Who of us doesn’t have a "guilty mind" when it comes to lying, stealing, adultery, and murder? This was because "the work of the Law" is written upon our heart and mind. The effect of the presence of the knowledge of right and wrong, is that the conscience will accuse us of guilt. Speaking of the ungodly, the Amplified Bible puts it this way:
"They show that the essential requirements of the Law are written in their hearts and are operating there, with which their consciences (sense of right and wrong) also bear witness; and their [moral] decisions (their arguments of reason, their condemning or approving thoughts) will accuse or perhaps defend and excuse [them]" (Romans 2:15).
For many, the feeling of guilt is nothing more than an annoyance to be shaken off like some sort of bug that is sitting on the flesh of your arm. Bug us though it may, the function of the conscience is similar to that of a smoke detector, and guilt is its alarm.
The sound of a smoke detector’s alarm is annoying, but we appreciate it because of its function. Its purpose is to be annoying, because it wants to alarm me to imminent danger.
That's the function of the alarm of the conscience. Each time you hear it, it's saying there is imminent danger, and that danger is the Day of Judgment when the fire of God’s indignation will rage against all wickedness. If you remove the batteries from a smoke detector because you don’t like the annoying alarm, and the consequence is that you lose your life in a fire, people will say that you were a fool.
The tragedy is that often entire families perish because of an irresponsible father. The same case applies to the salvation of God.
Notes: [1}.public.findlaw.com/library/pa-criminal-law.html
Monday, September 6, 2010
Criminal Law
