In the New Jerusalem, there is a river of water of life flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, and this river spirals down from the throne and reaches all the four sides of the city, flowing out through the gates of the city (Rev. 22:1-2). On both sides of the river of water of life there’s the tree of life yielding its fruit each month, 12 fruits every year.
This flow of life with the three of life in the middle of the golden street signifies the Fellowship of Life. The New Jerusalem is a city of life, a city of water, and a city of fellowship, and all these things are related practically to our Christian life and church life today. The New Jerusalem is a “flowing city” – the water in the city is not a “sea” or an ocean but a river flowing from the throne.
This flowing river signifies the fellowship of life in the Body of Christ, bringing life wherever it goes. But we need to realize that fellowship is not merely “Christians coming together and talking things related to the Bible and to the church affairs”. The fellowship of life originates from the throne of God and of the Lamb, and it is the flow of life in the Body of Christ reaching every member of the Body, bringing the supply of life wherever it goes.
We need fellowship. Fellowship supplies us, waters us, refreshes us, and at the same time limits us, tempers us, blends us, and adjusts us. Some believers think they don’t need fellowship – they don’t want to wait for fellowship, and they don’t want to be bothered, slowed down, or frustrated by fellowship – they just go ahead and do what they “feel right” to do.
But all the believers need fellowship – we cannot live and we cannot go on without fellowship. We need to touch the deep significance of what fellowship is so that we may be brought into the reality and the practicality of the Body of Christ.
We need to have a good vertical fellowship of life with God, and we need to have a solid horizontal fellowship with the fellow members in the Body. Today we can experience a foretaste of the New Jerusalem as we open to the Lord and to one another, walk in the light, and have fellowship with the Triune God and with the saints.
The Fellowship of Life is in the Flow of Life with the Supply of Life and on the Way of Life
The one river of life flowing from the throne of the Redeeming God (God and the Lamb) and reaching every gate of the New Jerusalem, flowing in the middle of the one street of gold and having the one tree of life growing on both of its sides, signifies the one fellowship of life in the Body of Christ which issues in the New Jerusalem.
The fellowship of life begins from the throne of God – He initiates the fellowship, He originates it, and it is a flow of water of life. All genuine fellowship begins from the throne, and it is not “a particular fellowship”, a “secluded” fellowship, or an “exclusive” fellowship; rather, it is the fellowship of life reaching all of God’s people.
In our fellowship with one another we need to check, Are we under the throne of God in our fellowship? Does our fellowship issue from the throne? Is our fellowship in the divine life? Do we receive life as we fellowship?
The fellowship of life in the Body of Christ today is the flow of life (the river of water of life) with the supply of life (the tree of life on both sides of the river) on the way of life (the golden street) issuing in the New Jerusalem (Rev. 22:1-2; 21:2).
And the function of the fellowship of life is NOT primarily to correct, admonish, solve problems, or do anything outwardly; the primary function of the fellowship of life is to supply us with all the riches of the divine life. The fellowship of life is a river of water of life flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb to all the believers in Christ, bringing the supply of life to every member of the Body of Christ.
We should not seclude ourselves from the fellowship and we should never stop having fellowship with others. The Body of Christ is a matter of rendering supply and receiving the supply of life, and this happens through the fellowship of life, causing the building up of the Body of Christ.
All the saints need fellowship, and all the churches need fellowship, in order to receive and give the supply of life.
Lord, keep us open to You in the fellowship of life with the Triune God and with the believers in Christ. We need the fellowship! Flow into us as the river of water of life and make us ministers of life imparting life to the other members of the Body. Lord, bring us into the practical meaning of the divine fellowship of life, receiving life and flowing out life in the Body.
The Fellowship of Life is the Flow of the Eternal Life Within all the Believers in Christ
What is the fellowship of life? The fellowship of the “human life” in our human body is the flow of blood in the body bringing nutrients to all the members and parts of our body and constantly flowing in order to keep us alive. When the flow of blood in our body stops, we die.
The fellowship of life is the flow of the eternal life within all the believers, and it is illustrated by the flow of the water of life in the New Jerusalem. Corporately, the reality of the Body of Christ, the church life in reality, is the flow of the Lord Jesus within us all, and this flowing One must have the preeminence within us all the time (see Rev. 22:1; Col. 1:18; Ezek. 47:1).
The fellowship of life is the flow of life, the flow of the Lord Jesus within us. We know when we are in this fellowship and we have a deep feeling when we are not in this fellowship, since we may feel down, dry, dead, and stagnant…If there is no flow of blood in us, there’s no life; if there’s no flow of life in us and between us and other members of the Body, we are not in the reality of the Body of Christ.
When we fellowship with the Lord and with others we need to give preeminence to the flow of life within us. Don’t allow your good intentions, your ideas, or your opinions to compete with or hinder the flow. Rather, give the flow the preeminence, and you will have the fellowship of life with the supply of life.
The fellowship of life joins us to the believers, to the apostles, and to the Triune God (see 1 John 1:3), and it is the flowing of the Triune God into the us to be our unique portion for enjoyment today and for eternity (see 2 Cor. 13:14, 1 Cor. 1:9). God called us to this fellowship, the fellowship which is the Son of God (as the Spirit), flowing in us.
Having fellowship with the Triune God and with the saints implies that we put away our interests and intentions and join together with God and with others for the fulfillment of God’s purpose. When we are in the divine fellowship, we put aside our private interests, our feelings, our opinions, and our “personal agendas”, and we join with the saints and with the Triune God for the carrying out of God’s purpose.
When there are personal agendas, private interests, and intentions to gain something for the self, the fellowship is spoiled and corrupted. But when we put aside our private interests and join with the Triune God and with the saints for God’s purpose, we have the flow of life, we are supplied with the tree of life, and God’s purpose is accomplished.
In the Body of Christ we are not a “consortium of people holding the same faith and talking about their needs” but a place where we can fellowship, enjoy the flow of life, are blended together, and let God’s life flow in us for the accomplishment of His purpose. And God’s purpose is to cause us to grow in life and have the churches be built up as the testimony of Jesus.
Lord Jesus, we treasure the flow of life within us and between us and the saints. We want to give the flow of life, the fellowship of life, the preeminence in our being. We put aside our private interests and any personal agenda so that we may be joined in the flow with the Triune God and with the saints for the fulfillment of God’s purpose. Keep us in the flow of life. Show us our need for the fellowship of life. Lord, may we never do things without the fellowship of life! We want to walk in the light so that we may have fellowship with the saints and have the blood of Jesus cleanse us from every sin!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. James Lee’s sharing in the message for this week, and portions from, The Conclusion of the New Testament (msg. 203), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Aspects of the Christian Life and Church Life Seen in the New Jerusalem, week 4 / msg 4, The Fellowship of Life.
- Further reading: recommending ch. 18 in, The Vision of God’s Building.
- Hymns on this topic:
# Lord, I treasure the sweet flow of life, / And my soul-life at last I lay down; / O Lord, deepen the pure flow of life; / At Your coming may life be my crown. (Hymns #1191)
# The flowing of life divine, / In spirit so sweetly flows— / The overflowing life divine, / Nourishing my spirit so— / Bringing the Triune God’s fullness, / In spirit operates and moves, / Bringing me all of His supply— / Life as my supply. (Hymn on the Flowing of the Divine Life)
# The love of God and the grace of Christ / And fellowship of the Holy Spirit / Be with you, be with you all, / Be with you all, be with you all. / From the throne of our God and the Lamb / Flows a river of water of life, / Bright as crystal, reaching man. (Song on 2 Cor. 13:14 and Rev. 22:1)
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