August 27

For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, ~ 2 Corinthians 1:12

Job 23:1-27:23
2 Corinthians 1:12-2:11
Psalm 41:1-13
Proverbs 22:5-6

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New Testament: 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:11

Summary: Paul’s Change of Plans, Forgive the Sinner, Conscience

For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. ~ 2 Corinthians 1:12

People naturally try to do whatever seems best for them. That is, whatever gives them the greatest advantage. They consider it wise to behave like that.

In 1 Corinthians 1:18-25, Paul warned the Christians in Corinth not to behave like that. God’s wisdom is different from human wisdom; now they must serve God. Christians should not try to please themselves. Instead, their desire should be to please God.

In 2 Corinthians 1:12, Paul explains how he tried to do that. It affected both his relationship with God, and his relationship with other people. In relation to God, Paul acted in a holy manner. He obeyed God, because as one of God’s people, he belonged to God. In relation to other people, Paul acted in a sincere manner. He tried always to be honest and truthful. He refused to use clever words that would hide his true intentions*. He spoke in a manner that people could understand clearly.

Paul considered it important to do these things in every situation. However, it seemed especially important to him always to act in this manner when he dealt with the Christians in Corinth. He believed that God had given him special responsibility for them, like a father’s responsibility for his children*. Therefore, he must behave towards them as he wanted them to behave*.

Paul examined his own conscience about how he had dealt with the Christians in Corinth. He was sure that he had always acted in a holy and sincere manner towards them. However, they seemed not completely sure about that. Paul did not want to argue about it. Jesus was both his master and theirs. At Jesus’ return, when he acts as judge, all these things will become clear.

From: usefulbible.com

Christianity and your beliefs to what is truly biblical, nothing less and nothing more, informs your conscience at the highest level and guarantees that it’s going to speak to you in the way that it ought to speak. A regular diet of Scripture will strengthen a weak conscience. And a regular diet of moral evil will corrupt the conscience.

The question is, what is the conscience and how does it operate? Well, as I said, it is the warning system that is inside of us. How are we to respond to it? What role does it play in the life of a Christian? Far from being a defect, far from being some kind of disorder that we are to turn off, it is a tremendous gift from God. It is the automatic warning system that tell us, “Pull up, pull up, pull up before you crash and burn.”

God designed the conscience into the very framework of the human soul. The conscience is the ability to sense in your own heart if there is sin there, if there is something wrong there, if there is guilt and shame. That is a great gift from God. Like the gift of pain which – which warns you that you are hurting your body so you don’t kill yourself, the gift of conscience warns you that you are killing your soul. The conscience is the soul reflecting on itself.

From: The Soul’s Warning System