Fellowship In The Word - Sweeter than Honey
Fellowship in the Word
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13, ESV)
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16, ESV)
Bees know better than to try to do life on their own. In the cold weather of winter, bees huddle together around the queen bee, vibrating their bodies to create extra warmth. As the bees on the outer edges of the huddle get cold, they rotate to the inner circle, each bee taking a turn sacrificing their own heat on the outer edge to keep the entire colony warm and the queen protected.
In the summer, bees still focus on what’s best for the colony. When they find a particularly good source of nectar, they don’t keep it to themselves. They communicate its location through a kind of dance to the other bees in the hive. They pass along the bounty, ensuring that the colony will thrive through its interdependent relationships.
God also created humans to be better together. We aren’t only dependent on God but also on fellowship with his people. I recently faced one of the most challenging seasons of my adult life. I struggled to open God’s Word. I despaired over the loss of a future I had mistakenly assumed was certain. I worried about whether or not my family would have enough.
When I couldn’t hold it together, my church family held me up. When we were in crisis, they gladly moved to the edges of the little huddle of our church body and gave up their own warmth to care for our family. And they did it all joyfully. When I was tempted to feel like God was taking from me, they were living proof that God gives all I need.
Throughout history, honey has been considered to have all kinds of medicinal uses. Today, we know that honey can help heal burns more quickly, is a natural antibiotic, and may even help alleviate the side effects of cancer treatment. The honey of God’s Word is like a balm to the wounded soul. When we not only serve the family of God but open God’s Word together through preaching and teaching or just one-on-one relationships, God’s Word brings healing.
If you don’t feel comfortable talking about God’s Word with your friends, you’re probably in the majority of Christians. Why is it so hard? Because we never practice. Practice builds habits. You might find it easiest to start by attending a formal Bible study. When you get practice talking through the questions at a weekly Bible study, humbly admitting when you’re not sure about your answer, or joyously sharing about how God used his Word to intersect your life in a specific way that week, you tear down the walls of awkwardness that often surround sharing God’s Word.
Over time, you may find it difficult not to talk about God’s Word. After all, the more time you spend in it, the sweeter it becomes to you, and you’ll begin to feel compelled to share that sweetness with others.