God Speaks Through Our Conscience
"Conscience" is sometimes defined as the faculty, or inward principle, that helps us decide between right and wrong. It typically works through guilt. You here people say, “My conscience is bothering me” or “He has a guilty conscience.” Even those who do not believe in God usually possess some insight into what is morally acceptable and what must be rejected. As Paul says in Romans 2:14, 15,
Romans 2:14 For 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:
Romans 2:15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
But, can we truly trust our conscience? Is our conscience the authority in moral issues? The teacher’s edition of the lesson asks the same question in the following manner, “What role do culture and upbringing have on the shaping of your conscience? In what ways has your culture influenced your concepts of right and wrong? How can you learn to transcend culture when you need to, that is, when your culture teaches something that is against the clear teaching of the Word of God?” Years ago I heard a story of an African woman, who no longer lived in Africa, feeling guilty about not mutilating her daughter’s clitoris according to her tribe’s tradition. So culture and tradition can form your conscience.
The Christian believes that God is the supreme Lawgiver and that He has placed in humanity a conscience, even though sin has blunted this God-given tool for moral decision-making. In most Bible translations we do not find the word conscience in the Old Testament, though it occurs numerous times in the New Testament. But whether or not the term is used, the concept is present throughout Scripture.
Important though our conscience is, it is not always totally trustworthy. We notice that people in good conscience often come to very diverse conclusions about what to do in particular circumstances. The apostle Paul was aware of this, as his remarkable statement in 1 Corinthians 4:4 shows: "My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me" (NIV). The same apostle also warns that we can resist the pull of our conscience. In fact, some people appear to have seared their consciences with a hot iron. We read that in 1 Timothy 4:2,
1Timothy 4:2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
Also we read in Titus 1:15
Titus 1:15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
Some have corrupted their conscience. On the other hand, there are ways of sharpening one's conscience. We do this by allowing the Holy Spirit to sharpen it. By being in tune with God by a regular reading of His Word and by frequent communion with Him in prayer will make us more sensitive to the voice of the Spirit, who can speak to us through our conscience. In the end, our conscience may warn us that something is not right. We should then pray and see what God has to say. He is the final authority.
