Short Accounts for ME

Fellowship is not only good, it’s godly. We want our relationships to be in sync, with the oil of grace enabling the gears to work together. Sin burns up the oil, causing friction and sparks, and might lead to the relational engine seizing. Sin is the enemy of fellowship. Don’t wait to deal with sin.

This maintenance is sometimes referred to with another analogy: keep short accounts. And here are a couple comments on that.

It’s good. Do it.

Also, and here is the main point of this exhortation. The good work of keeping short accounts is more about ME dealing with my sin ASAP than it is about me making THEE deal with your sin RIGHT NOW.

Sure, we have instructions for when and how to confront our brothers, and we are responsible to train our kids, etc.. So, yes, don’t chicken out when you need to call out sin.

But the priority of short accounts is me not letting myself off the hook, not me making sure I keep others on it.

“Confess your sins to one another” is a command (James 5:16). It is not a command to stand there staring at the other person until he confesses his sins back.

“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8).

Be quick and ruthless with your sin. Be patient, as Your heavenly father is patient, when you are sinned against.