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A Good Conscience

We’re currently going through Peter’s first epistle. In my last post, I talked about how to be prepared to answer those who ask about the hope driving your actions.

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.

1 Peter 3:15-16 NIV

Continuing with that thought, there’s an assumption that you’re watching your attitude. When we deal with the unsaved, we need to keep our emotions in check. We must not operate in an arrogant or condemning manner.

When we act in a “holier than thou” way, we actually push people away from the Gospel. They need to understand that we had issues as well. The only difference between them and us is Christ.

Most importantly, we must hold on to a good conscience. We need to guard our conscience from anything that would stain it. What does this mean?

The Greek word for conscience, literally means seeing together. It’s how we view the totality of our life and actions. It’s not about just one incident that happened 3 years ago.

Too many believers find themselves stuck because they’re continually replaying a mistake they made years ago. You are washed by the blood of Christ if you repented of it. Stop letting the past keep you from your destiny in the Lord.

The real question is; am I living for self, or becoming like Christ? That’s what’s the important aspect of our conscience.

Paul explained the same thing to his spiritual son, Timothy. We need this to become effective in ministry.

…holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith.

1 Timothy 1:19 NIV

How can you trust God if your own mind is accusing you of disobedience? In that case, your faith is being shipwrecked. If you haven’t done it yet, go before God and repent over those areas of guilt. Then move on in Christ.

These four things that Peter dealt with in chapter 3, are the bedrock for being victorious in trials. Don’t fear what the world fears, set apart Christ as Lord, be ready to explain your hope, and hold on to a good conscience.

The result of these characteristics is worth the hardship. Peter explains why in verse 16. He says that even though those in the world may publicly slander you as criminals, privately they will actually be ashamed of themselves.

By living this way, you’re giving the Holy Spirit something to work with. He can bring conviction into the hearts of those who know you. The Lord is able to “ripen” their hearts to receive the Gospel message.

Eventually, the Lord will lead someone, maybe even you, to share Christ with them. At that time, they’ll be ready and willing to bow their knee to the Lord and accept Him as their Savior.

Question: How close does your life line up to this way of living?

Protecting the Weak

19 Apr

We’re continuing to look at Paul’s teaching about navigating the “grey areas” in regards to sin. These are the activities that the Bible doesn’t speak about, but Christians seem to all have differing opinions on whether they’re sin or not.

The issue in the Corinthians church was whether they could eat meat that had been sacrificed at a Pagan temple. The Apostle started at the bottom line – pagan idols are nothing; our submission to the authority of Christ is everything. Now he goes on to the other issues involved.

But not everyone knows this. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food they think of it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled.
1 Corinthians 8:7

Paul now brings it around to our conscience. That’s the internal code inside of us that differentiates right and wrong. He makes it clear that this code of conduct is subjective. It’s mostly based upon our life experiences.

Something might not be a sin in the eyes of God. But, based upon my life experience, I may personally consider it wrong and not to be participated in. If I then do this activity, even though I technically haven’t sinned, I break my internal code and soil my conscience.

Paul reiterates that he’s talking about things that aren’t labeled as sin in the Bible.

But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do.
1 Corinthians 8:8

The food itself can’t be evil or good. It’s all about our perception of it.

“That’s great! It’s not against my conscience to do this. I’m free to do whatever I want.”

Wait a minute. Your conscience is not the only one to consider. What about the consciences of your fellow believers?

Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, won’t he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.
1 Corinthians 8:9-12

Here’s the new principle that Paul is trying to get across to us. You may know that something is not a sin. You’re at peace doing it. But what about a brother in Christ who’s not as strong?

They may feel pressure to follow your example. But they’re not at peace about it. They have an internal struggle. It wounds their conscience. They’ve now taken the first step in a downward spiral that could possibly ruin their walk with the Lord.

Paul makes it clear. Eating the food wasn’t a sin. Hurting a fellow believer that Christ died to save is a sin. Like I said, there’s more to this than simply asking if something is a sin or not.

You might not think that it’s fair. After all, why should someone else’s conscience dictate what I can or can’t do? Paul clears that up.

Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.
1 Corinthians 8:13

That’s life as part of a body. The church is not an organization of individual people; we are an organism of interconnected members. What I do affects you and what you do affects me.

Our goal should be to please Christ and bless others.

Question: How do my actions affect those around me?

Baptism and Our Old Self

06 May

In my last post I started talking about how other generations of believers experienced the transforming power of God. I said that we needed to be retaught what they had learned. I quoted a verse from Ephesians.

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24

According to Paul, the first thing we should be taught is how to put off the old self. This is talking about our flesh – the dwelling place of our evil desires. It’s the gift given to us by our ancestor, Adam.

According to James, this is where all of our temptation comes from.

…but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.
James 1:14

Contrary to what we see in the cartoons, it’s not the devil sitting on our shoulder that tempts us. It’s our own flesh that sees something it wants, and tries to get our soul to agree with it. The desires of our flesh – that’s where the battle starts.

Paul wrote a lot about this subject. It’s from his writings that we can learn how to overcome the flesh. It’s in Romans, chapter 6, that he begins dealing with the subject of sin. He tells us that it’s the grace of God that covers our sin.

Paul goes on to ask a question that may sound a little foolish, but it’s one we deal with all the time. Should we sin more in order to get more grace? Obviously not. But he uses the following argument.

By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
Romans 6:2-3

Here is a truth – in Christ we’ve died to sin. In the waters of baptism we’ve identified ourselves with the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord. So, we shouldn’t want to live according to our old life. But by the very question he asks, he implies that it’s possible to live in sin even though we died to it. How can we get the victory over this sin?

It all starts with our water baptism. This is where we identify with Christ. This is where we begin the process of removing the old man. Peter agrees with Paul’s assessment.

…and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also — not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ…
1 Peter 3:21

The word pledge in the above verse means the asking, desire or demand. When we allow ourselves to be baptized in water, we are placing a demand on God for a good conscience. Because we desire to live rightly before Him, we take this step. It’s how we start down the road to remove the old sin nature.

That’s also how Romans chapter 6 starts. The first 10 verses describe our identification with Christ through water baptism. Then, in verse 11, Paul brings out the next step in the process.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:11

The words in the same way let us know that this is a new truth. You were baptized, and by faith identified with the death of Christ. In the same way that you trusted God for this, now go on to the next step of faith. I’ll talk about that step in my next post.

Questions: How was your faith released during your water baptism? Were you baptized in water?

The Spirit and the Word

Tag Archives: good conscience

A Good Conscience

Protecting the Weak

Baptism and Our Old Self

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