Acts 24- Keep My Conscience Clear

"I admit that I worship the God of our fathers as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the Prophets, and I have the same hope in God as these men, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man." (Acts 24:14-16)

Here Paul goes again with the 'clear conscience' speech. And, I am tempted again to camp out on this idea: How does a person live with a clear conscience? How can we as sinful people live in the freedom of the gospel? Most of us have rough patches and we feel guilt, shame, and worthlessness. We have a desire to please God but we stumble in so many ways that it is embarrassing. God must be disappointed with me because I am a failure. I sin, I get angry, I lose my temper, I get jealous, I envy, I'm full of pride, full of bitterness, I participate with the wicked, I doubt God sometimes, I feel depressed, I etc... (this list is not meant to be comprehensive, that could take a whole book).

So, is Paul such a saint that he doesn't struggle? Did he attain some level of maturity that is above secret inner sins? I love how John Piper spoke openly about the bizarre 'clear conscience' of Paul during a question and answer time at a conference:

"I don’t know how I could say what Paul said: “I have served to this day with a clear conscience” (2 Tim. 1:3). What planet does this guy live on? Is he in touch? I mean, there are women in the world. Ever had a thought? Good night! I think he must mean something like, “I keep real short accounts.” I mean, a totally clear conscience, Paul? Give me a break. Am I being blasphemous here toward the Word of God?"

The pressing issue here is, how do we 'strive always to keep our conscience clear before God and man?' (vs. 16). Let's examine at least a couple ways. First, we need to strive to live in obedience to God. That means that we submit and obey the clear teachings of scripture. Paul puts it this way; "I believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the Prophets" (vs. 14b). It can be assumed that belief led to action. He believed the Law and what is written in the Prophets, therefore, he lived in line with both. What areas of your life are in dire need of submission to the Scriptures. God is not ambiguous. Many times throughout the Scriptures He clearly reveals His will for His followers. Are there any areas that you are coming up short of the precepts of God? Deficiencies call us to do the hard work. We are to strive! We need to, by the Spirit, make some changes. This starts with prayer and a plan. How are you going to specifically overcome a particular area of struggle? Saying, 'I need to work on this,' is not enough. You need some specific action steps. Second, we need to, in the words of Piper, 'keep short accounts.' How quick are you to run to the cross? When you sin, which will happen today so you can practice, most people have the wrong reaction. Most people want to prove their obedience to God. We want to have a good day or a good week before we even pray again. We strive to clear our own conscience's. Time heals, or so we think. So, enough time spent without blatant sin, earns us some points with God. Then, we can come to Him with a clear conscience. The only problem with this strategy is that it is totally void of the Gospel! "Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort" (Galatians 3:3)? In other words, you are saved by belief in Jesus and you continue in the Christian walk by faith in Jesus. It's not like you have to prove to God that He didn't make a mistake in saving you... He knows your flaws and is eager to progress you in your maturity and to transform you into the likeness of Christ. You NEED Him. So stop trying to flex your life to show how godly you are. Rest in the grace that Christ gives you.

Some may say at this point, "Woah Cory! Sounds like you are giving licence to sin." Nope. The reality is we need a Savior everyday of our lives. And, we need him especially when we do sin. Then, when we feel the weight of His infinite patience and loving-kindness towards us, we are motivated to live the way He desires. We are compelled by grace! We become transformed by grace. Our lives begin to conform to the righteousness that He desires. We still struggle, but we struggle in the strength that He provides.

Then we are able to say, "I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man." I quickly flee to the cross when I stumble and find grace in my time of need (Hebrews 4:16). And, as a result my life is being transformed in such a way that men see my good deeds and give glory to God (Matthew 5:16). Therefore, my conscience is clear.

Wow, what a beautiful truth.