Responsibility

There are times when we want to ignore the responsibility we have of living in this world. These responsibilities make demands on our time, money and effort – especially during the holiday seasons when everyone is advising you to slow down and concentrate on the truly important things in life. But, employers alter your normal work schedule to meet THEIR needs. Family members experience “emergencies” that call for your intervention and participation. Fatigue dogs your steps as you get up early and stay up late trying to cover all your obligations.

Financial pressure can back you into a corner as you desperately try to pay bills after you’ve already spent most of your income for the month. Frustration mounts because you feel like you are always playing “catch-up” in every area of your life, and you wish someone would just come along and make it all go away! Life would be so much easier if we could just escape the whole concept of “responsibility”. But responsibility is meant to be the very foundation of life in this world, becoming a source of joy and peace to our minds and hearts.

Jesus did many things as He walked among us, leaving us an example that we could follow. Living responsibly was at the top of the character list! Responsible living is the way God intended men to respond to everything He created, as well as our relationship with Him. Because we did not give ourselves “life”, the life that we live (which comes as a gift from God) should be governed by responsibility.

Responsible people honor the obligation they bear, own any debt they incur, and submit to judgment in order to satisfy the debt they owe. Jesus took responsibility for His own life as He lived in submission to the Father’s will, but He also paid our debt – one that He did not owe – so we could start over again with a clean slate! That forgiveness of debt allows us to learn to live responsibly as we follow Jesus and obey His life-giving instruction. As we do that, responsibility moves from something we “shirk” to something that works!

How exciting to be His people,

Pastor David Vanderpool