Saul• He was born in Tarsus, a city

of Cilicia• A Roman Citizen and a Jew,

from the tribe of Benjamin• Educated at the feet of

Gamaliel• A leader among the sect of

the Pharisees• Blameless according to the

Law of Moses• Zealous, to the point that he

persecuted the church even to the point of consenting to the death of Christians

Saul’s ConversionI persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished. “As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’ And I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’ Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand the voice of the one who was speaking to me. And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.’ And since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus. (Acts 22:4-11 ESV)

Paul• From the appearance of Jesus

on the road to Damascus, the life of Paul changed tremendously. Instead of persecuting the church, Paul became a leading preacher of the gospel.

• He took three missionary journeys where he preached the gospel, converting many souls, and appointing elders.

• After the 3rd Missionary journey, Paul returned to Jerusalem where he was taken prisoner as God had revealed would happen.

Paul• Standing before the

Jewish council, Paul was able to say the following:

“And looking intently at the council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.””

Acts 23:1, ESV

Our Conscience

Church of Christ at MedinaOctober 12th, 2014

What is the conscience?• The actual word was from Middle English with

roots in French and Latin. It is a compound word.

Conscience“With” “Knowledge”

What is the conscience?• Our conscience is that part of us that guides

us in making decisions about what is right and what is wrong.

Conscience

Reason Emotion

Feelings

What is the conscience?

Conscience(Filter)Desire

for action Yes No

ValuesMoralsEthics

How is the conscience formed?

• It is similar to a person’s talents. There are some “natural” or innate talents.

• These talents can be improved or degraded based upon the type of learning and training that they may do.

Conscience

Innate

MoralsEthics

Learned

The conscience: Innate• Romans 1:18-32– “…who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that

which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.” (1:18-19, NASB)

– “Professing to be wise, they became fools...” (1:22)– “For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie…” (1:25)– “And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any

longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper…” (1:28)

• Although the Gentiles did not have a Law like the Jews, they still had a “natural order” of things that God provided to them through the things created and through the nature God gave them.– Genesis 1:26

The conscience: Learned• We have an innate portion of our conscience, but

the majority of our conscience is developed with time through a learning and training process. Where is it learned?

Conscience

Family / Parents Friends

Culture / Society GOD

When the conscience “fails”?

Conscience(Filter)Desire

for action Yes No

ValuesMoralsEthicsX

Sometimes we can reject the guidance of the conscience and perform activities that we know to be wrong. This should lead to a ‘guilty’ conscience.Examples:(1) Adam and Eve(2) Joseph’s Brothers(3) David(4) Judas

Types of Consciences• Seared

– Seared consciences have been trained improperly; they are burned and without feeling. (1 Timothy 4:2)

– They have never acknowledged God and His Law.• This doesn’t mean that they never do any “good deeds”. However, it is not their

primary concern.

– Some have accepted God, but then turn away. (2 Peter 2:20-22)• Clean (Christ Centered)

– These are the people who are directed by the commandments and example of God.

– Having been obedient, they are washed clean in baptism (Romans 6) and now stand confidently before God because of Christ with a clean conscience. (Hebrews 10:22)

– By following the Spirit, they produce fruit which allows them to continue to live with a clean conscience.

– When they fail, their conscience leads them to repent. (2 Corinthians 7:10)