Articles
A Weak Conscience - 1 Cor. 8
A Weak Conscience - 1 Cor. 8
Four times in 1Cor. 8, Paul speaks of brethren who have a weak conscience (vs. 7, 10, 11, and 12).
The conscience is not that which determines right and wrong, but rather that aspect of man that sits in judgment upon one’s actions, declaring one to be guilty or innocent in regard to what one ‘knows’. IF, one has learned and adopted a wrong standard of right and wrong, his conscience may declare that he is ‘innocent’ when he is not. Likewise, his conscience may pronounce him guilty when he has not done that which is wrong by God’s standard of judgment.
The import of such is simply that each of us needs to educate our conscience, and then to live by it! Our conscience needs to be able to do its job based upon correct knowledge. When one has not properly educated his conscience in the things of God, his conscience is thus weak and unable to function properly! In such a condition, the brother may have his conscience declare him guiltless when he in fact is guilty before God.
So many problems arise because people have educated their conscience with wrong standards of right and wrong! Such standards are not dictated by current society, majority of people, popularity of actions, etc. We must educate our conscience with God’s word. We are to let the Word of God dwell in us richly, teaching and admonishing one another (Col. 3:16). We must treasure the Word of God in our hearts so that we will not sin against Him (see Psalm 119:11).
THEN, having educated our conscience, we must allow it to perform its work! When it pronounces us guilty, we need to make the needed correction! To persist to live in violation of our conscience will ‘sear’ the conscience and render it ineffective. The result will be living a life of guilt and shame while feeling no remorse. We become people that can not even blush at our ungodliness.
How is your conscience? Are you feeding it on the Word of God? Are you listening to it?
Hugh DeLong
