The word conscience contains the word science, which is derived from a Latin word “scientia”, which means “to know”. Thus your conscience is the faculty of knowing what is right or wrong, the innermost thoughts, desires, intentions and feeling. In other words, conscience has to do with conviction.
Offense, on the other hand is wrong doing, displeasure, crime, injury or insult.
For one to have and maintain a conscience void of crime, insult to others, and many more, the person has to know the truth. Jesus, in John 8:32, said that we shall know the truth and the truth will set us free.
Now someone may ask, “What is the truth?” Jesus is the truth personified. When you have him in your life, He will then make you to know that:
????- Humans usually feel offended even when they should not (1 Samuel 17:28). Man has always longed for this simple word”sorry”, so they feel offended at the slightest mistake.
“Why?”
There is this hidden pride in all humans that takes only the grace of God to destroy.
????- Offenses are tools in the hand of Satan to weaken the saints. (Zechariah 3:1). Satan always loves to make a believer doubt his salvation, his purity and his relationship with with God, so that he can get an occasion to lay accusations against them before the Creator. No wonder the Bible called him ‘the accuser of the saints’ in the book of Revelation 12:10.
????- As humans, our hearts are often filled with pity and empathy. (Acts 2:37) A living conscience is always on the alert so as to avoid offenses. This makes it a bit complicated for one to know when he/she has really offended another.
Offenses are bound to come, but God requires us as His children to always restitute. You know most Christians think that it is only when you kill some one that restitution becomes necessary. The little ‘sorry’ we fail to say to one who we offend, makes us guilty before God. Not just between fellow humans, but with us and God too. A necessary daily personal checkup is required of a saint on his way to heaven.
