T H E O P H I L U S

A sign of a repentant heart is evident in one that chooses to rejoice and be responsible even in moments that seem so broken. They choose to be responsible even if they want to rebel. Responsibility is what demonstrates faith and godliness to those around us. If the call to Christianity is neither reckless, nor self-righteous, then it must charge us to a place of radical responsibility. This sense of responsibility plays out in so many aspects of our daily lives, and is a discipline that is never exclusive to certain individuals.

5. Responsibility
Scripture Reading: Luke 19:12-27

If there is anything that I have learned as a pastor is that a strong sense of responsibility is accounted for in my credibility as a leader. This is not to say that we ought to be so concerned about the perceptions of others and how they portray our character and capability, but rather that we should also not turn a blind eye and be reckless with the way we act towards others. Christians are going to be held accountable for their actions in the most critical way by those who are outside and even inside the church. Our responsibility is not to uphold a religion, but an evidence of a relationship with our Father.

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? – Luke 6:32-33

Godly responsibility is to act in love regardless of one’s feelings or consensus of others’ sentiments. The way we choose to put our spouses and children as a priority before the needs of any corporation or business is a value that we all commonly hold dearly in our hearts. Our sense of responsibility is a reflection of our love for the people in our lives, and is similarly and certainly most reflecting on our love for God. This means that whatever God has given us in our lives, whether it is family, friends, work and church we must be good stewards of all these things as a sign of our thankfulness and love for God. No matter how brutal our work can get, we strive to do our best because we are thankful for what God has provided for us in our lives. It does not matter how much of a pain your boss or coworker could be to you, we do everything with responsibility.  Regardless of how busy we are we make the effort to spend time with those who love and care for even if work can get busy. But in contrast, acts of rebellion are symptoms of hatred, and is often demonstrated in recklessness and a sense of self-righteous; an attitude which portrays that I am greater than my enemy – the person whom I hate or dislike. But the act of responsibility challenges us to be humble before those we dislike, and even learn to love our enemies even more.

The servant in Luke 19 who chose to be obedient to the master (regardless of the opinion of others), won his favour and trust. Regardless of what others thought, he chose to do good even when the master may have in the past treated them unjustly. The servant chose to be responsible and was dramatically held up differently than those who rebelled. In the same manner, we are called to win souls for the sake of Christ through the responsible choices we make. Our responsibility reflects the love of God in so many ways. If our anger and hatred becomes what belittles the best of who we are and turns away people around us then we may have also turned people away from the gospel rather than having pursued them in love as God may have wanted us to do!

Responsibility is a character of Christ. The most compelling character of Christ was that he took responsibility for all of our sins. I would not go as far as saying that he took all the blame for our sins, for there is none other to blame than ourselves for our own sins, but he certainly did take our shame and the sting of death which would accompany the consequence for our sins. Thus when we try to justify our hatred, our rebellion, and our sin, we ought to be warned and cautioned of our willingness to be irresponsible. It is certain that Jesus was  grieved by our sins, but it is even more certain that he gave his life for us anyhow. He chose to love and worked out our salvation on the cross and in his resurrection.

In Conclusion

Be cautioned and be warned of recklessness, righteousness, repentance, rejoicing, and responsibility. Always pursue after the heart of God who chooses to love, forgive, be faithful, and be constant in all things which make him blameless and holy – that we should be formed daily as we choose him! Be obedient to the Word of God and to the Holy Spirit that reminds us of his word and convicts us even the darkest of scenarios. In turn, that you should be used to be a guiding light to those around you and so that you may fully grasp the depth of His grace that remains true today, tomorrow, and forever.