Ezra 8:28-29 (ESV)
[28] And I said to them, “You are holy to the LORD, and the vessels
are holy, and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the LORD, the
God of your fathers. [29] Guard them and keep them until you weigh them before
the chief priests and the Levites and the heads of fathers’ houses in Israel at
Jerusalem, within the chambers of the house of the LORD.”
As
Ezra prepared those he was leading for the trip to Jerusalem he delegated responsibility
for carrying the gold and silver to some of the Priests. He also established a
level of accountability for them. He carefully weighed out and made records of
the amounts he gave to each person. They were then required to weigh it out
when it was delivered in Jerusalem at the temple. Good leaders know how to
delegate well, and how to establish accountability for the protection of those
they lead.
Sometimes
you will hear people say, “This is church. If you can’t trust a pastor, who can
you trust.” The same could be said of church leaders. If you can’t trust church
leaders, who can you trust? But accountability is not about a lack of trust. Accountability
systems have two purposes. The first is to protect the individual against
temptation. We have an enemy who will take any opportunity to undermine and
sideline leaders. A simple lack of judgment can destroy a ministry. Servant
leaders not only establish systems of accountability for those they lead, they
are willing to submit to accountability themselves.
The
second purpose of accountability is to protect the individual against false
accusations. In a world of distrust and dishonesty, a simple accusation can
sideline an effective ministry even if there is no truth to the accusation. The
priests didn’t need to slip some of the gold or silver into their personal
belongings. They only needed to be accused of it. Ezra’s system of
accountability not only helped them remain honest, it guarded them against false
accusations of dishonesty.
What
should we look for in a pastor? Proverbs talks about wisdom. Delegation and accountability
are evidences of wisdom. Wise servant leaders know how to delegate
responsibility, not just tasks. With delegation, they know how to protect those
they lead by establishing reasonable systems of accountability. Further, they
are willing to submit to, and even establish for themselves, systems of accountability.
This guards those they lead. It guards themselves. It guards the reputation of
the God they serve.
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