Seared Conscience

Seared Conscience:

Abandonment to God is our saving grace. Autonomy ruled in Eden’s garden, thus sin not only entered into the world, but became humanity’s prison, identity, and penalty.

Oswald Chambers notes, “No struggling nor praying will enable you to stop doing some things, and the penalty of sin is that gradually you get used to it and do not know it as sin. No power, save the incoming of the Holy Spirit, can alter the inherent consequences of sin.”

Several weeks ago I wrote a blog post titled, The Zephyr. In that post we looked at the idea from Scripture that God’s leading through the Holy Spirit is like that gentle wind - not a violent storm, not an earthquake, nor a volcano.

Unless we choose deliberately to silence everything else - the voice of culture, the voice of philosophy, the voice of “logic,” the voice of entitlement, the voices of hurts, anger, and revenge… then we will never hear The Zephyr wind of God.

Timothy was Paul’s young student/protege’ in ministry. The licentiousness of the Greco-Roman culture was undeniable. False teachings had begun to infiltrate the churches and, out of love, Paul wrote his young friend a letter to help keep him focused on Christ and attuned to that quiet “voice” of the Holy Spirit.

Come the fourth chapter of 1 Timothy, Paul points out the same thing that Oswald Chambers commented on above, “gradually you get used to it and do not know it as sin.” Paul said it this way in 4:1-5:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.

False teachings deaden us to that Zephyr wind of the Holy Spirit. We wrongly transfer our faith from God Almighty, through the redeeming work of Christ at the Cross, to a category titled “other.” Throughout the Old Testament Israel struggled with this time-and-time-again. The Bible labels anything that competes with God for our hearts as “idolatry.”

“The pattern of this world” (Rom 12:2) Paul tells us NOT to conform to is exactly that - anything that competes for the ears of our heart, thus drowning out the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit.

Oswald is correct. There is no amount of struggling or prayer that will bring victory over certain things in our lives - unless the struggle and prayer is sourced in the power and PRESENCE of God.

There is no amount of ritual, fasting, sacrifice, tithing, counseling, or prayer that can grant us victory over entitlement to self. When we choose to believe what the world and Satan whisper, “You deserve it!” or “Have it your way!” then we are deliberately choosing to reject the sovereignty of God. Then, just as Paul warned Timothy, our conscience becomes seared to those false teachings. A seared conscience means there is no more sensitivity to the quiet call of the Holy Spirit and we freely, gradually, willfully give ourselves over to sin.

“If anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are detestable.”

-Proverbs 28:9

“We know that God doesn't listen to sinners, but he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will.”

-John 9:31

As long as we hold onto sin with one hand and religion with the other then we have no fellowship with God.

It is only is in total abandon - when we take hold of our Eternal Anchor (Heb 6:19), Christ our Savior, with both hands all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, that we are made righteous in Him and brought into fellowship with God for ever and ever.

Will you listen for the Zephyr of God or have you given yourself over to a seared conscience?

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley

@KMKelley1968

amostunlikelydisciple.com