Keeping Your Conscience Clear Part 1

Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith. Maintaining a clear conscience is not what the devil has in mind for the children of God. He tells lies to get us back into the bondage of having a defiled conscience. Today, how to combat those lies and walk in victory.

Stay with us. From the Moody Church in Chicago, this is Running to Win with Dr. Erwin Lutzer, whose clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line. Pastor Lutzer, we're coming to the end of your series on the power of a clear conscience, and we all want to know how to keep them clear. And Dave, the reason it's so important to keep our consciences clear is because if you have a troubled conscience, and today I'm talking to many people who probably do, I know this about you.

Number one, you've lost your joy. Nobody with a troubled conscience has a joyful spirit. Secondly, I also know that your confidence toward God is compromised. That's what it says in 1 John. If our hearts condemn us not, then we have confidence toward God. And then you can go on from there talking about human relationships. That's why I believe so deeply in the book The Power of a Clear Conscience, where I try to help people navigate all of these issues.

By the way, also including the question of how do we know that we are being convicted by the Holy Spirit or accused by Satan? We're making this resource available to you, and this is the last day that we are doing so. Here's what you do for a gift of any amount. You go to RTWOffer.com.

That's RTWOffer.com, or call us at 1-888-218-9337. Ask for the book The Power of a Clear Conscience. And if you weren't able to write this contact information down, I'll be giving it to you again at the end of this message. It was Ogden Nash who wrote these words, the only way to have happiness on this terrestrial ball is to have a clear conscience or none at all. If you don't have a clear conscience, you can't be very happy, actually. And the Apostle Paul said, and I've quoted this verse almost every time in this series of messages, 1 Timothy 1, verse 5, the aim of our instruction is faith, a pure heart, rather, love. I thought I knew it by memory, and I didn't practice it ahead of time because I've been quoting it all this time.

Sometimes I get my mings fixed up and I begin backing talk words, so let me try this again. The aim of our instruction is love that flows from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. That's what the aim, thank you, of our instruction is. Now what we'd like to do today is to emphasize that the clear conscience not only gives us that kind of faith, but you know, the Apostle Paul says in the book of 2 Corinthians, he says, we commend ourselves to you with a good conscience. Good conscience also in 1 Peter. 1 Peter is associated with the fact that you are a good witness. Peter says that we should be able to give an answer to those who ask us of the hope that is within us with meekness and fear, and he says with a good conscience, so that if you're slandered, you are able to endure it.

Good conscience is powerful. Now when I was a boy growing up in Canada, I went to school first of all in the summer with a horse and buggy, and then in the winter with a slave and with a horse. And so what we would do in this country school yard, we would play a game called fox and goose.

What you did is you had a huge circle in the snow with various spokes, and then we would play tag, and that's what we called fox and goose. One of the things we noticed is this, that when we began that circle, everyone was so particular to stay within the tracks, to stay within the lines, but inevitably it would get messed up. And after it really got messed up, what we would do is we'd walk through, we'd kick dirt into it, we'd make the biggest mess that we possibly could with that circle, and then we'd go off somewhere else and begin again. As I think about that, I realize that there are really two lies that Satan tells us. Lie number one is one sin really doesn't matter.

Lie number two is now that you've messed up, you might as well mess up your life good and proper. A defiled conscience causes you to do that which continues to defile. And that's why it is very important that we keep our conscience clear, because when we keep it clear, we'll want to stay within the lines and we'll be very conscious when we step over those lines. Actually, my passage of scripture today is going to be found in the book of Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 5, a very important, very important passage of scripture. I want you to turn to it, whether you have your Bible, your cell phone, your iPad, whatever, turn to Ephesians chapter 5. And we're going to speak today about the topic of sin because it is sin that defiles our conscience. And we'll talk about how to keep our conscience clear. Ephesians chapter 5 verse 1, therefore be imitators of God as beloved children.

Let's stop there for a moment. He uses the word mimic. Let us mimic God, become imitators of God as dear children. The idea is this, that because we belong to God, God is our Heavenly Father. And because we are partakers of the divine nature, we have the chromosomes, if I can put it that way, of our Heavenly Father.

And so there should be something within us that is like unto him, and we ought to be able to imitate him. Now of course, theologians make a distinction between the attributes of God. There are some attributes that are called non-communicable.

What are those? Those are attributes that belong only to God that can never possibly belong to us. Those are the omnis, omnipresence, and all of those attributes that are really only God's attributes. But there are other attributes that God can communicate to us. And the Apostle Paul here lists two of them, and perhaps three that we can have as we imitate God. The first is this, walk in love. Walk in love, even as Christ has loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and a sacrifice to God. Two characteristics of this love about which we speak today.

First of all, it is a forgiving love. You'll notice, for example, in the last verses of the fourth chapter. You know, when you're reading the Bible and you come across the word therefore, you know that you should pause and ask why it's there.

And therefore really refers to the previous section, doesn't it? And you'll notice it says, let all wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. The first characteristic of being like God in love is to be a forgiving person, because God in Christ forgave us.

You know, the Bible says in the sixth chapter of Luke, Jesus is talking about the Pharisees and then he's speaking to his disciples. And he makes it very clear, he says that we should be like our Heavenly Father. He says, love your enemies, do good to them and bless them.

Why should we do that? Because your Heavenly Father, he blesses those who aren't his. He sends rain on the just and the unjust. So in light of that, if we want to be God-like, we should even love our enemies, because that's the way in which we illustrate the love of God. It is, first of all, a forgiving kind of love. Secondly, it is also a sacrificial love. And that's in chapter 5 verse 1, as we have already read, that Jesus gave himself up and he became a sin offering. He became the offering that God delighted in, whereby our sins could be forgiven.

And so he was very sacrificial in his commitment. He gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. How can we be godly? How can we imitate God?

Number one, what we have to think about is walking in love. But there's more in the text here, and it relates more specifically to a defiled conscience and walking with a pure conscience. What the Apostle Paul now says in verse 8, and I'm going to jump right into the middle of verse 8 and then we're going to work backwards. He says, you are light in the Lord, walk as children of light. That's the second way in which we can be like God. God is light, and therefore the text of scripture encourages us also to walk in light, even as God is in light.

Now, we must understand that what the Apostle Paul is talking about here is moral issues. And what he seems to imply and actually directly implies, and that is that if we are not walking in light, if we are walking in darkness, as we shall see in a moment, that is walking in moral and spiritual darkness, and he addresses that. So with that, let's go back and see the context in which he invites us to walk in light, which is really to walk in holiness. God is holy. We are to be holy. The scripture is very clear that we are to be like God.

Now, let's look at what it says in verse 3. But sexual immorality in all impurity, you notice how all-encompassing this is. Sexual immorality in all impurity or covetousness, why covetousness? Because it is really the heart of everything. Paul says it is really idolatry.

It is wanting something that's not supposed to be yours. In a sense, all sin is covetousness. So Paul puts that in, must not even be named among you as his propertous saints. Let there be no filthiness or foolish talk or crude joking, which are out of place, but instead, let there be thanksgiving. What the Apostle Paul does is he lists things here that are improper for Christians.

And I think that you understand the meaning of the word immorality and impurity and covetousness. I do want to add a word, though, about what he says about foolish talk and crude joking. Clearly, God does not mind if we have a sense of humor. You know, what it's talking about here is impure jokes. It's talking about dirty jokes.

It's talking about low kinds of humor. When I was in Bible school, there was a man there who was very sincere. You could describe him, I think, as over-saved.

Have you ever met somebody who's just really over-saved? When we'd be laughing in a room, he'd knock on the door and say, there's to be no joking. There's to be no jesting.

Obviously, Paul isn't talking about that. A sense of humor is so important as to who we are. I think God has a sense of humor. I really do. Yeah, thank you.

Thank you. I'm glad that I got a little bit of support, not support throughout the whole congregation, but part of the congregation over here. I think God had a sense of humor. Have you ever looked carefully at a rhinoceros?

I mean, you can look them up and you can ask the question, what was God thinking when he created them? Of course, he has a sense of humor. But what he's talking about, what Paul is talking about is sub-humor. It's the kind of humor that you sometimes have in business and where you make fun of sin. That would be one way to identify the kind of crude joking and jesting that he's talking about here. But that being said, now let's continue to read the text because this becomes very, very serious. You'll notice it says, and I'm in verse five, for you may be sure of this.

When Paul begins that way, you know that he's talking about something that is very, very important because we can be sure of everything else that he writes in this chapter, but he doesn't want us to miss this. You can be sure of this. You may not know whether or not the Cubs will ever win another World Series. You can't be sure of that. And there are lots of other things that you can't be sure of, but be sure of this. And now no matter who you are, no matter how you are listening to this message, this is the time for you to be all ears as the saying goes. You may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, who is covetous, that is an idolater, has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

Wow. Two ways to interpret that phrase, no inheritance. Some people believe that it means that you will be denied the opportunity to rule in the kingdom. You will not be able to inherit the kingdom. You may enter it, but not inherit it.

That's the most charitable way that you can interpret this. Others are adamant in insisting this means that you will not even enter the kingdom. In other words, you will be lost forever. You will not be in the kingdom. You will not be in heaven. You will be lost for all of eternity if you think that you can practice these things and make it part of your lifestyle and at the same time you are able to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

This is very serious, my dear friend. If that's part of your lifestyle, if you say this is who I am and you're practicing immorality and impurity and that becomes a part of your life and you never deal with it, you never fight it because you're simply going along with it, the text of scripture says be very careful because know this, there will not be an inheritance for you in the kingdom and you may not even enter the kingdom. Now, if you think that that is very upfront and serious, it is, but let's keep reading here and then he says in verse six, let no one deceive you with empty words for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Don't be deceived by empty words. Yesterday I spoke at a conference here in the area on apologetics which is the defense of the faith and I was reminded of a book that they had there and the book is entitled The Making of an Atheist and the subtitle was How Immorality Leads to Unbelief. This is an excellent little book.

Actually, it's published by Moody Publishers, the name that you can trust so you can trust it. And what the writer has concluded after extensive research, something that I've always believed intuitively that the reason really that young people who go to college often lose their faith is not because of the intellectual arguments. The arguments aren't that strong. The arguments for Christianity are compelling. They do it because they fall into the sin of immorality and then not knowing what to do with their guilt, not knowing what to do with their situation, purity going back to purity seems to be impossible for them. They don't know where to park their guilt. So what they decide to do is to plunge headlong into that lifestyle. Then they build their whole theology around it and they begin to say, well, you know, I don't believe the Bible anymore.

I don't want to go to church anymore. And they begin to justify it and begin to live in a bubble where nothing that can be said to them can dissuade them of the fact that they are living wrongly. And the Bible says, do not be deceived by empty words.

Wow. We live in a culture today that is willingly deceived by all kinds of empty words. Theo Hudson, a British journalist, I don't know much about him, not sure if he's a believer or not, said this, that in order for a sexual revolution to be complete, you need three things. First of all, that which was condemned has to be celebrated. You have to celebrate it. And then that which was at one time celebrated, such as traditional marriage, it must now be condemned. And those who refuse to celebrate the revolution, now they must be condemned. And that's where we are today.

And I never really understood that until I just read a book recently about this and a lot of other topics. And I pointed out that in a purely secular culture, where sexuality becomes, in effect, the controlling reality, the important thing, and where sexual freedom, way out of control, becomes the dominant value of a culture, it is very important that not one form of marriage be above another. Therefore, all of them must be dragged down. Anything noble needs to meet the lowest common denominator because no one's sexuality and their preference should, in any way, be perceived as better than another.

So everyone is together. And those who refuse to celebrate, they now need to be condemned. Longer discussion, no doubt, at some other time, but notice this. Do not be deceived by empty words, Paul says, because of these things, and you can be sure of this, the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

What a day and age in which we live, when our television and our media and our iPads and speeches that are given are filled with empty words. So there are really two ways in which we can be like God. One is we walk in love, the other we walk in light. Now, what the Apostle Paul does is he talks about their conversion, and I want you to look at the text. He says in verse 7, therefore do not associate with them, that is, people like that, for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. It's interesting that in the book of Isaiah, the Bible says the people, they walked in darkness. By the time you get to the time of Christ in Matthew chapter 4, it's quoted as saying the people, they sit in darkness. And here in this passage, you find that the people are darkness.

They are darkness, darkness personified. And so what he says is that the Lord has given you light. Now you are light.

They are darkness. You are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. And we have this elsewhere, of course, in the words of Jesus and other parts of the scripture. And notice, for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true. And try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them, for it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. My friend, this is Pastor Lutzer. And in a world that has lost its way, we need to hear from God and His holy word. You know, I've written a book entitled The Power of a Clear Conscience.

What does a woman do if her husband doesn't know that she's had an abortion? How do issues of the past impact us today and what do we do about them? Those are the kinds of matters that I discuss in this book.

And today is the last day we're making this resource available. We received this from a listener. This book is for you if you feel shame and wounds for how you were treated as a child. It's for you if you feel unworthy in mental anguish or contemplating suicide. This book is for you if you are curious about becoming a Christian.

And even if you have been a Christian for many years, it's for the hurting everywhere. This book, I believe, will be life-changing for many of you who need to read it. And as I've already mentioned, we're making it available today. And this is the last day that we are making this resource available.

For a gift of any amount, here's what you do. Go to RTWOffer.com. That's RTWOffer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337. Now, I'm going to be giving you that contact information once again so that you can get a pen or a pencil. But I need to say that in this book, you will find issues discussed that will affect you and your family and help you make it all the way to the finish line, as we like to say here on Running to Win.

You go to RTWOffer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337. And in advance, let me thank you for helping us as we continue this ministry around the world. You can write to us at Running to Win, 1635 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60614. To maintain a clear conscience, we need to be vigilant lest any works of darkness find their way into our lives. Next time on Running to Win, some final thoughts on our consciences. Thanks for listening. This is Dave McAllister. Running to Win is sponsored by the Moody Church.