous freedom to be able to be in a place like this you don't need to feel in competition with anybody I do need to turn you to John 17 one more time verse 20 neither pray I for these alone but for them also which shall believe on me through their word that they all may be one as thou father art in me and I and thee that they also may be one in us that the world may believe that thou has sent me and the glory which thou gave us me I have given them that they may be one even as we are one I am them and down me that they may be made perfected one that the world may know that thou has sent me and has loved them as as thou has loved me father I will that they also whom thou has given me be with me where I am that they may be whole by glory which thou has given me but I'll love them before the foundation of the world if I were going back to verse 11 we would found that expression one more time that they may be one at the end of the verses we are five times here not only that they be one not only have some unifying factors not only that they maybe it's because they all speak plat teacher because they all have a Latin background not only are they one but they are one as the father is one with a son and infusion of the divine action upon our assemblies is equal to the unity of the one accord that we're experiencing among ourselves this is where love comes in love for one another love cannot lose a brother but love will reach out and gain a brother love will not say it would not say that fool it would not say morose where we got our word moron it would not say to the hand I have no need of you it would not say if I got along without you before I met you I get along without you now it would not say you know if if this element would leave the congregation we'd have peace around here that they'd be one why because you see when Christ was in this earth and he met needs and preached and he talked to people and children came and he held them in their laps he picked them up and prayed for them and blessed them when Jesus was here out in the storm called spoke to the winds when Jesus was here walked in that water fish were caught otherwise could not have been when Jesus was here and he prayed to his father and spent much time with his father and did those things that pleased the father and received his words from the father was in constant community with his father and there was no breach of fellowship there was no division between them they were perfectly joined together in one so his ministry would effectively represent the father in the earth and the father could answer the prayers of the son because those prayers came from the father's heart that the father confessed his life and power into his son he had no question about his glory when he poured power into the life of his son and so God could do endless things no end to what he could do for it with his son and Jesus is thinking of all that what he now turns it over to us and in this high priestly prayer if you want to call it that he's asking the father Lord we need to teach them to live that way too they must have that same union that same oneness so nothing in them would hinder their prayers being answered the needs being met the life being given that the lives being changed the lost restored the lonely included we've got they've got to live this way or it won't happen then I ask you where does this division spirit come from and why can't we get along why is my brother offended in me what have I done and that should not be a surprise because everyone else is so faulty we all make many mistakes we are somewhat aware of how easily we make mistakes and when I learned that brothers offended me it shouldn't be hard for me to say you know I'm gonna go take care of that I'm gonna go see him I am sorry I don't know how often I've done that I just know that it's my tendencies I'm gonna take responsibility I'm gonna go do what I can I know it's hard to offend love love is not threatened by another love knows no competition love needs no credit nor recognition love gives life as long as there's life to give we learned that in John 13 he loved them on to the end your bible says love never fail in chapter 13 and 1 Corinthians our bible says it it never ceases to be where there's love there's peace the unity of in the spirit in the bond of peace the bond of peace that's cohesion that someone didn't take a chain wrap around us there's no there's no padlock on there this is this is this is not chords this is not samson this is internal this is a bond of peace holds that together it's internal it's a picture of fellowship and where peace is ruling beautiful things happen peace between brothers and and aim for that and and the and the brother told us this morning make it out of your intent to have it that way we must intend to have it that way we must intend to gain the brother we must intend to never divide from brother brother we must intend to learn to appreciate each other we must plan for that and there's no fellowship without light if we walk with the light as he is in the light so what hinders my honesty at home all the brothers know what i'm like i can hide that from you for a weekend i can't hide it from them they know what i'm like see we really can't participate in the life of our brother and sister until we understand them and know them and then when we find out what that's like we suffer with them when they're suffering we rejoice with them when they rejoice about a month ago a little less very very humble brother in our congregation very humble national brother they have two small three small children the last one just was born i think he's must be only two months old mother month and a half last little baby so you have three small children and his wife is real tall she's taller than i am and he's short he's he's i think he's a little bit shorter than my wife so here we have indriki ilawra and he was having some trouble there neurologically and they found a spot the front left from the left lobe of his brain tomorrow he's going for an MRI MRI to see just what this spot might be and she is suffering she is struggling his wife is struggling his wife is she can the tears come to her eyes just if you mentioned anything about it and we had an anointing service for him and lastly we did it once in the evening before i left the congregation was prayed for him for this assignment tomorrow morning you and i can't take the spot away you and i are not neurosurgeons i had an interview with a new certain neurosurgeon about the possibilities of this future problem and we can't go in there and do that but he's our brother and we will not do without him and we love him he's going to have all the support from that congregation he needs he is very very blessed he's very thankful he is a perfect piece he is sure that all will be well though he has no idea how it's going to turn out so we suffer with him and if we get a word that that spotting that appeared there was really something benign that's none of any problem for his development we while we're joined together fellowship ministers to the mental illnesses that are around us the physical ailments the spiritual losses and addictions that people have the emotional wounds that people carry with them fellowship ministers to all of that and more things beside but our fellowship was with the father and with his son jesus christ and we are here to represent christ in this earth and people will encounter christ when they find us a little assembly where these principles are at work and brothers love each other and there's no competition and everyone is thankful expressed his appreciation for the last person who's up front and contributed a little something or gave a testimony everybody participating in our congregation you can you can you can make a statement in this church service someplace and you might be needing some help and you might be crying as you're saying it and spontaneously some of the brothers sister congregation might just turn around look at you and say but but sister but brother we're going to get through this together we'll take care of this and they don't they don't wait for the preacher to say it just a few weeks ago we had one of our sisters a single sister in the congregation standing in front of their church on a wednesday night but she had made a terrible mistake in her life and she never told anybody about it when she was in my home a few hours prior to that she told me why she had never told anybody about that it was partly our fault because she was afraid to say it but but but now she wants to say it and she knows she needs to say it and she never had a boyfriend before and 29 years old just started visiting a young man from the states who speaks another language from what she does so i ask her if we make these plans like this would this be okay do you think you'd feel okay with that yes yes brother they will do it like that so that's okay you come front i'm gonna stand beside you then i'm gonna ask your friend to come stand on this side of you and and then with us there it's supporting you you just tell the congregation what you have in mind and that poor sister poured out the story of her failure and i ask a sister back here to speak to our this dear soul and give her some words of direction and help and comfort and i ask a brother to stand up and speak to her and then when i was done they were all going to sit down and i said if anyone else says anything they'd like to say you may stand you may say it and a single brother stood up of course he was speaking another language but i'll try to put it in your words because your culture is different you might not get this illustration but in our culture we call a bill for things that you bought and things you must pay we call that a factura so you say we have this factura we have this bill we have this invoice i think that's your word for it and it's someone who's an authority and someone who would have the right and the power to collect that bill writes across there puts a big stamp across there puts his instruments that says nulo void canceled he said sister there's no factura there is no invoice it's all gone it was a beautiful time there when i was happening i guess it made a little easier after that another brother then a few services later do you want to speak with all the brothers on a Wednesday evening he opened up his life and talked about a serious entrapment that has controlled his life ever since he was a small boy and got married with this addiction hanging into his life trying to live the christian life with his addiction hanging on to him throughout these years now he has been in our congregation for two years and he didn't want to hide it from anybody he wanted them to know and one of our national brother looked at him when he was finished and said for all those years you were fighting against that brother if you were fighting you're not just defeated you're fighting and now the rest of us join to help you fight that we work with people who have serious emotional problems part of our ministry has to do with keeping correspondence with quite a few people even here in the states that i'm in trouble with their parents trouble with deep issues in their own lives having trouble fitting into churches and so it was to the young lady after about a year of correspondence i suggested she come to Costa Rica and visit us serious emotional problems the kind of thing that is very close to a very dangerous edge where she was living there for a couple of days and and we were very very busy over that time and and and my wife and i felt we were not doing very effective work and trying to minister to her alone and so the second to last day that she was there my wife said brother it was real sorry that he has not had much time with you we have we don't feel like we've done you much good you're worth far far more than we're able to do for you here and here was the answer it gathered christ the fellowship of saints she said oh no susanne no no it's not like that at all i have never seen a church like this in my life i've never experienced anything like this ever just being here is healing to me just being here gives me hope just being here things i've seen in the bible i know it's a reality i'm going home different from what i came because of what i found while i was here it was just some national brothers and sisters first-generation christians who meet together with christ in the midst it's hard to be among them without sensing that some another life and hope are present and we all can leave the service and go out and live it until we gather together again i have one more thing to say to bring this kind of life and vitality in your congregation you must be like that brother that you heard about this morning who said of all people that i know i knew not as well as i know jesus christ and make him the object of your worship and make the intention to live as he lives as nearly as you can and give him the opportunity to wash out of your life and purge you of anything that would mar that image so that when you have a collection of brothers and sisters a group of committed brothers and sisters gathering together with that image and that stature growing up into the perfect fullness of god there's nothing to hinder the image of christ in your local assembly we must be like christ a new commandment i give unto you that you love one another as though i have loved you no man hath greater love than this that he laid down his life for his friends you're my friends if you do whatsoever i commanded you if we could leave this assembly with that in our hearts leave this assembly with that desire within us go back to our home congregations with intent to put this to work there in that body then heaven will echo with the results of kingdom fellowship 2017 if there's somebody here this morning it feels that blockage with god that prideful hindrance and rejection and rebellion against the lordship of jesus if there's someone here that is experiencing the intimacy and the sweetness of a broken life a yielded life a sacrificed life a living testimony and there's something hindering that work it's hindering your church and i would recommend that we fall on our knees and call upon the name of the lord and receive the help we need before we leave this assembly today i want to thank you for your patience for listening to these few words but the encounter with christ with christ happens because christ is at home and free to live here and he makes his habitation here and the people that know us who come among us can see it and needs can be met and what christ did is still being done in some place of the world some place somewhere christ is very active and very involved and interceding for all these needs and has us here to do a task that he left for us throughout all the world may god bless you this afternoon