1 Corinthians 1:9 NKJV God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Think about this: “You were called…” We are going to examine the process of the call into the fellowship of God’s Son. In 1 Corinthians 10:1-5, Paul describes God’s availability to the fathers. Notice the emphasis on the word ALL.
1 Corinthians 10:1-5 NKJV “Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.“
All of them had the same exposure and opportunity to receive God’s grace and mercy. God was prepared to bring them directly into His blessing, favor and promise. Yet, with most of them, God was not well pleased. Exposure to God’s faithfulness was not enough. God covered and kept and fed and sheltered. God’s grace and mercy was more than enough.
Follow the process of the call in Corinthians.
1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
It is imperative that we see God’s faithfulness in our lives. He is an ever-present help throughout our journey. Look at God’s process of help and supply.
2 Corinthians 4:6 NKJV For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Do you understand what that is saying? This is a manifestation of God’s great grace. Each of us have been overtaken by temptation and sin, but God is faithful and has given His Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 5: 8 tells us, “That while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God has provided a process and plan to get us out of trouble and it is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Ephesians 2:4-5 NKJV But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
The process of God’s call is full of rich mercy and great love. Consider the fact that God found us while we were dead in trespasses, and He brought us into this new life and fellowship with His Son.
2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
The process of the call and fellowship was demonstrated early in God’s relationship with man. When God created the earth, the Garden of Eden, and man, there was no need for a call. Adam was always present when God would come down in the cool of the day. God never had to call or seek because Adam was just there. Their fellowship was spontaneous and natural. Man was made for fellowship with God.
As soon as Adam and Eve sinned, everything changed. With a guilty conscience and fallen nature, they hid from God. Adam and Eve tried to cover up. The first time God called for man was after the fall and sin.
Genesis 3:9 NKJV Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
This is the first call in the Bible. The call represented a changed position for Adam and Eve. They were not available. They wanted to hide and get away. Their sin and guilt made them want to hide from God.
From that moment on, God has been calling out to men. We need to see the persistent call of God. Throughout history, God has persistently called individuals into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
When the call is given and heard, it relates to fellowship with God’s Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
The call represents a changed position. God has called us into the fellowship of His Son.
The Corinthian believers experienced many problems and individual failures. Rather than focusing on their weakness, the Apostle Paul reminded them that, “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” They needed to remember that God called them to come to Jesus Christ. This is key for every believer. God has called us out of darkness into light. God has called us out of our destructions into His mercy, grace, and favor.
God has called you into the fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
The call of God began when God said: “Adam, Where are you?” God knew where Adam and Eve were, but they needed to see where they were. Adam and Eve had changed positions and were not available.God came and Adam was hiding. Sin always does that. Sin takes us away from the fellowship with God’s Son. Here is the good news, God continued pursuing Adam and Eve.
God is still pursuing and calling men today. This is the persistent grace and mercy of God. He wants to bring us into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Luke 19:10 KJV For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
The good news is that God will continue calling out to lost and sinful people until the last trumpet shall sound. That will be the final note of the ages when God will call us up. This is the persistent grace of God.
God has been seeking to save those who are lost. We see this with Adam, Abraham, Moses, and with the children of Israel.
1 Corinthians 10 tells us all of Israel was in the wilderness under the cloud of God. Even when their hearts were not perfect, God continued to pursue and provide. The promise still stands, God is faithful. Corinthians tells us they lost everything in the wilderness. On the border of the covenant blessing and promise, they rebelled and forsook God.
Think about this. Even with all of God’s miracles, guidance, protection, and provision, they lost everything.
The Holy Spirit brought the Corinthian people into the same position that Israel was in. God had been blessing and supplying for the Corinthian believers. They had been given blessing on top of blessing, and instruction and guidance. The Corinthians were being reminded of God’s process to bless and help Israel. The Holy Spirit was saying they were in the same position.
1 Corinthians 10:1-5 NKJV All passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink.
The majority of the people perished in the wilderness. They were exposed to the living Christ and His power, glory, and blessing. They ate miracle food and drank miracle water. Yet, they died in the wilderness. He says only a handful, a holy remnant survived.
The Holy Spirit was saying: “You are in that same position.” They knew the blessing, glory, and power of the Holy Spirit, but they did not know the fellowship of the Son.
God is following the same process today. We all have experienced the covering cloud of His presence. We all have known His grace and blessing. We all have been supernaturally blessed and helped. We have been sustained by the same spiritual food and drink.
Jesus has saved, healed, and supplied. He has kept, protected, and shielded. Many people are missing the fellowship with God’s Son.
What happened to them in the wilderness is an example for people to the end of the ages, (1 Corinthians 10:11). Those who survived in the wilderness responded to God’s call to fellowship with His Son. God is calling believers into the fellowship of His Son. It is possible for Christians to fail to come into the fullness to which they are called in Christ. This is a matter of the heart.
The majority of Israel had a divided heart. Those with a divided heart had many other interests that took them away from God. Review the Bible book by book, you will see this is the deciding principle in every relationship with God. In the wilderness, most of them had a divided heart. Abel had a heart for God, but Cain had a different heart. It was the distinction between Abraham and Lot, Jacob and Esau and Isaac and Ishmael. David had a heart for God, but other things captured Saul. The people in the wilderness were more hungry for Egypt’s pleasures than for God. They were carried away with the desires of things.
Everyone who was totally committed to God enjoyed the blessings of His fellowship and entered into His promises.
You can see the difference in Isaac and Ishmael. Isaac was a man of the wells and life. He knew the Lord and walked in the fellowship of the Christ that Abraham had known. He was willing to lay down everything to gain fellowship with Christ. Go into the land of Ishmael and you will find an atmosphere of death. Islam has robbed them of fellowship with Christ.
There was something in Jacob that was not in Esau. God dug deep into Jacob. There was something in Jacob that Esau did not have. Jacob heard and responded to the call of God. That is why He is called, “the God of Jacob.” God met him at Bethel, and at the brook Jabbok. Even when Jacob was running away, God was pursuing him. Deep down in his heart there was something that gave him a heart for God.
Esau despised his birthright and promise. He sold everything of value for a bowl of soup. He lightly esteemed what should have been of great value.
The condition of the heart is the thing that matters.
Deuteronomy 8:2 NKJV And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
Psalms 106 tells of God’s faithfulness and their wayward heart. God knew what was in their heart, but He wanted them to know their own heart. They sinned and rebelled against God, and provoked Him to anger. They served idols and sacrificed their children. They did not obey God’s law or His instructions. They became unclean by their actions.
Yet, many times, God delivered them. God remained faithful and regarded their distress and heard their cry. He remembered His covenant and showed compassion.
This is exactly what Paul is saying to the Corinthians. “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
The condition of the heart is the thing that matters. He was calling them to evaluate their own heart.
How about your heart?
The believers in Corinth had experienced what many would call a great revival. They had a great demonstration of spiritual gifts and talents. Sensational evidences excited them. They were excited about what the Lord could do for them. They rejoiced in what God gave them and they were truly blessed.
Many people have a greater appreciation for what the Lord can do for them than they have for the Lord. That was the difference in those who died in the wilderness, and those who entered into the promised land.
In the wilderness, God could never do enough for them. They complained that God did not give them more. God could never satisfy the desires of their heart. They wanted more things and more blessing. They were under the cloud and in the presence of Almighty God.God was giving them everything they needed, but they were not able to see what God was doing for them.
When they came to the border of the Promised Land, they had grieved God so much that He was ready to disown them. God told them they could go into the Promised Land but He would not go with them.
Moses told the Lord that if His presence did not go with them, he was not interested in going anywhere. This is the whole issue of being called into the fellowship of God’s Son.The only thing that matters is the presence and fellowship with God’s Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Listen to the cry of Moses’ heart.
Exodus 33:12-15 NKJV Then Moses said to the LORD, “See, You say to me, ‘Bring up this people.’ But You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight.’ Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.” And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then he said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here.”
Moses needed more than a promise of protection and supply. He needed more than an experience at a burning bush. He was not satisfied with a visit to holy ground. He wanted to know the Lord. He wanted to walk in the presence of Almighty God. This is why Moses prayed: “I want to know You.”
This is what really matters in all of our lives. Is the Lord with you? We want to hear the Lord to say, “I am with you.” You cannot always feel the presence of the Lord. Sometimes we walk by faith and not by sight. If we feel His presence or walk by faith, we need to know the Lord is with us. The thing that matters is the presence of the Lord. We have been called into the fellowship with God’s Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
