CONSCIENCE

What an interesting word conscience is. Most everyone thinks they know what this word means, but do we know what it says in God’s Word about it? God has given us a conscience as well as a will to help us in our everyday life. The choices we make with both can save or forfeit our lives. Just as we can say “Yes or No” with our wills we can do the same with our conscience.

Saints, let me see if I can explain what I see in the Word about it. First let’s go to the dictionaries to learn what the word conscience means:

The World Book Encyclopedia Dictionary has the word conscience as a noun and meaning: the sense of right and wrong; ideas and feelings within a person that tells him when he is doing right and warn him of what is wrong.

Now the Ungers Bible Dictionary has the meaning and the scriptures to help us understand the meaning. It goes on to say: "Conscience is not so much a distinct faculty of the mind, like perception, memory, etc., as an exercise of the judgment and the power of feeling, as employed with reference to moral truth. It implies moral sense “to discern both good and evil” (Hebrews 5:14), and a feeling, more or less strong, of responsibility. Thus, it will appear to be wrong to name conscience “the voice of God”, (God is NEVER wrong!) although this is true, that the testimony of conscience certainly rests on a divine foundation, a divine law in man, the existence of which, its claims and judgments, are removed from his subjective control.

If a man knows his doing to be in harmony with this law his conscience is “good” (Acts 23:1; I Timothy 1:5, 19; Hebrew 13:18; I Peter 3:16,21), “pure” (I Timothy 3:9; II Timothy 1:3), “void of offense”. If his doing be evil, so also is his conscience, in as much as it is consciousness of such evil (Hebrew 10:22); “it is defiled”, (Titus 1:15; I Corinthians 8:7) when it is stained by evil deeds; or “seared with a hot iron” (I Timothy 4:2) when it is branded with its evil deeds, or cauterized, i.e., made insensible to all feeling."

Even Paul lays down the law that a men should follow his own conscience, even though it be weak; otherwise moral personality would be destroyed (I Corinthians 8:10, sq.; 10:29, sq.).

Saints, everyone of us has a God given spirit that knows the TRUTH of right and wrong. Our conscience and wills needs to “tap” into that spirit-man constantly. We really need to live and abide there for our “season” here on earth. If we are not in-tune and listening to God, that evil conscience can easily slip in unnoticed either through our own selfish wants or our enemy, Satan, can deceive, distract, influence, and corrupt our thinking and feelings.

God is our One and Only way to His Heavenly Family. God can’t accept evil, so our focus needs to be on a clear, good conscience and mind for Our Heavenly Creator and Savior. Then the next step is to help our fellow man do the same “in God’s Love!”

Again I would like to quote Oswald Chambers as he wrote on Acts 24:16: “Strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.”

“Conscience is the eye of the soul which looks out either toward God or toward what we regard as the highest standard. If I am in the habit of continually holding God’s standard in front of me, my conscience will always direct me to God’s perfect law and indicate what I should do. The question is, will I obey? Is my ear sensitive enough to hear even the softest whisper of the Spirit, so that I know what I should do?”

Think about the consequences of not holding God’s standard in front of us Saints. God’s perfect law is the only way we will actually know what is right from what is wrong. And listening to a “pure” conscience is God’s highest standard in life. (I Timothy 3:9) God gave us His Spirit to help lead, guide and direct us with His standards. Listening and reading His Word is the only way our conscience and wills will be in-tune with our Creator God. It takes a determined mind and will on God to keep our conscience in that “good” and “pure” state.

We can do this Church, if we are willing and able to:

Trust and Believe God for EVERYTHING!

Oswald Chambers-My Utmosst for His Highest-Scripture and Devotional Calendar 2013