Steve’s Core Values A-Z: Koinonia

What’s koinonia? It’s defined as Christian fellowship or communion with God or with fellow Christians; said in particular of the early Christian community.

A sense of community. Do we really understand and experience that in our lives today?

I remember growing up in a neighborhood where we actually knew our neighbors. We actually hung out in the summer evenings and had neighborhood whiffle ball games on a nightly basis until it got too dark to see and someone’s mom brought out popsicles.

Of course there’s a key element missing in the community I just described. That is the Christian element. While we should be experiencing community in our neighborhoods and we should have friends who are not Christians, the koinonia that we can experience as Christians is much deeper. When you have a relationship with Christ in common with someone, it can automatically take your relationship to a deeper level of fellowship.

I also remember as a child that after my family had come to know Christ, we developed a new set of friends through the church. We didn’t forsake the old friends, but there was this set of Christians that we loved to hang out with on a regular basis. These friendships grew deeper and became very meaningful to our family.

Of course, life seemed to move at a slower pace in those days. I’m afraid we’ve lost a sense of that Christian fellowship that we grew up with. This is why it’s crucial for everyone in the church to be a part of a small group. If we don’t schedule time together these days…it just doesn’t happen like it used to.

Koinonia is something we obviously are thirsting for. I see it reflected every Sunday morning in our lobby. Our service begins with a mostly empty auditorium because of the buzz of Christian fellowship in the lobby. People are talking, making connections, drinking coffee and they don’t want to stop. It’s great to see koinonia happening…we just need a little more!

Acts 2:42 - (The Believers Form a Community) All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper ), and to prayer.