This week, I've been posting quite a bit about accountability and our lives of faith as Christians. Reading through the Scriptures, we discover that God is a God who believes in accountability. We find that all the way back in the beginning. When Cain murdered Abel, he was confronted by God, who asked him where his brother was. Cain's response was, "Am I my brothers' keeper?" The answer that God consistently and continually gives throughout the rest of His Word is, yes, you are your brother's keeper.
That means that we are called to hold one another accountable. Now, we should do this in a loving, caring fashion, with an intent more on reconciling and building up rather than in proving others wrong or coming across as "holier than thou". We do it because we see that we are unable to meet God's standard, and as people point out areas of growth, lovingly, to us, we also want to do the same for them. Again, not because we rejoice in pointing out their deficiencies, but because we want to see them growing in their Christian walk with their neighbors, and with God.
There is one element that is vitally necessary when it comes to accountability. That is trust. If you do not trust the person who is holding you accountable, if you think they have it "in" for you, or if you think they are pointing things out to tear you down, then you are not going to take their accounability of you very well. You'll more likely be more resistant, and even grow in your resistance, toward the good that they may be guiding you toward. Lack of trust, especially in a situation calling for accountability, is disastrous.
That's why we have to grow in trust with one another before we can begin to hold one another accountable. That's why growing in the fellowship is truly vital. As a gathering of Christians, we simply cannot hold one another accountable if we don't believe that the other is doing this out of love, or out of a concern to build up the body. If we suspect that they are thinking of themselves as better, or if they intend to build themselves up at your expense, then trust isn't present, which means that you probably also won't choose to be held accountable.
Trust begins by growing in relation with others. If you want to see another person held accountable for things in their life, a great way to begin that process is to get to know them better. Become their friend, not with the ulterior motive of changing them, but knowing that the best means of bringing about that godly change is if you have a good, trusting relationship with them.
That means that we are called to hold one another accountable. Now, we should do this in a loving, caring fashion, with an intent more on reconciling and building up rather than in proving others wrong or coming across as "holier than thou". We do it because we see that we are unable to meet God's standard, and as people point out areas of growth, lovingly, to us, we also want to do the same for them. Again, not because we rejoice in pointing out their deficiencies, but because we want to see them growing in their Christian walk with their neighbors, and with God.
There is one element that is vitally necessary when it comes to accountability. That is trust. If you do not trust the person who is holding you accountable, if you think they have it "in" for you, or if you think they are pointing things out to tear you down, then you are not going to take their accounability of you very well. You'll more likely be more resistant, and even grow in your resistance, toward the good that they may be guiding you toward. Lack of trust, especially in a situation calling for accountability, is disastrous.
That's why we have to grow in trust with one another before we can begin to hold one another accountable. That's why growing in the fellowship is truly vital. As a gathering of Christians, we simply cannot hold one another accountable if we don't believe that the other is doing this out of love, or out of a concern to build up the body. If we suspect that they are thinking of themselves as better, or if they intend to build themselves up at your expense, then trust isn't present, which means that you probably also won't choose to be held accountable.
Trust begins by growing in relation with others. If you want to see another person held accountable for things in their life, a great way to begin that process is to get to know them better. Become their friend, not with the ulterior motive of changing them, but knowing that the best means of bringing about that godly change is if you have a good, trusting relationship with them.
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