DotCom 4: Church, why bother?

A good discussion was had by all on "Why bother with Church?"

We looked at Jesus' prayer in John 17 in which he:

Emphasised the oneness between himself and his Father

Emphasised the oneness amongst the Disciples

Emphasised the truth the disciples now hold ... the basis of the "Apostolic Church"

Emphasised his oneness with the people who where to believe in the future and linked he in them (and us) and him in God the Father.

Emphasised the unity the believers where to show so that others may know of his love.

From this we can conclude:
- The church is Apostoloic. ie it must be based on the teaching of the Apostles.
- The church must strive for unity
- The church exists as a witness - and it's unity is a central component to this
- The unity of the church is the same as the unity that Jesus shows with his Father
- The church will not fail, and we must not give up on it, simply because it is Jesus' choice of the way he wants himself revealed to the world.