When God created man in the beginning, he saw that man was good (Gen. 1:31). This means that in God’s eyes, the created human life is good. Before a person is saved, he has this created goodness, and all his senses derive from this goodness. However, this created goodness was corrupted and defiled because of man’s fall. Consequently, the most that this defiled and damaged goodness can provide is a consciousness of good in the conscience. However, a saved person, a normal Christian, in contrast to an unbeliever, has an additional sense—the divine sense of God’s life.
Man’s inner sense is used by God to limit, restrict, and restrain man. A person sins because he suppresses his inner sense (Rom. 1:21). When a person suppresses this inner sense, he is capable of committing many sins (vv. 28-31). It is not the policeman who restrains and limits us but rather our inner sense. The first thing that checks and limits our behavior is our inner sense.
Some may ask, “Who has a stronger inner sense, a good person or an evil person?” The better a person is, the stronger his inner sense will be, and the more evil a person is, the weaker his inner sense will be. This is because a person must constantly suppress his inner sense in order to do evil things; thus, his inner sense becomes weaker and weaker. We may also ask if this applies to believers and unbelievers. Christians have a stronger inner sense because the uncreated, divine life of God is in us. This life gives us a sense which is much stronger than the sense that is derived only from our created goodness, which is all that an unbeliever can sense.
Thus, it is easier for an unbeliever to commit sin than it is for a believer, because within a believer there is a strong sense to resist sin. This sense is the sense from God’s life. An unbeliever has a sense of conscience, which is the sense of our created goodness; in contrast, a believer not only has a sense of conscience but also a sense of God’s life, which causes him to have a stronger inner sense than an unbeliever. Therefore, an unbeliever merely needs to overcome this weaker inner sense of conscience in order to sin; in contrast, a Christian must exert considerable effort to resist and suppress the strong inner sense that comes from God.
God has put a sense within man to serve as a “brake.” When we are driving a car, we step on the brakes to prevent an accident. The most important part of a car is the brakes; they must be sturdy and effective. The brakes of a good car will bring a car to an immediate stop in an emergency. Even if a car is traveling at a high speed, as soon as a driver steps on the brakes, the car will quickly come to a halt. In order to prevent a car from getting into danger or deviating from the road, a car must have good brakes. Our inner sense is the “brake” of our whole being.
The created inner sense, the “brake,” within an unbeliever is weaker in comparison to the sense of God’s life. However, with the damage caused by Satan, the defilement of sin, and the corruption of the world, this “brake” has been greatly weakened and is even less effective. Hence, it is easier for an unbeliever to get into trouble, commit sin, and do evil. With only a little resistance, this inner sense can be annulled and overthrown. The inner sense of life within Christians, however, is strong, or we may say, our “brake” is powerful. Consequently, a great amount of effort is required to resist it. After an unbeliever commits a sin, the inner feeling of condemnation can be light; however, after a Christian commits a sin, the inner feeling of condemnation is strong. Hence, all God’s children should learn to take heed to the inner sense.
Man’s inner sense of life is indeed a great thing; the stronger the inner sense of life, the more operative it will be. If we do not know how to use the “brake,” that is, how to exercise and care for the inner sense of life, we will be like a driver who does not know how to use his brakes, which is extremely dangerous. The safety of a motorcycle or a car depends on whether a driver uses his brakes in an appropriate manner. If a person does not know how to use the brakes properly, it is certain that he will eventually have an accident. Similarly, if we do not take care of and follow the inner sense, it is possible for us to do all kinds of bad things. Therefore, we should never disregard the inner sense of life.
With regard to the fellowship of life, this fellowship is derived from life; it issues from the life of God. In other words, the source of this fellowship of life is the life of God. First John 1:2 says, “We...report to you the eternal life.” Generally, people use the term preaching, but the apostle John said that he was reporting life. He reported the eternal life to us. Instead of preaching, he reported life to us. When we receive the life he reported, we also receive the fellowship of this life into us. On one hand, this fellowship is with “us,” referring to the apostles, and on the other hand, it is with “the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (v. 3).