Your Conscience

[Chris1975]

Your Conscience

Genesis 2 [SUP]17 [/SUP]but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

• We know from the biblical scriptures that God is Love, and our response to God in Love is Obedience (John 14v15; 1 John 5v3; 2 John 1v6 etc)
  
• God put this one tree in the midst of the garden, with the commandment not to eat of this tree. This was the commandment, which if obeyed, would be a test of the love that His children had for Him. For God tests all of His children, from that fateful day until today, and until the Day of the Lord.
• Was it the knowledge of good and evil specifically that Adam (and Eve) was not to pursue? Or was it the fact that a commandment of God was broken, that caused the judgement?
• We know that in the creation account in Genesis, God calls what he created “Good” : Gen 1v10; 1v12; 1v18; 1v21; 1v25 and “Very Good” 1v31
  
• We know that Adam could only have known “Good” because that is all that Adam knew. A case can be made that the knowledge of good and evil is not in itself evil, because we can see in Genesis 3v22 [SUP]22 [/SUP]Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil.
• And we know that in Him (God) is no darkness at all. But God knows good and evil.
• And it was necessary, in the grand plan from before time began, that there would be a tempter of man, who would put this faith of God’s created being Adam (and Eve) to the test. For God is looking for a people who will love Him. And love (and faith) is tested through obedience.

Genesis 3 [SUP]7 [/SUP]Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

• At this point we have the birth of conscience
  
• The word “Conscience” means “With Knowledge”: Con = with; science = knowledge.
  
• It is with knowledge of good and evil, the birth of moral judgement in a person, and the ability to discern between right and wrong.

Genesis 3 [SUP]8 [/SUP]And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. [SUP]9 [/SUP]Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” [SUP]10 [/SUP]So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” [SUP]11 [/SUP]And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”

• We see the reactions of Adam and Eve were to hide from God. Up to that point they were walking with Him daily in the garden, now all of a sudden we see a change in their behaviour.
  
• They knew they disobeyed the Lord God.
  
• Conscience causes in a person feelings of guilt. It causes a person to hide from God.
  
• We see above that their fig leaves and other coverings were insufficient to cleanse their consciences before a Holy God. No plan of man can atone for the transgressions of man. When the Lord arrived, they hid.

Genesis 3 [SUP]21 [/SUP]Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. [SUP]22 [/SUP]Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil.

• The only acceptable atonement for sin was the shedding of blood (the tunics of skin to clothe them.
  
• This would be a temporary atonement until the fulfilment of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.

Hebrews 9 [SUP]11 [/SUP]But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come,[SUP][a][/SUP] with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. [SUP]12 [/SUP]Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. [SUP]13 [/SUP]For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, [SUP]14 [/SUP]how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

• Do you see this? The shedding of blood through animal sacrifice was a temporary purification of the flesh. It could not cleanse the conscience which resides in the soul.
  
• The blood of the Lamb of God is the only way to deal with the purification of the soul. Namely the cleansing of our consciences.
  
• The old covenant could never deal with this aspect: Hebrews 9 [SUP]9 [/SUP]It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience—

What can we learn about the conscience from the Word?

1. It will either accuse you or excuse you on the Day of the Lord

Romans 2 [SUP]15 [/SUP]who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) [SUP]16 [/SUP]in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

• Christian brothers and sisters. If you are living in willful sin, and the Day of the Lord appears like a thief in the night, your conscience will immediately accuse you before His Holy Presence. You will have been like the 5 foolish virgins. Like the wicked servant who thought his Master delayed His coming.
  
• Repent now. Before it’s too late. By the Grace of God you can overcome. There is power in the Name of Jesus.

1. Living in willful sin will harm your consciences, potentially irreparably once having come to the knowledge of the truth

1 Timothy 4 1Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, [SUP]2 [/SUP]speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,

• The Word of God is clear. Your departure from that faith is linked to giving yourself over to false doctrines, doctrines which will tickle your ears concerning the sins which you practise, beginning to live in hypocrisy (preaching one way but living in a completely opposite way.
  
• Your consciences become seared. Burnt. Harmed. “You shall surely not die” doctrine from the serpent. You then lack any correction. Even the plain word of God is glossed over for fanciful interpretations which will soften the blow, or massage you in your sins. A truly false sense of security. Come out of this now.
  

1. You are to search your consciences to see if there is anything in you which displeases the Lord, so as to not disqualify you from the prize.

Psalm 139 [SUP]23 [/SUP]Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; [SUP]24 [/SUP]And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.
Psalm 24 [SUP]3 [/SUP]Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? [SUP]4 [/SUP]He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

• The psalmist wrote this, led by the Spirit of God, knowing these were the keys to an eternal fellowship in the Lord God.
  
• A total dependence on God to reveal things displeasing and disqualifying to the eternal prize. And knowing that only God could cleanse such a heart. But it takes your part too.
  
• Proverbs 28v13 [SUP]13 [/SUP]He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.
  

1. We are to live with a clean conscience

2 Corinthians 1 [SUP]12 [/SUP]For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you.

• If you are led by the Spirit, you will know by the Spirit anything which testifies against your conscience. God is not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance 2 Peter 3v9
  
• Trust God in this. Your salvation is more important to Him than it is to you.
  

1. The Holy Spirit helps us

John 16 [SUP]8 [/SUP]And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

• If you were to search your heart right now, at this very moment, as you are reading this sentence – and you were to ask the Lord if there is any part of your life that is displeasing to Him – and wait on His answer – I’m sure He will speak to you. This should be welcomed and dealt with. He loves you. And the Spirit of God with partner with you through this. He supplies the grace and power. This however needs your co-operation.
  

1. Without a clean conscience any judgments made are in hypocrisy

John 8 [SUP]7 [/SUP]So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up[SUP][[/SUP][SUP]s[/SUP][SUP]][/SUP] and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” [SUP]8 [/SUP]And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. [SUP]9 [/SUP]Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience,[SUP][t][/SUP] went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.

• The Lord knew their thoughts. Their consciences were an open book to Him.
  
• If those scribes and Pharisees were to see the Lord’s return (Day of the Lord) at that very moment, how, do you think, the Lord would judge them?
  

 

[Chris1975]

1 Timothy 1
[SUP]5 [/SUP]Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, [SUP]6 [/SUP]from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, [SUP]7 [/SUP]desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.

 

[beta]

Very insightful Postst hat need to be considered now !

 

[Chris1975]

1 John 1
[SUP]6 [/SUP]If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. [SUP]7 [/SUP]But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Here we have the effects of walking with Him. If your conscience is clear, you are walking in the Light (verse 7) as His blood cleanses you from all sin.

If you are walking in darkness (practicing sin), even though you "say" you have fellowship with Him ("I'm a Christian, I'm a Christian"), you are actually deceiving yourselves. You are lying to yourself. For your conscience testifies against you. For the laws of God are written on your heart.


Come to the light

John 3[SUP]19 [/SUP]And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. [SUP]20 [/SUP]For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. [SUP]21 [/SUP]But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

 

[Grace777x70]

John 1:7 (NASB)
[SUP]7 [/SUP] but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.


"If" we walk in the light - this is a sphere of living - the condition of being in the light means that we are in Christ and He is in us and thus we have fellowship with each other and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin.

(cleanses us = present tense continuous cleansing - if we were perfect in all our fleshly behavior - why would we need the constant cleansing of the blood of Jesus...selah ).

We are always light in the Lord.

Believers are definitely in the light. The scriptures are clear on this.

Ephesians 5:8 (NASB)
[SUP]8 [/SUP] for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light ( we should be walking out who we are in the light..but it's through Him we do that. )


Colossians 1:12 (NASB)
[SUP]12 [/SUP] giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.


1 Thessalonians 5:5 (NASB)
[SUP]5 [/SUP] for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness;

Here Paul is contrasting the believer and the unbeliever. Notice the believer is called "light".

2 Corinthians 6:14 (KJV)
[SUP]14 [/SUP] Be ye ( believers ) not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

The understanding of this truth brings "repentance" to us to walk as who we are in the Lord.

Believers in Christ sealed with the Holy Spirit of whom Jesus said would be in us forever ( John 14:16 ) do not go in and out of Christ. It's a bunch of religious nonsense.

Preach the truth of what Christ has already done for us and the believer will have the proper nutrients to walk out what is already theirs in the new creation. This is called the renewing of the mind and this brings true transformation by the Holy Spirit as we behold the goodness/glory of the Lord as in a mirror. 2 Cor. 3:17-18.

 

[Chris1975]

1 John 3
[SUP]
18 [/SUP]My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
- love is not lip-service. Its ACTION.

[SUP]19 [/SUP]And by this we know[SUP][d][/SUP] that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.
- by what? By the previous verse. Is our love lip-service or ACTION?
- this is how we KNOW we are of the truth. When it manifests in good works.
- James 2v24 [SUP]24 [/SUP]You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

[SUP]20 [/SUP]For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
- if your CONSCIENCE condemns you, then know this, that God knows more than your conscience.
- He knows what you know already.
- You cannot hide your iniquities from God. If your conscience condemns you, you stand condemned by God.
- That is why it is SO IMPORTANT to bring everything before the Lord and confess and forsake your sins.

[SUP]21 [/SUP]Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.
- if your conscience is cleansed, as only the blood of Jesus can accomplish, then and only then can we approach the throne of Grace with Boldness.
- Now you can understand better this scripture: Hebrews 10v19-22 [SUP]19 [/SUP]Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, [SUP]20 [/SUP]by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, [SUP]21 [/SUP]and having a High Priest over the house of God, [SUP]22 [/SUP]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.


[SUP]22 [/SUP]And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. [SUP]23 [/SUP]And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us[SUP][e][/SUP] commandment.

[SUP]
24 [/SUP]Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.
- and the Spirit is only given to those who Obey Him: Acts 5v32 [SUP]32 [/SUP]And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.”