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One of the most misunderstood areas of our psyche, from a Biblical standpoint, is our conscience. This was an area that I was affected in for a number of years, because I heard and believed the lie, and it led me down a very dark path, which served to place an artificial barrier between myself and God and ministered condemnation and death to not only my soul, but my physical body as well.
This extremely destructive lie, was that I had to be constantly aware of and conscious of my sin; to do otherwise would mean that I would have a seared conscience – which I was told meant that I would not be able to “feel bad” about my sin any longer, and God would give me over to destruction. The only remedy for this was to constantly remind myself of sin and constantly be aware of my sin and keep myself from ever forgetting it.
Many people have heard this same lie and believed it like I have, and if that describes you today, then you are going to be very glad that you are reading this today, because this is not only totally backwards from the truth, and quite wrong, but it is also very damaging to our relationship with God, and has kept people bound in chains, sometimes for their entire lives. However the truth will make us free, and that is what I want to share with you today… the truth regarding your conscience.
So let’s begin with the verse that is commonly used to promote the destructive lie, however let’s do what most will not do, and read it in context: 1st Timothy 4:1-5:
“Now the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God has created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.”
So as we look at and examine these verses in context, we can see some interesting things here. The first of which being that the Spirit of God is telling us some things that are going to happen in the latter times. Now we must understand that from the perspective of the writer, the most important event in all of history was the coming of Jesus Christ and His Finished work on the cross (it’s really the most important event, period!). These “latter times” are after that event. We are in the latter times right now, since we are all living after the time of Christ and His work on the cross.
And here The Spirit says that in the latter times some will depart from the faith. Now what faith is this? This is the faith of Jesus Christ, the truth of what He has done, and who you are in Him. This is your reality and identity as sanctified, blameless and completely righteous in His sight. I didn’t just make that up, it is in your Bible found in Colossians 1:22; that is your reality in Christ Jesus today, that is who you are! That is the faith which you are to remain in and stand in, and live from every single today; because it is the very truth of Jesus Christ that makes you free.
Most people don’t really think that they are holy, blameless and completely righteous in the sight of God, and instead they are trying to become that – it’s really the same lie that the enemy has been using from the very beginning in the Garden – eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and you will be like God – when in reality after receiving the sacrifice of Christ for you, He already sees you as holy, blameless and righteous… but many don’t see themselves like that and they are trying to fight a battle that’s already been won to become what they already are, and so they are never at peace in their soul, they never really see the work as finished, even though Jesus made a point to declare from the cross that it was finished, and so these people are still bound and deceived, because they really haven’t received the truth that makes them free; they are believing a lie. That’s what the Spirit means when He says that some will depart from the faith, and instead they will give attention to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.
Now there are a lot of seductive spirits today. Don’t just think of lust here; a “seductive spirit” is any spirit which draws a person away and in this case, a seductive spirit will draw them away from the truth of Christ. Remember that the context here in these verses is the faith; the truth fo Jesus Christ and what He has done for you and who you are in Him. So a seductive spirit will seduce the person away, will draw them away from the truth of Christ and who they really are in Him, into something else, something lower. A seductive spirit may tell you that you are still dirty, still a sinner, still unworthy or unloved, just as the snake did in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were already made in the image and likeness of God, and the serpent told them that they needed special knowledge; that they needed to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil to become like God. It was a seducing spirit, and it succeeded in drawing them away back then, and sadly the same lies and spiritual seductions are still drawing people away from the truth today.
This goes hand-in-hand with doctrines of demons, because once a seducing spirit hooks you in to make you believe that there is still something you need to do in order to become what Jesus has already made you, then a demonic doctrine will be introduced… something that places a burden or a bondage or added steps, or some other kind of barrier between you and God.
As verse 2 says lies will be spoken in hypocrisy, and their conscience will be seared with a hot iron.
This is the main focus of our study today, because this is indeed one of the biggest lies today regarding our identity in Christ and His truth.
As I said at the start of our study today, it is generally thought that a “seared conscience” is one that cannot feel the weight of sin any longer, it has become dull and no longer convicts. However, as we saw last week, for a believer in Christ, the Holy Spirit does not convict believers of sin, but instead convinces and reminds us of righteousness in Christ – because Jesus has already completely purged us of sin by His own sacrifice on the cross! One thing that very few people have been taught, and have yet to understand is that the Gospel of Jesus, indeed Jesus Himself did not come to expose sin but He came to remove sin. The light of Jesus doesn’t remind you of sin or help you to see your sin better, instead it completely removes sin, because that’s exactly why He came! In John 1:29, John sees Jesus coming down the road and shouts out loud, Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world! He didn’t shout Behold the Lamb of God which exposes and reveals your sin more and lays a heavy burden on your soul! You don’t turn on a light for the purpose of seeing darkness better. You turn on a light to remove darkness and see clearly. That’s exactly what Jesus did.
So take another look at verse 2 of our text, and you will see that this conscience seared with a hot iron is connected with the seducing spirits, the doctrines of devils, the lies and hypocrisy of those who have departed from the faith! The ones who have rejected the truth, who have been drawn away from the truth of their identity in Christ. These are the ones who have rejected the truth of who Jesus has paid for them to be… that He has made them holy, blameless and completely righteous as we read in Colossians 1:22. Instead of receiving that truth for themselves, they are going in search of other ways, other methods, rituals and traditions of man. They are looking to demonic doctrines to make them holy, blameless or righteous, when Jesus is the only way; they are being deceived which is why verse 3 lists some of the prohibitions that they typically chain themselves with, while verse 4 tells what the reality is.
These people bind themselves with chains and load themselves with needless burdens, all because they are trying to become what only Jesus can make them. They are trying to earn what only Jesus gives as a gift of Himself. It is deception at its worst, and their conscience suffers for it, all the way to final destruction apart from God.
You see, contrary to the popular belief, a conscience seared with a hot iron is not a conscience that cannot feel sin any longer, but quite the opposite… it is a conscience that is permanently marked with sin! A conscience that has been burned to such a degree that the mark of sin remains. This translates to people who “always have sin on their conscience” – it’s always on their mind, they always feel ashamed and guilty… this is not a good thing! There are even pastors today who have seared consciences, and it comes out in their preaching. They always preach from a perspective of guilt, condemnation and shame!
However my friend, if you have believed the lie (as I once did) that in order to avoid a seared conscience that you had to constantly be mindful of your own sin, failures and shortcomings, let me set you free from that today with the truth of Jesus Christ, because He doesn’t want anyone to live that way! The ironic thing is that because of the lie, many people have been so scared of getting a seared conscience, that they have actually been searing it themselves! And again, that is nothing but demonic deception!
Go back three chapters to 1st Timothy 1:18-19:
“This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on you, that you by them might war a good warfare;
Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck”
The charge, the directive that Paul instructs Timothy in order for him to “wage a good warfare”, is simply this: hold faith, and a good conscience. Take note that this is a good conscience not a seared conscience. This is a clean and light conscience, one rooted in the faith which as I keep repeating is the truth of Jesus Christ, what He has done for you, and who you are in Him. This is a clear conscience because in Christ Jesus today, you are holy, blameless and completely righteous. There is nothing for your conscious to be upset about because Jesus has completely cleansed you! That is not high-minded pride, that is Biblical reality! Can I prove that in scripture? Absolutely! Turn to Hebrews 10:1-2:
“For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.”
The Law could not accomplish this, it could never make anyone perfect. No amount of trying hard, no amount of works could ever truly clean anyone. If it could have, then they would’ve stopped offering the sacrifices because if the worshippers were truly purged of sin, they would have no more conscience of it!
Now look at verse 12:
“But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God”
Jesus offered one single sacrifice… Himself. A sacrifice which accomplished for all time, what the entirety of the Old Covenant Laws, rituals and sacrifices could not do. Verse 14:
“For by one offering he has perfected for ever them that are sanctified.”
He has perfected us! We are sanctified in Him! We are not trying to become perfected or sanctified, He has made us perfected and sanctified! And what is the result? Verse 22:
“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
We can have full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
This is your reality, right now today in Christ. So take a deep breath, relax, and release the burden. Release the guilt. Your sins are not just covered for a short time, they are completely purged and gone! Jesus did it! It is finished! Now release it to Him and Rejoice! Not a false smile of hypocrisy, but in honesty and truth! The truth of Jesus has made you free today! Your conscience is cleansed in Jesus Christ!
Be blessed.
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