Personal Responsibility

Matthew 20:17-19, “As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to him. ¹⁸ “Listen,” he said, “we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die. ¹⁹ Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead.” (NLT)

I have thought about many things as I have been reflecting on the life and death of Christ over the past few weeks. I am sure that many thoughts have flooded your mind as you have "surveyed the wondrous cross" on which Christ died. Two words were deposited in my spirit this morning during my time of prayer, meditation and reflection. The words "personal responsibility" arose in my heart as I reflected on the attitude and response of Christ to the circumstances surrounding His death. 

In my opinion Christ never blamed His surroundings for His impending death. Christ never blamed the circumstances of His earthly up-bringing such as His earthly poverty; His earthly occupational training; His earthly family or even the actions or non-actions of His earthly friends. Christ never blamed His death on the sins of others rather He embraced the fact that He would die for the sins of the world. Christ never blamed His death on the betrayal of Judas or even the lack of understanding that seemly plagued the disciples as they listened to His teachings. Christ never even blamed the religious leaders who desired to put Him to death. On a daily basis He just kept walking in His earthly destiny and walking toward the fulfillment of the plan that had been decided before the foundation of the world.

Why would I want to talk about Christ and His personal responsibility today? Because we live in a world in which people do not want to take responsibility. We are like children who are always either blaming their siblings or other children for their actions. Modern man blames their environment. Modern man blames the circumstances or the people that surrounds them. Modern man looks for excuses to place the blame on someone else but Jesus willingly took the blame for the evil actions of others. He took on the responsibility to die for the sins of others. He took my sins, my iniquities, my failures and made them as His own. 

Surely we should rejoice in that fact and surely we should we responsible enough to step up to the plate and commit our lives to Christ. Who will take responsibility today? Who will choose to stop blaming others for your failure to follow Christ? Who will stop blaming your religious background for your failure to follow Christ? Who will stop blaming the failures of others as your reason for not following Christ? Who will choose to stop pointing fingers at others and take a long look in the mirror of life and make this declaration? "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord." 

It is time to take personal responsibility!!