Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 4 (NRSV)
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| Public shaming is one way of accountability but I think it tends to reinforce negative images that we don't want people adopting. |
It is difficult to submit to accountability. One of the habits that Methodist groups had when Wesley started them was to hold each other accountable. These were small groups of 5-7 people that sought to meet weekly. They were Christians that wanted to get better.
A part of getting better is to desire to set our sins aside.
So they would ask one another questions like, "What known sins have you committed since our last meeting?"
While this might sound too judgy for our 21st century ears, they were doing this voluntarily. It was not so they could judge one another and look down on each other. It was so that they could help one another.
It also is a deterrent for sinning!
If you knew someone was going to be asking you this question, it might cause us to think twice before crossing that boundary.
Paul is trying to hold the church at Corinth (and ours as well) accountable. But he also asks the Corinthian church not to judge them too harshly (based on what they were hearing from other teachers in the faith). He reminds them to have a sense of grace - understanding that none of them were deserving of the mercy they had received.
As of this writing, Matthew's Gospel was not yet written. Scholars believe that much of it was shared in oral tradition at this point. We can see Paul's list of persecutions in verses 11-13 and it reminds me of the Sermon on the Mount lifted up in Matthew 5:10-12:
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Paul reminds them that he is coming in a spirit of gentleness. As they are to become his imitators, it may be that they need to walk more gently with the one who brought them to faith.
As we think about those Wesleyan covenant groups, they would have had to walk gently with one another or they would have quickly disbanded.
As you think about accountability, do you walk gently with those you must hold accountable or do you treat them more harshly than required? Sometimes our harsh treatment may come from our own guilt over unaddressed issues. Sometimes we are projecting upon them a sense that their behavior shames us in some way. If we don't feel confident in our own state of being, we may cover up with a lack of kindness over the errors of others.
Prayer for the day:
Loving God, may I see the mercy I have received. May I hear the graceful words you offer me. May I dwell in the forgiveness that affords me life and a blessed state of being. As I see and hear and live, may this allow me to pass on to others what I have freely received in Christ. It is in this holy name I pray. Amen.
Photo by switthoft via Flickr.com. Used under the Creative Commons license.
All scripture quoted is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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