AM I ACCOUNTABLE (ROMANS 14:12)

 

AM I ACCOUNTABLE?

BIBLE PASSAGE: ROMANS 14:12

Picture taken from Google
Lesson Prepared by: Krisha of Solomon’s Wisdom FB page

JANUARY 30, 2022

MEMORY VERSE

 So, then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God.

ROMANS 14:12

 

INTRODUCTION:

Do you still remember your Constitution Subject? Can you still recite some of its section?

How about this? Section 4: (1987 Constitution) – No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances.

 

Nowadays because of social media there are lot of “fake news” and if we don’t confirm and search for that in the right website, you would be fooled. We also have the so called, “Maritess”
 which means “Mare, ano na ang latest?” Sometimes the right to freedom of speech is abused by so many people. It’s true that we have freedom but remember that freedom comes with accountability.

 

Galatians 5:1 says, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”

And verse 13 says, “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”

 

Your freedom shouldn’t lead you to the feeling that you’re not accountable.

What is accountability? It is being accountable which its synonym is “responsible or responsibility.” In Filipino means “pananagutan.” From the meaning itself we can say that most people don’t want to be accountable because attaches to it is the responsibility. Our lesson for today is titles, AM I ACCOUNTABLE?

 

Last Friday, my sister, Carol, reminded me of my “sad moments” during our Bible Study before. Our group’s name is Joshua group if you still remember that time. I know I’d mentioned this already; we knocked the door but another woman appeared at the door and she said, the woman we were looking for was not there for some reasons but upon opening the door there was a feeling inside me telling me try to share the gospel. Because of time, it’s almost lunch, I hadn’t tried to share then we left but when we almost went our way, I handed her a bible tract. While we were walking, Carol and I talking about the opportunity to share. I said, “Let’s go back” and we began to move our feet but because of the thought “it’s almost lunch and we might disturb her,” the ending was, we didn’t do it. We had promised ourselves that next week, we would prioritize that lady we met. After a week I said to the woman, “You were not here last time, may I ask, where was the lady we met here last time? Sad to say, after a week she died; this is a true story. I said to teacher Carol, I don’t want to remember that anymore but that reminds me again. Am I accountable? Are you accountable with the commitment you’ve promised to the Lord? 

LESSON OUTLINE:

1.  YES, WE ARE ACCOUNTABLE BECAUSE THE BIBLE SAYS SO (ROMANS 14:12)

 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

-      Based from our memory verse, to whom we’re accountable?  Yes, we are accountable to God. Why does God want us to be accountable to Him?  Let’s read Genesis 2:15-17. The instructions God given are very simple and not confusing. Based from these verses, what were the responsibilities given to Adam (Eve)? – dress and keep the garden then thou shalt not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

-      Based from the pastors’ sermons I watched and commentaries I’ve read there was an idea that Adam and Eve had remembered more in the 2^nd instruction and swapped it from the first. The instructions were just like this, “Thou shalt not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; just cultivate and keep it.” Because from the time Eve was tempted, she was near to the tree and Adam was beside her.

a)   Why does god want us to be accountable to him? First, because accountability protects us from harm.

-      Let’s read Gen.3:8-10. When God asked Adam where he was, Adam replied in verse 10…” and he said, “I heard Thy voice in the garden and I was afraid…” To whom Adam was afraid of? Adam was afraid to give an account for his actions.

-      We are all accountable for our actions and promises to the Lord. Let me ask you, do you know what is right from wrong? Of course, we can distinguish what is right from wrong (based from laws and bible standard). Therefore, what matters is not the knowledge   of right from wrong; it’s the fact that we’re all accountable to God. We know when we disobey God or not.

-      God gave simple instructions to Adam and Eve: cultivate and keep it (garden) but they decided to violate. They knew it because they hid from God. In verse 9 God said, Where art thou?” Of course God knew exactly where they were, but God wanted Adam to admit something. He wanted him to admit that he got wrong. In your life, have you seen that God is bringing you into accountability? Last January, we’ve committed to ministries and whether we like it or not, we’re accountable. To those who didn’t commit also are held accountable. Remember, we are all accountable to our actions.

b)   Why does God want us to be accountable to Him? Second, because accountability involves good stewardship.

-      We already knew the story in Matthew 25:14-29 about talents. In verse 15, “And unto one he gave first talents, to another two and to another one; to every man according to his several ability…” In this verse people are given according to their ability and no one could say, “There’s nothing I can do in church ministry” but maybe this is just their reasons or they don’t want to accept responsibility. Every one of us has the responsibility to fulfill. In the church everyone matters. We have given forms to fill in and check which ministry you want to involve in. Every ministry you involve; you’re accountable to those.

-      What will happen if the company has irresponsible employees? Why company still need the time in and time out machine for employees? Is it not enough to trust the employees with their mouths saying the time they in and out? It’s because some people are dishonest, they come thirty minutes after the call time and go out 30 minutes before the end of their time out.  Also, some people don’t go to work and give dishonest reasons. For example, he’s sick though it’s not true. Doing this shows a bad testimony. If the company has irresponsible employees that would be a great problem and it would give a negative effect output service of the company.

-      Whatever you and I do if we know that someone’s holding us accountable and they’re expecting the best of you.

2.  YES, WE ARE ACCOUNTABLE BECAUSE NOTHING IN ALL CREATION IS HIDDEN FROM GOD’S SIGHT (HEBREWS 4:13)

 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

 

-      Anything we think is hidden is a crystal clear to God, including our own thoughts, ad motivations. We may fool other people (1 Samuel 16:7), and we may even fool ourselves (Jeremiah 17:9), but we cannot fool God (Psalm 44:21).

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-      Like what happened to Adam and Eve, they hid from the presence of the Lord. This is a natural reaction when we sin; hiding from God’s presence. This gives me that when we are living in sin, life is lifeless and sad because God’s presence is not there. Imagining yourself out in the presence of our Almighty God is a life full of pains, temptations, sufferings or anything worldly.

3.  YES, WE ARE ACCOUNTABLE BECAUSE WE ALL APPEAR BEFORE THE JUDGEMENT SEAT OF CHRIST (2 CORINTHIANS 5:10)

-      The Bible speaks of a special judgement that God will hold for believers only. It is known as the Judgement Seat of Christ, or the Judgement Seat of God. Paul wrote, “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.”

-      Any times the Judgement Seat of Christ is referred to by the biblical scholars as “The Bema Seat.” The reason for this is that the phrase, “Judgement Seat” is taken from one Greek word, “bema” which translated from Greek means “Judgement Seat.” During the time of Christ, this world could refer to the platform on which a ruler or judge decided to athletic competition in the New Testament, he was likely using the term as it applied to Greek sports. If the winner of a particular contest had followed the rules of competition and won, he has honored at the bema; there he was crowned. https;//www.arewelivinginthelastdays.com

-      In the city of Corinth, a stone platform was constructed to support the Bema Seat (Judgment Seat) of the local officials. The seat was used to give out awards to athletes for their competitive performances (usually a crown of wreath of leaves), but also to address legal charges brought against individuals. Apostle Paul was quite familiar with this seat. This is where he was brought before Gallio, who was the proconsul oF Achaia at the Bema Seat (Acts 18:12), “And when Gallio was the deputy of Achaia, the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment seat,” This seat was also what Paul referred to in 2Corinthians 5:9-10 as the “Judgement Seat of Christ.” In this context, Paul explains to us tha this is where the Christians will receive an evaluation for works done in the body, whether good or bad. https;//www.arewelivinginthelastdays.com

-      The participants in the Judgement Seat of Christ are members of the spiritual church. These are people who have trusted Christ as Savior from the Day of Pentecost, until the coming of Christ for His church. The Bible said that God will reward the actions of believers.

“Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.” – Psalms 62:12

For the Son of Man is going to come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will reward each person according to what He has done (Matthew 16:27).

-      The Lord Jesus Christ is the Judge (John 5:22-27). It is for Christians only (2 Corinthians 5:8-10).

-      The rewards we receive on earth are all temporal and perish. The rewards in the Judgement Seat of Christ are eternal and will never perish.

-      By consistently focusing on the Judgment Seat of Christ, you will naturally develop a desire to please God rather than men. Developing this attitude is the surest way to handle criticism and opposition.

 

CONCLUSION:

Most people don’t want to be held accountable. Whether we like it or not we are all accountable. We feel and act like we’re not accountable but in reality we cannot escape from the accountable to the Lord. If we act unaccountable in the work we do, we will be unable to do our best, it wasteful time and it hinders our spiritual growth. God’s Word motivates us to do our best in our commitment to God,

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the