Gut Check

In this morning's read:

"Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don't impose it on others. You're fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you're not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe—some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them—then you know that you're out of line. If the way you live isn't consistent with what you believe, then it's wrong."

So brutal...

Unfortunately this interpretation leaves some gray area in the word "believe." How do we formulate what we "believe?" God's word? Other believers? Divine revelation? Prayer? What we're taught by our parents?

Earlier in this passage Paul writes this when discussing "beliefs":

"Or, say, one person thinks that some days should be set aside as holy and another thinks that each day is pretty much like any other. There are good reasons either way. So, each person is free to follow the convictions of conscience."

So when all else fails is the "conscience" or the convictions of the "conscience" what determines belief? In my line of work I have reason to believe the conscience can be faulty. In fact, after acting in a manner consistently that goes against the original prompting of the conscience, after some time, the conscience becomes numb doesn't it? It seems that the term conscience which is a human means of logic should be replaced with the Holy Spirit in this place, that is, if you're a Christian. Otherwise, you are left simply with your conscience. So then if we rely on the Holy Spirit to guide and determine how our beliefs are formulated we can't go wrong right? Then I have to ask myself when is it the Holy Spirit I am hearing and when is it my own conscience? I am thinking that as I grow closer to God and as I spend more time in prayer and knowing Him... I will know myself better. I am hoping that as I continue to search this out the voice of the Holy Spirit becomes increasingly audible leaving no room for doubt.

Disclaimer: I know I am no philosopher and I also know that I am reading a very non-credible translation in the "Message" Bible. One of my friends told me a while back to enjoy this translation but make sure to take it with a grain of salt. I think as times goes on I will continue to discuss whatever blah I am thinking about the text in this blog.