“But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” -1 Corinthians 1:30-31
There is a difference between relationship and Fellowship with God, our relationship with God is established purely by the saving Grace of God, that which has been freely given just because we responded in faith towards the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ but fellowship on the other is sustained by coming under the government and authority of God. It’s important to note the difference between these two as we go on because whereas the average Christian has a relationship with or is related to God, he may not necessarily be in fellowship because he has not yet come to terms with the need to live under the authority of God.
The highlighted scripture above, though not exhaustive shows us the resources needed to live effectively as children of God which are available only in Christ Jesus, all of these make up a second phase of God’s grace called the enabling grace of God that is needed to power the life of a believer and keep him on top despite several limitations and weaknesses he may well be facing. Just like the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9
“And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
He realized that the resources he needed to overcome his challenges were only accessible in Christ Jesus and his fellowship with God was correct and current enough for him to be in the right position to receive God’s supply, a position that sentenced him to be permanently dependent on God. A Christian who has not come to this point by experience will never see the need why remaining under the government of God to sustain the fellowship required to receive the enabling grace of God is important.
Scriptures have stated in Hebrews 12:28
“Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:”
The enabling grace of God is that which is sufficient for the child of God to serve acceptably because anything done outside that which God’s grace has made possible cannot glorify Him, it would be easy for man to take credit for anything he did not need God to accomplish. The limitations in our lives, the challenges that we face, the opposition that stands between us achieving destiny are all pointers to the fact that we need the enablement of God, upon this realization we begin to value and pursue our fellowship with Him as a matter of life and death because we come to truly understand how helpless we really are without Him.
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