Day 10

“Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather through the law, we become conscious of sin.” — Romans 3:20

Conscience is a wonderful and powerful thing. It is a siren to the soul. As Paul indicates in the Book of Romans, it is the voice of God within us, and that voice enables us to keep on track. However, we can damage or distort our consciences, even with good things that have to do with God if we allow them to become a substitute for God.

Moses, for example, had come down from the mountain as guilty as the rebellious people waiting for him. Years before, he had killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew slave, and we know his conscience was alive at that moment because the Bible tells us he looked this way and that way, and seeing no man, attacked the Egyptian and killed him. Though he believed he might have been doing God’s work in protecting his people, Moses had failed to look upward to God. This was his agenda, not God’s, and the torment of his conscience before God would have followed him.

We cannot look at the Ten Commandments dispassionately or merely objectively from a distance. For our good, God reveals His character in the laws and as we look at them with honesty and integrity, they strike home to our hearts. None of us is left standing on high moral ground. We stand together, as Moses did, under the judgment of the laws of God.

In the five books of Moses, there are 28 chapters that talk about the moral law; how it exposes, judges and condemns us, but there are also 39 chapters devoted to showing how a guilty person can be forgiven and reconciled to a Holy God. God had Moses build a tabernacle and He set aside the tribe of Levi, ordained as a priesthood to serve as representatives of the people before God. There were different sacrifices and offerings they were instructed to make, each signifying God’s provision for atonement of their sins, and all of which foreshadowed the blood of the Lamb to come. Under the New Covenant, it is through Christ alone we are forgiven, redeemed and reconciled to God.

It has been said that all roads lead to Rome but in Scripture, from beginning to end, all roads lead to Christ. And the starting point is that siren in our souls, our consciences... a gift, exposing our failures and our absolute need to be reconciled to a Holy God.

Prayer: Dear Lord, I know the only way to a trouble- free conscience is by abiding in you. I am grateful for the gift of my conscience, which lets me know I am considering or already have sidetracked from your ways. please keep me on track, lord, and keep that siren in my soul alert at all times. Thank you, lord.

To reflect upon: On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the highest), how would I rate the effectiveness of my conscience in dictating my actions presently with Christ as Lord of my life? How would I have rated myself before and how has the difference, if any, impacted my life?