He said in the first verse of this fifth chapter, it was for freedom that God set us free. Therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Then he goes right to the 13th verse and he says, watch, he says, for you were called to freedom, that is to live a life for freedom in Christ.

Do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Which was what he was saying is this. While we are forgiven children of God, a name is written in the lamb’s book of life. We are heaven bound one of these days. We have a responsibility. He says, don’t turn that freedom into the flesh.

But he says, you’re responsible. I had a friend of mine who was a fellow pastor, and he believed just like I believed. And somewhere along the way, somebody convinced him that because he was free in Christ Jesus that uh there’s certain things that he could do. And I watched my friend who was theologically as correct as a guy could be, who was an excellent pastor, but somewhere along the way, somebody convinced him that freedom in Christ meant that you could just do most anything you wanted to do.

And I warned him and warned him and warned him. I said, “Look, I’m telling you, this is going to come back to haunt you because if you slip over on this side just a little bit, you’re going to keep going out of the ministry. Wonderful servant of God out of the ministry because he did exactly what the Apostle Paul warned us not to do.

We are accountable to God for our freedom.” And often times people do not recognize that. And so when I look at that, I want us to go to the 25th chapter of Matthew, if you will. And here is a passage of scripture that a lot of people know maybe not by heart but they’re familiar with it.

So I want us to read it because this is all about accountability. That’s what I want to talk about is the call to accountability. Now accountability is sort of like consequences. That is people don’t like consequence. They don’t want to talk about consequences and people don’t like talking about accountability because our idea of freedom is you do what you want to do when you want to do it, how you want to do it.

But sometimes they also add to any person you want to do it. And you and I know that’s not accountability. So listen to what Jesus said. He says in this 14th verse, the 25th chapter of Matthew, for it is just like a man about to go on a journey who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. To the one he gave five talents.

Now remember this in this particular passage of scripture. He’s talking about finances, about money, and so forth. But it could be your spiritual gifts, your talents, your skills, your abilities that God has given you. And what he’s saying is here, this is all about accountability. And so he says, to one, he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one.

Each according to his own ability, and he went on his journey. Now notice that he gave to them according to their ability. That’s what God has done for your life and my life. He gives and provides and gives us privileges and opportunities and work to do according to the ability that we have and he knows that perfectly.

Then he says immediately the one who had received five talents went and traded with them and gained five more talents. In the same manner, the one who had received the two talents gained two more. But the one who had received the one talent went away, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.