Stuart Olyott

The Bible has a lot to say about our conscience and so, first of all, we had better remind ourselves what it is. Whether we are converted or not, there is within each one of us a sense of right and wrong. It tells us that we “ought” to do right and “ought not” to do wrong. If we obey it, we have a feeling of innocence; if we disobey it, we feel guilty. It is this moral judge, which is part and parcel of our make-up as humans, that we call “conscience” (Rom. 2:15).

Conscience can be silenced. If a person constantly does the opposite of what his conscience tells him, its accusing voice will eventually stop speaking (1 Tim. 4:2). But conscience cannot be destroyed. This is why the most hard-hearted and wicked people, like Judas Iscariot, sometimes suffer agonies of remorse. And, in hell, what is the worm that does not die (Mark 9:48)? It is the accusing conscience that eternally torments lost souls.

Fallen

Before the Fall, what God said about right and wrong, and what Adam and Eve’s consciences said, were exactly the same. The human conscience and the revealed will of God were perfectly in line with each other. When our first parents listened to their consciences, they knew that they were hearing the truth. But that is no longer the case. We are no longer in Eden. Our conscience, like every other part of our human nature, is now polluted by sin.

What does that mean for us today? It means that my conscience is no longer an infallible guide. It may tell me that a certain thought or action is all right, even though God’s law condemns it. On the other hand, it may tell me that something is wrong even though God’s law does not condemn it at all. I still have a sense of right and wrong. But I must not assume that what it tells me is correct.

Christians, however, do not always take this to heart. That is one of the reasons there were problems in the early churches, and especially in those of Corinth and Rome. Christians were making their own consciences the standard by which they judged whether other believers were doing right or wrong, and they were being bitter, resentful, and unkind towards those who did not agree with them. In helping these churches through their difficulties, Paul underlined that there are four sorts of Christian conscience:

Four Sorts

Some of the Lord’s people have a strong conscience. They know that Christ alone is the Lord of conscience. What He says is right, is right; what He says is wrong, is wrong. This is true whatever individual consciences may say. They also know that there are whole areas of personal behavior where His Word does not give any clear directives, and that here they are entirely free to do what they please, without any qualms whatever.

Some Christians have a weak conscience. For various reasons, they do not feel free to do what they please in those areas where there are no directives. They impose on themselves more rules than the Bible does. If they break one of their self-made rules, they feel that they have done wrong. Their conscience is offended. They feel defiled, dirty, and ashamed.

It is plain, then, that some believers have a bad conscience. This can be true of both the strong and the weak. The strong have a bad conscience when they are conscious of having broken God’s law. The weak have a bad conscience when they become aware of either breaking God’s law, or one of their self-imposed restrictions. For both strong and weak, God’s Word makes it clear that it is never safe to have a bad conscience (Rom. 14:23). By defiling and rejecting their conscience, some professing believers have ended up in spiritual ruin (1 Tim. 1:19, Titus 1:15).

The ideal, and the only safe path for both strong and weak, is to constantly keep a good conscience. Our conscience may not necessarily be telling us the truth, but it is always to be obeyed. Yes, it is to be obeyed without question, even when other people put pressure on us to behave differently. As we grow in grace and the knowledge of Christ, our conscience will increasingly come into line with the revealed will of God. We will become more free in some areas and stricter in others. But Scripture and our conscience will not be perfectly in tune with each other until we are glorified in heaven.

Handling Differences

Until then, how are we to handle the differences of conscience that so often threaten to sour our fellowship with other believers? It is on this question that Paul’s teaching focuses in Romans 14:1–15:13 and 1 Corinthians 8 and 9. These passages are extraordinarily relevant to today’s churches and call for serious study. The essential points, however, are easy to list:

(1) It is wrong to keep my distance from a brother or sister in Christ on the basis that we don’t see eye-to-eye in an area of conscience. I am to unhesitatingly embrace everyone that Christ has received.

(2) I am not to despise or judge my fellow-believers for any scruples, or lack of scruples, that they may hold in areas where Scripture has not spoken clearly. At the end of the world we shall not answer to each other, but to Christ. I must act on the assumption that my fellowbelievers want to please Him as much as I do.

(3) I am to be sure in my own mind that my only ambition is to please the Lord, and that my behavior is not being decided by what others are thinking or saying. This said, I must be very careful not to put my brother or sister in any situation where they are in danger of violating their conscience, even if this means putting some self-imposed limits on my Christian liberty.

Church Discipline

It is essential that we get this teaching embedded in our minds. If we do not, our churches may become centers of tyranny. In areas of conscience, no believer is answerable to another. Should they break God’s clear and unambiguous moral law and refuse to repent, however, their local church has a responsibility to implement the restorative discipline of admonition, suspension, and excommunication which the New Testament lays down. But the authority that churches have to act in this way cannot, and must not, be carried over into areas of conscience.

The most we can do here is to remind each other that we are each personally responsible to our Master, and that we will be called to account at last. We need such reminders to keep our consciences clear, and to help us to prepare to meet Him. But in no circumstances is my conscience to be imposed upon another person. Nor is his to be imposed on me. To our own Master each of us stands or falls.

Christian liberty is to be both valued and preserved. Ignorance or neglect of the New Testament’s teaching has meant that far too many believers have had their liberty trodden on by others. There are no restrictions on Christian liberty, except those that are self-imposed. If I truly love my fellow-Christian, it will not be a burden to me to seek his welfare and happiness, even if it ties me down more than is biblically necessary.

The Ideal

What is clear from Scripture is that each of us should take steps to have a conscience which is both good and strong. To have a good conscience I need to regularly confess to the Lord every single violation of His law and of my conscience which I know about, and to trust His undertaking that because of Christ’s cross, He will forgive me (1 John 1:5–2:2). To have a strong conscience I need to get a thorough knowledge of God’s Word—all of it!—so that I will understand what pleases Him, what does not please Him, and what are those areas about which He has not spoken and where, therefore, He has left us free.

As we follow our Lord Jesus Christ in this world we may have to lose many things—our friends, our reputations, our jobs, our security, our health, our liberty, and even our life. But a good conscience is not something we need ever lose. Oh, to arrive at the judgment seat with such a conscience as that!

Published by The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth, used with permission.