Can I pray for you in any way?
Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
In Christ, Mark
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk
** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn
** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace.
2 Corinthians 1:12
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
I remember when I was taking a class in behavioral psychology in college and posed the following question to my professor:
What is a conscience?
Of course, the question was intentional to see what a highly educated specialist in the field of the mind would have to say about something I believed (and still believe) defies scientific explanation. Thus, I wasn’t surprised when there was no tangible explanation given as it only validated my ideas on the matter.
So what is a conscience?
The answer comes in remembering that we had a powerful divine Creator who designed us just the way He wanted to us to be. Every part of our body is so intricately put together so that while individual body parts have distinct features, these features often rely on one another for proper functioning. When it comes to the ability to think, we have been given an incredibly complex central processing system in the way of our brains which not only control bodily functioning but harbor our ability to think which further leads to our ability to speak and act. This body gives a person the free ability to do things but remember that no all behavior is acceptable to the God who made us, the God who hates sin. Therefore, it would make complete sense that our God would install a means within each person by which He could bring alert when a person was acting in ways that were displeasing to Him. It would need to be something that couldn’t be removed or altered by mankind, lest man would take intentional action to remove God’s influence.
Enter the conscience.
I believe the reason it is so elusive for even the most educated to try and pin down is because it isn’t tangible but rather completely spiritual and every person has a spiritual element to them.
When we do something wrong, what happens?
We end up with a guilty conscience but where does that sense of guilt come from?
I don’t believe it is a learned response to what we learn about right and wrong. It’s far more involved than that. God hates sin and doesn’t want us to get away with it therefore, when we do wrong, He convicts us spiritually of our wrongs. He then encourages us through His word and Spirit to repent and turn from the sins that we have a guilty conscience over.
What is the end result of this repentance and commitment to turn from our sins?
We receive God’s forgiveness and then a cleared conscience, reset to move forward with a clean slate. Through the process of doing wrong, feeling guilty, and then repenting and changing our behavior to what God approves, we learn that it’s far better to live with a clear conscience than a guilty one, so much so that we strive to keep our conscience clear. When we understand this, we once again are left in awe of God’s incredible mastery that He brought to bear when He made us.
As we turn to our scripture passage for today, we find the Apostle Paul bringing the matter of the conscience to the forefront. Look again at his words here:
Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. 2 Corinthians 1:12
Note here the beauty of a clear conscience is on full display. For we read where the collective consciences of Paul and those who were engaged in ministry with him testified about their conduct, conduct that was carried out with “integrity and godly sincerity” as they relied on God and His grace, not on the world and its ways and wisdom.
When you look at the way that you behave in private and public, how does your conscience testify? Does it testify about sinful behavior or actions that are grounded in integrity and godliness?
Note that the testimony can only be one way or another at any one time. Either our conscience is clear or it is laden with guilt.
If today you find your conscience testifying about transgressions you have committed, I encourage you to come before the God who is your Maker and Master, and confess of your sins, asking for His forgiveness and professing your sincere willingness to turn toward away from sin and toward His will and way for your life. When you do, He will work as only He can to clear your conscience and bring you the peace that comes from it.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a
comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment