Hebrews 12:22-23 “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, (23) to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect.”
Knowing that the conscience of man is located in the physical organ of the brain helps us to understand a number of important truths about the conscience. One of the first truths we learn is that the conscience of man is only given for this life, for our conscience forms part of our mortal bodies and we only dwell within these mortal bodies in this life. Another reason why we know that the conscience is only given for this life is because after the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was planted in the Garden of Eden it is never mentioned again, whereas scripture teaches us that the tree of life, which was also planted in the Garden of Eden, will be available to the saints in the New Jerusalem for all eternity. A second truth we learn about the conscience applies to those who die while they are still children i.e. before they reach the age of thirteen. Because children die spiritually alive to God they return to dwell with Him in heaven. The above passage of scripture refers to the spirits of just men made perfect. This passage is actually referring to all children that have died, for a better translation of the words “just men” is the word “innocent”, which fits God’s description of children, for He refers to them as being innocent (Psalm 16:38). And so we see that children who die never have the eyes of their conscience opened, for their spirits return to God in heaven and their bodies, where their conscience resides, return to dust. Because there is no evil in heaven, children who have died have no need of a conscience i.e. they have no need of the knowledge of good and evil. That same principle will continue to apply when God raises them from the dead at the end of the age because, just as when God originally created Adam and Eve, they will have no need of a conscience because in God’s new earth only righteousness will dwell and no evil will be present (2 Peter 3:13). And so we see that unlike the rest of mankind, children who die will never have knowledge of good and evil. A third truth that is revealed to us about the conscience is that the saints in heaven do not have a conscience either, and the reason for that is obvious because their bodies, in which their conscience resides, have also returned to dust. Nevertheless the saints in heaven are different to the children in heaven in this area, because although the saints do not have a conscience they have perfect knowledge, which would include the knowledge of good and evil (1 Corinthians 13:12). So if the saints in heaven have no conscience, what motivates them to keep the commandments of God? It is their love for God that motivates them, for our Lord has taught us that those who love Him keep His commandments (John 14:15). A fourth truth that we learn about the conscience is that all living creatures i.e. animals, do not have a conscience. We know that to be true because they never ate the fruit that Adam and Eve ate, and so animals do not have knowledge of good and evil. The fact that animals do not have a conscience is one of the major differences between mankind and the rest of God’s creations on the earth. A fifth truth we learn about the conscience is that angels also do not have a conscience, for they too have never eaten the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. Similar to the saints in heaven however, angels also have a higher level of understanding given to them by God, because of which they have knowledge of good and evil. So why don’t angels need a conscience? The reason is simple, unlike mankind who in this life have no fear of God (Romans 3:18), and therefore need a conscience to convict them to choose good and reject evil, angels don’t need a conscience because they do fear God, for they know full well the consequence of being disobedient to God. The scriptures teach us that the demons tremble at the mere thought of God, for Satan and his angels are terrified of the judgement of God (James 2:19). Even the elect angels of God, who because of their fierce loyalty to God would never disobey Him, are nevertheless themselves fearful of transgressing the commandments of God, which is why Michael the Archangel dared not bring a reviling accusation against Satan when he disputed with him about the body of Moses (Jude 1:9).
Michael E.B. Maher
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