"A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Proverbs 17:17)
Spiritual friendship goes beyond just being "friendly." It isn't about being nice to people, or even about liking them. It's about genuinely investing yourself in their lives; loving them unconditionally through whatever circumstances life throws their way. It means being there to encourage them, to support them in their walk. Jesus had his small group of disciples, but even in this group he had three who were his closest "spiritual friends": Peter, James, and John. He shared the highest and lowest points of his life with them. They were the three who accompanied him to the garden in which he was eventually arrested. Maybe he brought them there to teach them what it means to live as a godly example through adversity, even being condemned to death on a cross.
"In John 15:13 he says, 'Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.' To die for a friend - that's just not ordinary, everyday friendliness" - Spiritual Disciplines Handbook
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