Days to Pentecost 06 - My Conscience

Days to Pentecost 06- My Conscience on April 20, 2020
by Hannah Lee

"When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?"

Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (v. 37-38) 
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How do I react when the words are pierced to my heart while listening to someone? 
Today, Apostle Peter preaches to countless Jews in Jerusalem. 
If I had listened to the sermon as a Jew at the scene, I would have felt very uncomfortable. 
The Jews would have come to know the word that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
They may also have heard that David, the great king of Israel, saw the Lord. 
But Peter is shouting loudly that the Lord was the one they killed on the cross a while ago.   
He is also explaining that Jesus who had died was alive and that He is the Son of God.  
They might think like these,
"Jesus was the son of God? Does it make sense? 
Does it make sense that I killed the Son of God?   
Did God raise him back to life? No way!"
However, the Bible says, “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart”. (Acts 2:37)  
Conscience can recognize what is good and what is evil. 
When evil is revealed, the conscience feels guilty.  
Repentance is to keep my conscience clear before God and man. 
The Holy Spirit always speaks to my conscience.    
The Holy Spirit says what is good and what is evil.  
And the Holy Spirit makes my conscience notice it.
But, how I react to it, is up to me.
I can turn Peter into a liar, ignoring cutting of my conscience, saying it doesn’t make sense. 
It’s as if when the Jewish leaders heard Stephen’s sermon, they were pierced to the heart, was furious, and gnashed their teeth at him.
It is to deceive my conscience and claim that I am good. (Acts 7:54) 
Or I may run away from it because I have a guilty conscience but I don’t want to deal with it in depth.
As if when the Lord had said for the adulterous woman, “If anyone of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her”,
everyone who cut to the heart has avoided it. (John 8:7)  
Or I could react like the Jews who listened to Peter’s sermon today, saying, ‘What shall I do then?’ to solve my guilt.
They are asking what is good in order to have no qualms of conscience. (Acts 2:37) 
There are times when my conscience is stabbed by the words of my family, neighbors, or God's Words.
I wanted to hide the fact that I was pierced to the conscience. 
I learned today that being pierced in the conscience is proof that the Holy Spirit is near.  
I hope that I will have a good and humble conscience that overcomes the desire to run away or jump on others and repent of my sins.
Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind” (Psalm 26:2)