And the LORD God said,
"It is not good that man should be alone ..."
~ Genesis 2:18 (NKJV)
It’s said that a small child’s greatest fear is abandonment. We understand that one of the most subtle yet devastating forms of torture is to inflict solitary confinement on a person. The human spirit can rise above nearly any shared suffering—but it withers in the vacuum of loneliness.
So God created man in His own image;
in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them.
~ Genesis 1:27 (NKJV)
The Bible speaks of fellowship with the Greek nouns metochē ("hold amid"; participation; intercourse) and koinōnia (social intercourse; communion). The latter word can include the meaning of completeness.
The Lord spoke the animals into existence. But the Creator's fellowship with people began by forming man with His hands, and then intimately breathing His life into this creature made in His own image.
Our human attributes unique to God's image include a free will which discerns morality and the ability to communicate logic. We are not simply social, as many animals are, but our souls are bound up with one another in communion. We are incomplete without one another, because we are made in the image of a God who created us for fellowship.
And they heard the sound of the LORD God
walking in the garden in the cool of the day ...
~ Genesis 3:8 (NKJV)
We share with our Creator the need for fellowship.
If God simply wanted worshipers, He needed only the angels. Yet there is something about a perfect God which seeks completeness through communion with puny humans—something which seeks to love and be loved.
We enjoy social intercourse with our Maker through His Word in the Bible, through His Holy Spirit in prayer, and through fellowship with His body of believers. Such intercourse is only a foreshadowing of the union we shall one day share with one another and with Him.
God says,
"Who draws near to Me an inch,
I will draw near to him an ell; *
and whoso walks to meet Me,
I will leap to meet him."
~ Eastern Proverb
[*ell is the length from elbow to middle finger's tip]
Lord of Heaven and Earth, who are we that You should desire our love? How great is Your love for us! May we delight to spend our days learning to love You.
I appreciate hearing from you. Questions are welcome. Reply to BuildingHisBody.com comments or e-mail me—my address is
buildingHisbody [plus] @gmail.com.
Copyright 2010, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.
Image source: larsoninstitute.com
I don't think I ever stopped to think about God speaking animals to life but fashioning man by hand and breathing His life into him. Wow!
ReplyDeleteYou know, sadly when I spend time with the Lord outside of praising and thanking Him sometimes I feel like the only thing we have in common is me and my world. Sorry if that was too honest! I hope you understand what I mean. I'm not coming at this from a narcissistic point of view, rather, I feel the things that relate directly to me or my loved ones always take precedence. Outside of my limited world view I know nothing else of which to bond with Him. Expand my universe Anne! ;)
ReplyDeleteBefore I read this, I was thinking about phone call in which I had the opportunity to hear my sister in Christ in other town.
ReplyDeletewas really drawn to the verse you used that they heard the Lord God walking in the garden. it struck me that here they are with Him in such perfect purity of mind until. heaven must be like that too, don't you think... i like that thought.
ReplyDeleteI am working that daily intercourse with Him in the everyday. I want to see Him in people, in creation, in experiences. I don't need an organ, a choir or long praise song to move me.
ReplyDeleteWhy is that so difficult to do if I was made for fellowship? Why do I run, when inside of me I know to cling?
When we experience this truth on earth, it's so powerful and glorious. You just got me excited as I read this that when we get to heaven it will be infinitely more! Lord, let Your Kingdom come and will be done ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. Great post, Anne. Thanks--you got me excited. :)
ReplyDelete"I will leap to meet Him." Ah! Love that.
ReplyDeleteAnne, I don't know why but I've had trouble finding your posts lately. Are you posting at unusual times or am I swamped with Christmas and stuff and I'm missing them. I don't want to miss them.
~ Wendy
Snady ~
ReplyDeleteI think one of the lovliest images in all of Scripture is God creating humans from dirt and then breathing life into them. Think of it! Mouth to mouth resuscitation, or a kiss? Could any mother look upon her newborn with more affection than God looked upon Adam? His tender love for us is so much greater than we can comprehend.
T ~
ReplyDeleteExpand your universe? Whew! Here goes an attempt.
The Bible says to enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Thanks and praise merely opens the door to fellowship. The gates and courts of the temple were where the masses gathered—the front porch, where one sits to share lemonade.
The altar was the place of sacrifice—the place one offers tangible expression of thanks, or repentance, or fellowship. I suppose it might be like the foyer.
But the Holy Place is where only the priests go, to bring near to the Lord the sacred offerings of incense (prayers from the gut), and show bread (communion of a shared meal). Think of a den with closed doors and an intimate dinner shared in front of a fire.
The Most Holy Place, or Holy of Holies, was the place of most sacred fellowship. Even the priest entered but once a year. When the curtain was torn, and disciples of Christ were declared to be a royal priesthood, we were given access to the most intimate place of fellowship. God Himself enteres us through His Holy Spirit. Can fellowship get any more intimate?
God does not empower us with His Holy Spirit so we can leave the Most Holy Place and go do something for Him. He asks us to stay in communion with Him so we can do something with Him. He doesn't assign us work and send us on our way, He shows us His work and asks us to stay.
His work is love.
And so if we remain in fellowship with Him all day long, He is with us in every place, with every person. We no longer need to separate time with God and time with spouse. We take God with us into our time with spouse. Likewise, we take God with us into our time with our children, our families, our co-workers, our neighbors. We are simply the outward expression of His Spirit. His Spirit moves us and we speak, or act, or comfort, or embrace others as the physical extension of the God Who lives with us as only Spirit.
Jesus prayed that we would be one with one another. We are to likewise be one with His Spirit. In Heaven, we will find the perfection of unity with one another, and then unity with Him. The church is Christ's bride, and when we are finally one, we will be able to experience complete union with our Bridegroom.
This is why I speak so strongly for unity among believers. The closer our fellowship with one another, without division, the closer I believe we come to that ideal.
At least that's how I understand it, in my limited knowledge. I am so eager for full understanding——full knowledge.
Natasa ~
ReplyDeleteCan you believe that you and I are sisters in Christ, sharing fellowship halfway across the globe? Whatever its shortcomings, social media has given us opportunities for fellowship like nothing we've ever before had. I am so very blessed to know you, my sister, with whom I shall spend eternity. :D
Bud ~
ReplyDeleteEvery truly good experience of Earth is only a tiny taste of Heaven. Heaven will be absolute love combined with that perfect fellowship—combined with perfect locale, perfect weather, perfect food, perfect EVERYTHING! It will be the best hour of our entire lives multiplied into infinity, and existing for time without any measure.
I would be content if Heaven were nothing more than knowing the perfect love of God and seeing His face.
David ~
ReplyDeleteI suppose each one of us does have times of clinging and times of running—and different reasons for running. But all those reasons for running come down to fear of something.
I think we fear:
• loss of control
• loss of identity
• exposure of sin, and the resulting shame
• punishment for sin
• rejection
• being asked to give something up
• being asked to do something difficult (especially if it's to love someone we hate)
• discovering a love we can't live without and then losing it
• disappointing the God we love
Perfect love casts out fear. The more we learn to love, the less we fear. The more we learn to love, the more we understand that God loves us too much to forsake us or do us any harm.
David ~
ReplyDeletePS ~ If it wasn't clear, I was speaking of God's fellowship with His people. Those who don't belong to God obviously suffer great loss, and have good reason to fear.
Jason ~
ReplyDelete*squeal!*
:D
Yeah, I get excited when I think about it too.
I'm blessed to know I touched a nerve. Now take that excitement and infect someone else. :D
Wendy ~
ReplyDeleteCan you picture a baby taking first steps and a parent rushing forward to catch the infant in arms?
As for your question, my present, normal schedule is to post twice a week, on Tuesdays, and for Friday Q&A. My posts are usually up at midnight Eastern time. This one was quite late. It's been an unusually busy and very early holiday season for our family. But I'm blessed that my children (me too) are serving and successfully performing in so many ways.
good post, anne.
ReplyDeletelots to think about here.
Your post triggered a thought about abandonment, and the fears of childhood. How we need to cling to each other and the Jesus for true fellowship. Great Post and also appreciated your mature comments to those seeking more explaination.
ReplyDeleteWOW Anne you just blew me away. I read every word and drank it in. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
ReplyDeleteHi Nance!
ReplyDeleteI ask the Lord to give you, in the thinking, a closer fellowship with Him. : )
Hazel ~
ReplyDeleteThanks for your gracious comment. That security in fellowship with our Lord ... how can it be put into words?
If you like to read fiction, you might consider the book, "The Forgotten Garden" by Kate Morton. This poignant story of a little girl abandoned absolutely grabbed my heart, and it has become one of my all-time favorite books.
T ~
ReplyDeleteYour comment grabbed me. I suppose my comment was another whole post. I'm smiling at your reply. :D