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About Informing and Instructing Conscience
{Sermons on Ephesians 5:15
The Doctrine Explained
Precisians Are the Sort Who Are Upright in the Way
Their Uprightness with Respect to Conscience
They Take Great Care of Conscience
Informing and Instructing Conscience}
Precisians take great care about informing and instructing their consciences. Conscience is to be made the internal guide of their way. As the Word is to be their external guide, so conscience is to be their internal guide. Their care therefore is that it is not a blind guide. Hence it is that they are so studious in searching and studying the Scriptures. They are much occupied with and know their Bibles. They are observed to be frequent in hearing sermons,74 diligently noting and repeating what they hear. They are often putting their doubts before, and opening their difficult cases to, those who are able to resolve them. All of this is to get their consciences enlightened and instructed in the will of God. Though there are many things of which they are ignorant, yet there is nothing of which they are willingly ignorant. Their desires and prayers to the Lord are the same with the psalmist: “Do not hide your commandments from me” (Psalm 119:19 NKJV), and with Elihu’s in Job: “Teach me what I do not see” (Job 34:32 ESV).
About Keeping Conscience Tender
{Sermons on Ephesians 5:15
The Doctrine Explained
Precisians Are the Sort Who Are Upright in the Way
Their Uprightness with Respect to Conscience
They Take Great Care of Conscience
About Keeping Conscience Tender}
They take great care to keep their consciences tender. Tenderness of conscience is sometimes taken for weakness of conscience. A weak conscience is one that is both weak sighted and not able to discern between things that differ; it is very subject to mistakes. It mistakes good for evil, lawful for unlawful, and it is also full of troublesome and unreasonable fears and endless scruples. This is as when raw or rough food in a weak stomach makes it gag and vomit, not only at that which is hurtful, but sometimes at that which is wholesome enough. It often fears where there is no fear. They endeavor to cure this kind of tenderness, not cherish it. True tenderness of conscience is the perfection of it. A truly tender conscience is a sound conscience that is quick to sense; given anything that is validly an offense to it, it will immediately feel and smart and is put to pain. A tender conscience is as the eye; the least dust that is blown into it will make it smart; this is not from soreness, but quickness of sense. The dim-sighted world looks upon all tenderness as weakness and counts all whose consciences cannot accept some thing or another as a company of sickly, weak, brain-sick spirits. They treat all their doubting and dissatisfaction to be [due to] temperament, imagination, peevishness, and causeless fears. But, far from being sickness, this tenderness is the health and soundness of the heart. It was the commendation, not the reproach, of King Josiah that his heart was tender (2 Kings 22:19). These tender circumspect Christians are very cautious about keeping their hearts. Therefore, just as the eye cannot endure the dust that falls into it and is quick to ward off anything that would be irritating to it, Precisians shun anything that would toughen or harden their conscience. Only sin will hurt the conscience; this is why Christians can bear anything better than sin. They are hardy enough to bear affliction if there is no harm to conscience; it is not against their consciences to suffer, but it is to sin. Afflictions may perplex their thoughts and unduly upset and disorder their emotions, but afflictions will never trouble their consciences.
Objection:
Who is more stubborn, peremptory, obstinate, and stiff in their way than these precise Christians? Do you call that tenderness?
Solution:
There are three kinds of stiffness, shown by:
When people refuse to receive correction with respect to anything in which they are faulty or in error.
When people refuse to retract or correct their errors upon conviction that they are at fault.
Let either of these two be charged and proven against them, then call them stubborn, obstinate, or what you wish.
When people refuse to act contrary to their conviction or do that which is unsatisfactory to their conscience. This is the more so when, after their most free and fair debate, most candid inquiring into, and most impartial weighing of all that is or can be said for it, their consciences still tell them that they would sin in doing it.
With respect to the last, though all their friends should come and persuade and entice them, though their adversaries should scoff at them, reproach them, and threaten and persecute them, yet they still refuse to yield. This stiffness is that steadfastness that the Lord requires of them, and it is so far from being inconsistent with true tenderness, that it is their tenderness of conscience.
If an idolater were to come and attempt to persuade such a person to worship an idol or if he should threaten them with the fiery furnace (Daniel 3:4–6) or the lion’s den (Daniel 6:7), and yet they will not yield, is this their stubbornness? Or is it not their tenderness? If an adulterer were to attempt to persuade them to uncleanness, is this their stubbornness? Or is it not their tenderness? Or what if a libertine were to think to scoff them out of their strict and holy course or to tempt them to just some little indulgence to their flesh? They might say, for example, “Why, what hurt is there in a little mirth? What great matter is it to take a little liberty now and then? Why should you think yourselves wiser than other people?” If they refuse to listen, will you call this their stubbornness or their tenderness? Here are obstinate creatures indeed. They will not be idolaters, unclean, libertines, liars, or double-tongued. They will by no means be persuaded to rebel against God and conscience, and thus they are obstinate. Persuade them to that which is good or convince them that they are in error; then try whether they will be obstinate. Tell them, “Friends, you walk disorderly and unlike Christians. You are uncharitable, censorious, contentious, proud, and vain.” Convince them of it, and see whether or not they will listen to you and thank you for your admonition.
Christians, prove yourselves to be conscientious by your tenderness. However the world goes about to blast and reproach you about your consciences and to call your uprightness hypocrisy and your tenderness obstinacy, do not part with your integrity. But resolve with Job: “Till I die, I will not remove my integrity from me” (Job 27:5). There is a double way in which we may be said to remove our integrity:
By departing from it
By denying it
First, we remove our integrity by departing from our integrity, by turning aside to iniquity, by being found false to God and conscience, or by a liberty in sinning. By so doing, we thus exchange this truth and tenderness of heart for hardness and hypocrisy. Take heed you do not depart from your integrity by these evils. Beloved, you live in a world in which conscience is likely to cost you dearly. If you will acknowledge any such thing as conscience or conscientious walking, you are likely to smart for it. See to it that your conscience will be found to be the kind of conscience for which it is worth suffering. Do not suffer for the name of conscience or conscientiousness, but for the real thing. See to it that whatever you suffer for conscience, you suffer nothing from conscience by your wronging, abusing, or violating it. Sufferings for conscience, for an upright conscience, are precious. Sufferings from conscience, from an evil and abused conscience, will be bitter. Let all the world be against you rather than conscience. He whom the world smites for conscience, God will heal; he whom the world judges, God will justify. But if our hearts condemn us, who will plead for us or comfort us? Conduct yourselves so that conscience may be your comforter, not your tormentor. There is no torment like the stings and revenges of an abused conscience. Keep your consciences tender, and they will neither hurt you nor allow you to be hurt by others.75 Keep your integrity, and it will keep you. The psalmist prays, “Let integrity and uprightness preserve me” (Psalm 25:21). Let me not think to unburden myself of trouble by sheltering myself under sin. Let me not go about to make my peace with my troublesome adversaries by casting in my lot with them. Let me never think to be indebted to iniquity for my safety. Let integrity preserve me. Preserve me in my integrity and let it preserve me. Christians, give the world leave to talk and do what they will, but when they have said and done their worst, keep yourself honest, and you will keep yourself safe. Your consciences will be your confidence and your security. He who walks uprightly will walk surely. Do not be reproached out of your refuge. Do not let the world find you obstinate against your duties or yielding to iniquity. Do not be stubborn, but be steadfast. Yield to godly correction, but disdain ungodly reproaches.
Let us be so gentle, flexible, easy to be entreated, so fearful to offend, so ready to please all people in all things—things that are not against conscience or its peace and purity—that we may convince them that in those things in which we stand fast and do not yield, it is because we cannot, not because we choose not. And yet, let us be steadfast against those things that would be a wound and defilement to conscience—so steadfast that we may let them see that it is a vain attempt for them to think to reproach or persecute us out of our integrity. Let us be sincerely tender, not out of any sickness or weakness of conscience, or from groundless scrupulosity, much less from sullenness of temperament, but from a sound mind and pure conscience.
Let us be universally76 tender with regard to every evil, not only of the greatest and most scandalous, but of the smallest sins. Let us be tender not only of open sins such as come into the view of people, but of the most secret sins, the most inward and spiritual wickedness, sins that need fear no reprover but conscience. Let us be tender, not only of committing sin, but of any omissions or neglects; not only of our neglects of duties, but our negligence in duties. Let us also be tender against deadness, formality, cursoriness,77 coldness, hypocrisy, or distractions that result from neglect or negligent performance of our duties. These duties are to God, to people, to our families, to our friends, and to our enemies. Neglected duties include our not pitying them, not praying for them, not wishing them well, not doing them good for their evil, and not endeavoring to win and reach their hearts by our soft, meek, inoffensive, and loving conduct toward them. Oh, brethren, we have much for which to blame ourselves. Evil people may have much or little in life, but they are so unhappy that they do not rightly judge us; they condemn us, not for our faults, but for the good that is found in us. But, we have much for which to blame ourselves. May the Lord help us. We have many weaknesses and many failings. Oh, it would be well with us if our hearts had no more to say against us than people can say. What unevenness and inequality is there in our goings; what intermission of our care and watchfulness? Whatever our aims and desires are, however much general regard we have for the will of God, yet when we come to practice, in how many things do we go awry? It may be that we dare not entirely neglect a duty, a time of prayer, or hearing a sermon, but then our hearts will presently smite us for the neglect that is there. Are we not often remiss and negligent in our duties and take little trouble to do them well and thoroughly? Perhaps we take some care in the matters of our own souls, but what do we do for our families, friends, and acquaintances? It may be we dare not conform to evil people or have fellowship with them in their evil ways, but do we fail to oppose or speak against their sin? It may be we do not render evil for evil or railing for railing, but do we do good for evil, pity them, pray for them, and labor by all lawful means to win their hearts? Perhaps we dare not be unrighteous or unjust in our dealings, but are we unmerciful, contentious, or turbulent? We dare not lie, curse, or use foul language, but are we as watchful as we should be against idle and vain talking or frothy and unsavory conversations? Perhaps we cannot allow any rooted malice to abide in our hearts, but are not there many sudden and furious fits of passion and anger breaking forth, and much bitter and provoking language? Are we not fretful and impatient without ever laying it much to heart? Does conscience check us for and make resistance against every evil? Let us be universally tender and universally careful. Oh, that our consciences were as tender as our lusts. Our pride will not bear anything that reflects on our reputation. Our covetousness will not bear anything that is a hindrance to our gains. Our emotions will hardly bear the least cross or unpleasing word. How touchy are we at every little thing that offends us? Oh, if conscience were in everything as tender as our lusts, what Christians we would be. But whatever it is that we should be, seeing how short we fall, woe to us. How uneven are our goings? How unsteady are our temperaments? Our temperaments are sometimes tender and sometimes hard, sometimes watchful and sometimes heedless, in some things careful and in some things careless. How too often do we give good reason to the wicked to reproach us—and thus also harden them in reproaching us? Let us press on with great earnestness to an evenness and exactness in all of our ways. Thus, however short we fall of attaining it, it may be seen that we are, indeed, following after evenness and exactness. Although we have not reached it yet, we are reaching toward it. Through infirmity we fall into many iniquities; yet we will not allow ourselves a liberty in any. Such a conscience and course as this will plead for itself against all the false accusations of the world.
We must not deny our integrity. This is the second sense in which we may remove our integrity. It is the sense in which Job speaks: “Till I die, I will not remove my integrity from me” (Job 27:5). That is, I will never deny my integrity. If you call me a hypocrite or what else you please, God forbid that I should justify your accusations by denying my character and saying what you say. Brethren, do not, out of any ignoble fear or to make your peace with sinners, say of your tenderness and watchful walking that it was your pride, hypocrisy, temperament, or self-will, but stand upon your own uprightness.78 “Till I die, I will hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go. My heart shall not reproach me while I live” (Job 27:6).
74In Alleine’s time, sermons were not only preached during a Sunday service in a church, but during other days of the week as well. In spite of the printing press, books were still expensive relative to wages. Hence, sermons, teaching sessions, and lectures were more important for a layman’s theological education than today. These midweek events were not necessarily part of any formal worship service.
75A tender conscience will keep one from the pain caused by a guilty conscience and having offended against the beloved and holy Redeemer. With respect to being hurt by others, the context seems to indicate the hurt that the devil and his servants inflict by accusations and throwing our sins in our faces.
76universal: as used in this book, covering every applicable case without exception, comprehensively broad in scope.
77cursory: rapid, superficial, without real care in the heart.
78The believer’s good deeds are the work of God; to ascribe them to oneself or to ignoble or earthly motives is to deny Christ (Ephesians 2:10; Matthew 5:16; Isaiah 42:8).
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