How is your conscience trained?

403 how is your conscience trainedA child wants a "Cookie", but turns away from the cookie jar again. He remembers what happened the last time he took a cookie without asking. A teenager comes home five minutes before the scheduled time because he doesn't want to be called out for being late. Taxpayers make sure to declare their income in full because they don't want to pay penalties when their tax returns are audited. Fear of punishment discourages many from wrongdoing.

Some are not worried, but consider their actions insignificant or believe that they would not get caught. We've all heard people say their actions do no harm to anyone; why then get upset?

Still others do the right thing, simply because it's the right thing to do. What is the cause of some having a well-developed conscience while others seem not to be very worried about the consequences of what they are doing or not doing? Where does integrity come from?

In Romans 2,14-17 Paul speaks of Jews and Gentiles and their respective relationship to the law. The Jews were guided by the law of Moses, but some non-Jews who did not have the law naturally did what the law required. "In their actions they were a law to themselves".

They behaved according to their conscience. Frank E. Gaebelein, in The Expositor's Bible Commentary, calls conscience a "God-given monitor." This is significant because without a conscience or monitor, we would instinctively act like animals. Instinct is also created by God , but he does not provide us with knowledge of right and wrong.

When I acted improperly as a child, my parents made sure that I understood what I was doing and that I also felt guilty about it. Guilt helped me sharpen my conscience. To this day, when I am doing something wrong or even thinking of a wrong deed or having a wrong thought, I feel remorse and try to listen, then correct the problem.

It seems some parents today don't use guilt as a "teacher." "She's not politically correct. Guilt is not healthy. It damages the child's self-esteem." Granted, the wrong kind of guilt can be damaging. But right correction, the teaching of right and wrong, and healthy pangs of conscience need children to become adults of integrity. Every culture in the world has some kind of right and wrong and imposes penalties for violating the laws of its country. It is sad, even heartbreaking, to see the withering of integrity and conscience for many.

The only one who helps us to achieve integrity is the Holy Spirit. Integrity comes from God. The guidance for a sensitive conscience grows when we listen to the Holy Spirit and let him guide us. Our children need to be taught the difference between right and wrong, and to be taught how to listen to their God-given conscience. We all have to learn to listen. God has given us this built-in monitor to help us live an honest, integrity-free life and get on with each other.

How is your conscience trained? - Ground to a fine point or dulled by lack of use? Let us pray that the Holy Ghost will sharpen our awareness of right and wrong, so that we can lead an integral life.

by Tammy Tkach


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