YOUnity starts with YOU!!!

Ephesians 4:1-3
1 Therefore I (Paul), a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.

Before we can even attempt to strive for Unity here in this body. We need to first be watchful
1 Peter 5:8
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.  It is critical that we be watchful and watch out for the H.A.L.T method used by the enemy.H.A.L.T  
H – Hungry – I am sure you have heard the advice, “Don’t go buy groceries on an empty stomach.” It is true isn’t it! When you are hungry everything looks so good. You just keep throwing items into your cart and the bill just keeps getting longer. This is the same for us spiritually. When we are hungry, Satan offers us fake fillers. He offered Jesus stones to turn into bread when he was hungry (Mat. 4:3). He offered Eve delicious fruit that pleased her eyes (Gen. 3:1-7). Be it sexual hunger, spiritual hunger, a thirst for purpose or meaning, or poverty; when we are hungry we don’t think clearly. We become like Esau and sell our future in order to get a bowl of stew (Gen. 25:30-34).

A – Angry – How many sins has Satan pushed into the lives of God’s children by getting them angry? Jesus pinpointed murder as proceeding from anger (Mat. 5:21-22). Paul teaches us to be cautious when we get angry. We must not LET anger turn to sin. He urges us to not LET the “sun go down on your anger.” (Eph. 4:26). Words fly quickly, hands turn into fists, and hateful actions happen when we are angry. Be careful when you feel your temperature arising!

L – Lonely – The writer of Ecclesiastes said, “two are better than one” (Ecc. 4:9). Accountability is crucial for avoiding sin. When we are alone we feel like our actions are in secret. Privacy emboldens us to sin. Satan encourages us to feel like it is a secret sin that no one will ever know. Loneliness encourages us to play the role of the victim and believe we deserve such a sin. Loneliness is connected with depression and discouragement. When we are lonely, sin sees an opportunity to pounce.

T – Tired – Physical weariness is a subtle trigger for sin. God required Israel to rest one out of seven days by not allowing any work to be done on the Sabbath. Rest is essential. Our Lord told his disciples after a busy time of ministry, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). We need rest. When we are sleep deprived and worn-out with business and busyness we make a large target for Satan.

The medical community is constantly educating the public on seeing the warning signs for heart disease. They tell us if we see certain symptoms taking place then get to the emergency room. As Christians, we must be on the lookout for certain conditions as well. When we are hungry, angry, lonely, or tired we must be aware of our vulnerability. We must determine to HALT sin before it takes us away from God and down a painful path.

Now let's talk about YOUnity.
  
Unity is not uniformity or conformity. It’s not about everyone agreeing with everything. The sake of biblical unity should never be leveraged as a way for a leader to get his or her own way. Unity is a solidarity among believers focused on the mission of the church, in order to advance God’s kingdom purposes for the good of the people.

Division is focused on self and unity is focused on God. We divide, separate and go to battle when we lift up our own agendas over the greater good. It’s easy to cloak selfishness under the guise of righteous passion, but God designed the church to operate as a community moving in the same direction—not a collection of lone rangers who are each doing what is right in his or her own eyes.

Let's set some truth here: God has expectations of us.

He did not sacrifice His Son, send us the Holy Spirit, His Son as intercessor, the Word of God and your new family the Body of Christ and expect you to simply sit on all that He has given and do nothing with it.

Pastor JR was given this vision of unity by God. God fully knew what it would take for LW to get to a place of unity, JR and I agree we did not fully understand what would need to happen and in honesty we are still learning. The Lord already knew this would be a journey and not an event, not a sprint and not without sacrifice and some dying to self for all involved.

God is orchestrating it. You are not here at Living Word by accident. God knows your life from the beginning to the end, then you are supposed to be here.

Job 14:5 You have decided the length of our lives. You know how many months we will live, and we are not given a minute longer.

Psalms 139:16: You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

Proverbs 16:9 states, "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps". This verse reflects on the idea that while humans plan, God ultimately decides what will happen.

Believers are never told to become one; we already are one and are expected to act like it. 
- Joni Eareckson Tada

1 Corinthians 12:13
Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.

Ephesians 4: Background
Chapter 4 describes both the unity of believers and the new hope which Christians have in
Jesus. Verse 1 reminds readers of Paul's current condition, living under house arrest in Rome
for two years (Acts 28:30–31).

1. Therefore I (Paul), a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.

Proverbs 1:7 Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Paul encourages believers to live lives which honor God's gift of grace. Paul offered similar words to the Philippians (Philippians 1:27) and Thessalonians (1 Thessalonians 2:12; 2 Thessalonians 1:11). Believers have been called to follow Christ Jesus. Therefore, believers should live like Christ Jesus. The following verses will outline several ways in which those who believe are to live like Christ (Ephesians 4:2–3), followed by an emphasis on doing so in unity as "one body."

2. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

Living in a manner worthy of Christ's calling (Ephesians 4:1) includes four traits described in this verse. First, the Ephesians—and all Christians—are to live in humility. Christ called others to live with the humility of a child (Matthew 18:4) and taught, "Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted" (Matthew 23:12). Jesus was born in a humble manger, grew up in humble surroundings, lived a humble life, yet had a tremendous impact. Christ's followers are to likewise operate in humility.
A promise: 1 Peter 5:6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time

Second, believers are to live with gentleness. Being gentle is part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23) and important in the life of every believer. This trait not only helps to avoid unnecessary conflict, it demonstrates the love we are meant to display at all times 
(John 13:34–35).

Third, believers are to exhibit patience. Patience is another part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and also a necessity if we are to SHOW love to others. Elsewhere, Paul 
reminds believers that "love is patient" (1 Corinthians 13:4).

Note in v2: making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.
This lets us know we ALL have faults - None of us have arrived to perfection. Let us empathize with each other's struggles and show God's grace and compassion to one another.

Fourth, believers are to live with love toward one another. Paul has mentioned this in Ephesians and other letters, especially in 1 Corinthians 13 where the "greatest of [God's gifts] is love." Particularly as it is used in the New Testament, "love" is not merely a feeling or an emotion. It means taking actions which benefit others. A feeling which doesn't result in action is not biblical "love."

Now may the God who gives endurance and encouragement grant you harmony with one another in Christ Jesus, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 15:5-6

Passion for unity with other Christians

3. Make EVERY EFFORT to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
Verse 2 provided four specific applications of how Christian faith should translate into Christian behavior. Those traits are humility, gentleness, patience, and love. These are encouraged as ways to live worthy of the calling we've been given by God. This verse supplies an additional characteristic: passion for unity with other Christians. 

This unity ought to also take place "in the bond of peace." Peace is another theme which Paul mentions multiple times in this letter (Ephesians 1:2; 2:14, 15, 17; 6:15, 23). Christ is our peace, He made peace, preached peace, gives unity in peace, and offers a gospel of peace. Peace is part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and important for every believer (Romans 5:1). 

In Conclusion: 

Our God expects Unity in His body. Choose this day to walk in Unity because 
1: The Word tells us we belong to each other.
Romans 12:4-5
4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another. Hmm. sounds like FAMILY to me.

2:  YOUnity starts with YOU!!!

Amen.