What does it mean to have a perfected conscience?  The writer of Hebrews rights that the Old Covenant is inferior in that the gifts and sacrifices offered under it failed to, “perfect the conscience of the worshiper (Heb 9:9, ESV).”  What does that mean?

The central difference between the Old and New Testaments is that under the New Covenant the blood of Jesus is offered as a sacrifice on behalf of His people.  The Old Covenant, too, required a sacrifice of blood but that sacrifice was insufficient except that it pointed to the the necessity of the sacrifice of Christ.  The writer of Hebrews spends significant amount of time up to this point explaining how the New Covenant is better than the Old and one of his final arguments is that the Old Testament could not perfect the conscience.

Under the Old Covenant, The Law pointed to the guilt of sin.  When an Israelite failed, when he transgressed that law, a sacrifice was required; a sacrifice of blood.  Each time he failed or transgresses another sacrifice was required.  Over and over again the Israelite’s guilt was illustrated as illuminated by the law and specifically as he transgressed against it.  Our consciences are the mechanism or organ that recognizes that guilt; for the Israelite it was recognized specifically within the context of The Law.  When our conscience is functioning properly it is reminding us of our guilt for our own evil deeds and even our own evil desires.

But all the Old Covenant could do is remind of us that guilt.  It could not make the believer innocent and guilt by definition requires a punishment.

What is injustice without justice?  Dare We answer that it is another injustice.  I once watched a video of a sentencing hearing in which a man convicted of raping another man’s daughter was sentenced to a sentence so slight that the father in anguish leapt across a barrier in an attempt to get at the man who had offended against his daughter.  This man’s plea for justice on behalf of his daughter had gone unanswered and I had two thoughts.  First, that the justice which had been refused was in that refusal another injustice.  There was a “rightness” in wanting to see that father reach his intended target and deliver the justice owed.  Second, that the injustice of a failure of justice was directly tied to the love that the father had for his daughter.  Do we realize that in refusing to deal justice for sin God would be committing sin?  He can’t simply wave away our injustice.  And how often do we declare that a good God could not punish that which He loves?  Do we not recognize that not only is His perfect justice at stake but His perfect love if He were to pardon an offense against that which he loves?  When we appeal to God to right an injustice committed against us we are in part appealing to His perfect justice but we are also in part appealing to His love for us.  Why would He answer such an appeal if he was either unjust or didn’t care?

The Old Covenant is limited in that it can only point to our injustices.  Our consciences continually remind us of that guilt until we sear our conscience or deal with the guilt.  The Old Covenant was incapable of dealing with that guilt and so are we.  The power of the New Covenant is that it perfects our consciousness in that it deals with the guilt.  Jesus became the punishment.  When He says that you are forgiven he is not waving away the guilt by simply ignoring it.  He is taking on the punishment that guilt requires.  Justice was delivered on Him for your injustice.  You no longer need to feel the guilt.  Your conscience is perfect before God.

Later in verse 14 of that same chapter in Hebrews we find that the New Covenant not only perfects our conscience it liberates it from dead works.  When we commit an injustice our conscience tells us that we are guilty.  What are we to do?  When we offer any good work, any sacrifice, as payment for that injustice it fails.  It fails because perfection, The Law, requires that we are good all the time.  The good work of today can only pay for itself it can not pay for yesterday’s deed of injustice.  The penalty is still owed.  Every good work that you do is dead and meaningless because none of them remedy the guilt of the offense.  And all are guilty of more than that first offense (Rom 3:23).

However, the offering made to mediate the New Covenant (Heb 9:15) changes that.  It is first sufficient in that Christ’s sacrifice is not needed to atone for Himself.  But He offered it, none the less, as an act of love on your behalf.  He didn’t need to but He did and when you recognize the love that this act demonstrates and signifies you are not simply liberated from pursuing works that can not save but you are liberated to live your life as a response to His love for you.  Your good works do not need to liberate you and they are now free to testify of His love.  You are free to live a life that emulates that love for others.

“Today is the day”

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