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Now we come to the sixth experience of life, which is dealing with the conscience. After we consecrate ourselves, we need to deal not only with sins and the world but also with the conscience. Sins and the world are outward matters, but the conscience is something within us. Therefore, dealing with sins and the world is dealing outwardly with our circumference, whereas dealing with our conscience is dealing with the central part of our being. We have said that dealing with sin is like removing dirty spots from our apparel. Dealing with the world is like removing the colorful, printed pattern in the apparel, and dealing with the conscience can be likened to the thorough removal of all the bacteria from the apparel. Then the apparel is totally clean. Therefore, dealing with the conscience is also of great importance in the growth of our Christian life. We need to know and experience this thoroughly.
Let us look first at the origin of the human conscience. When did it first exist, and how did it come into being? Although we find no definite record of this in the Bible, according to the whole truth of the Bible and also according to our experience, the conscience was created in man when God created man. In other words, the organ of the conscience came into being at the same time man was created. However, it was not until after man partook of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that the function of the conscience was made manifest.
According to the biblical record, man before the fall was in a primeval state, like a newborn babe. At that time he was not ashamed of his nakedness. This proves that within man there was no concept of good and evil, right and wrong, which means that there was neither the feeling nor the function of the conscience. After man fell by eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he felt ashamed of his nakedness. This shameful feeling was due to the conscience being activated to function, thus producing a certain consciousness. Therefore, the feeling of the conscience, that is, the function of the conscience, was manifested after the fall.
Although the function of the conscience was not made manifest before the fall, the conscience itself already existed. Since the conscience is an organ within man, it must have been created when man was created. We cannot say that before the fall there was not such an organ as the conscience and that it was not until after the fall that God created a conscience for man. Such a concept is illogical. Logically speaking, the conscience itself must have been created by God in the beginning, and its function must have been activated and revealed after the fall. We may liken this to an infant who is born with the organ of the brain but who later unfolds the brain’s function by education. The more education it receives, the more the function of the brain is revealed. Likewise, the organ of the conscience existed when man was created, but since he had no problem with good and evil, there was no need for his conscience to function. Not until after the fall did the concept of good and evil enter into man, and thereby the function of his conscience was manifested. From that time the conscience began to bear the responsibility of refusing evil and accepting good. This is the origin of the conscience.
The position of the conscience is in the human spirit. The human spirit has three parts: fellowship, intuition, and conscience. Although this is not clearly stated in the Bible, we can ascertain this fact by our experience. In our spirit there is a part called the fellowship, the function of which is to fellowship with God. Another part, the intuition, functions to sense God and know His will directly. Finally, the last part, the conscience, enables us to discern between right and wrong, good and evil.
There were progressive changes in revealing the three functions of the human spirit. Before the fall the function of the conscience was not yet revealed. Therefore, at that time there were only two functions in the human spirit — fellowship and intuition. After the fall, when man hid from the presence of God (Gen. 3:8), his fellowship with God was frustrated and his intuition became dull, but his conscience began to function. His newly activated conscience enabled him to sense and differentiate between right and wrong, good and evil, in every phase of his life. Directly after the fall, although the fellowship and intuition of the spirit became withered and insensitive, the conscience became activated. Unfortunately, when man sank deeper into sin, even the feeling of the conscience was cast aside. At this point man’s conscience became branded as with a hot iron (1 Tim. 4:2) so that even when he indulged in licentiousness and lusts, he hardly had any feeling at all (Eph. 4:19). Thus, the functions of his spirit were completely lost.
When we are saved and regenerated, the Holy Spirit enters into us and enlivens our spirit, giving us a new spirit (Ezek. 36:26). At this time the three functions of our spirit are recovered. We can freely fellowship with God, directly know His will, and keenly differentiate between right and wrong. Therefore, the functions of the spirit today are not the same as they were after the fall, neither are they similar to their condition before the fall. Today all three functions are present at the same time; moreover, all are strong and keen.
We may divide the function of the conscience into three aspects. First, the conscience is the organ that enables us to differentiate between right and wrong, good and evil. Second, the conscience enables us to know both what God justifies and what He condemns (Rom. 2:15), what He delights in and what He hates. Thus, from this viewpoint, the conscience enables us to know the will of God. Third, the conscience represents God in ruling over us. Just as a nation governs its people through the police force, so also God governs us through the conscience. This universe cannot exist unless it is controlled by numerous laws and principles established by God. Whoever defies these laws and principles will be condemned and judged accordingly. God has also established numerous principles and laws in His ruling over man; these principles and laws are being executed to a great extent by the conscience. God set up the conscience within fallen man so that man might govern himself according to these principles and laws. If anyone acts contrary to or is about to act contrary to these principles and laws of God, his conscience immediately condemns him and restrains him from going further astray and falling into corruption. The conscience rules not only to uphold the existence of the individual but also to hold together all the relationships of man in the universe. Therefore, the major function of the conscience is to govern man. Actually, the purpose of the conscience in enabling man to discern right and wrong and to know what God justifies and what He condemns is also to represent God in ruling over man.
Since the conscience is a part of the spirit, it is closely related to the intuition and fellowship. Since the soul surrounds the spirit, the conscience is also closely related to the parts of the soul — the mind and emotion and will. Furthermore, since the conscience is a part of the heart, it is also closely linked with the heart. Thus, positionally speaking, the conscience is closely related to all our inward parts — namely, our spirit, soul, and heart.
Since the conscience, in position, is so closely related to the inward parts, naturally, in functions also, the conscience and the inward parts have their influence on one another.
First, let us discuss how the intuition affects the function of the conscience. When anyone has a lively and keen intuition in his spirit, his conscience is sensitive and delicate. Take, for example, a very dark room. If an adjacent room has a bright, shining light, it will somewhat illuminate the dark room. Likewise, since the intuition is adjacent to the conscience, its function affects to a large extent the function of the conscience.
The same is true of the fellowship. When a person’s fellowship with God is free, without any hindrance, the function of his conscience is also keen and accurate. The deeper his fellowship is with God, the livelier and brighter he is within, and his conscience becomes more keen and accurate.
The three parts of the soul also affect the function of the conscience in a very evident manner. A clear, understanding mind, a rich, balanced emotion, and a strong, pliable will greatly affect the function of the conscience. For example, a man’s knowledge toward things greatly affects the feeling of the conscience. Some people are born with a dull mind. Their thinking is inaccurate; therefore, their conscience is confused and slow. This indicates how the mind affects the conscience. In like manner, the emotion and the will also affect the conscience. Therefore, in order to acquire a conscience that functions normally, our mind, emotion, and will must be guided into their proper course.
The function of the conscience is also under the influence of the heart. If a person has a righteous mind, a kind heart, and a pliable will, his conscience will be bright and keen. Should he hurt another even slightly, he will feel uneasy. On the contrary, if one has a crooked mind, a cruel heart, and a hardened will, his conscience will be dark and dull. Even though he hurts others deeply, he will be insensitive.
These influences are rather fine and delicate. We have to realize and experience them in a very practical way.
Some students of Scripture have divided the Bible into seven dispensations: the dispensations of innocence, conscience, human government, promise, law, grace, and the kingdom. The first three dispensations are categorized according to the principle of government. In the dispensation of innocence we see the principle of God’s rule; in the dispensation of conscience, the principle of self-rule; and in the dispensation of human government, the principle of man’s rule. Of the three kinds of government, the one that is under the rule of self is the one related to the conscience.
Before the fall no sin barrier existed between God and man. This was the so-called dispensation of innocence, when man was ruled directly by God. He lived before God and was responsible to God. Unfortunately, man failed under God’s rule and became sinful within and without, so the holy and righteous God had to leave man.
Consequently, from the time of Adam’s expulsion from the garden of Eden to the time of Noah’s departure from the ark, God established the conscience within man to represent Him in ruling over man. This is the so-called dispensation of conscience. In this period man was ruled by his own conscience and was responsible to his own conscience. Unfortunately, under this self-rule, man again failed. He ignored the rebuke and control of the conscience, the issue of which was murder and fornication, which proceeded unto utter corruption and fullness of wickedness. God judged this dispensation by the flood.
After the flood God told Noah, “Whoever sheds man’s blood, / By man shall his blood be shed” (Gen. 9:6, emphasis added). Because man was neither subject to God’s rule nor obedient to self-rule, God authorized man to represent Him in ruling over man. Therefore, not long afterward, there was the beginning of nations; there came into being among the human races the rule of political authorities, the power of the society, and the control in the family. For example, in a nation there are the president and the officials; in a factory, the supervisors; and in a family, the parents and elder brothers, and so forth. These are the authorities set up by God to represent Him in ruling man. This is why Romans 13:1 says, “Let every person be subject to the authorities over him.” This is the dispensation of human government, in which man is ruled by man and is responsible to man.
From the point of view of government, man’s fall was a fall from God’s rule to self-rule and then from self-rule to man’s rule. The more one is ruled by God, the nobler he becomes, but the more one is ruled by man, the more base he becomes. Today man’s condition is a complete rejection of God’s rule. There may be a few people who are under self-rule, being controlled by their conscience; however, the impact of their conscience is very weak. The majority are living under human rule and never conform unless they are being ruled by someone. Yet many still fail in this dispensation of human government. They not only disobey but also endeavor to escape and even overthrow man’s rule. Today what is set before our eyes is a rebellious and disorderly condition. Thus, man is a total failure whether under the ruling of God, self, or man.
Since man has been degraded from God’s rule to human rule, God, in saving man, must recover him from human rule to divine rule, that man may once more live before God in simplicity and under His direct authority. However, this kind of recovery cannot be realized in a moment. As man became degraded by falling from divine rule to human rule, passing through the stage of self-rule in between, so in God’s plan of recovery he must retrace his steps from human rule to God’s rule, passing through self-rule in between. Since self-rule is the step between human rule and God’s rule, when a man is saved, he must first be delivered from human rule and return to self-rule.
All those who live under human rule are living before man. They dare not do many things because of the fear of man. Whenever they are not under man’s jurisdiction and observation, they do as they please. However, those who are under self-rule are not so. They live by the feelings of their own conscience. Being controlled by their conscience, they do not need to be ruled by others. They are restrained in all their utterances and behavior, not because of their fear of man but because of the ruling of their conscience. They are free to act only when their conscience approves. Outwardly, they appear to be still subject to the rule of man, yet practically, this rule is unnecessary, because their conscience is sufficient to rule and control them.
Sadly, the condition of many Christians today is not so. Their behavior still requires the rule of man. Students must be controlled by their teachers, children by their parents, and business personnel by their supervisors. Often they care only for those who are around them outwardly but care not for the conscience within. This proves to a great degree that they are still living in the fallen condition of being ruled by man. Therefore, only severe dealings with our conscience will deliver us from the fallen condition of human rule to that rule by the conscience. Then in all things we can live and act according to the feelings of our conscience.
However, the final goal of dealing with the conscience is not simply to restore us to self-rule. If we remain only in the feelings of the conscience, we are still in a half-fallen situation and fall short of God’s will. Therefore, dealing with the conscience is not just to cause man to return from human rule to self-rule, from the eye of man unto the conscience, but even more to cause man to pass through self-rule and attain to God’s rule, to pass through the conscience and live in the presence of God. To deal with the conscience so that we are brought back to the conscience is still a negative objective; the positive objective is that we be recovered to God Himself. Therefore, the final goal of dealing with the conscience is to bring us back to God’s rule.
Self-rule and God’s rule differ greatly. Self-rule means that man lives by the feelings of his conscience, being responsible to his conscience; whereas God’s rule means that man lives by the intuition of the spirit, being responsible to the intuition, that is, being responsible to God. We know that God through the Holy Spirit lives in our spirit. Therefore, we can say that the intuition in our spirit is the feeling of God. Hence, when we live by the intuition and are controlled by the intuition, we are living in the presence of God and ruled by Him. The conscience has only the feeling of right and wrong. It condemns all that is wrong and evil and justifies all that is right and good. But the intuition is above right and wrong, good and evil. It is above wrong and also above right; it is above evil and also above good. It condemns all that is wrong and all that is evil, but it does not necessarily approve all that is right and all that is good. It accepts only that which is of God, of the Spirit, and of life.
For example, lying is condemned by the conscience, whereas truthfulness is approved. If we live by the conscience, all is well as long as we do not lie but tell the truth. However, if we live by the intuition, walking according to the feeling of God, then not only can we not tell lies, but also we cannot always tell the truth. We have to ask: Are these words of God or of myself? God does not want us to lie; neither does He want us to speak the truth. What God desires is that we speak His words, words that are of Him, of the Spirit, and of life. Therefore, when a brother ministers, whether he is speaking the truth or not will be attended to by the conscience. But as to what he should minister, what subject he should choose, what God has in mind for him to speak — these are not within the limit of right and wrong, good and evil. The feeling of the conscience is unable to do anything in this respect. Only through the intuition can one touch the mind of God and be led by God to speak His words. These differences between the conscience and the intuition are also the differences between self-rule and God’s rule.
Today there are too few who are living completely under the ruling of God. Many brothers and sisters are living in a condition that is a combination of the three kinds of government. The greater part of their being is under human rule; they still need to be ruled by man. Another part of their being is under self-rule, the rule of the conscience. But only a small part of their being is under God’s rule so that they are controlled by God directly. This is a very abnormal condition. Therefore, there is the need to deal with the conscience more thoroughly so that we can, on the negative side, be delivered from human rule and, on the positive side, enter into God’s rule to be directly under His control.
Throughout the generations all saints who have been seeking life agree that the conscience is the window of our spirit, just as the eye is the window of our body. The window itself has no light; all light is transmitted from another source. So also is the conscience. Although we dare not say that the conscience itself has no feeling at all, we can say that the greater portion of its feelings comes from its neighboring parts. There are a total of seven of these neighboring parts: the mind, the emotion, the will, the intuition, the fellowship, the life of God, and the Spirit of God. All these seven neighboring parts have feelings. When their feelings penetrate into the conscience, they become the feeling of the conscience. This is the origin of the feeling of the conscience.
The feelings of the conscience of the saints are of many aspects. One who has a keen conscience will have the feelings of the conscience in all matters. These feelings of the conscience can be divided into three categories: The first is the feeling toward sin. In the chapter concerning dealing with sin, we have said that the basis of dealing with sin is the inner consciousness. This inner consciousness is the feeling of the conscience. If we sin before God or before man, the conscience will immediately have the feeling of condemnation. This is the first category of the feelings of the conscience.
The second category is the feeling toward the world. In the chapter concerning dealing with the world, we have said that the basis for dealing with the world is also the inner consciousness. This inner consciousness is still the feeling of the conscience. If we love other matters or are occupied with anything outside of God, the conscience will also give us a feeling of condemnation. This is the second category of the feelings of the conscience.
Beside these two categories of the feelings of the conscience, there is a third category: these are the uneasy feelings concerning anything apart from sin and the world. There are certain matters that are neither sinful nor of the world, yet they cause our conscience to lose the feeling of peace. If we do not deal with these matters, we simply cannot get through. For example, looseness and inaccuracy in our daily living are not sin nor of the world, yet our conscience is disturbed by them. If someone scatters clothing and other articles around, leaving the room in a state of disorder, his conscience will rebuke him. If our character has certain shortcomings or peculiarities, if our behavior toward others is unbecoming as a Christian, or if before God we have certain undesirable or unsuitable attitudes, though they are neither sinful nor worldly, our conscience is bothered. All these uneasy feelings belong to the third category of the feelings of the conscience.
Among the three categories of the feelings of the conscience, the first two concerning sin and the world are superficial, whereas the third is deeper. In the early stage of dealing with the conscience, our inner feelings are more or less sensitive toward sin and the world. When we have dealt with all these feelings, the third category of feeling will be made manifest. The more severely and thoroughly we deal with our conscience, the more this third category of feeling is increased. Our emphasis in dealing with the conscience is upon the issue of our coming to deal with this third category of feeling.
Since the conscience of a Christian includes these three categories of feelings, his conscience is richer and keener than that of an unbeliever. An unbeliever has no feeling concerning the world and none of the uneasiness of the third category. He only has a feeling concerning sin, a feeling of right and wrong, good and evil; and even this feeling is quite dull. The feeling in the unbeliever’s conscience is about one-third of that in the Christian’s conscience. The feeling in the Christian’s conscience is so rich because the heart of the Christian is a new heart, a heart which has been softened and renewed by God; his spirit is a new spirit, a spirit which has been revived and renewed by God; his mind, emotion, and will have also been considerably renewed; and he has as well the life of God and the Spirit of God. These are all rich in feeling and can influence the conscience of the Christian. For this reason the feelings of a Christian’s conscience are indeed rich!
The three categories of the feelings of the conscience are the result of our offenses — we have either offended God or sinned against man in our intention, motive, word, or action. Therefore, these feelings can be considered as feelings of offense. The keener one’s conscience is and the more one lives in the presence of God, the easier it will be for him to have a feeling of offense. Whenever he offends either God or man, there is immediately a feeling of offense in the conscience. Hence, by the intensity of this feeling of offense, we can tell the degree of keenness of one’s conscience and the extent to which he has been enlightened by God.
However, as far as the feeling of offense itself is concerned, it is a serious damage to our spiritual condition. When one’s conscience has this feeling of offense, his fellowship with God is hindered, and thus, his entire spiritual condition is lowered. Therefore, whenever a Christian has the feeling of offense in his conscience, he must immediately go before the Lord to confess his sin according to this feeling and claim the cleansing of His precious blood. Sometimes there is also the need to go before man and deal with the matter. Then the feeling of offense will vanish, and the conscience will be void of offense. Therefore, dealing with the conscience, on the one hand, is to cause our conscience to become keen and rich in feeling and, on the other hand, to cause our conscience to be secure, at peace, and void of offense. Hence, the result of dealing with our conscience, on the one hand, is to bring us into the light of God so that we will become more enlightened and, on the other hand, under such an enlightenment, to cause us to get rid of all the things that are outside of God, not agreeable with God, and not acceptable to God so that we may experience a deeper cleansing.
Now we come to the condemnation of the conscience. Condemnation issues from the feeling of offense in the conscience. When our conscience senses that we have done wrong, it condemns. Therefore, these two are really one; they are difficult to distinguish. Some define the condemnation of the conscience as the accusation of the conscience. These are also two aspects of one thing. For example, the judge in a law court condemns, whereas the prosecutor accuses. Likewise, when our conscience feels that we have wronged, it will, on one hand, represent man to accuse us and, on the other hand, represent God to condemn us. The feeling of offense in the conscience causes our spirit to become depressed and powerless in spiritual things because the feeling of offense brings with it the accusation and condemnation of the conscience. Therefore, if we would be delivered from the accusation and condemnation of the conscience, there is no other way but to deal carefully with the feeling of offense. When the feeling of offense in our conscience disappears, the accusation and condemnation of the conscience will naturally vanish.
The sensitiveness of the conscience issues from a serious and thorough dealing. If there is no dealing with the conscience, the feeling of the conscience will certainly be slow and dull. When the conscience goes through severe dealings, its feeling becomes keen, even to the point of being sensitive. Hence, the sensitiveness of the conscience is a good phenomenon. It proves that the conscience has already been dealt with quite thoroughly. If our conscience has not been dealt with to the point of its becoming sensitive, then that dealing is not thorough enough.
Some deal so thoroughly with their conscience that they feel convicted should their speech or actions be just slightly off color. They are sensitive not only after they have wronged but even when they are about to do any wrong. Furthermore, the degree of keenness of the conscience in such persons can develop to such an extent of sensitivity that they feel wrong about their every action and word. If they do not act or speak, they also feel wrong. At this point their whole being appears completely confused. However, when a man passes through such a stage of keenness and emerges from it unto sensitivity of the conscience, he has learned the lessons of dealing with the conscience quite well; the feeling in his conscience will then be constantly keen and normal. Therefore, the sensitiveness of the conscience is a necessary phenomenon.
However, when a man’s conscience is dealt with until it becomes sensitive, it may develop into an oversensitive state and thereby become a weak conscience. This weakness due to oversensitivity is the result of overdealing with the conscience. A Christian who is newly saved or who is not seeking will not acquire weakness of the conscience. Only those who are seriously seeking the Lord and dealing severely with their conscience, but who are still immature and tender in life, will have this weakness. Such persons, when gained by the Lord, deal thoroughly with their conscience, purging away all its darkness and wrongdoings. Their conscience is like glass, clear and bright. At this time their conscience has been sufficiently dealt with; there is no need to have any further dealings. But because they are young and inexperienced in spiritual things, they frequently deal too much, thus producing an oversensitive conscience, which causes weakness of the conscience. Like the skin of our body, some parts are calloused and dull in feeling, whereas other parts are tender and keen in feeling. New skin formed over a wound is tender and extremely sensitive, hurting at the slightest touch. We may say that this is the weak condition of the skin. Likewise, if the conscience is dealt with so much that it becomes oversensitive, it produces a feeling of offense in everything. In many matters such a one condemns himself even before God has condemned him; he loses his peace even before God has disallowed anything. This kind of condemnation and uneasiness may continue to exist even after he has dealt with the matter, causing much needless suffering and affliction. This condition of a weak conscience is the result of oversensitiveness of the conscience.
Several conditions of a weak conscience can be both described and illustrated. One condition is that after we have dealt with the conscience according to its feeling of offense, the conscience still feels condemned and accused. For example, if you have sinned against a brother, when you fellowship with God, you become enlightened and conscious of it; hence, you confess before God and to the brother. When you have done this, if your conscience is strong and normal, you should have peace and let the matter go. However, if the matter still remains in you and you continue to feel uneasy and condemned, it is a sign of a weak conscience.
Another condition is related to certain sins that need not be dealt with, yet your conscience requires you to deal with them also. For example, if you are inwardly disgusted with a brother and you feel that this is wrong, all you need to do is confess it before the Lord and let it go. This is just a personal matter in the heart before the Lord; it was not manifested in words and attitudes so as to involve the opposite party. However, after you have confessed this matter before God, if you still feel that you have to confess to the brother and seek his forgiveness, then this is too much. If after you have confessed to your brother, your inner being is still not at ease and feels the need to confess to him once again, because you feel that in some matter you have said too much and in another too little; yet you are afraid that by your going to him again he may be disgusted; therefore, you feel so perplexed within that you have lost all peace; this is an even weaker condition of the conscience.
Another condition is that of the conscience having the feeling of offense, and the person not finding the sure way to deal with it or always feeling that the dealing is not thorough enough. For example, a brother may have stolen a thousand dollars ten years ago. Now that he is saved, he tries to deal with this situation, but when he does so, he finds it difficult to decide what amount to pay back. According to the principle of the Old Testament (Lev. 6:5), he should add one-fifth to the original amount, yet he feels this is insufficient. Since no principle is given in the New Testament, he reasons that he should return the amount with interest. The question arises, however, concerning the amount of interest. Should he pay bank interest or loan-institution interest? Should it be yearly, monthly, or weekly interest? No matter how long he figures, his heart is still not at ease. This indicates another weak condition of the conscience.
A sensitive conscience is proper and normal, but a weak conscience, being oversensitive, is abnormal. First, this causes one to undergo much needless suffering and torture. Second, this causes one to have continual unrest, which results in ground being given for Satan to accuse and attack. Therefore, a weak conscience is not a good sign. Yet a weak conscience is a necessary product of our initial dealing with the conscience. A sensitive conscience, which comes from a thorough dealing with the conscience, usually becomes a weak conscience. If we have not dealt with the conscience until it becomes sensitive, the dealing is not thorough enough, and we have not yet learned the lesson. However, when the conscience has been dealt with so that it becomes sensitive, then certainly it will become oversensitive and weak. Therefore, when we follow the Lord and deal severely with our conscience, we must try by all means to avoid this weak condition. When our conscience becomes sensitive, we must exercise our will to hold it in place lest it go too far and thus become weak and restless. In this way we will not suffer loss.
We have already said that a weak conscience gives Satan ground to accuse and attack. What is the accusation of Satan? The accusation of Satan and the accusation or condemnation of the conscience are different. The accusation or condemnation of the conscience is always based upon definite fact — either sin, the world, or other matters. It arises from the fact that we have wronged either God or man. But the accusation of Satan is not so. It has no fact as its basis but is just a stirring without cause to deceive us, causing our conscience to have the feeling of failure and loss of peace. Sometimes Satan uses the facts of the past to accuse us. He reminds us again of certain things that have already been dealt with in the past, thus causing us to lose our peace. Therefore, all the accusations of Satan are false. He accuses us by taking advantage of a weak conscience in order that we may fall into needless sufferings, and that our spiritual condition may lose its balance, and that we may not peacefully pursue the growth of life, and thus we suffer great loss.
When a person is under the accusation of Satan, not recognizing the scheme of Satan but accepting again and again the needless accusation, thinking it to be the voice of the conscience, his conscience will be made weaker, and the accusation of Satan will become more severe. Consequently, this accusation of Satan becomes his attack. Once man falls under this attack in the conscience, his spirit, soul, and body will be greatly afflicted. In more severe cases he may lose his reason, become insane, and even die.
We have previously considered the brother who did not use his handkerchief when he perspired while preaching. This is because he dealt too severely with his conscience, thus causing a weak conscience and opening the way for Satan’s accusation and attack. He was attacked to such an extent that he would not sleep on his bed but on the floor; otherwise, he would have no peace within. Thus, his body suffered great damage, and he died prematurely.
Another elderly sister, when dealing with the world, also suffered the attack of Satan. Even when she ate the coarsest of food, Satan told her that she was too concerned for her flesh. Neither would she sleep on her bed but on the floor; otherwise, she had no peace. Shortly thereafter, she died. These are a few serious illustrations exposing the dreadfulness of Satan’s attack.
The blood of the Lord is our only weapon to overcome Satan’s accusation and attack. Revelation 12:10-11 tells us that Satan accuses us day and night before God but that we can overcome him by the blood of the Lamb. First John 1:7 and 9 tell us that if we confess our sins, God will forgive us our sins, and the blood of the Lord will cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we have dealt accordingly with all the feeling of offense in our conscience before the Lord, we must hide under the blood through faith. Only then can we avoid all the accusations and attacks of Satan.
Leakage of the conscience is also a kind of feeling of offense in the conscience. This condition is also extremely damaging to the spiritual state of a Christian.
In a normal situation the feeling of the conscience is based on the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, which in turn is based on the measure of our life. The extent to which we have grown in life will be the extent of the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. The degree of the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment will be the degree of the feeling of our conscience. Thus, the feeling of our conscience can be adequately dealt with according to the measure of our life. Whatever the Holy Spirit demands of us through our conscience can also be adequately met by the supply of the power of our life. If we are willing to obey, we will have the strength to deal with the demand. Thus, this kind of feeling of the conscience will not cause a leakage in the conscience.
However, sometimes the condition becomes abnormal: the conscience produces a kind of feeling that cannot be adequately met by the degree of life. This kind of feeling does not come from the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. The enlightenment of the Holy Spirit is always based upon the growth of life. Since this kind of feeling cannot be adequately met by the growth of life, it must have come from premature knowledge. This situation is like a ten-year-old child who knows the things of a twenty-year-old man and accepts all the requirements for a twenty-year-old man, but since his life is not adequate, he has no strength to meet the requirements. This is equally true of one who has premature feelings in his conscience. On one hand, he feels that he should not do a certain thing because, if he does, his conscience will feel condemned and uneasy. On the other hand, he is not strong enough to overcome, so he goes ahead and does it. This causes a breach or violation of his conscience that cannot be reconciled. We call this condition the leakage of the conscience.
For example, a brother who has recently been saved has a bad habit. Since the light in him is not strong, his conscience does not condemn him. He is able to pray, attend the meetings, and have fellowship with the Lord — all with peace and joy. Later, a brother tells him that this bad habit is not pleasing to the Lord and that he must get rid of it immediately. He replies, “When I pray, I am not aware that the Lord is displeased.” To prove his point, the brother then explains to him all the biblical truths concerning the matter. Finally, the new convert is convinced and compels himself to obey these truths so that he may get rid of the bad habit. This results in failure because his growth of life is not adequate, and there is not a sufficient supply of the power of life. Therefore, he continues to live in this bad habit. At this point his conscience condemns him severely, and a feeling of offense overwhelms him constantly. Originally, he could pray, consecrate himself, and attend the meetings, but now he says to himself, “Can someone like me pray, consecrate myself, and attend the meetings?” Thus, his conscience has a great leakage. The leakage is so serious that he can no longer pray, testify, and attend the meetings. Finally, his whole Christian life suffers bankruptcy.
Therefore, the leakage of the conscience is a very serious and dangerous matter. First Timothy 1:19 tells us that a leakage in our conscience is like a leaking boat doomed to sink in the water. The conscience of a Christian will suffer shipwreck once it has a leak. While faith and love are essential to the Christian himself, they are equally essential in our relationship toward God and in some degree toward others. The life that a Christian lives before God should be a life of faith and love. But once a conscience leaks, both faith and love escape, and the spiritual life of a Christian suffers bankruptcy. As a cracked light bulb has no light, so a leaking conscience causes the Christian’s spirit to be deflated and all spiritual things to wither within him.
Since the leakage of the conscience is such a serious matter, we must strive to avoid it in the pathway of pursuing the growth of life. The way to avoid it is to not accept any feeling that comes from premature knowledge and to not respond to any demand that exceeds the supply of the life within. This applies both to ourselves and to others. We should not impart to others advanced knowledge that causes premature feelings, nor should we point out the problems in others without considering whether or not they have the strength to deal with them. Otherwise, their conscience will be damaged, causing a leakage. We should only help others positively in the aspect of life so that they may grow in life. As time goes by, the feelings of their conscience will spontaneously increase, and their dealings will also increase accordingly.
If we already have a feeling derived from premature knowledge, we need the Lord’s blood to cover us. We may say to the Lord, “Lord, I know that I need to deal with this matter, but I am unable to cope with it; it is no match for my strength. Cover me with Your blood, and do not let Satan attack me.” If we rely upon the blood in this way, although we are weak, we can still have fellowship with the Lord, and our spiritual life will not suffer loss.
While we are hiding under the blood, we should have another attitude: we must look to the Lord for the supply of His grace. When the supply of His grace comes upon us and affords us the necessary strength, we must then deal immediately with the things that need to be dealt with. This supply of God’s grace is related to the inner life supply and the outward environmental arrangement. For example, in dealing with our financial debts, we have to look to the Lord on one hand to work in us, causing us to have an adequate inward feeling. On the other hand, we must also look to the Lord to provide in the environment the adequate amount of money so that we can deal with the matter according to the inner feeling. This outward supply is also a kind of divine provision in order to enable us to deal with the matter concerned.
The feeling of our conscience is closely related to life. First, we will study this relationship at the time before and after we were saved. Before we were saved, death and darkness were in us, and our conscience had very little light and feeling. After we were saved, God’s Spirit brought God’s life to dwell in us, and our spirit was quickened. At the same time, our inward parts were all renewed, the function of the conscience was restored, and the feeling of the conscience was revived. Therefore, the feeling in the Christian’s conscience originates from the birth of his spiritual life.
This is the true condition when we are saved. After we are saved, the feeling of the conscience increases as the life grows. To the extent our life grows, to the same extent the feeling of our conscience increases. The more we advance in the growth of life, the richer and keener will be the feeling of our conscience. Therefore, if we desire a keener and richer feeling, we need to pursue further after life. If our life is abundant, the feeling of our conscience will be strengthened. Moreover, if we deal with all matters according to the feeling of the conscience, then the growth of life will increase. The growth of life affects the feeling of the conscience, and the feeling of the conscience aids the growth of life. These two are in a mutual cause-and-effect relationship that brings us onward in the path of life.
The feeling of the conscience is also connected with the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. This feeling, derived from the birth of life and increased according to the growth of life, passes through the Holy Spirit and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. We can never separate life and the Holy Spirit, because the life of God is in the Spirit of God; therefore, we cannot sever the growth of life from the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. The more the Holy Spirit shines in us, the greater is our growth in life, and the greater growth of life we have, the stronger is the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. These two also act as a mutual cause and effect on one another and always exist in the same proportion.
Since the feeling of the conscience is based on the measure of life, and the measure of life is inseparable from the illumination of the Holy Spirit, the feeling of the conscience is naturally affected by the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. When the life within us increases in growth, the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit will become greater, and the feeling of the conscience will become stronger. It is like a teacher who bases his instruction upon the grade level of the pupil. Normally, the grade level of a pupil conforms to his age, which in turn affects the teacher’s lesson. The Holy Spirit within us is our best teacher. The measure of life we possess is our spiritual age. Whatever feeling we sense in our conscience is the lesson that the Holy Spirit enlightens within us. The feeling of the conscience differs in each one because we all have a different measure of life. Thus, the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit in each one of us differs accordingly.
Conversely, the feeling of the conscience can also strengthen the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. If we deal with matters according to the feeling of our conscience, the Holy Spirit will naturally gain more ground and give us more enlightening; therefore, the enlightening of the Holy Spirit and the feeling of conscience mutually affect each other both as a cause as well as an effect.
Another strong basis for the feeling of the conscience is spiritual knowledge. Spiritual knowledge does not mean mental understanding and comprehension of Bible truths or spiritual things but denotes the understanding and realization of God and all the things of God through divine revelation and enlightenment. This kind of knowledge is both in life and in the Holy Spirit. If a certain kind of knowledge is not derived from life and the Holy Spirit, it is not spiritual knowledge. Real spiritual knowledge must come from life and the Holy Spirit.
Since it is derived from life, our spiritual knowledge is determined by the degree of life that we possess. If a certain kind of knowledge precedes our growth in life, it is premature and intellectual; it is not real spiritual knowledge. Hence, it cannot afford us the supply of life and is of no profit to us. If, however, our growth of life increases to a certain extent, a certain kind of knowledge will be produced. This is the proper and normal spiritual knowledge. It can supply us with life and is beneficial to us.
Spiritual knowledge is in proportion to the growth in life because real spiritual knowledge is derived from the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, and this enlightenment is in proportion to the growth of life. If there is no enlightenment when we listen to messages, read the Bible, study books, and hear the testimonies of others, we merely accumulate much knowledge. This is not real spiritual knowledge. From this we can see the absolute relatedness of real spiritual knowledge, growth of life, and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit.
What then is the real spiritual knowledge that results from the enlightening of the Holy Spirit? First, it is a feeling in our spirit, the deepest part of our being, whereby we sense by inner revelation what needs to be dealt with. Second, this feeling brings with it the manifestation of God, causing us to feel that it is God who has spoken to us in His presence.
For example, a sister testifies that during prayer she was enlightened by the Lord not to wear many of her fashionable dresses. Another sister, upon hearing her testimony, says in her heart, “If she cannot wear her style of dress, how can I wear my dress, which is more fashionable?” The fact is that the concept of this second sister concerning modern dress is merely the result of mental knowledge mixed with emotion. This is not spiritual knowledge resulting from the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. But she could also possibly have another condition; that is, she not only comprehends the matter with her mind but is touched within by the testimony. She senses the finger of the Lord pointing to her stylish dress and giving her a feeling that she can never wear that dress again. This is the light of the Holy Spirit shining upon her. In the former situation she can merely nod her head and agree, but she cannot kneel down and pray. In the latter situation, even before she arrives home, she prays, “Lord, forgive me, and deliver me from this stylish dress.” In this case, God through this testimony not only moves her but speaks and manifests Himself to her. Hence, she knows for certain that she can no longer wear her stylish dress. This is real spiritual knowledge, knowledge that originates from the enlightening of the Holy Spirit.
Each time God gives us spiritual knowledge, He desires that we meet the shining light of His face and sense the revealing of the Holy Spirit. This shining and revealing rebukes us in certain matters, makes us humble ourselves before God, and causes us to seek His forgiveness and deliverance as well as His supply and power of life to deal with whatever is being rebuked.
Take, for example, the messages that have been delivered in the church. Because of the different degrees of growth in life among the brothers and sisters, the enlightening of the Holy Spirit also differs. Therefore, the spiritual knowledge gained by each one varies greatly. A deeper growth in life gives the Holy Spirit more ground to enlighten some. Consequently, the spiritual knowledge they obtain is greater and deeper. With those whose spiritual growth is shallow, the revealing light of the Holy Spirit is limited, even though they sit in the same meeting and hear the same message. Hence, the spiritual knowledge within them is restricted and shallow. Therefore, these three — spiritual knowledge, the degree of growth in life, and the enlightening of the Holy Spirit — are related and mingled together.
Real spiritual knowledge is derived through our growth in life and the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. This knowledge not only includes the comprehension of the mind but much more. It is a feeling in the spirit. After it touches our conscience, this feeling in the spirit becomes a feeling in the conscience. A lack of spiritual knowledge means no feeling in the conscience. Almost all normal feelings in the conscience come from real spiritual knowledge.
Since a normal feeling of the conscience originates from life, the Holy Spirit, and spiritual knowledge, it certainly carries with it the supply of grace. This is a glorious characteristic of the New Testament. The Old Testament laws given to man contained only demands without supply. The New Testament law of life dispensed into man contains not only demand but, even more, supply. The demand in the law of life is met by itself as the supply. Therefore, whenever our conscience reveals the demand of the law of life, giving us a normal feeling to deal with a certain matter, we need but to bow down, worship, and acknowledge that this feeling of God’s demand is a preliminary announcement of the supply of grace.
The demand of the feeling in the conscience carries with it the supply of grace, yet if we desire to realize this supply, we must fulfill one requirement: we must respond to this demand in faith. The supply of God’s grace is always dependent upon our trust and obedience. If we trust and obey, the supply of God’s grace follows. Otherwise, the supply will not be forthcoming. God always desires that we first obey by faith in response to all His demands. Then He will supply us with His grace. Therefore, our response to God’s demands is our application for God’s supply.
For example, when we ask someone to send a telegram, according to the business principle in the world, we first supply him with money, and then he proceeds to act. But the spiritual principle is that he must first obey and act accordingly; then the money follows. If someone is afraid to act because of no means, then the money surely will not come forth. But while he is acting in faith to pay the expense, the money will be in hand. Many historical facts in the Bible illustrate this principle. When God brought Israel through the Jordan, the water did not separate before they stepped down; rather, they stepped down by faith, and then the waters were separated. The supply of grace is also obtained by faith and experienced in faith. Therefore, anyone learning to deal with the conscience needs to learn the lesson of receiving the supply of God’s grace in faith. Every time the feeling in the conscience brings forth a demand, we ought to realize that this is God’s supply for us. If we answer this demand in faith, God’s supply will surely come. Our obligation is to respond; God’s obligation is to supply.
We should be grateful to the Lord that even our believing and obeying are God given; they do not necessitate our striving or struggling. Normally, when a feeling of the conscience corresponds to the growth in life, we spontaneously have faith and submit in obedience. If ever a feeling of the conscience surpasses our trust in the supply of God’s grace and our ability to obey, it is a premature feeling and proves that our growth of life has not reached this stage. In this case we should hide under the blood and wait until our life advances to this stage. Then spontaneously we will have sufficient faith to apply the grace of God and obey the feeling of the conscience.
In conclusion, to fulfill the demand of the feeling in the conscience, we certainly need God’s supply of grace. This supply is received through faith. When we fulfill in faith the demand that is in the feeling of our conscience, immediately God’s grace comes to supply us. On one hand, it gives us strength to deal with the matter and obtain cleansing; on the other hand, this supply and grace become interwoven within us, bringing about the growth of life.
The above twelve points belong to our knowledge in dealing with the conscience; the following refers to the practical application in dealing with the conscience.
First Timothy 1:19: “Holding...a good conscience, concerning which some, thrusting these away, have become shipwrecked regarding the faith.” The good conscience mentioned by the apostle means a conscience that deals with all blemishes in order to maintain a blameless condition. If one permits some offense to linger in his conscience, his faith will become shipwrecked, and gradually his spiritual treasure will leak out; he himself will also fall away before the Lord.
First Timothy 1:5: “Love out of a pure heart and out of a good conscience and out of unfeigned faith.” In order to have the love that is necessary in a Christian’s walk, we need to have a good conscience, for this love comes out of a good conscience.
Acts 24:16: “I also exercise myself to always have a conscience without offense toward God and men.”
Acts 23:1: “I have conducted myself in all good conscience before God until this day.”
The apostle testifies twice about his conscience being without offense. This reveals one reason why he had such strength and boldness in the Lord’s work; that is, he continually dealt with his conscience, keeping it from being condemned.
It is not the conscience itself but rather the feeling of the conscience that is the object of our dealings. Besides the premature feelings, oversensitive feelings, and the feelings of Satan’s accusations and attacks, all normal feelings of the conscience are the object of our dealings.
Ephesians 4:19 tells us that sinners “cast off all feeling” (Darby). The feeling emphasized here is the feeling of the conscience. Before a man is saved, he is submerged in sin. In his living and behavior he endeavors to ignore and nullify the feeling of his conscience. Therefore, among the Gentiles a moral man may respect the feeling in his conscience, but the evil man is void of feeling in his conscience. The principle is the same with those who are saved. The more spiritual one is, the more sensitive the feeling of his conscience becomes. On the other hand, if he has little prayer and lacks fellowship with the Lord, the feeling in his conscience is insensitive.
In the context of Ephesians 4, the apostle admonishes us to put off the old man and put on the new man, and to walk according to the grace whereby we were called. Thus, the normal Christian life is seen to be absolutely related to the feeling of the conscience. In the past, when living in the old man, we cast off all the feeling of the conscience; now, having put off the old man and having put on the new man, we should live with due attention given to the feeling of the conscience and have dealings according to these feelings.
The basis of dealing with the conscience is also the feeling of the conscience. All normal feelings in our conscience, if in agreement with our growth of life and derived from the enlightening of the Holy Spirit, form the basis of dealing with the conscience.
We have mentioned previously that there are three categories of the feelings of the conscience — namely, the feeling toward sin, the feeling toward the world, and all other uneasy feelings. When dealing with sin, we must deal only with the feeling that exists in our conscience toward sin; when dealing with the world, we must deal only with the feeling in our conscience toward the world; when dealing with other matters apart from sin and the world, we must deal only with the uneasy feelings in our conscience. According to the objects of dealings, these three categories seem different, but their sole basis is the feeling of the conscience.
In the former chapters we did not base the dealing with sin and the world on the feeling of the conscience but rather on the feeling of life within. We did this because the feeling of the conscience is originally the feeling of life within. Although this feeling of life comes from the life of God and the Holy Spirit, it is through the conscience that we sense it. Therefore, although it is the feeling of life, it is also the feeling of the conscience.
The extent of our dealing with the conscience is the same as that of dealing with sin and the world — “life and peace.” We must deal to such an extent that we sense not only peace within but also life. Not only do we need to feel restful, secure, and assured, but we must also feel strengthened, enlightened, and satisfied. Anything short of life and peace means that our dealings are not thorough enough.
However, in our experience the feeling of life and peace cannot always be maintained without change. On the contrary, after a period of time we may again feel empty and confused, uneasy and insecure, as if the feeling of life and peace were gone. Two factors are responsible for this condition. One is our carelessness and failure, which has caused us to become contaminated again and possessed of things not pleasing to God. Another is that the standard of God’s inward demand of life is greatly uplifted when we continue to submit to our conscience, receive the supply of grace, grow in life, and increase with the enlightening of the Holy Spirit. These two reasons can cause us to feel neither life nor peace.
At first, this kind of feeling is a vague feeling within us that we lack life. In other words, we no longer feel “life.” Whenever we sense a lack of life, we must realize that God has a deeper lesson within for us to learn and additional matters without for us to deal with. If at this time we enter more deeply into His presence, seeking more revealing light, God will go a step further and show us what matters need to be dealt with. When the light on the matter becomes clear, our vague feeling concerning the lack of life becomes a definite feeling of unrest. This feeling is a feeling in the conscience. We ought to deal accordingly with this feeling until we have recovered the inward condition of life and peace. Such cycles of repeated dealings will purge us again and again and take us forward in the way of life.
In dealing with the conscience we need to deal to such an extent that we have life and peace, but we also need a governing standard of dealing. Generally speaking, the inward lack of life and peace must be dealt with until we obtain life and peace, but this does not mean that all feelings lacking life and peace demand dealings. We only need to ask ourselves if this feeling meets the standard of dealings. If it corresponds with the standard, then we proceed to deal with it; otherwise, it is not necessary. Therefore, the standard of dealing is an important yardstick when we begin to practice the dealings.
When a Christian is touched by the love of the Lord and decides to follow Him, he is willing to yield to the Lord’s thorough dealings, even to the point of losing his face and at any cost. At this time Satan often comes with many counterfeit feelings. In some cases people have been so deceived by him that they have felt obliged to deal unnecessarily, thereby suffering spiritual loss. Hence, we must recognize a standard to gauge all our dealings and measure carefully all the feelings that lack life and peace. In this way we can avoid many dangers and mistakes. Consequently, the standard for our dealings is a boundary and a protection as well.
We have said that the standard of dealing with sin is righteousness. Only the matters that are not righteous need to be dealt with. If there is no unrighteousness, there is nothing to consider. The standard of our dealing with the world is whether or not we are slavishly possessed by the world in our daily living. All that is not necessary for our existence or all that possesses us needs to be dealt with; other than that, there is no further need of dealing. However, the standard of our dealing with the conscience is whether or not a matter is meaningful or sensible. This applies when we intend to deal with the lack of peace in our conscience. We must ask, “Is this lack of peace meaningful? When I deal with it, am I edified? Can others be helped? Can God be glorified?” If it is meaningful, we accept it and deal accordingly. However, if it is meaningless, we should reject it and not deal with it.
For example, consider a brother who after reading a book throws it down carelessly. Immediately, a lack of peace is registered inwardly, and his carelessness is rebuked by his conscience. In such a case, he ought to go and carefully handle and replace the book. He must handle the book according to his inner feeling; then he will have the inward peace. In such a case, this lack of peace is evidently meaningful, teaching him not to be a careless person. However, if this brother has no peace while sitting in a chair, yet he has peace while sitting on the floor, he has dealt with his conscience to a meaningless degree. If he has no peace when carrying his Bible in his hand, but he has peace when it is on his shoulder, this lack of peace is nonsense. The more he deals with these meaningless feelings, the more such feelings will multiply. Consequently, the ground is given to Satan’s attacks, causing much unnecessary suffering.
On one hand, we should deal with our conscience strictly according to the demands of our inner life and peace. On the other hand, we should also be governed by the standard of meaningfulness. According to the principle, we will then have balanced and profitable dealings that will cause us to grow in life and give no ground to the enemy to attack us.
In this second stage of our spiritual life, we have studied consecutively the three lessons of dealing: sin, the world, and the conscience. Everything that requires dealings in the initial stages of the Christian pursuing the Lord are included in these three lessons. After a Christian deals with sin, the justification that he receives from God is lived out through him and is also manifested before men. After he deals with the world, he experiences the sanctification in Christ, becomes wholly separated from the world, and belongs completely to God. Finally, after he deals with the conscience, the feelings within him are sensitive and rich, and the function of his spirit is strong and evident. At this point everything outside of him that is not pleasing to God or agreeing with God is resolved, while the life inside is being made manifest. He then begins to turn from without to within and learns to follow the Lord inwardly in the path of life.
Practically speaking, after a Christian begins to seek the Lord and consecrates himself, there is a long period of time wherein the emphasis of the Lord’s work upon him is in these three areas of dealings. The more he accepts these dealings, the more blessed is his spiritual condition before God, and the more rapid is his growth in life. Therefore, if we want to know our condition before the Lord, or the condition of our spiritual growth, we must check with our experiences to see how much we have been dealt with by the Lord in these aspects. Many brothers and sisters grow very slowly in life. They grieve daily over their poor condition, and they ask daily for the Lord’s mercy. Yet, after a lapse of several years their growth in the inner life still lingers in the initial stage. Other brothers and sisters are in a state of death and numbness before the Lord. The moving of the Holy Spirit is not discernible in them, nor can they be seen functioning in the Holy Spirit. The reason for this is largely that they have not learned these lessons of dealings.
We often speak of obedience, but many times our obedience before the Lord has nothing to do with dealings. Yet, besides the dealings, what else requires obedience? If our dealings are not thorough, how can our obedience be absolute? We dare not say that one hundred percent of all obedience lies in the matter of dealing, but we can say that out of one hundred demands for obedience, ninety percent of them fall in the category of dealings. Thus, obedience is largely a matter of dealings.
Our problem today is that we are disobedient in the matter of dealings. It is not that we have had no dealings at all, but we are neither thorough nor serious. Either we would not be definite and thorough in dealings, or we would procrastinate in dealings. This greatly discounts our obedience. Thus, we act contrary to the law of life, oppose the teaching of the anointing, and offend God. Therefore, our conscience is dull and insensitive; our spirit becomes deflated and low. Although we listen to messages and read spiritual books, including the Bible, we receive little light. We are fruitless in our work, and our whole spiritual condition remains withered and weak.
This is true not only individually but also in the meetings. Many meetings are weak, poor, and low because everyone lacks dealings. If everyone has strict and severe dealings in their daily lives, the condition of the meetings will change greatly and become very living.
We always beseech the Lord to work and even tell Him that if He does not work, we have no way to go on. But the problem is not that He refuses to work but that we refuse to allow Him to work. The work of the Lord is to arouse our inner sense. If we let the Lord work, spontaneously we will have dealings according to this inner feeling. Each step of the Lord’s work is to expose our difficulties and demand that we deal with them. The minute the Lord works in us, immediately we must have dealings. To let the Lord work is to let Him deal with us. If we deal thoroughly with each feeling, the Lord will be able to work in us through and through. Our whole being will become living. We will become like dynamite in the Lord’s work, exploding the Lord’s work out from within us.
We must look to the Lord to lead us into the experience of these lessons. The more we neglect the dealings, the more our inner feeling will become indifferent to our being left in darkness. But the more we are willing to practice these dealings, the more our inner feeling will compel us to deal thoroughly, until we have dealt with all our feelings before the Lord. However, even at this point we cannot say that we have graduated from dealings. There can be no graduation from these dealings, nor can they be terminated. Daily we must face the problem of the dealings. Whenever we discover new mistakes or things not yet dealt with in the past, we must immediately deal with them. Thus, we will be enabled to progress deeper and deeper in the Lord.
