By JIM Nelson

ONE ANOTHER friend of mine came to mind

In the New Testament, this phrase appears in numerous places:“ one another.” Jesus told His disciples to“ love one another” in John 13:34. This phrase comes from a Greek word, allélón( pronounced phonetically as al-lay’- lone). It means“ one another” or“ each other.” In one form or another, these“ one another” statements appear 100 times throughout the New Testament. They refer to instructions or exhortations on how a believer ought to live in community.

Fellowship is a key component of a“ healthy chapter.” To better understand Biblical fellowship, we are going to take a moment and briefly survey two of the categories of these“ one another statements.”

The first is“ love.” Jesus says to His disciples,“ So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples”

( John 13:34-35, NLT). This is powerful. In the New Testament, four different words are translated as love. The first type of love is erōs, which refers to romantic love. Another type of love is storgē, which refers to love between family members. There is also philia love, which is love between friends. These types of love are important for understanding the human experience, but Jesus uses the Greek word agape in the passage above. It refers to God’ s unconditional, sacrificial love. If you have any questions about this love, Paul establishes a great working definition in his first letter to the Corinthians( 1 Corinthians 13:4-8). That is a Godsized order, and one you will need to lean into the Holy Spirit to live out.

This same exhortation to“ love one another” can be found in such phrases as“ keep fervent in your love for one another”( 1 Peter 4:8, NASB) or“ Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor”( Romans 12:10, NASB). My friends, this is important in our Christian walk. It is key to our identity as followers of Jesus Christ. Therefore, it matters to our Lord and to the life of our chapters.

In our Bibles, many of the“ one another statements” focus on unity in the Body of Christ. Paul lays out a powerful instruction in 1 Corinthians 1:10.“ I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of

our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose”( 1 Corinthians 1:10, NLT). But this is another high calling. It is critical not to allow divisions and strife to take root in our chapters. We should work toward reconciliation, which Webster’ s defines as the“ action of reconciling.” In other words, we are to work at“ restoring friendship and harmony” in our chapters. Strife and division are the work of the enemy of our souls. But God calls us to be of“ one mind” as members of the Body of Christ. Our goal should have the singular purpose of bringing forth God’ s Kingdom, which is the work of God among us. It is a part of the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray:“… and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us”( Matthew 6:12, NLT). My friends, this is a high calling. This is living as God has called us – living out the salvation Jesus bought for us on Calvary’ s Cross.

Together, we hold one another up. Love should be at the heart of our chapters. Unity is to be our goal. This is not easy, but if our hearts are to follow the Word of God, it should show in how we walk together in the life of our chapters. CMA

Jim and Barb Nelson oversee the Rocky Mountain Region as National Evangelist.

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