Cantique : The Holy Spirit Is Today

THE SOURCE OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

Where does the fellowship of life come from? What is its cause? And from what is it derived? First John 1:2-3 says, “We [the apostles]... testify and report to you [the believers] the eternal life... that you also may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. ” These verses show that the apostles preached to us “the eternal life” so that we may have “fellowship. ” The eternal life is the life of God, and the life of God entering into us enables us to have fellowship. Since this fellowship comes out of the life of God, it is the fellowship of life. Therefore, the fellowship of life comes from the life of God; its existence is due to the life of God; it is derived from the life of God; and it is brought to us by the life of God. As soon as we obtain the life of God within us, this life of God enables us to have the fellowship of life. The life of God, therefore, is the source of the fellowship of life.

THE MEDIUM OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF LIFE

The life of God rests in the Holy Spirit of God, and it is through the Holy Spirit of God that the life of God enters into us and lives in us. Therefore, the fellowship brought to us by the life of God, though derived from the life of God, comes by means of the Holy Spirit of God. Hence, the Bible also calls this fellowship “the fellowship of the Holy Spirit” (2 Cor. 13:14).

It is the Holy Spirit who causes us to experience the life of God; therefore, it is the Holy Spirit who enables us to have fellowship in the life of God. All our fellowship of life is in the Holy Spirit and is caused by the Holy Spirit. That is why Philippians 2:1 speaks of “fellowship of spirit. ”

The Holy Spirit of God moves, requires, and urges within us to cause us to have the fellowship that comes from the life of God. Therefore, if we desire to have fellowship of life, we must not only have the life of God but also live in the Holy Spirit of God. The life of God is the source of the fellowship of life, and the Holy Spirit of God is the medium of the fellowship of life. Although it is the life of God that gives us the fellowship of life, yet it is the Holy Spirit of God who causes us to practically enjoy this fellowship of life. Only when we are living in the Holy Spirit and walking by minding the Holy Spirit can we enjoy the fellowship of the life of God in a practical way.

The Knowledge of Life

Chapter 6 Section 1 (LSM)

CWWL, 1953, vol. 3