Snapshots
Biblical Truth
OF
Priviledge With Responsibility
BIBLE REFERENCES:
Ecclesiastes 11:9 (LivBible) “Young man (and woman!), it is wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it! Do all you want to, take in everything, BUT realize that you must account to God for everything you do.”
Matthew 12:36, 37 (NIV) “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Romans 8:9 (NIV) “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”
Romans 12:1, 2 (NIV) “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Romans 14:10-12 (NIV) “You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: ‘as surely as I live, says the Lord, Every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’ So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
1 Corinthians 10:23, 24 (NIV) “Everything is permissible – but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”
Hebrews 4:13 (NIV) “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”
APPLICATION:
Being a Christian has its privileges and its rewards. Being a child of God and heading toward heaven when we die are two of them. Being a Christian also has its responsibilities. We cannot live any old way we want, like the unbelieving world, just to please ourselves. Christians have a higher standard to live up to, a higher calling in life. Our higher calling is to please the one who created us.
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Ecclesiastes 11: 9 instructs us that when we are young we should “enjoy every minute of it; do all you want, take in everything”. However, we need to finish reading the verse before we barge off to celebrate. This is not a blank check to do anything we want! The verse goes on to say, “But, realize that you must account to God for everything you do”.
Sorry to dump water on your party but you must realize that there will be a day of accountability. As a Christian we cannot live anyway we want without paying the consequences (and, there are some!). There is a higher standard for us to live by – it is found in the Bible.
SNAPSHOT:
A PRAYER
“God help me to realize the importance of my thoughts, words and actions. As a Christian I am not my own, I belong to you. Help me to live up to that.”
