APRIL 9
I do not wonder that all the trials you feel do not interrupt the peace of God. They never need.
Letter, 14th January, 1780
God has made us thinking beings, capable of perceiving what is present, and of reflecting or looking back on what is past. In particular, we are capable of perceiving whatsoever passes in our own hearts or lives; of knowing whatsoever we feel or do; and that either while it passes or when it is past. This we mean when we say, man is a conscious being; he hath a consciousness or inward perception, both of things present and past, relating to himself, of his own tempers and outward behaviour. But what we really term conscience implies somewhat more than this. It is not barely the knowledge of our present or the remembrance of our preceding life … its main business is to excuse or accuse, to approve or disapprove, or acquit or condemn. We may understand by conscience, a faculty or power, implanted by God, in every soul that comes into the world, of perceiving what is right or wrong in his own heart or life.
The Witness of the Spirit (III)
