1 John

1:1 What was from the beginning, which we have heard, and which we have seen with our eyes, which we beheld, and touched with our hands – concerning the word of life.

1:2 The life was displayed and we have seen it and give testimony and we proclaim to you eternal life which was with the Father and was displayed to us.

1:3 What we have seen and what we have heard we proclaim to you, that you may have fellowship with us and our fellowship is with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.

1:4 And we write these things that our joy may be full.*

*My translation work.

I’ve been reflecting on these four verses for over a week.  As part of that reflection I turned to a commentary by Baptist pastor and scholar Herschel Hobbs.  He writes, “Today we speak of church membership; the New Testament speaks of Christian fellowship.”  I swallowed hard when I read that simple but profound truth.

These four verses speak of a life change that comes from a personal, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.    John heard Jesus with his own ears and laid his eyes upon Jesus.  Thus, John proclaimed.

While you don’t have the benefit of walking shoulder to shoulder with Jesus during his earthly ministry, a relationship with the Savior is still available to you.

I firmly believe that God still speaks.  I firmly believe that God is with us.

Don’t rely on hearsay.  Don’t live off the faith of others.  Try it for yourself.

John heard Jesus with his own ears and laid his eyes upon him.  Thus, John fellowshipped.

With your life change comes Christian fellowship.  Don’t settle for church attendance or church membership.  Rather, seek Christian fellowship.