David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, “This is the day the Lord

spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with

as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. (1 Samuel 24:3-5)

Over 500 years ago, an Augustinian Friar named Martin Luther nailed a protest pamphlet to the

doors of a church in Germany – a courageous move that led to the Protestant Revolution and a

major schism in the Catholic Church. This division eventually resulted in all the mainline,

Protestant denominations. Luther’s main complaint was against the practice of “indulgences” by

which the Pope claimed to be able to pray peoples’ dead relatives out of hell for a certain price

that would then be used to finance the building of St. Peter’s Basilica.

As you might have guessed, Pope Leo was none too thrilled to have a German theologian

challenging his fundraising efforts. Therefore, Leo promptly excommunicated Luther and

brought him before the Holy Roman Emperor on April 18th, 1521 in the German city of Worms

to make him recant his position and save his neck. As history teaches us, Luther didn’t sleep

well the night before his trial and was said to have even wrestled with Satan himself. However,

the next day Luther stood before Emperor Charles V and proclaimed the powerful words that

forever split the Catholic and Protestant denominations:

“My conscience is captive to the word of God! To go against conscience is neither right nor safe.

I therefore cannot, and I will not recant!”

Luther’s words are like those of David here in the cave with King Saul in 1st Samuel 24. David’s

friends are giving him an inaccurate interpretation of God’s word when they say, “This is the day

the Lord spoke of.” In fact, this was NOT the day the Lord spoke of. That day would come later.

Fortunately, David has a clean conscience – in the sense that it aligns with God’s Word and

God’s Spirit. So, David replies…

“The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay

my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply

rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. (1 Samuel 24:6-7)

How “clean” is your conscience? Do you know God’s Word well enough to discern an unbiblical

interpretation or suggestion when offered by your friends? Are you more concerned with what

God thinks or what people think?

By Jimmy Carter