PODCAST TRANSCRIPT | EPISODE 271: God Loves Togethering, Part 1

LIFE TO THE FULL w/ Nancy Campbell

EPISODE 271: God Loves Togethering, Part 1

Togethering begins with God, who is the triune God and who live in unity, harmony, and fellowship together. God also created man for the purpose of communication and fellowship. We are not created for isolation but for togetherness. That’s why God planned marriage and family life. This is the most wholesome and healthy way to live. Join us as we discover this truth from Genesis to Revelation.

Announcer: Welcome to the podcast, Life to The Full, with Nancy Campbell, founder and publisher of Above Rubies.

Nancy Campbell: Hello, everyone! Good to be with you again—mothers, young people, and even children. Oh, I hope I have some children listening today! Now, children, any of you listening, put up your hands! Oh, I wish I could see you! I love to have the children listening, so I hope you are with us today too.

I’m going to begin a new series today. It is called “God Loves Togethering.” Each time I share with you about a subject I usually find that it begins with a series because we can never talk about it all in just one podcast. There is always so much to talk about. There’s so much in this wonderful subject of togethering.

God did not create us for isolation. God created us for connections, for community, for fellowship. He wants us to be a together people, not isolated individuals. I want to reveal this to you from the Word of God. And guess where it starts? Can you believe it? In the very first verse in the Bible.

Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning, God . . .” God. The word is Elohim. It’s a plural word for God. It’s not singular. It’s speaking of God in the plural, the triune God. God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, dwell together in harmony and unity. They are One, but not an isolated one, but three in one. Communicating together.

And then, of course, we read how God created man in His image. We go down to Genesis 1:26, same chapter, first chapter in the Bible. “And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” So, we see again, how God is revealing that He is not just an isolated One, but One-in-Three, in communication and harmony and unity.

All the previous accounts of the creation, creating the world, it says: “And God said.” When He spoke, it came into being. But now, when He comes to create male and female, He doesn’t only say the words, “Just let it be.” No, He says: “Let Us.” It’s a personal thing. When He comes to create man, it is very personal.

We also see again this community even in the Godhead. God created us in His image. He created us to be someone who communicates. Firstly, He created us to communicate with Him, to be able to fellowship with Him. God longs for fellowship. He desires fellowship but He also created us to fellowship with one another. He did not create us to be isolated beings.

That’s why He created marriage. Marriage is the most beautiful thing for communication. You have one special person who is closer than anyone else on this earth that you can communicate with. You can share your heart. You can share what you wouldn’t share with anyone else. God gives this beautiful privilege. It was His divine plan that we would have this wonderful fellowship and communication in marriage.

But then it extends into family. Our families are meant to be homes of communication, of fellowship, of togetherness. We must remember that. In our building of our families, the building of our homes, we create fellowship with one another. We create communication. That’s why we have the table. We’ve been talking about that in the last couple of podcasts, of how important it is to come around the table and communicate. It’s a great place for communication.

This wonderful revelation of truth that begins in the first chapter of Genesis, goes right through, winding itself throughout the whole of the Word of God, right up until the last book, the book of Revelation. We see it again. We see it in Revelation 3:20, when Jesus was writing to the church of Laodicea.

He said in verse 20: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come into him and will sup with him, and he with Me.” That is the most beautiful picture of communication. When God comes into our lives, He comes in to communicate with us, to talk to us, to listen to us, to fellowship with us.

That word “sup” is the Greek word, deipneō. It literally means “the chief evening meal of the day.” Jesus is thinking of that picture, of when the family comes together at the end of the day, or even extended family added to the table, and everyone is enjoying fellowship together, and talking with one another, discussing things. It’s that kind of fellowship that He wants to have with us. We see it in the beginning, and we see it right over at the end of Revelation.

And again, Revelation 21:3. We go over to this beautiful Scripture. Here John is looking into the eternal realm in verse two: “And I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a Bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them. They shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.”

So, it begins in the beginning, with communication. It’s not long after Adam and Eve are created that we read how they, each night, at the cool of the day, they walked and talked with God in the garden which He had created for them. The Bible says He didn’t come in the daytime, because God established work right at the very beginning.

When God created Adam, one of the first things He did to Adam was, give him a job! Yes, God believes in work, and He gave Adam the job of tending and guarding the garden, and working, guarding it. So, each day, Adam worked in that garden.

But as the end of the day came, and the beautiful cool breeze came, it was time to rest, and time to fellowship. God came, and He came . . . and He walked with them, and talked with them, and told them of His ways. What wonderful times they must have been!

In fact, I think that maybe Adam and Eve began their first day with God, because God’s first day after creating them was the day of rest. Remember that? Back in Genesis 2:2, after God had spent six days creating the world, “And on the seventh day, God ended His work, which He had made, and He rested on the seventh day, from all His work, which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it.” That means He made it holy, because in it He had rested from all His work, which God created and made.

I am sure that Adam and Eve would have been with Him on that day, resting and fellowshipping, because the Sabbath day, which was later given as a law, it wasn’t then, it was just a principle. It was later given again with the Ten Commandments. It’s given as a day for us to rest. On that day of rest, it’s a great day to fellowship.

There are many who keep the Sabbath day. There are many gentile Christians who don’t keep the Sabbath, but they keep Sunday as the Sabbath. Well, I say that with a grain of salt, because sadly, so many Christians today don’t even keep Sunday like a Sabbath. They go to church, and that’s the end of that! Get home from church, go to their sports, go and do what they want to do. They haven’t seen the vision that this is a day of rest, a day that is holy, a day that is set apart for God.

It’s also a day for fellowship. I love to think of that day as a day of fellowship, not only with family, but with the saints of God, as we come together as the Bible says. Each week we come together, “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but so much the more as we see the day approaching.”

Actually, when we look at the context of that Scripture, the Scripture preceding it is Hebrews 10:23: “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;) and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.”

Do you notice that that is all one sentence? It continues on: “let us consider one another to provoke [one another] unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.” How can we provoke and encourage one another in good works and in our faith, if we’re not meeting together? The only way we can do that, to encourage one another, bless one another, is as we come together. We see that is God’s plan. He loves our togethering.

Now God has so many words for togethering in the Word of God. We have the words “assembly, congregation, convocation, together, gathering, fellowship.” Oh! There are so many words, and they’re repeated over and over. In fact, in the Old Testament, I found 12 different Hebrew words to describe our assembling together! (I’ve now found 14!) God didn’t only use one word. It wasn’t enough. He needed 14 different words to describe the assembling of His people together. Hopefully we’ll get onto those, and I can share them with you at some time. But at the moment, I just want to mention that.

We’re talking about how this is God’s plan. Psalm 68:6: “God setteth the solitary in families.” God wants every person to live in a family. Family is God’s idea. Family is God’s heart. Family is the way He planned for us to live. It’s a togethering lifestyle.

As I mentioned before, we must watch that even in our families, we don’t become isolated. It’s easy in families for everyone to become isolated and just do their own thing. No, we are a family. Dear mothers, encourage family life, not isolation. Well, there will be times, of course, when different ones want to get away, read a book, do something on their own.

But don’t allow complete isolation. Really work on gathering time. Think of the ways that you can do things together. Encourage doing things together. Plan doing things together. Promote it in your family. Be a togethering family! Amen? I hope you can all say “amen” to that.

I discovered an amazing Scripture a while back. It’s found in Romans 1:12. Paul was writing to the new Roman believers there. He says: “that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.” Can I just go over that Scripture with you? Let’s look at it a precedinglittle more closely.

We see here, as Paul is writing, he’s explaining to these new Christians that their faith is not an isolated faith. It’s not just you and Jesus. Well, yes, we can get away in prayer and have our quiet time and our special times with the Lord. It can be me and Jesus. But is can’t be me and Jesus all the time because God wants us to be a togethering people, even in our faith.

If we are isolated, we will not grow as much as if we are with the saints, because we do grow by encouraging and being with one another. He says: “That I may be comforted together.” Notice that word, “together with you.” Yes, not just me, “together with you by the mutual faith.” Once again, that means our together faith.

The word in the Greek is allēlōn. It literally means “one another.” Every other place where that word is used, it’s the Greek word (well it’s the English word) that’s translated “one another.” So, “by the mutual faith both of you and me.” Do you notice that? Not just me and Jesus. You and me. It’s a togethering.

I love the Passion translation of that Scripture. It says: “I yearn to come and be face-to-face with you and get to know you.” We can only get to know one another as we are with one another. We have to assemble. We have to get together.

“For I long to impart to you some spiritual gift that will empower you to stand strong in your faith.” Now this means that when we come together, and are side by side, something wonderful will be released. We can expect to be co-encouraged and co-comforted by each other’s faith. Do you get that?

Face-to-face, side by side, encouraging one another!

I did a study about one-anothering in the Word of God, and I found, guess how many one-anothers? I wonder if you can guess? Any children listening? Do you think you could guess how many times God says we are to do something special to one another?

Well, let me tell you, and I’ll see if you got it right. I found 41 different times where God tells us we are one-another each other. How about that?

Well, do you want to hear some of them? Maybe I’ll read them to you. Of course, there are Scriptures to go with them all. If you would like to get the Scriptures, well, I am happy to send them to you if you email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or you can purchase 100 Days of Blessing, No. 4, because these one-anothers are mentioned in that book.

OK, number one:

Admonish one another.

Bear one another’s burdens.

Bless one another.

Take care and concern for one another.

Comfort one another.

Have compassion for one another.

Confess your faults one to another.

Consider one another.

Do good to one another.

Encourage one another.

Edify one another.

That means to build one another up.

Esteem and delight in one another.

Fellowship with one another.

Forbear with one another.

Forgive one another.

Help one another with your gifts and abilities. We’ve all got gifts and abilities, special gifts that God has given to us. We can use those for remunerative help for the family, but in that Scripture, God says that He wants us to help one another just because of one-anothering. We don’t always have to get money for everything we do. We do it because we want to love one another.

Let’s see. What’s next?

To honor and prefer one another.

Show humility to one another.

Practice hospitality to one another.

Be kind to one another.

Lay down your life for one another.

Be like-minded to one another.

Look out for one another’s interests.

Love one another.

Have peace with one another.

Pray for one another.

Realize we are members, one of another.

Receive one another as Christ received us.

Rejoice with one another.

Serve one another.

Speak and sing to one another.

Speak truth to one another.

Stir up one another to love and good works.

Suffer with one another.

Submit to one another.

Teach and instruct one another.

Be tender-hearted to one another.

Think more highly of one another than you do yourself.

Wash one another’s feet.

Be on the watch to look after one another.

And weep and mourn for one another.

Well, how about that? All those one-anothers! And for most of them, we need to be together. These are beautiful things that we can operate in our own family life. You do need that list of one-anothers. In fact, you need all the Scriptures so you can read them with your family.

You can take one of them for a week, and you can say, “OK, children, let’s make this one-another something that is so big in our family this week. Let’s all do this together and work on it.” Then you can do another one the next week. You will find it such a wonderful blessing, because there is such blessing in togethering and one-anothering. Amen!

Let’s go on here. This is something I wanted to share with you too. That is, that when God decided, well, He did this back before even the world began, because God’s plans were in His heart before even the world began. He planned to take out of the Chaldees a man named Abraham, and to make from him a people, a people who would be a special people unto Him, a people who would be a holy people unto Him, although they haven’t always been a holy people unto Him throughout the years.

But this is God’s plan, and one day they eventually will be as God fulfills all His promises for Israel. But if God began to create a people, and an example people for all of us to follow, and those of us who would become the children of Abraham by faith, He established certain things. Now God is a God of order. We see this in many Scriptures.

I’m just thinking now of Isaiah 9:6, that wonderful Scripture that we all know so well, where it says, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders, and His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end. Upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgement and with justice, from henceforth, even forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this.”

We see that God orders His kingdom. He made Israel to be a kingdom of priests. Now we, who have been born again into His kingdom, in Revelation it tells us that He has made us kings and priests unto God. We have become part of His kingdom. It’s a kingdom that’s not just haphazard; just anything happens at any old time. No. God orders His kingdom. Did you hear that? Yes, Isaiah 9:7: “To order it.”

God planned times and seasons for His people to come and be in His presence, and also to come together. God understands who we are. Although we, especially those of us who now live in this age, and live in this age of grace, we are so blessed to receive the Holy Spirit into our lives, and to have fellowship with the Father, with the Lord Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit.

As it says in 1 John 1:7, let me read that Scripture to you: “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” He wants us to have fellowship with Him and also with one another. We can do that. We can do it 24-7. How wonderful, to just be able to talk to the Lord whenever you want!

But God also established times and seasons. So, I thought I would share some of these with you. Most of these, of course, are what God established for Israel. We today are the Gentile church, and we, specifically, are not commanded to come together on certain of these feasts. But did you know something?

We can. We can if we want to, because, interestingly, these feasts and celebrations, many of them are called “holy convocations,” meaning God calls His people to come together at a certain time and a certain place. They were very special to God, very special to Him. We can also enjoy them if we want to, because, if we go to Leviticus 23, where it talks about these feasts, it doesn’t call them “the feasts of the Jews,” or “the feasts of Israel.” It calls them “the feasts of the Lord.” They are the Lord’s feasts.

Every one of these feasts reveals Jesus. It reveals the truth about Christ. It reveals our salvation. It reveals so much of what He wants us to understand. To keep them can be a wonderful, beautiful thing, even for us as a Christian.

But He starts off with a daily meeting. God’s gatherings are appointments. Actually, that’s another one of the meanings of some of the Hebrew words for assembling and for togethering. Quite a number of the words mean “an appointment, an appointed time.”

Firstly, God establishes daily appointments with Him. Colin, my husband, and I have been talking to you about them in the last couple of podcasts, and how, in the tabernacle, we see the wonderful truth of the morning and evening principle and how God wanted His people to come and to do their offerings. It says, “before the Lord.” That means “in the presence of the Lord.”

And they were to come every morning and every evening to do the sacrifice of the lamb. They were to come every morning and every evening to keep the fire lit so that it would never go out. They were to come together every morning and every evening to light the candlestick to keep that light burning. They were to come into His presence every morning and evening to light the incense which speaks of the prayers of the saints.

We’ve talked to you all about that. If you didn’t hear those, go back and listen to those podcasts. You can also go to my webpage and pick up THE MORNING AND EVENING PRINCIPLE and learn more about it.

But that is the principle. It’s a daily thing, something God wants us to do daily, morning and evening. Something we do in our home every morning, every evening. We make sure that everything in our lives fits around it. We don’t fit this around what we have to do, or we’d never do it! We make sure we do this, and everything else can fit around it because it is so important.

Although you can go one step further, yes, because there were those in the Bible who not only came before the Lord two times a day, but three times. Do you remember how David came before the Lord three times a day?

We read in Psalm 55:7, where David said: “Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice.” David couldn’t get enough of the presence of the Lord. He came three times a day.

Do you remember Daniel? Daniel also came three times a day. We read about this when he faced going into the lion’s den. It says in Daniel 6:10: “Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.”

In other words, this is what Daniel’s habit was every day of his life. Even when he was faced with being thrown into the lion’s den for kneeling down and praying, he did not waver. He continued in his habit of three times a day.

You can choose; two times a day, morning and evening. I think that’s the least. Or you could even go to three times a day if you want. I love the story of the Pent family. I wonder if any of you have read that story called Ten Peas in a Pod? Well, I think I’ll tell you about it in the next podcast, because our time has gone. Let’s pray.

“Dear Father, I thank You so much for the revelation of Your truth. Lord God, You created us for fellowship, for communication, for togethering. Help us, Lord to be this kind of family. I pray that You will help us all to promote and encourage togethering times. Lord, You delight in our togethering times. We thank You. You are a God Who loves togethering. We praise You, and we bless You, and thank You. In Jesus’s Name, Amen.”

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

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www.aboverubies.org

Transcribed by Darlene Norris * This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

TPT translation of Romans 1:11, 12:

“I yearn to come and be face-to-face with you and get to know you. For I long to impart to you some spiritual gift that will empower you to stand strong in your faith. Now this means that when we come together and are side by side, something wonderful will be released. We can expect to be co-encouraged and co-comforted by each other’s faith.”

 

TEN P’S IN A POD

A Million-Mile Journal of the Arnold Pent Family

By Arnold Pent III

I love this book. It is the story of the million-mile journey of Arnold Pent, Jr. and his wife and eight children as they travelled through US and Canada together. The father preached along the way. But no matter where they were, or whoever they stayed with, they never gave up their practice of daily Bible reading and memorization. It will inspire you like no other book to begin reading God’s Word together as a family, but it is also a great adventure.

The author of this book wrote it when he was 21 years old, and it is still popular today Recently my husband I enjoyed meeting this wonderful couple in our home and he testified of not only the impact of the Word in his own life as a child but in the following generations. This habit is now continuing with his grandchildren.

Go to: https://tinyurl.com/10PsBook

WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY?

“TEN P’S IN A POD should be required reading. I still count it among one of the handful of most important books I have ever read.” 

~ Andrée Seu Peterson, World Magazine Columnist

 

“Your book is a breath of fresh air.”

 

“In a society where the Bible is rarely read, even in Christian homes, this book should be necessary (but enjoyable) reading for EVERY Christian family.”

 

 “How this husband and wife were able to take a family of eight children across both the United States and Canada throughout the 1950s and early 1960s in various old cars is a story worth reading.” 

—

 

100 DAYS OF BLESING, 4

Devotions for Wives and Mothers

By Nancy Campbell

These devotions take you into God’s Word to give you meat for your mothering soul.

You will be refueled and strengthened each day.

You will be inspired and encouraged.

And you may be challenged too!

 

Go to: https://tinyurl.com/100DaysBlessingV4