Do We Have Anything in Common?
"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." - 1 John 1:1-3
It’s a common complaint in relationships: “It just seems like we don’t have anything in common.” That feeling crosses into many areas of life. Social circles, clubs, activities, Facebook groups. I’m watching three different breeds of songbirds out my window as I write, and the adage comes to mind – “birds of a feather flock together.” That tends to be the case with human interaction. We group ourselves by similar interests and aptitudes. Similar upbringings and life experiences. We feel most connected to those who share the most details, it creates a comfort and familiarity level that is hard to deny exists.
There is a dangerous side to that tendency, however. Those same feelings of comfort and familiarity can lead us to prejudice – the idea that someone can’t speak valuable or meaningful truth into our lives because they don’t have the same experiences, they haven’t walked the same walk, they wear different shoes. Practically speaking, there are reasons this seems valid – but what about when those feelings creep into Christian fellowship? When striving for comfort and familiarity, safety and comradery, do we exclude the possibility of meaningful, edifying interactions from those “outside our circle?”
In 1 John 1, John begins his letter in a very similar way that he begins his Gospel record – speaking about The Word. “That which was from the beginning.” That which they saw, and heard, and touched, and now testify to and proclaim. The “Word from the Father, now in flesh appearing” as the Christmas carol puts it. Jesus is the Word of God that was from the beginning. That is what John proclaims and testifies to. But he goes on, because there is more involved than simple proclamation.
The reason for the proclamation is so that his readers “may have fellowship” with them, because their “fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.” That word fellowship is the Greek word “koinonia.” The root for that word, “koinos,” means “common.” For example, the particular form of Greek that the New Testament was written in is called “Koine” Greek, that is, common Greek. When John is speaking of “koinonia” fellowship, he is speaking of something that is held in common. Something that is shared in experience and partnership.
John is saying, “we are proclaiming Jesus Christ to you because we want to have something in common with you. We want to share in common experience the thing that was from the beginning, the word of Life.” This is just the opposite of how we approach relationships in the common experience. We tend to think, “I want to invest in your life and get to know you because we have something in common already.” Whereas, the Gospel call is to reach out and proclaim the one thing that can unite all kinds of people in fellowship – Jesus Christ.
This affects not only how we share the Gospel, but how we live in our Gospel-centered churches. No longer is the question, “are we compatible as friends?” Now the question is, “do we share Jesus Christ in common?” This may seem like a “Jesus-Juke” or a “gotcha” idea. There is no denying that it is easier or more comfortable to “do life” with those who are most like you, but more undeniable is that in Christ, two people from opposite walks of life share more in common than they don’t. Christ is the great unifier, the great wall-breaker. Christ is the glue that bonds the most peculiar of relationships within His body.
The overarching truth behind our “koinonia” fellowship is the fact that we also have this kind of fellowship with the Godhead. Because of the Gospel, Christ-followers are in fellowship with God. Our fellowship with God overrides all lesser standards of fellowship. Our fellowship with the eternal God outweighs our difference of opinion on hobbies, politics, and cuisine. Our unity with the Godhead unites us despite our differences. In fact, our differences become a pallet of beauty and diversity within the “koinonia” fellowship that is the body of Christ. Practically speaking, this means that if you are part of a local body here on earth, you have every reason to pursue deep, connected, spiritually thriving relationships with people, even if you have temporal disagreements. In the eternal kingdom, the wolf will lie down with the lamb in peace and harmony – is it possible that you could interact with, share in life with, and grow in grace with other children of God here and now?
