Level Up - Unity of the Church

Big Idea: Jesus calls us to live in unity.

Primary Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-6

CAPTURE (Why should students pay attention to and care about your message?)

Have you ever been stuck in a group project where no one could agree on anything? You know the feeling—that moment when you realize your grade depends on people who can't even decide on a topic, let alone work together? Or maybe you've been on a sports team where everyone wanted to be the star player, and nobody wanted to pass the ball?

Getting people to work together can feel nearly impossible sometimes. But today, I want to share a story about someone who showed us what unity looks like when the stakes are much higher than a class grade.

For the ones that do not know or are visiting. I grew up in Argentina. Only speaking spanish. That’s why I have this exotic accent.

I felt God’s call to serve him early one. At 19. And I moved to England. Making the long story short. I travelleded the world serving in Missions. And lived in many countries where they did not speak even english.

But do you know what was my favorite place to visit? The Church. BEcause even though we were all from different parts of the world, different upbringing and culture. Something unified. The love of God. There are 45.000 denominations out there in the world. But Jesus empowered one church.

Last week, we started our "Level Up" series by looking at the Book of Ephesians, a letter written by the Apostle Paul, challenging believers to take their faith to the next level. Today, we’re going to see how Paul tackled something that's just as challenging now as it was then: unity.

SCRIPTURE (What does God’s Word say?)

Have you ever noticed how even something simple, like deciding where to eat, can turn into complete chaos? One person wants pizza, another insists on tacos, and someone else claims they "don't care"—but then shoots down every suggestion—and suddenly what should have been a fun night out becomes an hour of “I don’t know, what do you want to do?”

Paul is making an important call: living together in unity as followers of Jesus.

Let’s start in Ephesians 4…

Context

Okay, quick context check: Paul was writing this letter from prison. He’s not just using a metaphor—he was literally in chains for telling people about Jesus. And from that prison cell, he was basically saying, “Look, following Jesus isn’t just about saying you believe in Him. It’s about living in a way that matches up with what you say you believe.”

The church finds itself effective when each person who believes contributes with the gifts God has given him or her. The church is more of an organism than a hierarchy. Equipped for the task, the church can face the world when it draws on what God has provided.

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1Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. (Ephesians 4:1 – NLT)

It's like someone saying they're part of a team but never showing up for practices or games. You'd question how much they really care about the team, right? Paul was saying our lives should reflect that we belong to Jesus. But how? He tells us in the next couple of verses…

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2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. (Ephesians 4:2-3 – NLT)

Paul was saying that true unity requires us to put aside our “me first” attitudes. And before you think, “That sounds nice, but it’s impossible,” look at what he said next:

[Teacher note: Consider asking students to count the number of times they hear the word "one" as you read these verses.]

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4 For there is one body and oneSpirit, just as you have been called to oneglorious hope for the future. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all. (Ephesians 4:4-6 – NLT)

In these three verses, Paul used the word “one” seven times. That's not an accident. He was reminding the Ephesian church that even though each person might look different, act different, or think different, if we follow Jesus, we're all part of something bigger than ourselves.

This unity Paul was talking about? It's not just about getting along or being nice to each other. It's about showing the world what it looks like when people who might never normally hang out together are united by something—or rather, Someone—greater than themselves.

INSIGHTS (What might this Scripture mean?)

Now that we understand what Paul was saying in this passage, let’s dig a bit more into what these words meant to the Ephesians and what they might mean for us today. There are three key truths about unity that I think we need to understand

The first is…

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1. Unity requires us to live differently.

John 13:34-35 New International Version (NIV)

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Have you ever noticed that if you’re reading something too quickly, you can suddenly find yourself paragraphs—or even pages—later realizing that you have no idea what you just read? I think that might actually have just happened with the very first verse we read.

So, let's look back at verse one because there's something really important we might miss if we read it too quickly. As we read it, I want you to notice that Paul didn’t just politely suggestthat we live a life worthy of our calling. He did something much more intense…

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And one of the biggest changes, in Paul’s view, should be how we treat each other. That's why Paul emphasizes that there is "one body and one Spirit." He wasn’t just using religious words to make things sound spiritual. He wanted us to understand something profound: when God gives us new life, He also gives us a new family. And just like in any family, we have to learn to live together—not because we're suddenly all the same, but because we all belong to God.

Paul didn't say, "Get along when it's easy" or "Be united with people you like." He called us to something much bigger—to show the world what it looks like when God brings different people together and makes them family. That's why he begged us to live differently. Because unity isn't just about being nice—it’s about living in a way that shows we really believe God has made us new.

The second idea I want to call out is…

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3. Unity is built on what we share, not what divides us.

Paul ended this passage with what just might be the most important part. Let’s look again at verses 4-6…

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4 For there is one body and oneSpirit, just as you have been called to oneglorious hope for the future. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all. (Ephesians 4:4-6 – NLT)

Seven times in three verses, Paul used the word one. This isn’t an accident. He’s showing us that what unites us is far more important than anything that might divide us:

· one body - we're all part of the same team, the same family.

· one Spirit - the same Holy Spirit lives in each of us.

· one hope - we're all looking forward to the same future with God.

· one Lord - Jesus is the leader of all of us.

· one faith - we believe the same core truths about God.

· one baptism- we've all publicly declared our commitment to follow Jesus.

And most importantly, we share one God—the very same God that made us and loves us dearly.

This is huge! Paul wanted us to know that our unity isn’t based on everyone liking the same music, or dressing the same way, or even agreeing on everything. Our unity is based on something much bigger: belonging to the same God… the God we worship every time we’re here… the God who lives inside each of us… the God who loves each of us more than anything else in the world.

Remember how we started today talking about Lynda Blackmon Lowery? She and those other protestors changed history not because they were all exactly alike but because they were united in something bigger than their differences. As followers of Jesus, we’re called to that same kind of deep unity—one that shows the world what it looks like when God brings unique people together and makes them family.

ACTION (How could we live this out?)

With all that in mind, let me give you three specific ways we can level up our unity this week.

The first is…

Build unity.

Unity doesn't just happen by accident—it requires intentional effort. Paul knew this when he urged believers to "make every effort" to keep unity. This week, look for opportunities to be a bridge-builder in your world.

Maybe you notice that two of your friends are fighting, and you decide to help them work things out instead of taking sides. Or perhaps there's a new kid at school who doesn't seem to fit in with any group, and you decide to invite them to sit with you at lunch. It could be as simple as refusing to pass along gossip that would hurt someone's reputation or as challenging as speaking up when you see someone being treated unfairly.

Think about Lynda Blackmon Lowery. She didn’t wait for someone else to create unity. She stepped up and took action, even when it was difficult and costly. We can follow her example right where we are—in our families, our schools, and our youth group.

Before we head to small groups, I want to pray that God would help us level up in building unity this week. Remember, we're not in this alone. The same God who calls us to unity is also working in us to make it possible.

Let’s pray.