Accountability

Whether from the viewpoint of child or parent, we’re familiar with being ‘caught with our hand in the cookie jar’ and having to account for our actions.  Turn that heat up a lot and you’ll understand Paul’s description:

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10 KJV)

When we stand there, as in the above parent/child scenario, He knows whether it be good or bad, and so do we. We know before we do it, too, but we go ahead and do that which we know we shouldn’t. We find so many ways to justify it in our own sight. We often have help from others who wish us to walk their path with them. Most of the time we make the decision to err without giving thought to the consequences – to our accountability.

What would you prefer hidden from view?  I sure have some ‘bad’ that I’d prefer kept only among family or perhaps close, loving friends who would forgive me.  Thank God I know that He’s forgiven me through the gift of His son, our Christ, but I will hear about the bad, as well as the good, when I stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

I doubt that there lived a person on this planet who is comfortable with all the actions they’ve taken during their lifetime. Biblically, Isaiah wrote it first:

Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words. (Isaiah 41:26 KJV)

Paul knew all of the scriptures and thought that one bore repeating:

As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (Romans 3:10-12 KJV)

Nope – we just aren’t good enough. There is always a commandment we’ve broken within the two that Christ pointed out as the basis for all the law – loving God with everything we have and our neighbor as ourselves. We’ve broken those. Every person reading this has broken both of those at one time or another.

Don’t tell me you haven’t, you’re as I am, imperfect.

Thank God, He knows this and planned from the beginning of creation for a way for us to reach perfection through Himself, who is perfect:

Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20-21 KJV)