“But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,’ then He adds, ‘Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more’” (Hebrews 10:15-17).
To listen to some people talk about God and the communication of His will by the Holy Spirit to them, what they describe is a daily, almost continuous occurrence. After listening to them for a few minutes, you can quickly begin to wonder why Jehovah went to the 1,600-year trouble of giving us His written will. If the Holy Spirit is going to be “witnessing”, “nudging”, and “guiding” a multitude of people on a personal, daily, ongoing basis, why the Scriptures?
A careful and honest study of the words and content of the inspired sentence above clearly contradicts the claims of Holy Spirit guidance found among some in today’s world.
Note the word “witnesses”. It is a present active indicative verb. Because the present tense in the Greek language denotes a linear, ongoing action, an equally accurate translation would be “is witnessing/testifying”. In other words, the inspired penman is declaring that he and all his readers are the recipients of the Holy Spirit’s testimony.
Now note the contents of the Holy Spirit’s testimony. Verses 16 and 17 are a quotation of Jeremiah 31:33-34. The testimony/witness of the Holy Spirit did not come through a still, small voice, or nudge, or intuition, or goose bump. It was not “laid upon” someone’s heart. Its source is the written Scriptures.
Does the Holy Spirit witness today? Absolutely.
How does the Holy Spirit witness today? The same way He did in the first century—through the written word of God.
Hasn’t the Holy Spirit’s witness changed from then to now? NO! “Witnesses” (Hebrews 10:15) is as ongoing today as it was in the first century—when the Spirit-inspired men wrote it.
Because God’s word is forever settled (Psalm 119:89), the Holy Spirit’s witness today is precisely the same as it was when it was written by the holy writers of the Scriptures.
To claim that the Holy Spirit is like a divine ear bud which provides you with unique, ongoing information reeks of profuse personal arrogance and profound Bible ignorance.
