FollowThe Connection Between Separation And Holiness: Choosing Fellowship with God
© 2026 by C. O. Bishop
2nd Corinthians 6:13-18
13 Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged. (Paul wanted true fellowship with the Corinthian Believers.)
14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Wherefore come out from among them, (Break off fellowship!) and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Compare 2nd Chronicles 19:1-3
1 And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem.
2 And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord.
3 Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.
Introduction:
When we hear the words “unequally yoked,” we usually think God is reminding us to not marry an unbeliever. But, while the verse does teach that idea, that is just one application. And it is a very narrow application of a very broad concept. The overall issue is Fellowship: Partnership.
What Kind of Yoke? (The Yoke indicates fellowship…Partnership.)
The concept of a “yoke,” in the context of being “yoked together,” is a double-harness. It is used so two people (or two draft animals) can work together. They are uniting their efforts toward a common goal, or task. So, the person with whom you are joined could have a world view and loyalties contrary to yours. If they have entirely different goals than you do, why would you want to be joined with them?
In this country, we sometimes see people who have joined themselves to a foreign nation. They are either sending them restricted technology, or actually selling secrets to them. We call that behavior “spying,” in some cases, “treason” at worst, and it is universally condemned. God takes it seriously, too, but does not call us “spies” or “traitors.” He simply tells us how unfitting, and how counterproductive it is.
Fellowship is Partnership
In our culture, we think “fellowship” means “drinking coffee, eating sweets, and chatting.” (No…as a matter of fact, it does not.) Fellowship involves partnership. It means “having something in common.” It especially means sharing a goal and work or a project, together. Two workers who might have nothing to do with one another outside of work, can join together for a project, and treat one another with respect and cooperation in that work, and come away with a sense of :fellowship. (“We got that done! We accomplished that together!”)
I have worked on small crews, with other men, when, other than work, we had nearly nothing in common. But all of us were pleased at the amount of work we were getting done, and proud of our accomplishment. We all knew our jobs very well, and also knew when there was a lifting job that needed all of us. But when the lift was done and we had secured the large part in place for the man whose job it was to weld it, the rest of us dropped back into our separate welding tasks, all of which combined to produce a product that was very professional.
In fact, the four of us were accomplishing more together, on our shift, than a team of sixteen were accomplishing on a different shift, working at the same task. Collectively, we were happy about that, with a deep satisfaction. We had fellowship…partnership… in that work, though we shared nothing at all outside of work.
Fellowship also is not just “two fellows in a ship.”
Just “being in the same boat” does not produce fellowship: it does not imply “partnership.” Two fellows in a ship may be plotting to kill one another! Two fellows “in the same boat” because they both are out of work may have bitter rivalry between them, striving to get the same job.
But Paul said the Philippians had shared in the fellowship of the Gospel with him. They were partners in the work, sharing the gospel with others, seeing that as the job they had in common.
Paul points out that righteousness (having a right standing with God, and behaving that way) has nothing in common with unrighteousness (not having a right standing with God, and living that way.) He compares it to the dichotomy between light and darkness. They literally cannot have anything in common. Light specifically dispels darkness. Darkness is the absence of light.
Finally, he makes it very pointed: What agreement does Christ have with the evil one? And the necessary conclusion: “What part does a believer have with an unbeliever?” You are on “opposing teams!” You are soldiers in opposing armies!
Fellowship implies agreement: Verse 16 calls the question, “What agreement does the temple of God have with idols?” He goes on to point out that, collectively, the Church is the living Temple of the Living God on Earth. God Lives in us! He lives in you! He is our God! We are His people! (So, Ask yourself: Why is it all right for me to take what absolutely belongs to God, and join it in a common purpose with that which absolutely does not?)
An Old Testament Example Of A Bad Choice in Fellowship
In 2nd Chronicles 19:1-3, we see the tail end of a bad situation. In 2nd Chronicles 18, we saw Jehoshaphat, a good king (of Judah, the southern kingdom) joined to Ahab, an evil king, already under a specific curse from God. Ahab asked for his help fighting the Syrians at Ramoth-Gilead.
Red Flag #1 (Association in fellowship)
Jehoshaphat wanted to ask God’s approval. Ahab called in four hundred false prophets who all said God would give them victory. But Jehoshaphat saw that the four hundred were not Prophets of the LORD, and He asked whether there were no actual prophets of the LORD there. Ahab answered, “Yeah, there’s one, a guy named Micaiah, but I hate him, because he always says bad stuff about me!” (That should have been a big red flag for Jehoshaphat, right there! If the only genuine prophet in town says “Ahab is a bad guy,” and you already know his history, why would you even consider pressing on with such a bad idea??) This is the Road to Failure!
Red Flag #2 (Potential Results of a bad Choice in Fellowship)
But Micaiah was called in, and ultimately said Ahab would not be coming home alive. (Wow! And you still want in on this? This should have been a second huge red flag. Stop!)
Red Flag #3 (The Hypocrisy of Bad Fellowship.)
But Ahab decided on a bright idea: He would disguise himself as a common soldier, but Jehoshaphat would wear his normal royal robes. (“You put a target on your back, and I will fight incognito!” Honestly, if you can’t see a problem with that, then you must be blind!)
But Jehoshaphat went along with it! (Wow…!)
Prophecy Fulfilled
So, you know the rest of the story. Predictably, the Syrian army went after Jehoshaphat, thinking he was Ahab. In fact, their king had commanded them to only go after Ahab! But Jehoshaphat cried out in terror, and the enemy soldiers somehow realized from his voice that he was not Ahab, so they turned their attention elsewhere. They had no quarrel with him personally. Ultimately, Ahab was hit by a “random” arrow (just another coincidence!) and he bled to death in his chariot.
(By the way, the specific curse on Ahab included the prediction that “where the dogs had licked up the blood of Naboth, whose death by stoning Jezebel had arranged, there the dogs would also lick up the blood of Ahab.” Want to guess where they washed out his chariot after he bled to death in it? Yep. Right where Naboth had died!)
The Rest of the Story
So: Ahab is dead and gone, and Jehoshaphat heads home, just glad to be alive. But the story is not really over: A prophet of God, named Jehu, met Jehoshaphat on the road, with a message from God. The prophet said, “Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord.” The bad choices of Fellowship and Partnership caught up with him!
That is BAD News! “You are in trouble, brother!”
Fortunately, God also allows us to see the good news: “3 Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.”
Jehoshaphat’s position was still secure in Christ, just as my position and yours are secure in Christ. But God was definitely not pleased! And 2nd Corinthians 6:13-18 reminds us that God has not changed. He still hates sin, and specifically hates to see us joining together with His enemies, and literally working with unbelievers, against His cause. He can’t have fellowship with us when we are working against Him!
So, What do We do With All of This?
Verses 17 and 18 tell us the answer:
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
If you find that you have been partnering (joining in fellowship) with unbelievers in a cause that ultimately will work against God’s values, repent! Knock it off! Turn back, and go do what you are supposed to be doing! That is repentance!
Repentance
This is a “1st John 1:9” matter, to start out, but then it becomes a lifestyle change, if we hope to bear fruit in our walk with God. Repentance (Greek “metanoia “) means a change of mind. But “separation” has the same meaning as “sanctification,” which is the same as saying “Be ye holy for I am Holy!” (1st Peter 1:16) We are “separated unto God, for His purpose!”
So, the command to “come out from among them and be separate” is a call to commit oneself to living for God. Paul said, “I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ liveth in me, and the life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who Loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)
Paul demonstrated the “separated life” by spending every bit of his energy, time and strength in serving the risen Christ. He threw himself completely into his partnership and Fellowship with Jesus.
So, how did Jehoshaphat demonstrate Repentance?
2nd Chronicles 19:4-7
4 And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: and he went out again through the people from Beer-sheba to mount Ephraim, and brought them back unto the Lord God of their fathers.
He went back to working WITH God, partnering with HIM, and fellowshipping with Him.
5 And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,
6 And said to the judges, Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is with you in the judgment.
7 Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts.
Jehoshaphat went home and began mending his fences, so to speak: He traveled around among his people (Judah, Benjamin, and the half tribe of Manasseh.) He functioned as an “evangelist” of sorts: He turned people back to the LORD, the God of Israel, and he restored the judicial system of God in all the cities in his country. He drew others into fellowship with the Living God.
So, What Can We Do?
Well, of course, it varies with every person. But it still always comes down to confessing your sins (1st John 1:9,) and then seeking God’s face in prayer and in the Word, and asking what He wants you to do next.
“Do the Next Thing” is what walking implies. We can’t coast, or glide. Uphill, downhill, or on the level: Walking still requires “putting one foot in front of the other!” Take the next step! Do the Next Thing!
Will it be easy? No! Emphatically, No! It is not just “difficult:” It is impossible, apart from allowing Jesus himself to use us at His choosing. In John 15, He says that with His empowerment, we can bear much fruit. Without it, we bear none. Give that some thought!
Lord Jesus, teach us to daily seek Your face, seek Your will, and seek Your blessing. Teach us to walk by faith and not by sight. We desire to serve You, and we confess that we are not able, apart from Your intervention and supervision, Your direction, and Your empowerment. Give us Grace to seek You with a clean heart.