The We of Unity
(This is the fourth in a series; please scroll down to Not I But We and work your way up.)
Quick summary:
You want to be a we.
God put that yearning to be a we inside you.
God promises to be with you.
We need draw close to Him to get the we only He can give.
Have you heard His voice drawing you toward Him? Have you taken steps to draw near to God (James 4:8)?
Great. Then there is one more step: becoming a we with others.
And this is the one word you need to know: UNITY.
If you read John 14, Jesus' last prayer before He was arrested, tried, and eventually killed, you'll see He prayed for Himself (verses 1-5), His disciples (verses 6-19), and for "all believers" (verses 20-26; please read it now).
Now the "all believers" category was not just for the believers at that time; it was for all believers of all times, meaning us. YOU. So just picture Jesus praying these words over you:
"they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me" (verse 21, NKJV).
One.
Now I don't know how you would describe your earthly relationships, but I'll tell you about some of mine:
Level #1: These relationships are pretty much amazing. I have some family members and friends that I will sacrifice my time and money and sleep just to sit and talk with them. These are the people that I LOVE TO LOVE. And it seems they love me back just as much. We rarely at all have any issues and, if we do, we address them immediately and walk right on through it. I started to type out some names but I have a strong feeling that you know who you are. You are my loves.
Level #2: These relationships are fine. Not great or uplifting or lifelong; they're just fine. I can hang out with them for a limited time without wondering how I can escape. I can carry on pleasant conversations without letting my mind wander. I can smile genuinely. But I don't write their names on my calendar with the words "Coffee @ Dose, 9:00" followed by an entire row of hearts. [Yes, this is currently on my calendar with one of my loves.] These are my fines.
Level #3: These are a strain. If I know we're going to be in the same room, I need to psych myself up a little before I get there. I will be okay, but I am a little tense around these people. There is very little chance we'll yell but there might be some awkward tension. These are my strains.
You, too, have these loves, fines, and strains. And though we hope that Jesus calls us to unity with just the loves, that is not the case.
He simply calls us to unity.
[Stay with me here!!!]
I'm saying He calls us to love the fines and the strains and the just as much as we love the loves. We are called to be "one" with God's children just as Jesus and the Father were one. We are to have the same outlook, the same focus, and the same passion.
"But I can't!" you are yelling in your brain. "There are some people that I just can't stand. And even if I could stand them, there's no way we could be united in anything."
Wrong.
You see, I had this entire post planned out in my head about a week ago and I knew exactly what I was going to write on unity. And then I somehow found myself reading John 13, and my mind was ROCKED. Jesus and all His apostles were in the room where they had the Last Supper. He had just washed their feet and was explaining that someone in that very room was going to betray Him.
And John 13:22 records their reactions like this:
"The disciples began looking at one another, puzzled and disturbed as to whom He could mean" (AMP)
"His disciples looked at each other, confused about which of them he was talking about" (CEB)
"They were confused about what he meant. And they just stared at each other" (CEV)
Judas had been in their midst ALL ALONG.
Jesus had known that Judas would betray him ALL ALONG.
And yet, somehow, they had no clue it was Judas because Jesus had loved them all the same. You know Judas was a strain. And if Jesus had treated Judas with the same coldness that I treat my strains, then all the others would have looked right at Judas when Jesus announced someone was going to betray Him. But they were CLUELESS.
Because Jesus chose to live in unity with them all.
Even Judas.
And after Judas left, Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35).
We live in unity when we love.
We are COMMANDED to love.
We should love LIKE JESUS LOVED.
Our love shows the word that we are His disciples.
Love your loves.
Love your fines.
Love your strains.
Love them all like Jesus loved: without preference. Without walking out of the room. Without rolling your eyes or "forgetting" to invite them or joking about them after they leave.
LOVE.
Love leads to unity. If the person is a believer, love will help each of you hear and follow Jesus. If the person is an unbeliever, your love will point her to Jesus.
I feel this wordy blog post falls short of the message God put in my own heart. But He has challenged me to love everyone like He loved me.
*Full disclosure: I'm not particularly looking forward to this. I'm completely comfortable keeping my loves, fines, and strains in three distinct levels. But the Spirit has moved in my heart, and I know He is calling me to love all of them.
And since it's February, I'm going to try, intentionally and without shame, to love like He loved me. I'm not talking about the romantic love of Valentines' Day or the patriotic love of President's Day; I mean JESUS LOVE. Love that stops and asks, "How are you?" and waits to really hear the answer. Love that really listens. Love that sends a card and says "I'm sorry" and helps do something you don't want to do.
I want to be a we.
Jesus prayed for unity among believers.
He commanded us all to love.
These three statements do not stand alone; they are connected.
So let's turn our desires to be a we into a desire for unity. A desire to love. A desire to show Jesus and glorify Him.
Every time you see a heart this month, remember Jesus command: Love others as I have loved you.
I love you :)
@leslienotebook
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
HEY! I'm involved with a FANTASTIC Girls Conference on February 19-20 in Brentwood, Tennessee. If you haven't made plans to come, please do!!! Check it out here.
Quick summary:
You want to be a we.
God put that yearning to be a we inside you.
God promises to be with you.
We need draw close to Him to get the we only He can give.
Have you heard His voice drawing you toward Him? Have you taken steps to draw near to God (James 4:8)?
Great. Then there is one more step: becoming a we with others.
And this is the one word you need to know: UNITY.
If you read John 14, Jesus' last prayer before He was arrested, tried, and eventually killed, you'll see He prayed for Himself (verses 1-5), His disciples (verses 6-19), and for "all believers" (verses 20-26; please read it now).
Now the "all believers" category was not just for the believers at that time; it was for all believers of all times, meaning us. YOU. So just picture Jesus praying these words over you:
"they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me" (verse 21, NKJV).
One.
Now I don't know how you would describe your earthly relationships, but I'll tell you about some of mine:
Level #1: These relationships are pretty much amazing. I have some family members and friends that I will sacrifice my time and money and sleep just to sit and talk with them. These are the people that I LOVE TO LOVE. And it seems they love me back just as much. We rarely at all have any issues and, if we do, we address them immediately and walk right on through it. I started to type out some names but I have a strong feeling that you know who you are. You are my loves.
Level #2: These relationships are fine. Not great or uplifting or lifelong; they're just fine. I can hang out with them for a limited time without wondering how I can escape. I can carry on pleasant conversations without letting my mind wander. I can smile genuinely. But I don't write their names on my calendar with the words "Coffee @ Dose, 9:00" followed by an entire row of hearts. [Yes, this is currently on my calendar with one of my loves.] These are my fines.
Level #3: These are a strain. If I know we're going to be in the same room, I need to psych myself up a little before I get there. I will be okay, but I am a little tense around these people. There is very little chance we'll yell but there might be some awkward tension. These are my strains.
You, too, have these loves, fines, and strains. And though we hope that Jesus calls us to unity with just the loves, that is not the case.
He simply calls us to unity.
[Stay with me here!!!]
I'm saying He calls us to love the fines and the strains and the just as much as we love the loves. We are called to be "one" with God's children just as Jesus and the Father were one. We are to have the same outlook, the same focus, and the same passion.
"But I can't!" you are yelling in your brain. "There are some people that I just can't stand. And even if I could stand them, there's no way we could be united in anything."
Wrong.
You see, I had this entire post planned out in my head about a week ago and I knew exactly what I was going to write on unity. And then I somehow found myself reading John 13, and my mind was ROCKED. Jesus and all His apostles were in the room where they had the Last Supper. He had just washed their feet and was explaining that someone in that very room was going to betray Him.
And John 13:22 records their reactions like this:
"The disciples began looking at one another, puzzled and disturbed as to whom He could mean" (AMP)
"His disciples looked at each other, confused about which of them he was talking about" (CEB)
"They were confused about what he meant. And they just stared at each other" (CEV)
Judas had been in their midst ALL ALONG.
Jesus had known that Judas would betray him ALL ALONG.
And yet, somehow, they had no clue it was Judas because Jesus had loved them all the same. You know Judas was a strain. And if Jesus had treated Judas with the same coldness that I treat my strains, then all the others would have looked right at Judas when Jesus announced someone was going to betray Him. But they were CLUELESS.
Because Jesus chose to live in unity with them all.
Even Judas.
And after Judas left, Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35).
We live in unity when we love.
We are COMMANDED to love.
We should love LIKE JESUS LOVED.
Our love shows the word that we are His disciples.
Love your loves.
Love your fines.
Love your strains.
Love them all like Jesus loved: without preference. Without walking out of the room. Without rolling your eyes or "forgetting" to invite them or joking about them after they leave.
LOVE.
Love leads to unity. If the person is a believer, love will help each of you hear and follow Jesus. If the person is an unbeliever, your love will point her to Jesus.
I feel this wordy blog post falls short of the message God put in my own heart. But He has challenged me to love everyone like He loved me.
*Full disclosure: I'm not particularly looking forward to this. I'm completely comfortable keeping my loves, fines, and strains in three distinct levels. But the Spirit has moved in my heart, and I know He is calling me to love all of them.
And since it's February, I'm going to try, intentionally and without shame, to love like He loved me. I'm not talking about the romantic love of Valentines' Day or the patriotic love of President's Day; I mean JESUS LOVE. Love that stops and asks, "How are you?" and waits to really hear the answer. Love that really listens. Love that sends a card and says "I'm sorry" and helps do something you don't want to do.
I want to be a we.
Jesus prayed for unity among believers.
He commanded us all to love.
These three statements do not stand alone; they are connected.
So let's turn our desires to be a we into a desire for unity. A desire to love. A desire to show Jesus and glorify Him.
Every time you see a heart this month, remember Jesus command: Love others as I have loved you.
I love you :)
@leslienotebook
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
HEY! I'm involved with a FANTASTIC Girls Conference on February 19-20 in Brentwood, Tennessee. If you haven't made plans to come, please do!!! Check it out here.
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