Pouring Out Before The Lord

Habakkuk 2:1 (NKJV)

I will stand my watch And set myself on the rampart, And watch to see what He will say to me, And what I will answer when I am corrected.

When we read this in the book of Habakkuk, its context shows that the prophet Habakkuk was complaining before the Lord about the spiritual condition of Judah. In chapter 1, He accused God of not hearing him when he prayed and not doing something about Judah's state of spiritual poverty. Sin was running rampant throughout the nation and injustice from the upper ranks of the social ladder all the way to the bottom.

We can see that God answers him twice in chapters 1 to 2, revealing to him the plans he had for Judah, the judgment that was to fall on them in the form of the Babylonians, and what He was going to do to them.

I was encouraged when I read it as I saw in Habakkuk a man who was bewildered by what he saw before him and just asked God straight from his heart. No masks, no airs to be put on. Just straight honest questions from the heart. And God was MORE than gracious to answer him.

This is where Habakkuk declared in Chapter 2 verse 1 that he would watch to see what God's reply was, and to accept whatever correction was necessary.  

Throughout the Bible, we can see examples of people who found themselves in situations that were beyond their understanding and they cried out to God, open as they are. We have examples ranging from the prophet Elijah who cried out to God "I'm the only prophet left" ( 1 Kings 19:10) to Gideon who asked "where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about" (Judges 6:13). To the religious, this would seem to be irreverent questions to ask of God. But for every question or complaint that these people in the Bible had, God always had an answer for them. And His answer always addressed their circumstances and revealed His plan and purpose for that situation.

The prophet Jeremiah gave what I consider to be a useful principle of prayer in Lamentations:

Lamentations 2:19(a)

Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches; pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.

Too many times when were asked how we are, we weakly answer "Doing fine, praise the Lord" and any other answer that we feel is necessary as we're 'faith people, Word people' when in reality we're hurting inside, bewildered by what we see around us. When we come to God, He's asking us to come just as we are. 

When we pour our our hearts before Him, it's like pouring water out. Just pour out all your hurts and your confusion like water. There are depths of hurts within us that need to be emptied out before Him, so that He can fill us up again with His goodness and His mercies.

Jeremiah also had a word of encouragement in Lamentations:

Lamentations 3:22-24 (NKJV)

Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!"

So whatever it is that you're going through, just go to Him as you are, empty yourself before Him that He can fill you up once again!

Time to Re-Build in 2016

December 2015

Dear Friend,

In December 2014, I blogged about how I saw 2015 being a year of re-positioning and re-direction for some people. The year has come and gone and we stand again at the threshold of 2016. Looking back at the year, I can say that I found myself being re-directed and re-positioned into certain places that I really did not see myself doing; all good things though! And over the course of the year, I've had friends who were re-directed into a place where God wanted them to be and they're producing good fruit after years of barrenness. 

I see 2016 as a year of rebuilding that which we thought was ruined beyond all restoration. This will not only apply to our individual lives but also to the Church. I base my statement from reading Isaiah 61:1-4.

Isaiah 61:1-2 is what we term as a Messianic prophecy referring to the ministry of Jesus. 

Isaiah 61:1-2 (NKJV)

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn.

When He began His ministry, Jesus read Isaiah's prophecy to the Jews in Nazareth (Luke 4:18-19) and He declared to them that "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing" And as we know, He died on the cross for us all, was raised from the dead and is now seated at the right hand of God interceding for us.

If we continue reading from Isaiah 61:3, it speaks of the Messiah and what He would do further:

Isaiah 61:3 (NKJV)

To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD that He may be glorified.

As we read the Bible, we find that not only is it referring to a physical location people, there is also a spiritual aspect that should be applied. When Isaiah prophesied about the ministry of Jesus, he spoke of how He would come to console Israel and to restore them to the place where God wanted them to be. In the New Testament, Zion is a picture of the Church (Hebrews 12:22-24), Blood-Bought by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. In Him, we have our comfort, joy, praise. We are the Righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). In Him we've been restored to our relationship with God as His children.

Note what Isaiah spoke in Isaiah 61:4,

Isaiah 61:4 (NKJV)

And they (being Zion) shall rebuild the old ruins, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the ruined cities, the desolations of many generations.

If we read the Old Testament, we can find that Israel was made desolate time and again because of their unfaithfulness towards God. Almost all of Israel was in ruins because of their idolatry and disobedience towards obeying the will and plan of God for their lives. But Isaiah prophesied that in the period of the Messiah, they would rebuild the old ruins, repair the ruined cities: The results of the sin of many generations before them.

In 2009 I came across the ministry of Rev. J.R and Carmen Goodwin, two old-time Pentecostal preachers who were unapologetic in their preaching of the Word (they passed on in the early '80s to '90s). They moved freely in the Gifts of the Spirit and it was my exposure to their ministry that stirred up a hunger in me to know God the same way they did. It was shortly after that my dad and I found ourselves beginning to move the same way they did. Not only that but the more we sat under their ministry, the more we found our approach towards the Word change. It was not just a book to read but we found it alive, a living book that speaks to us every day.

In recent months I found that the recorded sermons of preachers in previous generations were being uploaded to the Internet; those who knew the Word of God intimately and moved freely with the Spirit of God. Preachers who stood for what the Word said and refused to back down. Preachers who stood in various offices of the Five-Fold ministry who preached a Gospel of repentence, obedience to God and faith in the work at Calvary.

I am reminded of a prophecy I read two years ago that was given to another Pentecostal minister's grand-daughter about her grandfather's recordings:

The ministers of your grandfather's day lit a Pentecostal fire that swept the world in their generation, but that fire has now died down to where only ashes and embers are left. But I am going to use your grandfather's recordings to breathe on these embers with the wind of My Spirit, and that fire will rekindle and sweep the world again in a new Pentecostal revival.

- regarding F.F Bosworth (1877-1958) and his recordings.

I am excited about the year to come, I really am. I see a coming re-building of those old ruins that we left desolate. I see a restoration of the Word, where we can boldly declare as Paul said, "For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." (Acts 20:27 ESV) I see a restoration of the move of the Spirit where we'll see signs and wonders, healings and miracles. I see times of revival, refreshing and repentence that comes from the Presence of God. And where the Spirit is, there is freedom.

As we turn towards God and choose to follow Him in His ways, we will also begin to rebuild those old ruins. Paul wrote that there is no other foundation on which we should build other than Jesus (1 Corinthians 3:11). He is the Cornerstone of the Church and it is on the revelation of who He is in our lives that we will re-build those ruins in our life.

I call you blessed,

Ken

Be Faithful With The Land Of Your Heart

November 2015

Dear Friend,

I was reading Proverbs 28:19 and saw some things concerning the cultivation of our walk with God that I had not seen before:

Prov 28:19 (AMP)

He who cultivates his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless people and pursuits will have poverty enough.

When Proverbs 28:19 was written, we have to remember that agriculture was prominent in Old Testament Israel as it was one of the major ways in which they obtained their food; primarily through the process of Seed-time and Harvest. And in order to ensure that they maximized the produce, the farmers spent time and effort to till the land. This included breaking up the soil and turning it over; mixing the soil up with fertilizer and other soil amendments as necessary to provide for the seed to grow into a good crop.

I had always interpreted it as being faithful with the job that we had, and that through diligent, hard work, we would always have more than enough for our own material needs. And I also saw the result of not being diligent in the same verse.

What I saw when I read it again was that there was also a spiritual application to the verse, and it revealed some things to me about how my daily walk as a Christian should be, and how I missed it in the past, and also how I could improve further in my personal walk with Him.

In the parable of the Sower (Mark 4:3-8), Jesus taught on the seed that was sown in four different kinds of ground:
1. The wayside (verse 4)
2. Stony ground with not much earth (verse 5)
3. Ground with thorns (verse 7)
4. Good ground. (verse 8)

He then went on to explain the parable in verses 13 to 20. However, note what he compared the seed sown and the various types of ground in the parable to:

Mark 4:14-15
14 The sower sows the Word.
15 The ones along the path are those who have the Word sown [in their hearts], but when they hear, Satan comes at once and [by force] takes away the message which is sown in them.

Jesus compared the Word as to seed, and our hearts as to the different kinds of ground for the seed to be sown. Peter also alluded to this metaphor when he wrote about the Christian's born-again experience in his letter:

1 Peter 1:23 (NKJV)
having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever

What I saw in Proverbs 28:19 was this: God did His part in sowing the Seed of His Word in my heart, but I'm ultimately responsible for tilling the soil of my heart, constantly cultivating it so as to prepare my heart to receive the Word. And that as I prepare it, I allow the Word to be able to produce a crop that I need for whatever area of life I find lacking.

What I also saw was that if I didn't take the time and had the diligence to cultivate my own heart; but rather spent my time going to every Christian meeting, conference I'll more than likely end up being all the more spiritually poorer.

I am not saying that it is entirely bad to go for such conferences but I've seen people who go from one Christian convention to the next, one 'prophetic' conference after another, but still remain the same as they were before. They might get some new things in terms of knowledge but remain stuck in the same rut as they were before they went to said event. They get offended easily, lifted up in spiritual pride and unteachable. Those are the kinds of people who remain spiritually impoverished.

But the ones who took time and effort to prepare their own hearts, cultivating it before the Lord and making it good ground to receive the Word; those are the ones who'll consistently produce a good crop, who'll always be steady no matter what season they're in. And no matter where they are, they'll always receive a word in due season; the right word at the right time.

So I strongly encourage you, take time to cultivate the land of your heart. Take time to prepare it. Be faithful with the process. And you'll never lack for anything with Him.

Blessings,

Ken

Trust Him, Don't Be Hasty - It'll Come To Pass!

October 2015

Dear Friend,

Recently I was reading Habakkuk chapter 2 and I saw something in the first few verses that came out alive to me:

Habakkuk 2:2-4 (NKJV)

Then the Lord answered me and said: "Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith. 

NKJV

I was reminded of this one simple truth: that God has a specific plan for each and every single one of us. And because His very nature is that of inherent goodness, His plans for us are therefore good (Jeremiah 29:11).

And His nature is such that He will not lie regarding His plan nor will He change His mind about that very plan (Numbers 23:19). He's seen the end of that plan from that very beginning, and declares that His counsel will stand (Isaiah 46:10).

It dawned on me that when God reveals His plan for my life, my response as His child is to have faith in Him that His plan for my life will come to pass as I keep walking with Him in each and every step.

At times, it will seem frustrating to wait for what you know to be the plan of God for your life to come to pass but be encouraged as the Jewish Believers were in Hebrews chapter 6,

Heb 6:11-12 (NKJV)

11 And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. 

It is through faith and patience that we will see what God promised come to pass in our life. It may take a while, it may be instant, but it will come to pass.

In his letter to the church in Rome, the Apostle Paul makes a distinction between the Gentiles and Israel, describing Israel as not having "attained to the law of righteousness", because they sought to attain to it through works (Romans 9:30-32).

Paul quotes from the prophet Isaiah when he writes,

Rom 9:33 (NKJV)

As it is written: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."  

As true as it is that the one who believes Jesus will not be ashamed for his belief, it is interesting to see that Paul's quotation was slightly different from the original passage in Isaiah:

Isa 28:16 (NKJV)

 Therefore thus says the Lord God: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; Whoever believes will not act hastily. 

Isaiah declared that whoever believes in that foundation stone (speaking of Jesus) would not act hastily. By reading what Isaiah wrote in parallel to Paul's writings in Romans, there is one conclusion I reached:

That if I believe in God, it's believing that what He said will come to pass. And if I believe Him, I won't act hastily (or rashly in the decisions that I make concerning my life); and therefore I won't be ashamed because I didn't make said decision.

Abraham, the father of faith; is a classic example of a person who acted hastily when he heard God tell him that he'll have a son. He acted with presumption and we're seeing the effects of that hasty decision till this day.

Just because God showed you some things concerning your future doesn't mean you have to immediately jump up and do something about it. In fact, He knows the future better than you do, so just trust Him! What you sense Him saying may oftentimes not necessarily be what He's telling you to do.

In his book Plans Purposes and Pursuits, the late Kenneth E. Hagin wrote the following:

Sometimes God will show you what He wants you to do - you will have His plan. But at the same time, you will perceive in your spirit that the time to do it isn't quite right. Learn to wait for the right time to implement God's plan - wait for the quickening of the Holy Spirit. At other times, God will show you things in the Spirit, and although you won't know everything God wants to do, as you fulfill what the Lord told you to do - little by little, you will move into deeper areas of the Spirit. As you are obedient to follow God's plan and His purpose, He will begin to illustrate and demonstrate some things to you and lead you into greater understanding of His plan.

There will also be times when you simply pick up on what the Spirit wants to do through others in the Body of Christ, but that does not mean that God wants you to do it.

... Many people who have some sensitivity to the Holy Spirit sense what God is doing and what He wants to do. They grab that and run off with it and try to build something from that. But because God didn't specifically tell them to do it, their plans are only man's plan, not God's plan or purpose. 

Concerning RHEMA and Healing School, he also writes that other people wrote him letters asking him how to start up the same thing. They had a sense of it and thought that they were supposed to do it also.

....many of these people sensed in the Spirit that God was moving this way, and they thought He wanted them to do it. They didn't take time to wait before God to get His plan for themselves or for their church. When people sense which way God is moving, many times they assume God wants them to do something.

I am not perfect but I know this, I have a God who's perfect and who has a perfect plan for my life. So I'll rather not be presumptuous and think I should immediately start moving the moment I have a direction from Him. I still want to take time to ask Him the way He wants it done, and to do it His way. 

I was also blessed to hear something Brother Hagin said at the dedication of Lakewood Church in 1988 (when John Osteen was still alive - it's amazing what you can find on YouTube!)

Keep crawling when you ought to be walking. And keep walking when you ought to be flying.

- Kenneth E. Hagin

It's far better to be a step behind God and know that you're walking in His plan for your life than to be two steps ahead of Him and face the unknown wondering whether this is the right direction to take.

Take time to wait on Him. Listen to what He tells you to do, then as you hear, take time to walk it out. It's not a matter of being the first to finish the race, it's that you finish it.

Blessings,

Ken

Keep Preparing, Your Faith Will See You Through!

September 2015

Dear Friend,

This isn’t actually a bona fide original letter but I’m thankful that I heard Nancy Dufresne give the following statement as it opened up some things in me:

Faith will reach into the plan of God and make preparation for it.

- Nancy Dufresne

If you have been following this blog for some time, you may have come across a statement I made that the message of faith in God wasn’t just a teaching to be intellectually understood but it was a lifestyle that every one of us should live.

In his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul made the following statement:

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NKJV)

For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Our faith in God goes beyond what we can see with our physical eyes and into the future, believing that what He said and promised concerning us will come to pass. However, we also read in James’ letter to the church,

James 2:17 (AMP)

So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).

Who you and I are today is a result of what we believed and acted on yesterday. And what we believe and act on today will change our destiny tomorrow and hereafter. Our faith in God will give direction to our actions and shape the destiny and quality of life that we walk out in the years to come.

Without going deeply into the Greek meanings behind Hebrews 11:3, I’ll use what a friend of mine wrote concerning it:

Hebrews 11:3 (paraphrased)

by hearing and believing in God’s word, the ages of time have been shaped by men and women who then brought unseen purposes into the seen realm.

- Toni Haskell, It’s About Time

History has been made by people who believed the Word and acted on it, making preparation for it. If we look at the life of Noah, we can see how he had faith in God and made preparation for the manifestation of that faith when he built the ark (read Genesis chapters 5 to 7).

From reading the chapter, we find the following details:

1. Noah was around 500 years of age when God commanded him to build the ark (Genesis 5:32, an assumption)
2. It took him approximately 100 years to build said ark (Genesis 7:6, he was 600 years old when the Flood took place)
3. The Flood happened.

There’s more detail to the story than that but I wanted to point out the following:

Noah acted on the word he received from God, that a flood was coming and he was to build an ark to save not only himself but his wife, three sons and their wives with them, and a whole bunch of animals.

It took him approximately 100 years to build an ark and he continued building it, based on that one word, a flood was coming. That's a pretty long time to wait, isn't it? He could have given up at any point in time in between the start and completion of the ark, thinking that word to be false. He didn’t. He persevered and kept building it until it was fully completed. Once he finished building the ark, he and his group went in, God shut the doors and the flood happened, wiping out almost all of mankind.

Just because you believe you have a word from God doesn’t mean there's no preparation involved in the process. There will always be a period of time between the revelation of the promise and the manifestation of the promise. What we do in between both points will determine how we end up. There are people who started off well but ended up on the spiritual junkheap of life because of lack of preparation, and there are people who ended up well because they took the time to prepare themselves and consecrate themselves to carry out the plans and purposes of God for their lives.

Kenneth E. Hagin said it well, that “preparation time is never wasted time”. So make it a priority to prepare yourself, believing that what God promised you will come to pass in due time.

Blessings

Ken

Go Back To Your First Love

August 2015

Dear Friend,

As I write this letter, I write it with the constant reminder that I want it to be an expression of what I have in my heart, and not merely a letter that comes from my head with the intent to tickle the intellect of man. I will not write this letter saying that I have made it, and that I have made no mistake. On the contrary, I believe that this letter is to be written as a testimony of my shortcoming in this particular area as you will read further.

I have been (and still am) going through what I call a period of burnout where it seems that the issues of life and serving in the church have taken its toll on my walk with God.

It is not to say that I fell behind in terms of ministry. Even as of this writing, the anointing and the flow of the Spirit has increased all the more in my life. I have been in small home meetings where we've experienced a move of the Spirit, specifically through tongues and the interpretation of tongues, and prophecy. There are times when I've been with close friends and I find myself still speaking into their lives and encouraging them to pursue God. However, I find myself missing the joy that I experienced time and again in walking with Him.

It was in the midst of this that I received the following correction:

The longevity of your walk and the fruitfulness of your life and ministry is not dependent on the works that you do or how man would look at you, but on the condition of your heart.

In this, I readily admit that I have been rebuked by God; as in the pursuit of wanting to be who I believed God called me to be; and to be a blessing to those who He placed in my life, I let my own relationship with Him falter to the point where I have been exhausted.

We can see a similar situation in the book of Revelation 2:2-5 where Jesus is speaking to the Church in Ephesus:

Revelation 2:2-5 (NKJV)

I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place; unless you repent.

The Ephesian church was considered to be a church full of zeal and fire. It was birthed in fire and revival when Paul entered Ephesus (Acts 19). It was from this church that all in Asia heard the Gospel (Acts 19:10). Revival broke out in the city of Ephesus (Acts 19:17-20). It was to this church that Paul wrote his letter with the revelation of the Church being both the Body and Bride of Christ, seated with him in the heavenlies. It was to them that the letter was written with what we call the Ephesian Prayers: (Ephesians 1:17-23, 3:14-21)

This is also the same church that was rebuked for having left her "first love" even in the midst of the great works she was doing at that point.

It is so easy to get caught up in the work of the ministry and what we perceive to be the glamour of the Christian walk that we fall into the trap of turning it into a religious experience more than a living, vibrant relationship . Eventually, it becomes a monotonous routine where we find ourselves robbed of the joy of living life with Him. 

It is also easy to think that the works that we do are what defines us more than the revelation of who we are in Him and who He is to us.

When reading 1 Samuel 17, we see the prophet Samuel going to the house of Jesse to choose the replacement for King Saul. He sees the sons of Jesse coming before him and he thinks that they are God's choice for King. Note how the Lord responded:

1 Samuel 16:7 (NKJV)

But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." 

Eventually David, the youngest of Jesse's sons is chosen to be Israel's king, a man who God considered as a man after his own heart (Acts 13:22).

Realize this: that God does not see as man sees. He is far more interested in the condition of the heart than He is in the external appearance or conduct of you and I.

The way in which we maintain the intimacy of our walk with our First Love will determine the quality and direction of the lives we live. I want live out my years full of life and not have a life full of years.

And so, I encourage you: examine the condition of your heart. If it is found wanting, go back to Jesus, your First Love. Maintain a lifestyle of intimacy with the only One who is worthy, and live your life out of that position of intimacy.

Blessings

Ken

Don't Shipwreck Your Faith - Keep A Clean Conscience

July 2015

Dear Friend,

As I write this letter to you, I also take it as a reminder to myself that the contents of this letter has been written for my own benefit as well.

Paul; writing to his spiritual son Timothy: a young pastor of the church in Ephesus, encouraged him to stay firmly rooted in his calling, reminding him of prophecies made about him, and that the way he was to continue walking out that calling was through fighting the good fight according to those prophecies as we can read:

1 Tim 1:18 (NKJV)

This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, 

It is unknown as to what the exact content of those prophecies were, but what we do know is that Timothy was spurred on to continue being a pastor to the Ephesian Church and pursue the call until his martyrdom in approximately AD 97.

In the book of Proverbs, King Solomon described the value of a prophetic word where he stated that without it, the people would perish or cast off their restraints in some translations (Prov 29:18). The word used for 'vision' in this proverb literally meant to prophesy. When there is a genuine word of prophecy given, it would give the one who received it encouragement and boldness to pursue the plan that God placed on his or her life.

Notice however that Paul didn't stop there. He continued writing his instructions to Timothy and gave two things that Timothy was to have that (in my opinion) helped him hold fast to the prophecies and fight the good fight of faith. Continue reading verse 19 

1 Timothy 1:19 (NKJV)

having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck,

Paul wrote to Timothy that he needed faith and a good conscience if he wanted to continue fighting that fight of faith. We know Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Rome that faith comes by continually hearing the Word of God (Rom 10:17). We also know that God has given to each and every one of us a measure of faith (Rom 12:3). We understand faith to be the placing of our absolute trust and confidence in God, that what He promises, He is also able to perform (Rom 4:21).

Therefore it is interesting that Paul wrote of how other people had 'suffered shipwreck' concerning their faith. It is even more interesting when you read it in the Amplified version as to how they managed shipwrecked their faith:

1 Timothy 1:19 (AMP)

Holding fast to faith (that leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence) and having a good (clear) conscience. By rejecting and thrusting from them [their conscience], some individuals have made shipwreck of their faith. 

By reading the above statement, we can see that Paul made one thing clear: the secret to maintaining a strong vibrant faith in God was found in having a good (or clear) conscience.

Merriam Webster defines the word conscience as "the part of the mind that makes you aware of your actions as being either morally right or wrong". 

If we want to look at the Bible definition for the word 'conscience', Strong's Concordance breaks the word into two root words; which when put together can be taken to literally mean 'see the resemblance'. For there to be a resemblance, we have to know what we're comparing our actions against, and there is no greater standard of comparison than the Word of God. 

The writer of the book of Hebrews describes the Word as sharper than a two-edged sword, able to divide between the soul and the spirit and discern the very thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb 4:12). THIS is the standard that we are to use in the examining of our conscience to determine whether it is clear.

Make no mistake about it, if you want to maintain a strong vibrant faith, you must have a clear conscience. And that can only come from being a doer of the Word (James 1:21).

Paul recognized the importance of a clear conscience and he always made a concerted effort to keep it clear. In his defence before the Jews, he stated:

Acts 24:16 (NKJV)

This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.

The Amplified translation brings it out even more:

Acts 24:16 (AMP)

Therefore I always exercise and discipline myself [mortifying my body, deadening my carnal affections, bodily appetites, and worldly desires, endeavoring in all respects] to have a clear (unshaken, blameless) conscience, void of offense toward God and toward men. 

A conscience that is clear, unshaken and blameless is a conscience that will not desire to sin against God or be offensive towards man. That is the kind of conscience that helps maintain a strong faith. A man whose conscience is not clear will live a life of insecurity and fear, never able to fully put his trust in God to deliver him when he needs it. Such a man has truly shipwrecked his faith because of his conscience. 

Paul wrote later in his letter to Timothy, warning him of what was to come in the later years. There is a prophetic significance in this as it also speaks of the times that we live in, the End Times. This was his warning:

1 Timothy 4:1-2 (NKJV)

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. 

He also warned in his second letter to Timothy:

2 Timothy 4:2-3 (NKJV)

For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

People who have had their consciences seared are people who cannot believe what the Word says. They cannot bring themselves to believe God at the time when they need him the most. And they will go about causing others to stumble in their faith walk.

It will be a disaster for you and I to override our conscience because of our own desires that run contrary to what the Living Word says. We'll go through life not fully confident in our faith towards God when we need Him the most.

I strongly urge you, whatever you do, don't go against your conscience. Keep it clear before God. Keep it clear towards men. Pursue the plan of God with fervor. Don't shipwreck your faith. Have a strong faith because you kept your conscience clear. 

Blessings

Ken