Calling For Backup - Accountability Through Redundancy

"Fracture critical" (Non-Redundant Steel Tension Member) pier beam exposed during removal of Crosstown Bridge.

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​There is a term in the world of structural engineering and bridge inspection that has often been misunderstood, especially when reported on by the media. That term is “fracture critical”. The former Oklahoma City Crosstown bridge that was taken out of service in 2012 had roughly 260 “fracture critical” members on it. The main reason the term “fracture critical” was widely so misunderstood was that people assumed it meant that the condition of the member had become compromised over time as if maybe years of being exposed to the elements had made that member become fracture critical. And while it certainly is true that bridge members can break down over time by exposure to things like freeze/thaw cycles, moisture and corrosion, the term “fracture critical” is not meant to shed light on the physical condition of a bridge member to such factors. Rather, it is a term that is meant to highlight the likely catastrophic outcome of the entire structure failing if that particular member were to fail. A fracture critical bridge member is a steel member, like a beam, that is in tension (normally by design) but it is non-redundant, meaning it doesn’t have any supplemental systems of support. In short, it means that if this member were to fail, the structure would fail because, in essence, nothing else is backing it up. That’s what makes it “fracture critical”. In the case of the Crosstown bridge, its fracture critical members were pier beams (or cross-girders). These were large beams that ran transverse (perpendicular) to traffic and sat on top of tall concrete columns, and all (7) of the beams that ran longitudinally (parallel to traffic) connected to a single pier beam at the end of each span. It was not as if the Crosstown bridge became fracture critical over time. It was designed as fracture critical and had been that way ever since it was constructed back in 1966.
 
Bridge inspectors are trained to get a much closer look at fracture critical members, not because those members are in worse condition than any other member of the bridge but because, due to their non-redundancy, the failure of the one member can have widespread catastrophic consequences and can occur with little notice ahead of time. Therefore, closer scrutiny is important. It is worth pointing out that the engineering world has largely moved away from designing fracture critical bridges. For, while the fracture critical member typically gets the job done, it is not worth the risk of catastrophic failure to not have redundancy built into the system especially when the structure is going to be exposed to the elements for decades on end. Redundancy is important.
 
An Analogy About Redundancy
Did you know the Bible talks about the importance of redundancy? For instance, Solomon talks about it in Ecclesiastes.
 
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 “Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.”
 
A cord of multiple strands is an example of redundancy being built into a system. When pulled in tension, the chances of multiple strands severing at the same time becomes less and less with the more strands that are interwoven together. Of course, Solomon isn’t mainly talking about rope or cables. He’s talking about people. He’s talking about accountability, safety and peace of mind in numbers. If you wait long enough, one thing you can always count on a person to do……is fail. And, oftentimes, you don’t have to wait all that long to see it happen.
 
1 Corinthians 10:12 “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.”
 
This is why we need others who know us and will be truthful with us. People who can hold us in check.
 
A Warning Against Non-Redundancy
 
Are you aware of the first and only thing God said was “not good” when He was creating the world? Five times in the first chapter of Genesis it says that God looked at His creation and He “saw that it was good”. But then, the first thing He said after creating man was “it is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18a). Now, of course, obviously in the context of the passage, God is getting ready to create a wife for Adam so the thing we see most directly is that God is the One who instituted marriage, a relationship of redundancy.
 
However, meditate on that declaration for a moment………that it is “not good for man to be alone”. This statement was made before sin had entered the world. Adam was going to have the opportunity to walk with God (his Creator) in unbroken fellowship in a beautiful garden without hardship. And even then, God said it was not good for man to be alone. Ultimately, God did not think it was good for Adam (man) to walk through life without another human being who was walking in similar shoes. To resolve this…..issue, God gave Adam a wife.
 
When it comes to accountability and the sharpening that sanctification demands in the Christian life, God’s plan is for others to be involved. Having someone else walking with you helps to provide an additional perspective. Even for people who never end up finding a spouse. Because “it is not good for man to be alone”. That other person can point out things in your blind spot that you tend to be oblivious to. We need accountability. We need redundancy.
 
Redundancy and Community Modeled in the Godhead
 
Ponder this truth momentarily as well. Our God has always existed in three persons. From eternity past, our God has been Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Community and fellowship are tied up in the very essence of who God is. There is internal redundancy within the trinity. Please don’t misread me. I’m not saying that God has “need” of accountability. God alone is perfectly righteous in both position and practice. I’m just pointing out that God created us to be in community. The thumbprint of God Himself is on His creation. We are to seek community just as there is community and fellowship in the Godhead.
 
In the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before Jesus died, He prayed to the Father, “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;” (John 17:20-22). God’s design was for believers to be close-knit and involved in the process of one another being conformed to the image of Christ.
 
Prior to creation, we see community, unity, and intimacy modeled in the fellowship of the Trinity. And prior to the fall of creation, God Himself spoke of the importance of mankind having community. Both these things happened prior to sin entering into the world.
 
In enters sin……..and we have plenty of biblical backing for the idea that it is not good for man to be left to himself without the accountability, support and protection that comes from having the redundancy of one another because mankind now comes into this world sinful and prone to stray.
 
Romans 3:10 “as it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one.’”
 
Case Studies
 
Can you think of any examples from the Bible where consolidation of power to one person took place and things turned out well as a result? I can’t.
 
The nation of Israel had a system of judges in place, but they demanded a king (1 Samuel 8). They were warned what would happen if they consolidated power to a single individual (who was not the coming Messiah) but this didn’t calm their desire for a king. So, even though they had been warned of what would happen, they demanded a king and their demand was granted. And the system didn’t pan out.
 
One of the best examples of a king was David who was called “a man after God’s own heart” and was a man who modeled humility and an ability to admit when he was wrong and oftentimes exemplified a healthy dependence upon God. And, yet, even he abused his power and used it to murder and commit adultery. Again, he was one of the best (if not the best) king Israel ever had.
 
King Saul started well but finished very poorly. He became fixated on his own reputation and would become wildly envious of anyone who “stole” glory from him even if that person was doing things that helped protect and advance his kingdom. People became afraid to approach him because he would view as an enemy anyone who might seek to confront him, even if they were well-meaning. Even his own daughter was afraid to speak truth to him for fear that he would take her life.
 
Out Of Sight, Out of Mind
 
Here’s a deep thought for you. Have you ever thought about the fact that you have never seen the back of your own head……with your own eyes? Of course, there have been times when you’ve seen it in a reflection or in a photo, but you’ve never actually looked at the back of your own head with your own eyes in real life.
 
In the summer of ‘97, one week prior to moving to Stillwater for my freshmen year at Oklahoma State, I got, evidently, one of the worst haircuts I’ve ever had……or so I’ve been told. But I had no clue until I got home from the barber and heard my mom gasp. There was a massive gouge that had been somewhat shaved into the back of my head. My mom was bothered by the fact that I’d be starting college with the back of my head looking….hideous. It was easy for me to forget about it because it was out of my sight. I expressed to my mom that I wasn’t really bothered by the bad haircut. Since I couldn’t see it, I was kind of able to just put it out of my mind and not think about it. When I expressed this to my mom, her reply was, “But what about the rest of us? We’re the ones who have to look at it.” Ha! If you’re familiar with my mom’s sense of humor, you can hear her saying this.
 
My point is that sometimes we have blind spots in our lives and we need those who love us to point them out to us as an act of love, even when it’s awkward. At times we can be oblivious to the ways that we are offensive to others or to God. In Psalm 139:23-24 David prayed, “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Oftentimes in David’s life, God used other people (such as Nathan, Abigail and Joab) to point his offensive ways out to him. David needed trustworthy people in his life who were not afraid to speak the truth to him, even though it could be a scary proposition to rebuke someone with such power and influence.
 
As fallen creatures, we desperately need checks and balances…….as individuals, within our families, in our governments and in our churches.
 
Redundancy From The Founding Fathers
 
Forgive the political sidenote, but do you know why the United States of America has three branches of government? Primarily because our founding fathers, though imperfect and fallen like the rest of us, understood the sin situation and had honed in on the following two verses:
 
Isaiah 33:22 “For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king: He will save us –“ (Judicial, Legislative, Executive)
Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?”
 
Collectively, these men knew that Jesus Christ was the only One fit to wear the hats of all those offices. And, if they were going to make an attempt at instituting a similar system with human beings, they were going to need to separate those powers among many people. This is an example of safety through redundancy. Don’t get me wrong…..it’s not like a system of judges can’t become corrupted. We live in a fallen world as individuals with fallen natures. Corruption can sneak into any man-made system. This is why “we the people” need to hold our politicians and representatives in check.
 
Redundancy In Church Government
 
The Bible speaks about the importance of having a plurality of elders to govern the local church. This is another system of accountability through redundancy. However, similar to our representatives in government, church elders can become complacent, complicit, fearful, and hesitant to stand for truth. This is why it is important that we pray earnestly for our elders and ask questions……even tough questions. We need to come alongside them to encourage them in the things they are doing well. And we need to come alongside them to exhort them and challenge them to do what is right when they are failing to do so. 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 are both very well-known passages that list the qualifications of elders (characteristics elders must have or ways elders must be). However, I personally think that Proverbs oftentimes gets overlooked as a good resource when talking about the accountability we must seek both in our own lives as individuals as well as the accountability that our church leaders should highly value. Consider the following passages:
 
Proverbs 1:5 “A wise man will hear and increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel.”
Proverbs 11:14 “Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory.”
Proverbs 12:15 “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel.”
Proverbs 13:10 “Through insolence comes nothing but strife, but wisdom is with those who receive counsel.”
Proverbs 15:22 “Without consultation, plans are frustrated, but with many counselors they succeed.”
Proverbs 19:20 “Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days.”
Proverbs 24:6 “For by wise guidance you will wage war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory.”
Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”
 
From Paul’s New Testament letters and also from Solomon’s wisdom literature we see that God’s word has a great deal to say about the value of accountability, especially in having redundancy in church leadership.
 
Conclusion
 
We need redundancy in our systems of accountability because it is not good for man to be alone. Each of us has blind spots and God has given us one another to serve as iron to sharpen our dull spots in the lifelong journey of becoming conformed to the image of Christ. We need to be able to provide needed reproof, seek out Godly counsel, and accept Godly rebuke. Left to ourselves things can get dicey. We need others speaking truth into our lives, encouraging us, correcting us and pointing out things that are in our blind spots, so that we don’t fail miserably, but rather press on to maturity as we are being conformed to the image of Christ.