Because of this, I always try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people. Acts 24:16 NLT
Clear consciences lead to healthier living.
Our front and back doors are solid glass. Since I’m not one to like fingerprints hanging around on glass—whether on doors or on bathroom windows--I regularly clean both areas. Until our first grandson came along and my wife started keeping him every day, clean doors weren’t an issue. Suddenly, they were.
Our grandson liked the wooden doors open so he could see outside. He also loved to put his grimy little hands all over the doors while he peered at the sites outside. Although I cleaned the doors once a week on the day he was not here, it accomplished little. As soon as he arrived the following Monday, the doors were covered with fingerprints again. I determined fingerprint-free glass doors were an impossibility as long as he was around.
The apostle Paul encountered and endured many a sticky situation during his early missionary journeys, but maintained a clear conscience in spite of the attacks and accusations. He regularly confessed what his life was like before Christ as well as what Christ had done for him afterward. Regular confession of sin keeps my conscience clear and the causeway open between me and God. Guilt—whether false or genuine--melts away when I come clean before God.
Regular reading of God’s Word—along with other helpful Christian material--also helps maintain a clear conscience. Through his Word and other authors, God persistently reminds me of his standards so I can judge myself accordingly.
The apostle Paul encountered and endured many a sticky situation during his early missionary journeys, but maintained a clear conscience in spite of the attacks and accusations. He regularly confessed what his life was like before Christ as well as what Christ had done for him afterward. Regular confession of sin keeps my conscience clear and the causeway open between me and God. Guilt—whether false or genuine--melts away when I come clean before God.
Regular reading of God’s Word—along with other helpful Christian material--also helps maintain a clear conscience. Through his Word and other authors, God persistently reminds me of his standards so I can judge myself accordingly.
Continually monitoring my actions, attitudes, and speech is a necessity. God helps me do that through spiritual disciplines, but having an accountability partner also helps. Often, what I can’t see, God gives others the ability to see clearly.
Understanding God’s forgiveness affects the state of my conscience as well. While God has forgiven all my sins through Christ, I still must acknowledge and own them. Otherwise, my conscience will suffer.
Is your conscience clear before God? It can be.
Prayer: God of love and grace, we thank You for the forgiveness that’s available in Christ and for the further ability to live free from guilt.
(Photo courtesy of morguefile and jade.)
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Understanding God’s forgiveness affects the state of my conscience as well. While God has forgiven all my sins through Christ, I still must acknowledge and own them. Otherwise, my conscience will suffer.
Is your conscience clear before God? It can be.
Prayer: God of love and grace, we thank You for the forgiveness that’s available in Christ and for the further ability to live free from guilt.
(Photo courtesy of morguefile and jade.)
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Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines. Share this devotion with a friend.
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