THE BUILDING OF A CONSCIENCE.

Beginning with the first meaningful 'no',
The conscience of a child begins to grow.

If our society needs one thing today, it is the building of a conscience in the young.

Therefore, we need to know how to build a conscience in the very young.

Consciences can built in our young by punishing wrong behavior. Consistent punishment of wrong behavior will definitely produce a conscience that inflicts internal pain when the behavior is wrong.

But don't we want to build a conscience that will not only prevent wrong behavior but will also produce correct behavior?

All learning is produced as a result of reward or punishment. To prevent wrong behavior we punish for that wrong behavior so that it will not be repeated. If that behavior is repeated, we punish more strongly. And if the punishment is strong enough to prevent the repeat of that behavior, a conscience is built to help prevent the repeat of the wrong behavior.

Now if we want the repetition of a good behavior, the reward must be great enough to bring about that repetition. When the reward is great enough to bring the repeat of the good behavior, a conscience has been built to encourage the repetition of that good behavior.

The problem that we as parents have is inconsistency.  For a wrong behavior of our children, one time we scold, next time we spank, the next time we ignore it. Then we ignore the wrong behavior three times, scold for it five times and spank for it once.

And too often we do not reward the good behavior.

What kind of conscience can be developed in the above circumstances?

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your CHILDREN and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates,” Deuteronomy 6:6-9.

Do we have in our hearts what is pleasing and what is displeasing to God?

If we reward our children for doing what is pleasing to God and punish them for what is displeasing to God, we will develop within our children a conscience that will be a guide for life. Won't the things that are pleasing to God also be pleasing to us as parents? Won't the things that are displeasing to God also be displeasing to us as parents?

What a basis for a conscience!!!

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“Let your conscience be your guide” has been heard in the past for a guide religiously.

Violence in America is evidence of a great social disease. Violence in America is evidence of the loss of "conscience."

Neither of these situations should be found in the Christian.

"Who (the Gentiles) show the work of the law written in their hearts, their 'conscience' also bearing witness and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them," Romans 2:15.

Paul here shows how the conscience works. The conscience is a witness of the 'law written in the heart.' The conscience is also a witness of the things that we do. The conscience compares the things that we do with the 'law written in the heart.' Then our thoughts will accuse us if our actions and the 'law' disagree. If our actions and the 'law' are in agreement, our thoughts will excuse us.

"Men and brothers, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day," Paul said in Acts 23:1. The 'law written in his heart' said that he should persecute Christians. So Paul persecuted Christians. So Paul's conscience--the witness of the 'law' and actions--was clear.

Notice the word 'should.' It is the word that is evidence of a conscience. 'I should do this or that" is saying that my conscience is telling me to do this or that.

"To the pure all things are pure but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are polluted," Titus 1:15.

'The law written in the heart' of the sinner is a polluted 'law' and the witness (the conscience) of the 'law' and actions is also polluted. So the conscience cannot be a 'good' guide.

"Speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron," I Timothy 4:2. Paul is saying that in 'latter times' some would have a conscience that would not perform its proper function because it would be past feeling. Even their own conscience would not accuse them, even though they would know the right thing to do.

"But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel: After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God and they shall be My people," Jeremiah 31:33.

To have a clear conscience we must write God's law in our minds and on our hearts. Then we must do what God's law says to do. We cannot sit back and expect to receive a clear conscience by accident. A clear conscience is the result of a proper education and proper action.

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