The Joy of a Good Conscience

The testimony of a good conscience is a priceless treasure to a devout person. Possessing that treasure brings endless joy.

A good conscience is a great help in distress and bolsters courage even in misfortune. Conversely, a bad conscience always causes unrest and fear. Peaceful is the person whose conscience does not reproach them. To have a happy mind, ensure you act in the right and good way.

The ungodly never experience true joy or inner peace. They are like a rough, tumultuous sea that cannot be still, with great waves churning up sludge and mire. Even if such people say, “We are at peace and fully secure; no evil shall befall us and no one can hurt us,” do not believe them! For the wrath of God will arise suddenly; their deeds come to nothing, and their plans end in shame.

If you have peace with God and love Him, you shall confess with the apostle: We also boast in our tribulations, i.e., of “the cross of Christ.” But the praise given or received from men is fleeting and short-lived, always bringing some kind of sorrow.

If you are godly, you seek your honour in a good conscience, not in people’s vain praise. Then you rejoice in the truth and rejoice in God. He who strives for true and lasting praise does not worry about earthly praise. If someone seeks temporal praise or does not regard it as despicable in their inner self, it is proof that they do not love the heavenly. To have peace of heart, carefully avoid both praise and blame. Content and happy is the person with a clear conscience. Recognition and praise do not make you better, nor does blame make you worse. You are what you are and cannot be rightly considered better than you are before God.

If you only consider what you are within your inner self, you will not be perturbed by how people may judge you. People see what is visible to the eyes, but the Lord looks at the heart. People see the outward action, but God weighs the inner motive. To always act rightly but think humbly of yourself is a mark of a humble soul.

If you do not place your hope in anything created, it is proof of inner purity and genuine assurance. He who completely surrenders to God does not ask for any external testimony but thinks like Paul: For it is not he who commends himself who is approved, but whom the Lord commends. To abide with God in one’s innermost being and not be led astray by anything external is the mark of excellence of a godly person.