John 17. Did you know that Jesus prays for you in the book of John? Verses 20-26 are incredibly important verses to all of us who have become followers and friends of Jesus Christ. In them Jesus prays on our behalf, to "all those who will believe." He prays for our unity, both with God and with each other. This is the only place Jesus prays specifically for us, and he only makes one request on our behalf, so that request must be very important.
That we enjoy close fellowship with God and with each other is the one request of Jesus, and the one evidence to the world that we are truly his disciples. We don't fulfill Jesus' prayer by being great students of the Scriptures, by having great church services, by publishing great books or any other thing we often do in church life. We fulfill the prayer of Jesus by being dedicated to God and to each other.
Many Christians seem oblivious to this, content to 'go to church' with relative strangers or mere acquaintances. It is not uncommon for Christians today to live in close proximity to one another and not even know each other, sometimes unaware that they attend the same church. This to me is strong evidence that church was never meant to be merely "attended." Dedication to fellow Christians doesn't even show up on the list of important things we're supposed to be doing. Are your relationships with other Christians in your neighborhood, small group, and church noticeably different than any others in your life? Are you dedicated to them, and them to you? Is "unity" a word that could be used to describe those relationships? This was so important to Jesus that he made it his last prayer with his disciples before his crucifixion.
At the Springs, we call this Biblical Community, and it's a core practice of our church.
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