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Message Notes
Jesus is incredible, and He’s worth following with your whole life.
What is a Conscience?
“An inner feeling or voice viewed as acting as a guide to the rightness and wrongness of one’s behavior.” —Oxford Dictionary
“It’s the warning light that goes off in your soul.” —Kent Hughes
A few truths about conscience:
- Everyone has a conscience.
“Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.” —Romans 2:14-15
- God has placed knowledge of Himself within the heart of every human being.
- Your conscience accuses or excuses what you do.
How did Herod’s conscience die?
“King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, ‘John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.’ But others said, ‘He is Elijah.’ And others said, ‘He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.’ But when Herod heard of it, he said, ‘John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.’” —Mark 6:14-16
- A troubled conscience.
- A guilty conscience.
“For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, ‘It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.’ And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not,” —Mark 6:17-19
- A double-minded conscience.
“For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.” —Mark 6:20
- A trapped conscience.
“Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” —Mark 6:23
“And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, ‘I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.’” —Mark 6:25
- A seared conscience.
“And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother.” —Mark 6:26-28
“When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.” —Mark 6:29
- A dead conscience.
How do we protect our conscience?
Let God’s Word guide your conscience.
Let the Holy Spirit guide your conscience.
- Listen to your conscience.
When in doubt, do without.
- Keep your conscience clean by confessing sin and accepting God’s forgiveness.
“Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.” —Hebrew 9:14
Public Confession
Lord, we recognize that we all have a conscience. And our conscience has been corrupted by sin.
We confess not listening to the conscience you’ve implanted in us.
Lord, we confess the moments where we have tuned out that inborn sense of right and wrong.
Lord, we understand and confess that this has damaged our souls, and we cry out for your forgiveness.
God, bring healing to our consciences.
God, thank you for this warning system that you have built inside of us.
God, thank you for second chances after we’ve messed up and blown it.
God, thank you for regenerating us with a clear/clean conscience today.
And God, thanks for letting us draw near with full assurance of faith that when we confess our sins, you forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness.
John was so respected as a man of God that even his political and religious enemies in Jerusalem refused to mess with him because they feared the potential of angering God.