Understanding Your Conscience - Part 3 There Are Different States of Conscience 1. One may have a good conscience. "And Paul, earnestly beholding the council, said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day" (Acts 23:1). "Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned" (1 Tim. 1:5). "Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck" (1 Tim. 1:19). "Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ" (1 Pet. 3:16). "The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Pet. 3:21). "Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly" (Heb. 13:18). "And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men" (Acts 24:16). "Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience" (1 Tim. 3:9). 2. One may have a weak conscience (1 Cor. 8:10-12). 3. One may have a defiled conscience (1 Cor. 8:7; Tit 1:15). 4. One may have a seared conscience (1 Tim. 4:1-2). 5. One may have an evil conscience (Heb. 10:22; 6:6). How to Use Conscience No one can escape his conscience as long as it functions, but if he destroys his conscience, he will have no breaks when temptations attack. One may destroy his conscience when he continually violates it in his motives, speech and conduct. He will "sear" his conscience until it no longer urges him to resist the evil he knows. It works just as the brake linings on a car. Start down hill full speed with your foot on the gas peddle and on the brakes at the same time and keep on going. By the time you reach the bottom the brakes are burned so that they will not hold. The brakes are gone; they will not stop the car any longer. That is what happens to one whose conscience is seared; he has no inner restraint to wrong doing, or urge to do what he knows is right. His conscience is destroyed. 1. Willful ignorance tends to destroy the conscience. "And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent" (Acts 17:30). "For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water . . . " (2 Pet. 3:5). Men do many things in ignorance, but when one can know better and should know better, but will not make the effort, he is willingly ignorant. Such a person will destroy his conscience in time by trying to avoid knowing right and wrong in his life. 2. One who continually makes excuses for not doing what he knows to be right will in time destroy his conscience. 3. Violating one's conscience is akin to suicide. "I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean" (Rom. 14:14). "He that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Rom. 14:23). We Must Respect Our Conscience That is not the same as "obeying" or "following" our conscience, because that is not its function to guide or lead us in our choices in life. That is the function of intellect, emotion and volition. One's conscience simply and only accuses or excuses him/her when he/she responds in thought, word or action to what he/she knows is right or wrong, and they make the choice to think, act or speak. 1. Obedience to the faith as one knows it will produce a good conscience. "Now the end" (purpose) "of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned" (1 Tim. 1:5). ''Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake" (Rom. 13:5). 2. One with a guilty conscience is miserable, until he "sears" or destroys his conscience. Judas is an example of what happens when one overrules their conscience. He knew better, and was told he would betray Jesus to be put to death. When the opportunity came, he willingly did what he knew to be wrong. "Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, what is that to us? see thou to that" (Matt. 27:3-5). The governor Felix heard the gospel, but did nothing about it. "And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, which was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee" (Acts 24:24-25). How to Obtain a Good Conscience Men and women are made pure and clean from their sins by the blood of Christ. That is the only way to have sins forgiven forever. "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God" (Heb. 9:14). "For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because the worshipers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins" (Heb. 10:2). Faith and baptism, the first and last conditions stated in the gospel of Christ for the remission of sins, are necessary to have a good conscience before God. "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water" (Heb. 10:22). "The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also not save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ)" (1 Pet. 3:21).
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