Pure Consciences Before The Lord!

Pure Consciences Before The Lord!

Let us read 2 Timothy 1 verse 3. We read in this verse that the apostle Paul thanked God and remembered Timothy in prayer at all times. Notice that Paul said " Whom I serve with a Pure Conscience (NKJV)" Some translation say a clear conscience. This passage made me think, what is a pure conscience? For Paul had even charged the deacons to hold the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience (1 Timothy 3 verse 9).

A Pure conscience is a heart that is at peace with God, you see, the Holy Spirit of God convicts us of sin (John 16 verse 7 and 8), when we harden our hearts and continue in sin, our heart is then not at peace with God, then our conscience is not pure either. When Paul thanked God and prayed, his conscience was clear with God, this means

that his life was right with our Lord Jesus Christ.

The question we should now ask is, are our hearts right with God? When you stand before God, is your conscience pure? Is your heart at complete peace or does the Spirit of Jesus convict you of your hidden sins? Jesus said that if you bring your gift to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, then first go and reconcile with your brother, then come and offer your gift on the altar (Matthew 5 verse 23 to 24).

This can be applied to this situation about a clear conscience, bringing a gift to the altar, represents us coming before the Lord's throne of grace (to pray to or  to praise Him). Remembering our brother represents our unconfessed or unforgiven sins, we must first deal with our sins before praying to our Lord!

How can we pray to God with an impure conscience? But one may ask, "How do I make my conscience pure?" The answer is simple, by the blood of Jesus Christ! For the Word of God says that the blood of Christ can cleanse our conscience from dead works, so that we can serve the living God (Hebrews 9 verse 14). We need to understand that we cannot come before God with a tainted conscience and expect to be heard by Him. He is a Holy and Pure Lord, who requires us to live as He has lived (1 Peter 1 verse 15 to 16, 1 John 3 verse 3 and 1 John 2 verse 6).

Friends are we honoring God with our lives or are we coming before Him with filthy lives? The modern church says, " Come as you are!" This is partly true, yet not fully, we do come to Christ as we are, but once we receive Him as our Saviour, we certainly don't stay as we were!  Are we removing sin from our lives? 

One of the biggest things that I have noticed in nowadays Christian is dating and love relationships, especially amongst the youth. Paul told Timothy to "Flee youthful lusts (2 Timothy 2 verse 22)", But I notice that people nowadays have no problems spending time with and visiting a person of the opposite sex. You who are in relationships, you who are dating, tell me, are your thoughts always God honoring or do you continually stir up your youthful lusts by dating? How can you date and not feel a single emotion? You call it love, but it is clearly not God honoring! How do you honor God by thinking of a girl or boy?

Paul has told us to possess our own vessel in santification and honor, not in passion of lust like the heathen do (1 Thessalonians 4 to 5)! Tell me, are you treating your boyfriend or girlfriend as a brother or sister in Christ (2 Timothy 5 verse 1 to 2)? Are we considering other men and women as brothers and sisters in Christ or are we passionately lusting after them! We are called to be Holy, a Holy priesthood that offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Christ Jesus (1 Peter 2 verse 5)!

Peter urged the church to arm themselves with the same mind as Christ's, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so that he would not live for himself, but for the Will of God (1 Peter 4 verse 1 to 2)! Are we following God's Will or passionately lusting after others?

We are suppose to wait on God for our marriage partner, He alone will reveal the one He has set for us and us for them. Don't you trust God? If God chooses your spouse to be, would He not also create the love? Of course He will!

We read in Genesis 24 the story of how Abraham's servant was shown by God, who Isaac's bride would be! Isaac and Rebekah had no relationship before marriage and verse 67 of chapter 24 clearly states that Isaac loved Rebekah! This was a love created by God!

Trust God, if you keep your yourself pure and faithfully obey and wait upon Him, not trying to date or court someone, then He will bring you and the one He has chosen together in absolute purity! He will create the love between the two of you, it will require nothing but patience, obedience, purity and faith in God!

The choice is up to you, you can either marry in absolute purity and obedience(which is God's way) or in passion and lust, which is the way of the devil! Realise that God calls us to purity, even if we obey Him in all other areas and not in one, then we still sin, for we are disobeying God's Will. We are called to follow His Will in all things, for we now live for His Will, for we are no longer slaves to sin but to righteousness (Romans 6 verse 18).