By the late David Dickson, Irvine.
III.
OF CASES OF CONSCIENCE IN GENERAL.
(Continued from Vol. xlv., p. 58)
A CASE of Conscience, taken in a large sense, comprehends every accident which any way affects or qualifies the conscience. And in this sense, the persuasion and certainty which the conscience may have, the soundness, health and strength of the conscience, may be called cases, and good cases of the conscience.
So also, any effect which the conscience does work on the soul, such as are peace of conscience, comfort and joy in the heart, may be called cases of the conscience also.
But the cases whereof we are to treat, are the ill cases of the conscience, whereby it is fallen from the soundness and straightness it should have, which we call by the name of wounds, diseases, and sickness of the conscience; whereunto, that we may descend to speak more orderly, a two-fold difference is to be observed.
First, we must put difference between a healthy and a sick conscience. A healthy conscience is that which, after examination of our ways according to the rule of God’s word, does justly absolve us, and speaks peace to us toward God. Of such a conscience it is said by Solomon, “A sound heart is the life of the flesh,” (Prov. xiv. 30). By the heart, he means the conscience, which ordinarily in Scripture is called the heart. And he says, the sound conscience is the life of the flesh; because the body is so much in better case, that the conscience be at peace toward God. And this blessing is allowed upon every believer in Christ, in his orderly walking. “God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and of a sound mind,” (II Tim. i. 7). A conscience in this disposition needs not medicine, but spiritual nourishment and exercise in all Christian duties.
A sick conscience we call that which either is senseless of its own evils and dangers, and sits down securely, and rests without a warrant; or, which is justly wounded, and labours under the sense of its pain; or, which is unquiet upon mistakes, and ignorance of making use of the true remedy. Of such a sick conscience we are to speak; if possibly, by God’s blessing, a word in season may be spoken, to waken a secure conscience, or to refresh the weary soul; that being recovered from its malady, it may be able to feed upon the bread and water of life, and work the works of God in the strength of Christ.
Secondly, we must put difference between a troubled soul, and a troubled conscience; for the soul is more largely taken than the conscience. The soul comprehends all the powers and faculties of the man; but the conscience, as we speak of it, is only one faculty of the mind, judging of the man’s moral ill or well-being; and so, all cases of the conscience are cases of the soul; but all cases of the soul, are not cases of the conscience. For the soul may be troubled, while the conscience is not troubled at all; yea, a man may have a commendable trouble in his soul, when he sees God dishonoured, or His church in hazard, whereby his conscience is so far from being troubled, that such a holy trouble strengthens his conscience in his address to God, as is in many places of the Psalms to be seen.
Again, A man’s mind may be troubled by sundry natural or civil motives, while the conscience is allowably quiet; as in losses of things temporal, fears, pains, or unexpected inconveniences occurring; yea, there may be passions and perturbations of the mind in persons that are not capable for the time of the exercise of conscience, as may be seen in young infants, and in the elder sort, in fits of fever, melancholy, and frenzy. And yet further, it is possible that passions, perturbations, and troubles of soul, may be found without any disease of the conscience; because our Lord Jesus, in the day of His humiliation, was a man acquainted with sorrows, but was not obnoxious to sin, or any self-challenging, for He knew no sin in Himself. He had trouble in His soul, but could not have trouble of conscience: “Now is my soul troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour; but for this cause came I unto this hour,” (John, xii. 27). Of the cases of the soul we speak not here, but of the sinful diseases of the conscience.
There is also a third difference to be observed between common cases of conscience, and these that specially concern regeneration. Common cases comprehend all these questions and doubts, wherein the conscience is seeking light and resolution about the rule of faith and manners, that it may better inform itself about the sense of Scripture, and about the application thereof in the point of direction in faith and practice. These common cases are of as large extent as the bulk of divinity, as large as the doctrine held forth in Scripture concerning faith and manners; for there is not any one article of faith or duty prescribed as a point of piety or righteousness, about which may not be moved, and cases propounded, wherein the conscience may seek satisfaction.
Of this huge great tree, we take but only one branch to speak of, so far as maketh for our purpose concerning regeneration.
(To be continued.)