Series | Accountability

Still there are those who hate accountability. I guess they don’t want the protection, though I’ve never heard anyone complain about the guardrails on narrow, windy mountain roads that keep their car from slipping over the steep cliff. So what if the car gets banged up, at least they have their life. God-given accountability is like protective guardrails.

Even more than protection, accountability helps us better glorify God by increasing holiness. A lot of people seek out financial input/counsel (accountability) in their investments. They do research to find the sharpest counselors who can help them get the most out of their money. They listen to their advisor, buying and selling to get maximum gain. They put up with a lot in hopes of getting a lot. Perhaps we aren’t willing to put up with much spiritual input because we don’t care much about holiness. We aren’t interested in learning how to invest ourselves to give maximum glory. We’ve got access to our parents, pastors, and friends to help us toward holiness for God’s name sake, but perhaps that’s not the pay-off we really want.

“Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:6), especially when they help us walk worthy of the gospel. The sparks and pains of spiritual accountability are important because Jesus didn’t commission us to produce parrots who can repeat what He said. He commissioned us to make disciples who obey what He said.