In Walt Disney’s animated film “Pinocchio” we are introduced to Jiminy Cricket who is a cricket given the job of being Pinocchio’s conscience. The message is “you should always let your conscience be your guide”. The conscience is an inner sense of what is right or wrong in one’s conduct or morals but can we “always” trust it? The reality is that each person’s conscience operates differently although there are often similarities. It depends very much on the ethical and moral principles that control our conscience. Hitler operated according to his conscience and used it to justify mass extermination and war!

The compass is an instrument that we use to ensure we are travelling in the right direction. The conscience is a moral compass placed inside each person that seeks to point us in the right moral direction. What can possibly go wrong?

• If it is not set to point to magnetic north then it will take us off course. The equipment may be faulty or broken.
• The magnetic north has always there. The compass was created to follow it. Which direction are we going in? The North Pole is not the same as magnetic north as it depends on the movement of the Earth. You can be a fraction of degree off and miss your destination by a long way! It is possible that you don’t want to go in the right direction!

Hitler was well of course. See Judges 21:25. Their compass was broken like that of Hitler. A true conscience is about having God’s standard in our heart to guide us in how to conduct ourselves. See Romans 2:14-15. Everyone has it written in their conscience including those who have never heard the Gospel. Morality is not imposed upon us from our environment. It is part of our nature from creation. It has been warped by sin since the fall of Adam and Eve but it still gives us some answers to what is right and wrong. Most people agree that murder and stealing are wrong and that it is right to respect and care for your parents. If we listen to our conscience then it allows us to critique ourselves and show moral restraint. See Romans 12:1-2.

The Bible gives wise advice from God and gives us the background to the fall of humanity into sin. In the beginning mankind had a relationship with God and there was only good. The conscience came about when Adam and Eve knew they were naked and could discern good and evil. We need to dedicate our lives to God and allow Him to transform our conscience. Letting your conscience be your only guide only works if your conscience is working as designed! The conscience is not a sufficient guide in itself to living as God intended so if we want to live in a meaningful relationship with God then we need some clearer guidelines. See 2 Timothy 3:16-17. God has not left us to the mercy of our conscience.

Categories: 2 Timothy, Judges, Romans