When we behold the mechanism of man, we are made to exclaim with the Psalmist, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” Man is so constituted as to experience a feeling of joy when a desired object is obtained, or a feeling of disappointment if it is not obtained. When danger approaches he intuitively seeks to avert it, and experiences a feeling of gladness if he succeeds. Among the elements of man's moral nature the highest and most important, perhaps, is the conscience. Conscience is a principle which God has placed in man's moral being to teach him what is right and what is wrong. Some have said that conscience is the “voice of God in the soul.” It is a voice that is inaudible to the ear, but we feel it speaking in us, saying, “This action is right,” or, “That action is wrong.” We believe that Solomon was referring to the conscience when he said, “The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.” Prov. 20:27.

Where there is no known law, conscience becomes [pg 363] our guide and the standard by which we are judged. For proof of this we will quote Rom. 2:14, 15: “For when the Gentiles, which have not a law, do by nature

The conscious principle in the moral nature suffered greatly in the fall of man, and is seriously impaired by violation of the known laws of God, or laws of conscience. There is a beautiful harmony between truth and a correct conscience. Obedience to the [pg 364] truth is always approved by an unimpaired conscience. When a known truth is violated, a searing influence is introduced upon the conscience, which grows with every violation, until the conscience becomes seared as with a hot iron. Dangers of delusion lie in the fact that after a succession of violations, the conscience becomes so morbid that it fails to be a correct judge of action. After a time a man can violate a plain truth without experiencing any sting of conscience; therefore he concludes his actions are right, because he experiences no condemnation, though they are in opposition to the truth. There is great beauty in the thought, and gratification in the knowledge, that by obedience to the truth we can obtain a sound moral condition, whose conscientious principles are so acute that there is a timely warning at every approach of error.

To possess a purged, pure, and undefiled conscience is our privilege in the economy of grace. See Heb. 9:14; 1 Tim. 3:9; Titus 1:15. To possess an unimpaired conscience and then so meet all our obligations to God and man is to have a conscience void of offense. What implicit confidence we can have in God when in a normal moral condition, and have an uncondemned heart. Enoch walked with God and had the witness (consciousness) that he pleased the Lord. What can bring greater happiness to the heart of man? The man who, having an undefiled moral being has a conscience void of offense toward God and [pg 365] man, experiences a satisfaction and a happiness unsurpassed by any mortal being.

The Two Families.

The Scriptures talk of two classes of people on the earth. The inhabitants of this globe are by the Word of God divided into two great families. One family is termed the righteous, and the other the unrighteous. One is the godly, the other the ungodly. One is the holy, the other the unholy. The righteous family is likened unto or called sheep, the unrighteous family, goats. Mat. 25:32, 33. They are interspersed throughout the earth. When the Son of man is come they shall be separated. One family shall be admitted into an eternity of bliss, the other into an eternity of punishment. One family is represented by a good tree, the other by an evil tree. In the parable of the sower the Savior likens one family unto wheat, and the other unto tares.

Since there are two families there are, of course, two fathers. God is the Father of one of these families (2 Cor. 6:18), and Satan is the father of the other, John 8:44. These fathers are sometimes called masters. “One is your Master, even God.” Now every individual on the globe is either in servitude to one or the other of these masters—never to both. “No man can serve two masters.” “His servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness.”

The Scriptures so plainly locate the dividing line between these two families that all can very well know to which family they belong. Those who are born into God's family do not commit sin. 1 John 3:9; 1 John 5:18. Those belong to the devil's family who do commit sin. 1 John 3:8. This is very plain. None need be mistaken. Those who do not commit sin are the wheat or good seed, and are children of the kingdom. Those who do commit sin are the tares or children of the wicked one. Mat. 13. Those who do not commit sin have their names written in heaven. But those who sin do not have their names written there (Ex. 32:33), therefore are not members in the family of God.

It is said that some people are mistaken as to which family they belong, but it is “not every one that saith, Lord, Lord, that shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” God's family are righteous, they are holy, they are pure, they are saints. Satan's family are unrighteous, they are unholy, they do not believe in purity, they commit sin. The Savior has gone to prepare a place for his own so that where he is there they may forever be—glory! glory! Those who live and die in sin can not go to that pure and happy place. John 8:21. Dear friend, get ready. Live a pure, holy life and spend an eternity in the blissful presence of our dear Redeemer. God bless you, is my sincere prayer.

The Two Ways.