That is such a convicting word. Guilt inducing, even. As believers, we're supposed to not only be accountable to others, we're supposed to hold others accountable.
A friend of mine once told me that guilt and conviction are two different things. She was very right. Guilt can be swept away, under a mountain of sin. It can be induced by a friend's well meaning word or the way you look at another man. Conviction comes straight from God. There is no hiding, there is no pretending. In conviction, there is accountability.
When did we stop holding each other (fellow believers) accountable? When did we start looking the other way, allowing others' sin to be ignored? When did we fall into the "If it feels good" trap??
Trust me, I'm no better. I sin on a daily basis. I don't sit behind this keyboard in judgement. However....I've noticed an upswing in "tolerance" of other people's sins. I mean, really, who are they hurting by doing what they're doing? God will get a hold of them, right? Well, yeah. He will. Does that mean He wants us to sit by and watch while they make choices which separate them from Him? We say things like "Sin is sin, we shouldn't judge." But wait! That is where we're messing up.
Judgement is VERY different from holding someone accountable. Holding someone accountable is talking to a fellow believer and calling them out on what they're doing. Notice I didn't say fellow man. Here's the thing....believers have a different accountability. We are accountable to God. If you don't know Him, you don't know what I mean. That's just truth. If you do know Him, you get it...and even now you might be feeling accountable.
We live in a world that teaches our children to take what they want. To have sex if it feels right, to be attracted to people; not gender, to change their own gender because they 'feel' like they were born wrong. We live in a world that teaches our daughters to stand for what they want, our sons that the only woman worth having is the "perfect" one. We live in a world that says there are many different gods....different ways to heaven, hell or wherever. We live in a world that isn't accountable.
In my own world, there is only one God. He is the way, the truth and the light. He is the only way to heaven. In my world, gender is a gift; His marvelous creation and sex is a gift for marriage. In my world, our daughters are taught to be their husband's helpmeet. In my world, I sin. Daily. I am forgiven, hourly.
My heart has been so heavy lately. Our own daughters have made decisions that I've mourned over; those I love have made decisions I mourn over now. My heart is not to hurt nor bring guilt. My heart is to hold accountable. We really should remember that His word is the same today as yesterday and still hold truth. We need to remember that He died so we could live; that doesn't give us a free pass to sin as much as we want....it gives us a way out of the sins that we let hold us down. The pits we dig are often deep; so glad His arms are strong.
The only way through this world is with Him.
