“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.” 1 TIMOTHY 4:1-2
PONDER THIS
You have probably heard it said, “Let your conscience be your guide.” That is incomplete advice. The reason you can’t let conscience be your guide is your conscience is like a thermostat: it can be set to operate anywhere. It’s like a sundial. You can look at a sundial with a flashlight and make it register any time at all. If your conscience is defiled, then you can’t let your conscience be your guide. Some people think they are doing the right thing because their conscience isn’t being bothered. That doesn’t mean what you’re doing is right; it may mean that your conscience is defiled, that you’ve set it by the wrong standard.
Now not only can you have a defiled conscience, but you can also have what the Bible calls a seared conscience. When this passage talks about someone having his or her conscience seared with a hot iron, it gives the image of taking a branding iron and burning a mark on the flesh of an animal. That animal is seared with a hot iron, and then there’s no feeling there at all. Over time, when we reject God’s direction, our consciences are seared and numbed toward right or wrong. When we decide what to do, our responsibility is two-fold: we need to consider how it makes us feel and what the Word of God says about it. Then we are to act in obedience to Him.
When have you been too deeply influenced by your conscience?
How can you grow in responding to God’s direction?
PRACTICE THIS
Seek God’s guidance about what to do in a situation you are going through and do as He says.
LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers
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