“Now when these things had been thus prepared, the priests always went into the first part of the tabernacle, performing the services. But into the second part the high priest went alone once a year, not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the people’s sins committed in ignorance; the Holy Spirit indicating this, that the way into the Holiest of All was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was still standing” (Hebrews 9:6-8).
Many a tale has been concocted to describe how the Holy Spirit supposedly communicates to people today. Goose bumps, a warm fuzzy feeling, a “holy” hunch, a still, small voice, a strange sensation. All of these fanciful yarns have one thing in common—they are false. This is not how the will of God is communicated to anyone alive today.
Two vital truths are embedded in verse eight and deserve careful consideration.
First, the way the Holy Spirit communicates to all people alive today is within the written Scriptures. The first and second parts of the tabernacle (vv. 6, 7) were not communicated via goose bumps, hunches, or warm fuzzies. Their descriptions were given to Moses by the Spirit of God and accurately recorded in Scripture. Therefore, when God communicated the end of the first covenant, it was also done by the Holy Spirit within written Scripture.
Second, the verb “indicating” is a present active participle. The use of the present tense communicates that the “indicating” is still ongoing. It is a perpetual communication. In other words, what the Spirit was informing His 1st century readers of, He is still informing His 21st century readers of, and every reader in any century hereafter.
Although the Holy Spirit’s work of revealing all truth to the inspired writers of Scripture was completed by the end of the first century, His message remains constant and unchanging. He is still saying to people today what He was saying to them twenty weeks ago, twenty years ago, twenty decades ago, twenty centuries ago. The Holy Spirit has no need for goose bump/“holy hunch”/still small voice/warm and fuzzy communication today, because He is still communicating through His written word.
