We're going to be looking at
the subject of conscience this morning. And I've titled this
Bible study, How is your conscience? How is your conscience? I didn't
realize that the scripture had so much to say about the conscience,
but it does. And I hope this will be an encouragement
to every believer and hope the Lord will rebuke and convict
those who are strangers to the grace of God. Let's pray together
and ask the Lord's blessings. Our Heavenly Father, we come
before your wonderful throne of grace, thanking you for the
acceptance that we have in Christ. We pray, Lord, that you'd be
pleased to bless your Word by the power of your Spirit and
bless the hearts of your people. We ask, Lord, that you would
reveal to us more of your grace and your love in Christ. We pray
that you'd teach us and give us good understanding and that
you would give to us a pure conscience in Christ. We do ask, Lord, that you would
continue to prepare us and Bruce and Donnie for next weekend and
that you would attend those services with special blessings. For we
ask it in Christ's name and for His sake. Amen. Conscience is a gift that God
has given to man. All men have a conscience. Some, as we're going to see,
have been seared. Nevertheless, they still have
the remnant of the image of God. God is a moral being, and he
has made us in his image, and thus the thing that distinguishes
man from all other creatures is that he has given us a conscience. That thing in our soul that enables
us to discern right from wrong, good from evil. And as I said,
the Scripture has much to say about the conscience. And I know
from my own experience that as soon as I mention the conscience,
that the first thought that comes to heart is how the conscience
accuses, how oftentimes we feel the pains of a guilty conscience.
And the Scripture speaks of that in Romans chapter 2, if you'll
turn with me there. In Romans chapter 2, verse 14, and when the Gentiles,
which have not the law, those outside of Israel know nothing
of the moral law written on tablets of stone given to Moses, the
Ten Commandments, those things that men are so eager to post
in the courthouses and the schools of our country. And when the
Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things
contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law
unto themselves." What he's speaking of here is the conscience. He's
talking about those who don't have the Ten Commandments, but
yet in their heart of hearts, they have the law written. They know the difference between
good and evil, right and wrong. Turn with me back to Romans chapter
1. Verse 18, For the wrath of God
is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men who hold the truth in unrighteousness, because that
which may be known of God is manifest in them. For God hath showed it unto them. All men made in the image of
God come into this world with a moral standard imprinted on
their heart. You don't have to plaster the
Ten Commandments on the wall in order for a person to know
what's right and what's wrong. When the Gentiles, which have
not the law, do according to their conscience those things
that seem right and wrong, then they are revealing their knowledge
of the law. Look at verse 15 of chapter 2,
which show the work of the law written in their hearts. They never had the advantage
of hearing the commandments given on Mount Sinai, but they've got
them written on their hearts. their conscience also bearing
witness, and their thoughts, the meanwhile, accusing or else
excusing one another. Man, by nature, has a conscience
that accuses him when he does wrong. This is the accusing conscience
as a result of the law written on the heart. Conscience is particularly
sensitive when man plays the part of a hypocrite. He pretends
to be one thing, but he knows in his heart that he's something
else. And his conscience actively convicts him. Turn back with
me to John chapter 8. We're going to be looking at
several different passages, so just bear with me. John chapter
8. This is the story of the woman
that was caught in adultery and brought before the Lord by the
Pharisees. And the Lord knew their hearts,
and they knew their hearts. They knew their hearts. They
were playing the part of a hypocrite. And they said in verse 4, Master,
this woman was taken in adultery in the very act. Interestingly,
the man was not brought. Now Moses in the law commanded
us that such should be stoned, but what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him
that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down with
his finger and wrote on the ground as though he heard them not."
There's been much speculation about what he wrote. I like to
think that He was writing the names of the women that those
men had been with. And the reason I think that is
because of the next verse. So, when they continued asking
him, he lifted up himself and said unto him, The he that is
without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And
again he stooped down and wrote on the ground some more. And they which heard it, being
convicted by their own conscience. went out one by one, beginning
at the eldest, even into the last, and Jesus was left alone
and the woman standing in the midst. She was the one caught
in adultery. She was guilty. She was humbled
before the Lord. But these men, playing the part
of the hypocrite, also had a conscience. And their conscience accused
them and convicted them of their guilt until they had nothing
to say. Now that's a gift. It's a gift from God that man
would be given a conscience. A conscience that in the light
of the law of God, and the law was given, the moral law written
in stone and the moral law written on the heart, the law was given
in order to shut the mouths of men. So when our conscience sees
what we are in light of the standard of God's law, our mouths are
shut. Our conscience is convicted and
we feel the pains of guilt. Turn with me to Hebrews chapter
10. The first conscience we considered
is the accusing conscience. The Scripture speaks of an evil
conscience. In Hebrews chapter 10, verse 19, having therefore, brethren,
boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. The only
thing that will cleanse a guilty conscience is the blood of Christ.
That's the only covering for sin. That's the only relief for
guilt is the sacrifice that Christ made of his precious blood to
put away sin in the sight of God. So we come before the presence
of God with the confidence of knowing that though our conscience
convicts us, he is greater than our conscience. And where sin
abounds, grace does much more abound. Verse 20, by a new and living
way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil, that
is to say, his flesh. The only hope that we have of
coming before a holy God is through the rent flesh of the Lord Jesus
Christ. The sacrifice of his life is
the only covering that there is for sin and the only hope
for sinners. And having a high priest over
the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full
assurance of faith. What is full assurance of faith?
I cannot look within myself in order to try to find acceptance
before God. The only place I can look is
to Christ, the one who was never guilty. He never experienced
a guilty conscience, an accusing conscience. He even said to those
who were his enemies, if anyone can accuse me, bring it on. And every mouth was shut. When
they did bring him to the cross, they had to find men that would
tell lies about him. And ultimately, the only accusation
that they were able to get to stick was that of blasphemy. He, being a man, presented himself
as God. Of course, he wasn't blaspheming
because he was God. He is God. But that was the accusation
that the Jews made. Let us draw near with a true
heart and full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from
an evil conscience. This guilty conscience, the only
cure for it, the only cure for an evil conscience, an evil conscience
that once called bad good and good bad, that once called that
which was profane holy and that which was holy profane, that's
an evil conscience. And the sprinkling of the blood
of Christ cleanses our conscience and enables us to come before
the presence of God in full assurance of faith. Turn with me to Hebrews
chapter 9. You're there in Hebrews 10. Just back one page to Hebrews
chapter 9. Verse 12, Neither by the blood
of goats and calves, but by his own blood, He entered in once
into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. Notice
the verb tense. When the Lord Jesus Christ, when
that veil rent separated the holies of holies from the people,
it was a picture of the blood of Christ, the body of Christ
being made a sacrifice for sin. And he entered in and made, obtained
eternal redemption for us. Verse 13, For if the blood of
bulls and of goats and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled the unclean,
sanctified to the purifying of the flesh, if these symbols in
the Old Testament were accepted before God and they were offered
in faith, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through
the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God He offered
himself to the Father without ever having compromised his conscience. He had a perfect conscience,
a pure conscience, a holy conscience. What does he do? He purges our
conscience from dead works. You see, there was a time when
our conscience deceived us and told us that What was pleasing
to God, what was really evil in the sight
of God, our dead works, was pleasing to Him. There was a time when
our conscience was deceiving us, and we thought that the works
that we were performing We're somehow earning us favor with
God. And now, through the blood of
Christ, our conscience are purged of those dead works. We're no
longer looking to those dead works. We're looking to Christ
as the hope of our acceptance before God. And now he sets us free to serve,
you see that in the end of verse 14, to serve the living and true
God. There is an accusing conscience
and there is an evil conscience. An evil conscience in the sight
of God is that conscience which doesn't accuse when it ought
to accuse. A conscience that boasts in unrighteousness. that delights in doing dead works,
but through the blood of Christ, those dead works are purged from
our conscience so that we no longer look in that direction.
So, the believer cannot be said to have an evil conscience. The believer can have an accusing
conscience, but not an evil conscience. Now, turn with me to 1 Timothy
chapter 4. What is the result, the end result
of an evil conscience? What is the end result of that
one who calls evil good and calls good evil? That's what the unbelieving
conscience does. That's what the evil conscience
does. The evil conscience is looking to its good works And
God calls them dead works. The evil conscience is looking
to the righteousness of Christ alone as the hope of salvation
as that which is evil. And the end result of an evil
conscience is a seared conscience. What a sad state of affairs it
is when a man's conscience becomes seared with a hot iron. Look with me to Now, the Spirit speaketh expressly. Here's what God says very clearly.
That in the latter times, some shall depart from the faith,
giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. He's
not talking about devil worshipers here in the sense that they are
engaged in some sort of occultic dark magic activities, talking
about religious people who have been deceived, speaking lies. Notice verse 2, speaking lies
in hypocrisy. What are they doing? The evil
conscience, the evil conscience that looks to its good works
as the hope of its salvation, boasts in its good works before
God and before men. You remember the Pharisee who
went to the temple to pray? Lord, I'm so glad I'm not like
other men. And he boasts in the very presence
of God of his righteousness. He looked to his dead works as
the hope of his salvation. And, of course, they boast before
men. They love the praise of men more than the praise of God.
And so in religious circles, men compete with one another
to see who is the more holy and the more righteous. This is speaking
lies in hypocrisy. Notice the last part of verse
2, having their conscience seared with a hot iron. Now you burn yourself bad enough
and that part of your flesh will lose all feeling. Your nerve
endings will become deadened and won't be able to feel the
prick. of the Spirit of God anymore.
You see, the end result of an evil conscience is a seared conscience.
When a person continues to reject the truth and believe that somehow
they can earn their right before God, the longer they remain in
that state, the more hardened their conscience becomes, until
finally it's seared over. It's beyond feeling, beyond hope. And in the end, they're turned
over to a reprobate mind. Pray the Lord will keep us from
having a seared conscience. What is the hope of not having
a seared conscience? Well, look with me to 2 Thessalonians.
As I said, there's much in the New Testament about the conscience. 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. Verse 9, even him whose coming
is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and
lying wonders. This is a description of religion
and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness. This is the
mystery of iniquity. As we've already saw, all men
have a conscience that accuses them of doing wrong. And even
these people who are producing good works, they have a conscience
that convicts them when they do something that they deem to
be wrong or something that's contrary to the command of God,
contrary to that law that's written upon the heart. The problem is
they've come to believe that they can also produce that which
is righteous in the sight of God. And they've been deceived
of unrighteousness in them that perish because they receive not
the love of the truth that they might be saved. And for this
cause, God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe
a lie. And they all might be damned
who believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. He's not talking about those
who are taking pleasure in what men would consider fleshly activities. He's talking about people who
take pleasure in that which is unrighteous before God. They're
good works. They're boasting in their righteousness. And the end result of that is
that their conscience, they become seared, they are given a delusion
as to what is the truth, and they believe it. We all have
friends and family members that we've tried to talk to about
the gospel of God's grace in Christ, and they believe what
they believe. They have embraced a lie. And we hope that their conscience
is not yet completely seared. But if they continue down that
road, the further they go, the farther it is to come back until
they come to a point of no return. They believe it to the damnation
of their souls. Turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter
1. Verse 4, neither give heed to
fables. Don't listen to the imagination
of men as to what the means of salvation is. Endless genealogies. I was raised up in the church.
My father was a deacon. My grandfather was a pastor.
I believe what so-and-so believes. And they make reference to dead
theologians. Endless genealogies. Which minister questions rather
than godly edifying which is in faith. So do. Encourage in
faith. Now, the end of the commandment,
the summary of the commandment is charity. Love in action. That's the end of the commandment.
I like this word charity better than love because love can be
interpreted as nothing more than an emotion. But charity is true love in action. edifying others in concern for
their well-being. Now, the end of the commandment
is charity out of a pure heart and a good conscience of faith
unfeigned. This good conscience comes of
faith. Not a fake faith. Not a pretended
faith. An unfeigned faith. A genuine
trust in Christ. This isn't lip service to God.
This is faith given by the Spirit of God to the heart that enables
God's people to look to Christ alone as the hope of their salvation.
This is unfamed faith. And that's what a good conscience
comes from. Look with me to 1 Peter chapter
3. 1 Peter chapter 3, verse 21. The like figure, whereunto even baptism doth also
now save us, Baptism saves us? Yes, not the act of baptism,
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. When the Spirit of God convicts
those who have an evil conscience, those who are trusting in their
own righteousness of the truth that is in Christ, then the conscience
causes that believer to confess their faith in baptism. That's
why I'm hesitant to talk too much about baptism, to preach
too much about baptism, or certainly to pursue an individual about
baptism. Because I know that when the
Spirit of God changes the heart of a person, he will put in their
conscience in their good conscience as a result of the faith that
he's given them a desire to confess him publicly. That's just the
result of faith. That's a good conscience. You
cannot violate that conscience. Turn with me to Romans chapter
9. There is a conscience in the
heart of a believer that cannot lie to itself. Knows the truth. Men outside of Christ are able
to lie to themselves and lie to others, but a good conscience,
a good conscience given by the Spirit of God. Look what Paul
says in Romans chapter 9, verse 1, I say the truth in Christ.
Those who know the truth speak the truth. I lie not. My conscience
also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost. Try lying to yourself,
child of God. The Spirit of God will convict
you, convert you from that lie. Paul says, I bear witness. My conscience is pure before
God. The Spirit of God gives testimony
to my conscience that I have great heaviness and continual
sorrow in my heart. A conscience that is void of
offense before God is a conscience that is made pure through the
faith of the Lord Jesus Christ. Acts chapter 24. Will you turn
with me there? How is your conscience? The only way to have a pure conscience,
you see from all these texts, is to rely upon, to look to,
to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ alone as the hope of your salvation.
And looking to Him, looking to Him, your conscience will be
cleansed and pure before God and before men. Acts chapter
24, look what Paul says in verse In verse 16, and herein do I
exercise myself. This is what I exercise to do. I labor to enter into His rest. That's what he's saying. This
is the pursuit of my life. To run the race. To look to Christ. To know Him. Herein I do exercise myself to
have always a conscience void of offense toward God and toward
men." Now, that's the believer's heart given to them by the Spirit
of God, inspired by the gospel of God's grace, motivated by
His love. It is their exercise of life.
To have a pure conscience, a conscience that is void of offense before
God. How can you have a conscience
that's void of offense? Looking to Christ. Looking to
Christ. Looking to Christ will do two
things. It will provide for you the covering of His blood that
will make your heart pure before God. It will also motivate your
heart in love to do that which is right in the sight of God
and in the sight of men. Paul says, this is what I exercise
my whole life to do, to always have a conscience that is void
of offense. Always coming to Christ. To whom
coming, keep coming, keep coming, keep coming. And the good conscience is a
conscience that is tender to the Spirit of God. It's easily
convicted, brought by the Spirit of God again and again and again
and again to look to Christ. And that's what the Scripture
refers to as a pure conscience, the only conscience that is able
to hold the mystery of the faith. Turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter
3. Apostle Paul is giving to Timothy
instructions on those men chosen to be deacons, servants. Likewise, in verse 8, must the
deacon be grave, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy
of filthy lucre, holding the mystery of the faith in a pure
conscience. What is it to hold the mystery
of the faith? Just believe what God has said about how it is
that he remits sin, how it is that he forgives sinners, how
it is that he makes us accepted before God. It is to not compromise
that gospel, not to water it down, not to change it in any
way. It is to hold to Christ alone, the simplicity of the
gospel. is in the person and work of
the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is holding the mystery
of the faith in a pure conscience before God. Look with me to 2 Corinthians
chapter 4. Did you know the scripture had so much to say about the
conscience? 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Verse 1, Therefore, seeing we
have this ministry as we have received mercy, we faint not. It is the love of Christ that
constrains us. We've received this mercy. It
is by His mercy that we have strength to persevere, but have
renounced the hidden things of dishonesty. We've renounced those
things. We've exposed them. And we continue
to expose them. The hidden things of dishonesty. Those things that are shameful.
Not walking in craftiness. Not trying to manipulate men.
We're not seeking to merchandise men's souls for our own profit,
like men in religion do. We're not walking in craftiness,
nor handling the Word of God deceitfully. We're not twisting
God's Word. We're declaring it clearly and
simply and plainly as we can, but by manifestation of the truth. By the manifestation of the truth.
God's people know the truth. The truth is made known to them
every time His Word is opened. And by manifestation of the truth,
commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight
of God. When a man stands to proclaim
the mystery of the gospel, those who know the truth know
that his conscience and their conscience are made pure in the
sight of God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And there's
no twisting or perverting this truth. There's no complicating
it. There is a perfect conscience
spoken of in Scripture. Turn with me to Hebrews chapter
10. Hebrews chapter 10. For the law, those who seek their righteousness
through the keeping of the law, having a shadow of good things
to come, This law that's written on the heart of every man, not
the very image of the things, can never, with those sacrifices
which they offered year by year, continually make the comers thereunto
perfect. There's no amount of law-keeping
that can make you perfect before God. For then, verse 2, would
they not have ceased to be offered? It's the rhetorical question.
If these things were the things that made man perfect before
God, then they shouldn't have ceased. But they have ceased. And the reason they've ceased
is because that worshiper once purged should have no more conscience
of sins. If the offering of sacrifices
according to the law purged the conscience, then the conscience
would be perfect. But it doesn't. In those sacrifices
there is a remembrance, again, made of sins every year. For
it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take
away sins. Wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he saith,
Sacrifice and offerings thou wouldest not, but a body thou
hast prepared for me. It is the precious body of the
Lord Jesus Christ that bore our sins on Calvary's tree, that
makes us accepted before God and purges the conscience and
makes it perfect before God, so forgiveness, forgiveness of
those things that our conscience convicts us of. And that forgiveness
comes when we look to Christ, so that now there is no condemnation
to them that are in Christ Jesus. Now, that's a pure conscience.
Finally, I want us to look at one other passage of Scripture
in 1 Corinthians chapter 8. There are various strengths of
faith among the people of God. There are various abilities given
by the Spirit of God for one to look clearly and trust firmly
in Christ, for another to see him afar off, but yet trust him. Some in the camp of Israel in
the wilderness were right next to that brazen serpent that was
put upon a pole. They had no trouble seeing it.
Right there at it. Others may have been a half a
mile away out on the edge of the camp. They had to strain
to see it. But if they looked, they lived. Alright? If you are one who is standing
right at the foot of the cross, seeing Christ clearly, that there
are other brethren who are not as firm as you are in faith. And so the Scripture speaks to
us as to how to treat these brethren. Look with me to 1 Corinthians
chapter 8, the beginning of verse 9. But meet, commendeth us not
to God. It's not what you eat, what you
drink, what you don't eat, or what you don't drink that makes
you acceptable before God. If we eat, are we better? Neither if we eat not, are we
the worse? It's not food. It's not what
we consume or drink. But take heed. Take heed. lest by any means this liberty
of yours become a stumbling block to them that are weak. For if
a man see thee which hath knowledge sit at meet in the idol's temple,
shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to
eat those things which are offered to idols? And through thy knowledge
shall the weak brother perish for whom Christ died." Now it
doesn't mean that the weak brother is going to die in their sins,
it means that they're going to suffer because of their violating their
own conscience. The point here is that there
are those who have a weak conscience, who don't fully understand or
have a clear view of the liberty that they have in Christ, and
we are warned not to become a stumbling block. Here's the point. Don't try to convince another
brother or sister to violate their conscience. Even if their conscience is tender
towards something that is amoral, don't ever humiliate or pressure
another believer to do something that would violate their conscience. This conscience is very needful.
It's very needful for all of us. And when we begin to violate
our conscience, then it becomes less and less useful, doesn't
it? A lot about the conscience. A
lot about the conscience. I hope the Lord will encourage
our hearts to look to Christ for pure conscience before Him.