Toward a Christian Fellowship

The people in almost every local church have real need for a far greater sense of the total Christian fellowship of which they are normally a part, a sense of the participation they can have in the larger strategy of the kingdom of God. Particularly is this true in such troublesome times as these, when the Christian witness is so much needed in high places. A person feels so small, as he stands alone before the great issues of our day. Strength comes when we sense our togetherness and when we recognize channels for united witness.

Christian people, furthermore, need to explore much more fully the rewards and correctives which lie in meaningful relatedness to other people with whom they are more or less constantly associated. This relatedness we call fellowship. To any person the reality of the church in his own life is found in that understanding love and faith which he has experienced in its people, the strength he has found in its worship, and the expression he has found in its channels of service.

This little volume is intended to underscore the need for a warm fellowship, underlying all our churchly functions, both in the local congregation and in the broader aspects of the Kingdom’s work. It deals with attitudes and emphases, rather than theology or ecumenicity as such. It is by no means intended to be a definitive or scholarly treatise on ecclesiology, nor is it intended as a presentation worthy of discussion in the circles of the intelligentsia, but for use by ordinary Christian people as a basis for thought and discussion. If it can stimulate Christians to a new appreciation for the principle of fellowship as a not-too-common approach to the subject of Christian unity, it will perhaps justify its appearance.

With trepidation regarding its literary value, but with real conviction on the importance of this subject, this little volume is offered for thought and discussion.

R. Eugene Sterner