Fellowship

We weren't made to grow alone. God himself exists in perfect community, Father, Son, and Spirit, and he made us in that same image. This episode explores why we need safe, authentic relationships to truly grow: from research showing what happens when human connection is missing, to Jesus's own example of doing life closely with a small group of friends. It's an invitation to pursue real fellowship, the kind where we can be fully known and still fully loved.

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:20):
Remember that the basic categories for creating an
environment for growth arefocus, fellowship, and fasting.
Today we are talking aboutfellowship.
We all need community.
In 1944, a study was conductedto examine the effect of
withholding affection frominfants.

(00:40):
Twenty babies were put in normalcaregiving situations, and 20
were given all theirphysiological needs, but with
minimal human touch.
The study was halted after fourmonths when half of the babies
in the no affection group haddied.
Human beings literally die ifthey can't interact with other

(01:01):
humans.
But, you object, what abouthermits and people stranded on
desert islands?
They still have their memoriesof human interaction.
Remember Tom Hanks in the movieCastaway?
Remember Wilson?
Wilson was a volleyball that Tomliterally made into a human
surrogate when he was strandedon an island for four years.

(01:24):
He drew a face on the ball andmade hair out of plant material.
He had many conversations withWilson.
It's not too much of a stretchto say that Wilson kept him
sane.
Community is an important aspectof society and many religious
traditions, but it is not just acultural artifact.

(01:45):
Neuroscience has determined thatcommunity is an important part
of a person's well-being.
In the field of interpersonalneurobiology, community is seen
as one of the foundationalaspects of healthy humans.
In some mysterious way, ourminds interact with other minds,
and all the minds involved canbe enriched by that.

(02:07):
Conversely, when minds don'tinteract, mental health tends to
deteriorate.
We shouldn't be surprised bythis.
If humans are made in the imageof God, one of the aspects of
that image is community.
God has revealed Himself asthree persons in one essence.
A reality that we as humans findhard to understand because there

(02:31):
is nothing in our experiencethat is comparable to the
Trinity.
This should not be surprising.
If God is big enough to be thecreator of everything, then
there should be aspects of hisbeing to which nothing can be
compared.
But he has revealed himself asthree persons, the Father, the

(02:51):
Son, and the Holy Spirit.
At the same time, he hasrevealed himself as one essence,
one God.
In some mysterious way, theFather, Son, and Holy Spirit are
in perfect community with eachother.
And we, as his image bearers,are made for community as well.

(03:12):
If we purposely create anenvironment that includes a
community of safe people aroundus, we will grow more.
I say quote unquote safe peoplebecause that is important.
We all need at least one or twopeople who are safe, people with
whom we can be ourselves, peoplewho we know will accept us even

(03:33):
if they know everythingimportant about us.
Melinda Joy Mingo reflects onthis reality.
It is doubtful that any solitaryperson can reflect God's
character on their own.
God's image comes to expressionin community and especially in
our friendships with others.
The journey of soul growthdoesn't occur in isolation, but

(03:57):
rather through our relationshipswith others as our lives collide
in our everyday dealings in abroken and hurting world.
The truth is that relationshipsas a whole can be a bit messy,
and learning how to truly relateto others takes time.
But I believe most people arelooking for genuine
relationships and community.

(04:19):
And relationships can be verybeautiful and rewarding and
reflect the heart of God for allhumanity.
Jesus gave us a good model ofcommunity.
We tend to think of him asalways preaching to large groups
of people, but he spent most ofhis time with 12 of his closest
friends.
They traveled together, atetogether, and lived together for

(04:42):
three years.
In that group, Jesus had a fewguys who were his closest
friends, Peter, James, and John.
These were guys with whom hefelt the safest, with whom he
shared everything.
These were the guys who saw himon the Mount of Transfiguration,
who saw him sweating blood inthe Garden of Gethsemane.

(05:05):
Jesus had a best friend, John.
John sat next to Jesus at meals.
John asked Jesus questions thatno one else dared to ask.
It is no coincidence that Johnwas later known as the disciple
of love.
He had learned how to love fromJesus.
If we want to create anenvironment for growth, we must

(05:27):
have a healthy community.
This doesn't mean that we needto find perfect people.
What we need are a fewauthentic, grace filled people
who tangibly demonstrate God'sradical love and acceptance of
us.