Good conscience or guilty conscience?
So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God AND man. Acts 24:16
The two greatest commandments the Lord gave were ‘Love the Lord your God’ and ‘Love your neighbour’. Mark 12:30,31. Paul also links ‘God and man’ when talking about his conscience. We can easily delude ourselves when we talk about a good conscience towards God but our neighbours(family and friends) with all our faults and failings are more difficult to justify. Paul didn’t just speak about keeping ‘his conscience’ clear in private, he said it publicly and often before the religious Jews who were out to accuse him of everything they could.
I looked up the word conscience on an an online dictionary; a person’s moral sense of right and wrong, viewed as acting as a guide to one’s behaviour. Surprisingly the second meaning given was, ‘still small voice’, like Elijah’s meeting with God on Mount Horeb. It’s easy to ignore the still small voice of conscience but the Spirit quietly, persistently tries to get through our busyness and our flesh to engage us.
Paul was sold out for the Lord and wanted to do His will above all things and he was very aware of the voice of his conscience, he didn’t want any hindrances to his walk.
My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 1 Cor 4:4
Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world… in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. 2 Cor 1:12
The goal of this command is love which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. … holding onto faith and a good conscience. 1 Tim 1:5, 19
I thank God whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 2 Tim 1:3,
Also Heb 9:14, 10:22, 13:18, and 1 Peter 3:16, 21
Two points; if something is COMING to our minds REPEATEDLY it may well be the voice of the Spirit trying to get our attention, so stop and consider what we’re hearing. Secondly, keep short accounts. Maybe at the end of the day(but whenever works for us) stop and ask if there’s anything we need to address or repent for. It may that we need to go and apologise or put something right. In high tech western society, the ability to hear our own hearts has been eroded. We need to learn to listen and like Paul to keep our consciences clear.
God bless and keep you and make His face to shine upon you and give you peace.