Rick Joyner: Why is Koinonia So Important for The Great Commission? - The Elijah List

Rick Joyner:

Why is Koinonia So Important 

for The Great Commission?

The Elijah List

Why is koinonia [fellowship] so important when we are talking about The Great Commission? One reason we have failed to fulfill The Great Commission has been our tendency of making converts rather than disciples. 

The Great Commission is to make disciples. If disciples are not being made, then we are failing in our commission.

What a disciple is has been clearly defined by the Lord. True discipleship is rarely found among Christians today. One reason for this is that true discipleship is not possible without koinonia, as we read in 1 John 1:7, "But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship (koinonia) with one another, and the Blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin."

As we have covered, this Scripture makes it clear that we simply cannot abide in the light without having koinonia. This is also essential for our cleansing.

I often say jokingly, but truthfully, that we simply cannot mature in Christ the way we are called to without all of the frustrations and irritations of Church life. The frustrations and irritations, the hurts and disappointments, are only a small part of what this experience is meant to be, but they are essential to our development. There are certainly far more positives to experiencing koinonia than negatives, but the challenges help us to mature.

The True Church Life

Either idealism about Church life or rejecting the Church will lead us far from the path of life. True Church life, koinonia, can be one of the most wonderful things we ever experience and one of the most difficult, as is true of any relationship, including marriage. As the Lord taught in the Parable of the Sower, many will depart when testing comes. Many depart from Church, and many are now even departing from marriage when the tests come.

You can never pass a test by quitting.

The breakdown of marriage is related to the breakdown in Church life and vice versa. The same thing that heals one will heal the other as well. The Cross is a vertical post that represents our connection to God and a horizontal one that represents our connection to one another.

One thing that taking up our cross means is that we must have both of these in our lives. Of course, our connection to God eclipses the importance of our connection to one another and must always be kept first. But if we have this and keep it first, we will also have the other. As John also wrote, we cannot love God who we do not see if we do not love our brother who we can see (see I John 4:20-21).

So, what can we do to promote koinonia in Church life? First and foremost, we must seek the presence of the Lord above all things. What good is the most glorious temple if God is not in it? Then we need to pursue relationships, not just wait to be pursued. Barnabas had to go and get Paul. Then they needed to get in the right place before either of them could get released into their own ultimate calling.

In those days, this was a supreme effort. It must have taken months for Barnabas to travel to Tarsus and then back to Antioch. Today it is hard to find those who will drive more than thirty minutes to church. What makes something a treasure is that it is either rare or difficult to obtain.

Koinonia is one of the greatest treasures we can have in this life. It is not cheap or easy to find, but it will be found by those who value it enough not to give up on its pursuit. 

The city that God is building, that which Abraham sought, and all true sojourners seek, is built on Jesus with koinonia.

Seeking the presence of the Lord is far more than seeking His blessings, which so much of the present emphasis of church teaching is based on today. He will bless many things He will not inhabit. When He says that wherever two or more are gathered in His name He will be in their midst (see Matthew 18:20), the word "gathered" does not mean merely occupying the same room or space.

It is where they have been "assembled together" like the parts of a bicycle have been assembled together. This is why we are told to "not to forsake the assembling together" (see Hebrews 10:25). This is not just a warning not to miss meetings, but to not fail to be assembled together as we are called to be.

(Photo via Stock.xchange by Timo Balk, edited by Tawny Nelson)

To build a Church where there is actually Church life, koinonia, we must do things to intentionally promote interchange between members. This can include small groups, church fellowship dinners, mission trips, and various other activities. However, gatherings that really lead to koinonia will center on the presence of the Lord. All others can be helpful in getting to this, but just gathering together for activities can fall far short by themselves.

In every spiritual pursuit, we must keep in mind this principle: Between the place where we receive the promise of God and the promised land, or the fulfillment of the promise, there is almost always a wilderness that is the exact opposite of what we have been promised. This wilderness is meant to prepare us for the promised land. Do not be shaken when you start to pursue koinonia and the opposite seems to happen with relationship challenges breaking out everywhere. This is just a sign that you are indeed on the path.

Rick Joyner
MorningStar Ministries

Email: info@morningstarministries.org
Website: morningstarministries.org

Rick Joyner is the founder and executive director of MorningStar Ministries and Heritage International Ministries and is the Senior Pastor of MorningStar Fellowship Church. He is the author of more than forty books, including The Final Quest, A Prophetic History, and Church History.

He is also the president of The OAK Initiative, an interdenominational movement that is mobilizing thousands of Christians to be engaged in the great issues of our times, being the salt and light that they are called to be. Rick and his wife, Julie, have five children: Anna, Aaryn, Amber, Ben, and Sam.

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Don't Grow Weary In Doing Good - Now Think On This (Steve Martin)

Don’t Grow Weary In Doing Good

"So let us not grow weary of doing what is good; for if we don’t give up, we will in due time reap the harvest.” (Gal. 6:9 Complete Jewish Bible)

“So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.” (Gal. 6:9-10 The Message)

  

Everyone gets tired. We get weary of doing good things. Often then we end up just complaining about our situations.

I was doing that on the way home from work. The day had been a bit draining, preparing the usual accounting reports month after month. My heart just wasn’t in it. I had been expecting to be at another position in my life, rather than to be doing what I had done 30 years ago. I know the Lord has His plan and purpose for me being there, in the marketplace setting, but sometimes I just don’t get the reasoning behind it. From my perspective, I could be more effective for His kingdom doing other things, in another place. That which I really had hoped to be doing by now. I have to remind myself that He is wise, and know what He is doing. I must rest in that.

But while driving the usual 45 minute commute home from the uptown office, in the normal heavy traffic, I started complaining in my head of the good deeds I had done, involving several people, and yet hadn’t seen much harvest from those seeds sown. Having had some farming life experience while growing up in Minnesota and Iowa, I understood the comparison in the natural - of preparing the ground, sowing the seed, and waiting months before the harvest is ready. I get that. But I was just getting a bit tired in waiting for my harvest to come, in the spiritual, after years of sowing and not seeing the expected abundance of fruit.

After sending off another complaint heavenward, the Lord responded back to me, “Look what I did for you.” I knew exactly what He meant. His life laid down, His death on the cross, and the example He had set for me to follow. I stopped my complaining immediately.

We all get worn out at times. It is the time when we are most vulnerable to the lies of the enemy; our own flesh kicking up, or allowing the stress of the day weigh our souls down, in our mind, will and emotions. One reason why the Lord established a weekly day of rest and giving to us in our sleep, as the Word says.

To battle back the weariness, so we can maintain our giving, we need to allow the Lord to give us rest. In America, there is no longer a set day when there is no shopping or work. We can see the results in sickness and stress. This has not been the expected decrease in either, due to our new time management. And as we have gone against the wisdom of the Lord, we have reaped the long term results.

Many times the distractions that deter us will rob us of the more important tasks we are called to do. Constantly saying yes to everything that comes our way begins to take its toll, leaving us with little or nothing to give for the more important relationships and events in our lives.

In our desire to bless, we must also keep in mind that proper care of our spirit, soul and body will then permit us to do more. The complaining doesn’t work. The Lord actually turns His ear away from us. Remember Moses and the Hebrews in the wilderness?

Being in His presence in prayer and reading of His Word on a regular basis will energize our spirit. We need to keep ready in all seasons and not grow weary. We have a lot of life to give, as His Holy Spirit works through us.

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Love For His People

Founder