Seeking Him: 12 Days to Spiritual RevivalНамуна

Day 8: Clear Conscience

Can you think of a time when the Holy Spirit convicted you of a sin you had committed against someone, and you had no peace in your conscience until you made it right with that person?

Having a clear conscience means there is no obstruction in our fellowship with God or anyone else. It means we are careful to avoid sinning against God or others with our words, actions, or attitudes. It also means that when we do sin, we quickly repent, admit our failure to all offended parties, ask their forgiveness, and make whatever restitution is necessary.

To have a clear conscience toward others means we have taken whatever steps are necessary to deal with every sin we may have committed against every other person. It means we can look everyone we know in the eyes without shame and know that we are right with them insofar as it depends on us.

Any child of God serious about seeking the Lord and experiencing personal revival will be committed to maintaining a clear conscience toward others. This is where the rubber meets the road—this is the context in which genuine repentance, humility, and holiness are demonstrated practically.

Have you ever considered that Jesus takes personally what we do or say to another person? Two New Testament passages make this particularly clear. In Matthew 25, Jesus commends the righteous for ministering to His practical and personal needs and condemns the wicked for failing to do so. Both groups are perplexed as to when or how they might have done this.

Then the righteous will answer him, saying, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?” And the King will answer them, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me. . . .As you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me." (Matthew 25:37–40, 45)

Acts 9 is the familiar account of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Read the opening portion below:

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 9:1–5)

The good and the evil that we do to others, we do to Jesus. This truth alone should provide reason enough for us to always strive to maintain a clear conscience. Would we lie to Jesus? Would we steal from Him? Would we believe unfounded rumors about Him and then spread them as truth? Would we get irritated at Christ? Would we belittle or criticize Him? Would we hold a grudge against Him or give Him the silent treatment? Jesus says, “As you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me” (v. 40).

Revival and reconciliation are inseparable. You cannot be right with God and not be right with your fellow man. When our relationship with God is revived, our relationships with others are impacted. Broken relationships are mended; bitterness, grudges, critical spirits, anger, and conflict are replaced by genuine love, forgiveness, humility, and oneness.

In Ephesians 2, Paul explains that because Christ has reconciled us to God, we can now be reconciled to others.

Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. (Ephesians 2:12–16)

Reconciliation requires that we take whatever steps are necessary to obtain a clear conscience toward those we have offended or wronged in any way.

Consider:

Why is reconciliation with others more important to God than whatever gifts we may offer to Him? (Matthew 5:23–24) How are our relationships with God and others interconnected?