“The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?” – Proverbs 18:14
God made you with a conscience. A conscience is that inner voice that makes you feel guilty if you knowingly do something wrong. Having a clear conscience will help you to be emotionally and physically healthy. A clear conscience will sustain you in the difficulties of life and give you peace at night when you go to sleep.
A guilty, or wounded conscience, however, can be unbearable. Going against your conscience will catch up with you. You may try to numb your conscience with drugs or alcohol, but you can’t really escape its accusations.
Even if you were to commit suicide your conscience would still be with you because God made you to live forever even when your physical body dies. Luke 16:19-31 illustrates the fact that there is life after death in another place of existence. Having a guilty conscience throughout eternity is too painful to think about, yet it is a reality that every unrepentant sinner must face. One of Jesus’ descriptions of hell is the unrepentant sinner’s “worm” that never dies (Mark 9:44). Some people believe that Jesus was talking about the worm of memory constantly tormenting the sinner throughout eternity.
There is only one real remedy for a guilty conscience — the forgiveness of God. He can help you live with yourself if you give Him a chance.
“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” – Proverbs 28:13
Confess your sins to Jesus and forsake them. He will forgive you and give you real inner peace (John 14:27). You will then be able to live with your conscience.