You may wonder why you fall in sin so often. Some say that Satan cheated them into it. Some conclude God let them down. Is it God or is it Satan ? There are many causes for falling in sin; but God has given us sufficient aids to keep us off. One of them is our conscience.
A sharp conscience is a gift the Christian receives at his conversion. The sins he was happily committing before grieves him now. Not that he becomes sinless after the rebirth experience but whenever he sins his conscience smites him unlike before. If only he gives due attention to his conscience in his life, he will hardly falter. Conscience is an inner voice through which God speaks. Proverbs 20:27 speaks of conscience as “the Lord’s searchlight exposing the hidden motives” (TLB). Your motives may be hidden to you but not to your conscience. Therefore never slight your conscience. Don’t let it go blunt by turning it off frequently.
The Crudens’s Concordance defines conscience as that faculty within us which decides as to the moral quality of our thoughts, words and acts. It gives consciousness of the good of one's conduct or motives, or causes feelings of remorse at evil-doing. Conscience can be trained, educated, or trained to recognise good and evil, but its action is involuntary.
A good conscience is one which has no feeling of reproach against oneself, and does not accuse oneself of wilful wrong.
Paul strove or trained himself to always keep his conscience clear before God and man.
Train your conscience through God’s Word, listen to it, pay heed to it and obey it and you are on your victorious path. Many new Christians neglect their conscience,once, twice, and more, that soon it is an audible voice in a deaf man’s ear.
When David was hiding with his men in a cave, Saul came in search of him. Not knowing that David and his men were inside, Saul went into the cave. David’s men whispered into his ears, “Now’s your time! This is the day the Lord was talking about when He said: I will certainly put Saul into your power, to do with as you wish!” So David went and cut off a bit of Saul’s robe. Then his heart smote him, or his conscience began bothering him. Therefore neither did he injure Saul nor did he allow his men to kill him. There were so many things favourable for him which could be used as good excuse for killing Saul and go guilt free (1 Sam 24).
First of all, there was God’s promise to him that He would deliver Saul into his hands for vengeance. David could have easily killed Saul and go praising the Lord for fulfilling His promise, proclaiming to everyone that God put down his enemies. The world would have accepted it. His friends would have rejoiced. His enemies would have bowed to him. But his conscience would never have agreed with him for a lifetime. How did he know that this was not God’s chosen time? He listened to his conscience!
Secondly, he did not go in search of Saul to kill him but Saul himself came his way and that to murder him. David could have thought this as a divine opportunity. Or he could have killed Saul even for self-defence. He could tell the world so, because there were eye-witnesses. But he risked his very life by obeying his conscience. Who told him that it was not God who brought Saul there to fall into the hands of David? Who told him that it was no divine plan? Who told him that his life would be safe in spite of keeping his hands off Saul? Did God speak to him from heaven? No, it was his conscience.
Thirdly, his men incited him. It was like a divine confirmation to what was going on in his mind. His soul was rising above his spirit to get a short-cut victory in God’s programme. Did he not keep these men with him because he trusted them? Were they not his friends? Did he not trust them before? Who told him that his friends were wrong that time? Who told him to walk not in the counsel of the “godly” that specific moment? His sharp conscience !
David was a man of conscience and hence he says, “You have prevented me from sinning.” God has given us a conscience as a tool to the prevention of sin. Many times folks question whether it is wrong to smoke or go to movies or whether it is written in the Bible and so on.
When you get any such doubts just stop and listen to your conscience for a moment and it will unhesitatingly point its finger towards the direction you should take.
Sometimes we are faced with a similar situation as David. It looks like God’s promise which was in the horizon, has now moved down to our doorstep. In a momentary decision it will be fulfilled. But stop and ask your conscience. Don’t try to argue with it and win over; but just ask your conscience to say yes or no. Many times this ephod would say, 'no' because our mind too often becomes blind when prosperity crosses our path. Blood-purged conscience never speaks a lie to an earnest listener.
Well, sometimes circumstances are so clearly indicative of divine guidance. No one else in the whole world will suspect you for any wrong if you give in. God’s hand seems to be on the whole thing. No problem of convincing anyone because all evidence speak for you. Even then, do not fail to ask your conscience for a confirmatory nod. Because he is the most difficult person to live with, if offended. He will prick you and pain you and steal away your peace by constant reminder of the past. The most unforgiving person on earth! Better live with him at peace. He will tell you very plainly in black and white if that is God’s will for you at that time.
Well-meaning friends who have been your spiritual counsellors for the long past may approve your decision. But never forget that the Wonderful Counsellor speaks through the counsellor within, more often than through our counsellors outside. If you have the courage to displease and dispel all external voices and decide and abide by your inner voice, then soon God will confirm before all, that what you have done is the right thing. Give your conscience freedom of speech and it will safely lead you.
Conscience not only keeps us off sin but also helps us to keep us in the will of God. A bothering conscience is a blessing in disguise. Have you lost your mental peace? Are you in a dilemma? Are you struggling to take a decision in a crucial issue? Don’t worry. Close your eyes to the seemingly prosperous outcome, shut your mouth to all argument with your conscience, stop your ears from all external influences. Tell God to speak to your conscience. Quieten your heart and listen to what your conscience says. Do you hear it? Yes! Good! That’s it! Put off all fears and proceed by God’s guidance through your conscience. It needs a little courage but next time it will be even easier. God will prove shortly that what you have done is right.
Let me close with two Scripture verses I have developed this teaching from —
“A man’s conscience is the Lord’s searchlight exposing his hidden motives” (Prov 20:27 TLB).
“How much more shall the blood of Christ purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”(Heb 9:14).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, 8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
You may wonder why you fall in sin so often. Some say that Satan cheated them into it. Some conclude God let them down. Is it God or is it Satan ? There are many causes for falling in sin; but God has given us sufficient aids to keep us off. One of them is our conscience.
A sharp conscience is a gift the Christian receives at his conversion. The sins he was happily committing before grieves him now. Not that he becomes sinless after the rebirth experience but whenever he sins his conscience smites him unlike before. If only he gives due attention to his conscience in his life, he will hardly falter. Conscience is an inner voice through which God speaks. Proverbs 20:27 speaks of conscience as “the Lord’s searchlight exposing the hidden motives” (TLB). Your motives may be hidden to you but not to your conscience. Therefore never slight your conscience. Don’t let it go blunt by turning it off frequently.
The Crudens’s Concordance defines conscience as that faculty within us which decides as to the moral quality of our thoughts, words and acts. It gives consciousness of the good of one's conduct or motives, or causes feelings of remorse at evil-doing. Conscience can be trained, educated, or trained to recognise good and evil, but its action is involuntary.
A good conscience is one which has no feeling of reproach against oneself, and does not accuse oneself of wilful wrong.
Paul strove or trained himself to always keep his conscience clear before God and man.
Train your conscience through God’s Word, listen to it, pay heed to it and obey it and you are on your victorious path. Many new Christians neglect their conscience,once, twice, and more, that soon it is an audible voice in a deaf man’s ear.
When David was hiding with his men in a cave, Saul came in search of him. Not knowing that David and his men were inside, Saul went into the cave. David’s men whispered into his ears, “Now’s your time! This is the day the Lord was talking about when He said: I will certainly put Saul into your power, to do with as you wish!” So David went and cut off a bit of Saul’s robe. Then his heart smote him, or his conscience began bothering him. Therefore neither did he injure Saul nor did he allow his men to kill him. There were so many things favourable for him which could be used as good excuse for killing Saul and go guilt free (1 Sam 24).
First of all, there was God’s promise to him that He would deliver Saul into his hands for vengeance. David could have easily killed Saul and go praising the Lord for fulfilling His promise, proclaiming to everyone that God put down his enemies. The world would have accepted it. His friends would have rejoiced. His enemies would have bowed to him. But his conscience would never have agreed with him for a lifetime. How did he know that this was not God’s chosen time? He listened to his conscience!
Secondly, he did not go in search of Saul to kill him but Saul himself came his way and that to murder him. David could have thought this as a divine opportunity. Or he could have killed Saul even for self-defence. He could tell the world so, because there were eye-witnesses. But he risked his very life by obeying his conscience. Who told him that it was not God who brought Saul there to fall into the hands of David? Who told him that it was no divine plan? Who told him that his life would be safe in spite of keeping his hands off Saul? Did God speak to him from heaven? No, it was his conscience.
Thirdly, his men incited him. It was like a divine confirmation to what was going on in his mind. His soul was rising above his spirit to get a short-cut victory in God’s programme. Did he not keep these men with him because he trusted them? Were they not his friends? Did he not trust them before? Who told him that his friends were wrong that time? Who told him to walk not in the counsel of the “godly” that specific moment? His sharp conscience !
David was a man of conscience and hence he says, “You have prevented me from sinning.” God has given us a conscience as a tool to the prevention of sin. Many times folks question whether it is wrong to smoke or go to movies or whether it is written in the Bible and so on.
When you get any such doubts just stop and listen to your conscience for a moment and it will unhesitatingly point its finger towards the direction you should take.
Sometimes we are faced with a similar situation as David. It looks like God’s promise which was in the horizon, has now moved down to our doorstep. In a momentary decision it will be fulfilled. But stop and ask your conscience. Don’t try to argue with it and win over; but just ask your conscience to say yes or no. Many times this ephod would say, 'no' because our mind too often becomes blind when prosperity crosses our path. Blood-purged conscience never speaks a lie to an earnest listener.
Well, sometimes circumstances are so clearly indicative of divine guidance. No one else in the whole world will suspect you for any wrong if you give in. God’s hand seems to be on the whole thing. No problem of convincing anyone because all evidence speak for you. Even then, do not fail to ask your conscience for a confirmatory nod. Because he is the most difficult person to live with, if offended. He will prick you and pain you and steal away your peace by constant reminder of the past. The most unforgiving person on earth! Better live with him at peace. He will tell you very plainly in black and white if that is God’s will for you at that time.
Well-meaning friends who have been your spiritual counsellors for the long past may approve your decision. But never forget that the Wonderful Counsellor speaks through the counsellor within, more often than through our counsellors outside. If you have the courage to displease and dispel all external voices and decide and abide by your inner voice, then soon God will confirm before all, that what you have done is the right thing. Give your conscience freedom of speech and it will safely lead you.
Conscience not only keeps us off sin but also helps us to keep us in the will of God. A bothering conscience is a blessing in disguise. Have you lost your mental peace? Are you in a dilemma? Are you struggling to take a decision in a crucial issue? Don’t worry. Close your eyes to the seemingly prosperous outcome, shut your mouth to all argument with your conscience, stop your ears from all external influences. Tell God to speak to your conscience. Quieten your heart and listen to what your conscience says. Do you hear it? Yes! Good! That’s it! Put off all fears and proceed by God’s guidance through your conscience. It needs a little courage but next time it will be even easier. God will prove shortly that what you have done is right.
Let me close with two Scripture verses I have developed this teaching from —
“A man’s conscience is the Lord’s searchlight exposing his hidden motives” (Prov 20:27 TLB).
“How much more shall the blood of Christ purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”(Heb 9:14).
Dr. Lilian Stanley
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91 9843511943
lilianstanley@gmail.com
Blessing Youth Mission
13 Church Colony
Vellore 632006, India
+91-416-2242943, +91-416-2248943
hq@bymonline.org
www.bymonline.org
Click here for more options
To buy books written by Dr. Lilian Stanley, kindly reach to us in the follwing address
Blessing Literature Centre
21/11 West Coovam River Road,
Chintadripet,
Chennai 600 002, India.
+91-44-28450411, Mob:8806270699
blc@bymonline.org
