1. Welcome! www.SunsetChurchofChrist.net
Bibles and copies of sermons are available Please silence your cell phones
Sunday Bible Classes 9:30 AM Worship 10:30 AM 5:30 PM Wednesday Bible Classes 7:00 PM

2. Matthew 27
Judas’ suicide "his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.” Deuteronomy 21:23

3. Matthew 27: Before Pilate
1. He sends Jesus to Herod for trial (Luke 23:6) 2. He demands the Jews try Jesus by their own laws 3. He offers to release Jesus according to custom 4. He makes the counter-offer to release Barabbas instead 5. He abuses Jesus as “King”, and says “Behold the Man” 6. He orders the Jews to crucify Jesus 7. He made other unrecorded attempts to release (John 19:12)

4. Welcome! www.SunsetChurchofChrist.net
Bibles and copies of sermons are available Please silence your cell phones
Sunday Bible Classes 9:30 AM Worship 10:30 AM 5:30 PM Wednesday Bible Classes 7:00 PM

5. Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.
Psalm 100:2
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Hymns
Invitation
Red Songbook -
Supplemental

6. Organizing Our Lives: Accountability Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
Ec 12:13 ¶ The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person.14 For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.

7. Spiritual Success
Spiritual success requires spiritual organization Using resources we have available But what makes us work? ACCOUNTABILITY

8. The Nature of Accountability
“Most business managers preach that the key to success is holding employees accountable for actions, but I have found that successful entrepreneurs are all about holding themselves accountable. They skip the blame and complain game, and make things happen despite major obstacles. As a startup investor, I view any evidence of a victim mentality as the kiss of death.”
Forbes Magazine, April 30, 2015
Accountability – answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and the expectation of account-giving Weight Watchers Alcoholics Anonymous

9. The Nature of Accountability
We are accountable to God We are accountable to the church We are accountable to ourselves

10. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36
Mt 12:36 "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment.

11. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36 for what is done - 2 Corinthians 5:10
2Co 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

12. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36 for what is done - 2 Corinthians 5:10 for what can be done - James 3:13; 4:17
Jas 3:13 ¶ Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.
Jas 4:17 Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.

13. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36 for what is done - 2 Corinthians 5:10 for what can be done - James 3:13; 4:17 for what is owned - 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
2Co 9:6 ¶ Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;

14. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36 for what is done - 2 Corinthians 5:10 for what can be done - James 3:13; 4:17 for what is owned - 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 for what is thought - Matthew 5:28
Mt 5:28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

15. Accountability to God
We are accountable for: for what is said - Matthew 12:36 for what is done - 2 Corinthians 5:10 for what can be done - James 3:13; 4:17 for what is owned - 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 for what is thought - Matthew 5:28 for what is known - James 4:17
Jas 4:17 Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.

16. Accountability in the Church
Corporate Accountability
1. Accountability: responsible to someone/ for something. 2. Being responsible: you cause something to happen.
3. Exhibiting accountability: (as seen by your co-workers) looks like the following:
- Accepting complete responsibility for your behavior
- Meeting/exceeding agreed upon expectations.
- Admitting mistakes.
- Admitting limitations of knowledge.
Accountability in the Church
James 5:16 Are you accountable to the church?
Jas 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

17. Accountability to Yourself
2 Corinthians 13:5 Do you hold yourself accountable? Do you set goals for yourself?
2Co 13:5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? --unless indeed you are disqualified.

18. Why We Resist Accountability
1. We hate conflicts
The Barna Group states church leaders don’t often engage in accountability (either through following up on members’ tasks, home visits, or church discipline) because they don’t want to to be confrontational. The same is true among church members. Few people want to call out others on their sin.
Taken from article -

19. Why We Resist Accountability
1. We hate conflicts 2. We love privacy
Accountability is about confessing sin to one another, but few today like the idea of divulging their temptations, sins, and the state of their heart. This is far too personal for some.

20. Why We Resist Accountability
1. We hate conflicts 2. We love privacy 3. We think accountability = sinful conduct
Some reject the idea of accountability because they believe it is all about fear or shame-based change. Accountability for them is about staying away from certain taboo sins so they can avoid an awkward conversation in the future. But the Bible says there’s a kind of conversation we can have that actually addresses the heart—not just outward behavior (Hebrews 3:13).

21. Why We Resist Accountability
1. We hate conflicts 2. We love privacy 3. We think accountability = sinful conduct 4. Past experiences of bad accountability
Twofold: First, for some Christians, accountability groups simply did not “work” for them in the past. They experienced no change. But what if we used this excuse for anything in which we engage: listening to sermons, praying together, taking communion, etc?
Second: perhaps allowing someone to hold us accountable was used against us. Then perhaps we said “never again”. Yet this too fails to appreciate the need for accountability. I once ate bad food and got food poisoning. Did I say “never again”? No, because I knew that I could not live without it.

22. Why We Resist Accountability
1. We hate conflicts 2. We love privacy 3. We think accountability = sinful conduct 4. Past experiences of bad accountability 5. We lack spiritual friendships
Accountability is best accessed served in a friendship relationship because of the trust that is needed. Too often we have made our closest friends people of the world. This is an unsafe practice too many Christians engage.

23. So You Want to Grow?
The world uses tools to grow We too ought to work on growth by goal setting If we don’t grow, we will die

24. So You Want to Grow?
"These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.” Mark 4:16-17