BIBLICAL VIEW | CONSCIENCE (1)

1. Introduction

a) Our conscience controls our reaction to thoughts, imaginations, words, and actions. How can the conscience be trained to serve us correctly?

b) Our conscience is like a baseball umpire...

c) Located in a person's "spiritual heart", the conscience lets us know when we have violated our personal inner moral code, and prompts us to make corrections. This then allows peace to come back into our mind.

d) Our conscience also warns us when we have a problem.

2. The "conscience" and "peace" connection...

a) Colossians 3.15 is an amazing verse.

Colossians 3:15 New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁵ And let the peace (soul harmony which comes) that comes from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts (deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state). For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful (appreciative), (giving praise to God always). 

b) Do you see that phrase...[act as umpire]?

c) The peace of GOD should rule in our "spiritual heart" continually.

d) But, there is a problem!

e) The peace and conscience can only act in relationship to the information in our thought-life.

Genesis 6:5 New Living Translation (NLT)

⁵ The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.

f) Obviously, everything they used as an "acceptable" behavior, and the standards they lived by were totally unacceptable.

3. Adam & Eve

a) When Adam and Eve were in the garden in Eden before sinning - their standard of thinking came directly from the tree of life.

b) It was peaceful.

c) There was no problems, no shame, as they fed off the information that directly came from GOD Himself.

d) Their conscience was in full harmony with GOD's order and GOD's words.

e) But after the fall and Adam and Eve were driven from the garden - the information they lived by changed.

f) The information they had received on from GOD was shut down. Angels cut off access to that tree. They had no access to GOD information again.

g) Instead the standard guidance they now lived by, came directly from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This is where the serpent lived and spoke to Eve out of, and still occupies today.

h) So the conscience of the Adam family is now governed by a different standard.

4. Cain killed Abel

a) The result came quickly. Adam's son Cain killed his brother Abel.

b) BAD information equals - a bad conscience - equals bad behavior.