The Voice of the Conscience

One of the most precious gifts that God has given us is the conscience. The Holy Spirit works with us through our conscience; it is the voice of God speaking to us.

It is like a telephone which is within us and its cable is connected to God through which He speaks to us all day long, telling us what to do and what not to do. Yet, sadly, many people do not want to hear the voice of God, because it rebukes them of their sins and therefore they cut the cable and by so doing, they silence the voice of God within them, and the greatest enemy of our conscience, which is our will, gains the victory.

Sister White writes that our will must be submitted to the voice of our conscience (Test. Vol. 3:84), but often the opposite happens and the voice of God becomes quieter every time we violate our conscience, until it will die out completely.

Even the Gentiles who have never seen or read the Bible obey the law of God and find salvation by the voice of their conscience.

“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: which show 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.” Rom. 2:14, 15.

According to the dictionary, the word, “conscience,” comes from the Greek word “sunei desis,” meaning “moral consciousness”. It is an inward faculty of consciousness that sits in judgment on the moral rightness of thoughts, words, and actions independent of individuals’ desires or inclinations.

Our conscience is like a compass, always pointing in the right direction.
As soon as you tempted to do sin, your conscience will tell you to stop, but then Satan comes along and tells you to go against the voice of your conscience and if you do, the voice of your conscience becomes quieter and if you continue to sin, the voice of God will die completely. Then you can continue to commit sin without your conscience bothering you.
“My brother, your soul must be quickened and your faith enlarged. You have so long excused yourself in your disobedience on one plea or another that your conscience has been lulled to rest and ceases to remind you of your errors.” Test. Vol. 4, p. 254.

“When a person once neglects to hear the invitations, reproofs, and warnings of the Spirit of God, his conscience becomes seared, and the next time he is admonished, it will be more difficult to yield obedience than before. And thus with every repetition.” Test. Vol. 5, p. 120.

Judas continued to go against the voice of his conscience until he sinned against the Holy Spirit. Then his conscience condemned him and caused him agony that he could not bear.

“As the trial drew to a close, Judas could endure the torture of his guilty conscience no longer… ‘I have sinned,’ again cried Judas, ‘in that I have betrayed the innocent blood’… and in despair went out and hanged himself.” DA, p. 721-722.

Pilate decided to go against his conscience. He was convinced that Jesus was innocent but the high priest and other Jewish leaders demanded the death of Jesus and he decided to please them rather than obey the voice of his conscience.

“Pilate yielded to the demands of the mob. Rather than risk losing his position, he delivered Jesus to be crucified. But in spite of his precautions, the very thing he dreaded afterward came upon him. His honours were stripped from him, he was cast down from his high office, and, stung by remorse and wounded pride, not long after the crucifixion, he ended his own life.” DA 738.

The highest religious leader, the high priest, told him to go against his conscience and he did, only to cause his own ruin in the end. At the coming of Jesus all the wicked suddenly realize the mistake they had committed by refusing to obey the voice of their conscience.

“It is impossible to describe the horror and despair of those who have trampled upon God’s holy requirements.” GC 639.

There is a war in each person between their conscience and their will. And most of the time, the will wins and the voice of the conscience is silenced. The results of not obeying the voice of the conscience is misery, depression and, Sister White writes, that even our physical health is ruined by a guilty conscience.

“A person may have property and intellect, and yet be valueless, because the glowing fire of goodness has never burned upon the altar of his heart, because his conscience has been seared, blackened, and crisped with selfishness and sin.” Test. Vol. 2, p. 305.

“You have sought your own pleasure and selfish gratification at the expense of conscience and the approval of God.” Test. Vol. 3, p. 82.

“The people have not erected graven images, yet their sin is no less in the sight of God. They worship mammon. They love worldly gain. Some will make any sacrifice of conscience to obtain their object. God’s people are selfish and self-caring… They are idolaters and are worse, far worse, in the sight of God than the heathen, graven image worshippers who have no knowledge of the better way.” Test. Vol. 2, p. 440-441.

Sister White writes that children can destroy their conscience by vanity, wrong diet and eating habits, by worldly company, day dreaming and wrong thoughts.

Therefore many children lose their interest in religion and turn to the world. They have learned the truth in their early years, but willfully give it up.

“For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins.” Heb. 10:26.

Without the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking to our conscience we may remain religious, even fanatical as were the Pharisees, but without the joy and peace of heaven in our hearts. No one is so miserable and wretched as the proud Laodiceans who feel themselves spiritually rich.

Satan is working with all his power and cunning deceptions to blunt, quiet, and to destroy our conscience that the connection with heaven will be broken and we cannot hear the voice of God anymore. If our conscience has been blunted by sin, there is still hope to make it sensitive again.

“No one can be truly united with Christ, practicing His lessons, submitting to His yoke of restraint, without realizing
that which he can never express in words. New, rich thoughts come to him. Light is given to the intellect,
determination to the will, sensitiveness to the conscience, purity to the imagination.” Test. Vol. 6, p. 476.

“The result of such Bible study will be well-balanced minds. The understanding will be quickened, the sensibilities aroused. The conscience will become sensitive; the sympathies and sentiments will be purified; a better moral atmosphere will be created; and new power to resist temptation will be imparted.” CT 357.

Pray to God daily for strength to submit your will to the voice of your conscience. Rather choose death than violating your conscience. Stand for the truth, even that it may cost you your position, your possessions or even your life. Be not like the city of Meroz (Judges 5:23), which chose to remain neutral in the time of crisis, or like Pilate who listened to people and violated his conscience. Take the voice of your conscience as you take the rest of the word of God in the Bible. The cowards who dare not speak up when there is time for it, are the first ones mentioned who will be cast to the lake of fire. (Rev. 21:8).

May the Lord help us to count the cost if we violate our conscience and make a firm resolution to submit ourselves to the voice of God speaking to the telephone within us, our conscience.
Amen.

Timo Martin, Canada