Partnership in the Gospel

I listened to the sermon Living a Life that Matters - Living Courageously by Francis Chan from the Cornerstone Church. It is a very encouraging message that talks about community and the deep relationships that can be formed among brothers and sisters through the unity in the gospel. It reminded me of a sermon I heard a few years ago from Pastor Tim. Both sermons used these verses from Philippians:

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." - Philippians 1:3-6

What is the partnership in the gospel?

One main aspect of fellowship is that we have a partnership in the gospel. We gather and serve together because there is a common mission that keeps us united. Our lives have been bought with the a high price, the precious blood of Christ. We live for the Christ's sake, and we live to serve Him, to consecrate ourselves to expand God's Kingdom with the power of the Holy Spirit. This partnership is a strong bond of unity.

A strong aspect of CCF is community. We like to study together, eat together, see each other almost everyday, live together, hangout often after fellowship in Westcourt, and stay up late playing board games or having deep discussion until sunrise. All these are good times that I cherish and keep close to my heart.

I believe we can go beyond this community. There is a deeper bond that I have formed with some brothers through serving for this gospel. We have come to the understanding that our hearts beat at the same rate for the gospel, that we are willing to fight with all we got, that we are willing to suffer for the cause of Jesus Christ. And this bond is so encouraging that even if I don't see these brothers for a long time, I know with confidence that God is working powerfully through them.

This is a beautiful bond because it is not just during the fun times that we enjoy each other's company, but also during the tough times. Seeing each other's zeal for the gospel really brought a deep unity. I remembered a particularly 4am morning when we were shedding tears because we were so pressed on every side (but not crushed)... but we were filled with joy knowing it was for the sake of something greater.