Before beginning this article let me clarify that I firmly accept and promote the fact that the Eternal and Loving Creator DOES gently guide those that seek Him. One may be far from understanding truth; however, as long as he or she hungers and thirsts for it, God will lead them in their search. God draws near to those that sincerely and continuously strive to draw near to Him. I personally DO believe that there ARE examples of legitimate audible, visual, and maybe even physical contact with Holy Spirit commanded divine beings and do NOT wish anyone to think I discard ALL such occurrences as being illegitimate. I believe ALL spiritual gifts are available today, which actually places me in somewhat of a "charismatic" reference frame. This article is not specifically addressing such forms of Spiritual guidance, though I feel they may often be wrongly interpreted as YHVH inspired. The subject of this discussion is generally limited to those that claim "Spiritually revealed" knowledge and that allow their personal bias to dictate subsequent understanding. One does not have to be a brilliant Biblical scholar to obtain Holy Spirit guidance. In fact, I personally believe a wall full of Seminary degrees may lessen the likelihood of the Holy Spirit leading one to truth. God has always chosen the lowly and meek of the world as His personal emissaries, and I don't see much evidence that God has changed.
I also firmly believe Scripture presents a physical/spiritual parallel. The Holy Scriptures are FILLED with implicit spiritual teachings. I also feel that the Holy Spirit DOES assist us in finding truth. As you read what follows, please remember I am NOT reducing the spiritual intent of Scripture. Where I draw the line is when someone consistently presents their own personal "spiritually revealed" opinion as though it is straight from the mouth of God.
I also want to specify that when I say "Scriptures" in this article I am referring ONLY to the Tanakh, which most irreverently call the "Old" Testament, and the Apostolic writings, which most refer to as the "New" Testament. I do not and will not accept anything else as being "Scriptures." Those that feel the Scriptures as just defined do not furnish enough information for finding truth either simply have never read the Scriptures (which is usually the case) and/or have not studied them with enough devotion to find the truth that is clearly present.
There are groups that add their own "scriptures" to the True Scriptures. I do not judge them or even oppose them as long as their "scriptures" do not conflict with the Holy Scriptures and as long as they do not twist the true Holy Scriptures to fit their extra-biblical "scriptures," which they consider equally binding as Holy Scripture or more binding. There are a number of excellent writings available that help explain some aspects of the Holy Writings; however, such writings can never achieve a status higher that commentary and are always subject to the true Scriptures. Some may be inspired commentary, but under no circumstances should they be considered "Holy Scriptures." Also, these additional texts are not necessary to understand the TRUE faith of the Hebraic followers of Yeshua the Messiah (jesus the christ), and I am convinced those that believe otherwise are walking on thin ice in danger of breaking through into the cold, dark waters of cunningly devised and seductive demonic deception.
Though they deny it, generally all organizations that add their own "scriptures" to the true Scriptures actually elevate their "scriptures" above the true Holy Writings. They put the true Scriptures in subjection to their extra-biblical "scriptures;" thus promoting that the true Scriptures are inferior to their preferred "sacred texts." I have seen this in the Seventh Day Adventists church regarding the writings of Ellen White and within the Mormon community regarding their additional "sacred writings." This dangerous and flagrant error of adding to the traditional Holy Writings is specifically prohibited within those very Holy Scriptures. Despite this, many the world over shamelessly add whatever the "spirit" or their "prophet" leads them to include as "Holy Scripture."
Read my article on "What is True Holy Scripture" to discover my personal opinion on this issue and why I actually consider the Tanakh to be the ONLY pure "Holy Scripture" and the New Testament to be what all authors of the New Testament considered it to be, which is inspired commentary that is subject to the ultimate truths of the Tanakh. If you disagree with this then your disagreement is with the very writers of the New Testament, not with me. I simply do as they say, not as ignorant unHebraic pastors say. I prove this in the article just referenced.
Within this article I will discuss a disturbing personal observation I've had since starting this web site. Though I've been aware of the problem for many years, it took on new dimensions once I began to openly express my opinion of Truth, a work that necessarily includes scrutinizing the teachings of others more than I had done before.
A question for those that accept the Holy Scriptures as inspired by the Living God:
What is the ultimate source of truth?
To some this may be rather simplistic question. Surely everyone with basic knowledge of the Holy Writings knows that it is those very Holy Writings that are the ultimate truth. Obviously everyone realizes that ALL matters of faith and practice are to be judged based upon what the Scriptures teach. Right?
Wrong! There are a lot of people that do NOT accept the Holy Scriptures as the final, ultimate, absolute authority. In fact, I've discovered that many alleged "teachers" do NOT consider the Holy Bible to be the ultimate authority. Worse still, some are blatant in stating such and condemn others that place absolute authority in the Scriptures! Later I will describe a classic example of this.
So what do they consider the ultimate source? Answer: They believe the "Spirit" that is allegedly "guiding" them is more authoritative than the written Word. Of course, they often try their best to hide this fact behind shallow expressions of the "authority of the Scriptures" - shallow because they usually reveal within their writings that the Scriptures is actually not what they really consider the absolute authority. The truth of the matter is, since there is no way one can prove that his or her personal bias is "Spirit revealed" without using Scripture, what they actually consider the ultimate authority is THEMSELVES!
Those like myself, who promote the Scriptures as the ultimate authority and intentionally avoid potentially profaning the Eternal One through flippant claims of direct divine inspiration, can always prove whether or not our understanding is given by the Spirit by simply comparing what we believe to Scripture. However, if the "Spirit guided" individuals do this they prove by their use of Scripture to verify their beliefs that they are wrong to believe the "Spirit" is the ultimate authority. Therefore, their standard tactic is to claim Scriptural guidance for the doctrines they hold that are supported from Scripture and "Holy Spirit guidance" for those doctrines that are not. They insists, however, that their "Spirit revealed" knowledge is just as binding as what is found in Scripture.
These "Spirit guided" individuals also negatively judge those like myself as being too "intellectual" because I consider the Scriptures to be the final authority. Believe it or not I am often condemned as taking too much of an "intellectual" or "logical" approach to Scripture. So "Spirit guided" individuals feel those that place absolute authority in Scripture and seek ultimate truth from intense and continued study of those Scriptures are "lacking the Spirit." It is very strange to me how these self-anointed "Spirit filled" believers can negatively judge those of us that pursue a continued Scriptural search for truth. How can one study Scripture too much? Why is an intellectual (study based), common sense grasp of the Holy Writings within the Hebraic context in which they were written bad? How can increasing one's knowledge of Scripture and use of a common sense application of that knowledge to form a basis of truth be judged as "lacking the Spirit?"
Those clinging to their "Spirit revealed" understanding are usually the ones that are lacking. They lack an "intellectual" (knowledge from study) grasp of what the Holy Writings teach and are too proud to admit their ignorance. Or they discard common sense and eject from discussions using unsupported "spirit revealed" understanding, "mystery" or "Kabbalah" arguments. To cover their ignorance or lack of common sense they claim "Spirit" guidance as they proclaim their personal opinions.
It has also been my observation that these "Spirit guided" individuals often resist study of the Hebraic context in which ALL Scripture was written. They also generally resist the study of Torah (Divine instructions given in Genesis - Deuteronomy), as though Torah study is of little value! Friend, such a mind set borders on blasphemy! By implying Torah study from the Hebraic context in which it was written is not worth their time they are literally implying the teachings (Torah = teaching or instruction) of God are of little value! Such people are what Scripture calls FOOLS!
Anyone that claims, "the Spirit showed me," "God spoke to me," "I discern by the Spirit of Yahweh" or any of the other means by which the "Spirit" is dragged into the discussion, immediately looses my respect unless they can back up their opinion with the written Word of the Living God. I instantly become suspect of one's teaching when he/she claims that their beliefs are "Spirit revealed" truths. More often than not, I quickly discover areas of their "Spirit revealed" knowledge to be contradictory to Scripture. Of course, since they consider their revelations to be the ultimate source of knowledge, they will ignore or twist any contradictory Scripture so that their personal opinion will stand.
Few things disgust me more than for the Holy Spirit to be profaned or flippantly used as a theatric prop by those that wish others to accept their personal understanding of Scripture as though they are a divine mouthpiece of God. Unfortunately, such irreverent assumption has become a standard practice even among those that purport to believe the Scripture to be the final authority. Many promote the authority of Scripture ONLY so long as a proper contextual reading of Scripture does not conflict with their beliefs. Once it does conflict, they excuse their Scripturally unsubstantiated teachings by claiming they are being "led by the Spirit" to believe as they do.
Here is the problem.
Individuals form a firm opinion, which is often an entire mind set governing their outlook on numerous specific doctrines.
Everything they study is filtered through their already biased mind set; therefore, if their foundational understanding is wrong, all subsequent teachings that spring from their embryonic bias are doomed to error. The Calvinistic foundational dogma of "total depravity" is a perfect example of this and is discussed in the article that talks of how Christianity forces Messiah to be God. It is also illustrated in a slide show that exposes the demonic foundation of Calvinism and, specifically, the "once saved, always saved" doctrine.
Once this biased mind set solidifies, they become unyielding, extremely self-exalting, and defensive of their "Spiritually discerned" beliefs.
Their unyielding opinion grows to extreme, self-exalting stubbornness - a stiff-necked, arrogant resistance to any contradiction to their "Spirit led" understanding. This unchanging nature is enhanced once their views are preached, published in written form or through the world-wide-web, or in some other way publicly distributed. As their credibility investment grows, so does their stiff-necked attitude and the likelihood they will NEVER change their minds, regardless of how much common sense Scriptural reasoning is used to reveal their error.
The true Spirit does not force Himself upon you, despite the false "irresistible grace" teachings of Calvinism. If you block His influence with personal bias and pride, you implicitly place your opinion or mind set above His. The Holy Spirit will let you worship whomever you wish; therefore, if you want to worship yourself He will not stop you. FREEWILL is given in your choice of whom you choose to follow - yourself, or the unchanging truth of the Holy Spirit written in the Scriptures.
"Spirit guided" individuals may sometimes actually experience supernatural contact with a "spirit guide" that supposedly verifies their beliefs. This may take the form of visions, dreams, voices, or even physical manifestations. These things DO happen folks. If you scoff at this and consider it impossible, you are VERY much mistaken! One of the primary reasons why Satan can successfully send seductive spirits of deception is because too few people take this immense and tragic problem seriously. Satan realizes mankind prefers the easy road to "truth" of spirit guidance instead of the tried-and-true and ONLY sure road, which is a lifelong study of the TRUE Holy Scriptures. Satan knows of mankind's lusts for "spiritual" contacts; therefore, he willingly satisfies that lust with his messengers disguised as "angels of light."
Few people understand or consider the unparalleled talents of deception, trickery, and seduction possessed by Satan.
NOTE: As I stated at the start of this aritcle, I personally DO believe that there ARE examples of legitimate audible, visual, and maybe even physical contact with Holy Spirit commanded divine beings and do NOT wish anyone to think I discard ALL such occurrences as being illegitimate. I believe ALL spiritual gifts are available today, which actually places me in somewhat of a "charismatic" reference frame. The problem is that almost everyone that I have known to have had such experiences always assumes their experience is or was with authentic divine messengers. I rarely come across anyone that encountered such "spirit guidance" that truly considers that perhaps the "spirit" that guided them was a spirit of deception. Their elation, emotional ecstasy, and feeling of being "special" deadens and disarms their spiritual senses. Let me again state that I firmly believe legitimate Holy Spirit guidance and revelation is possible; however, it NEVER contradicts Scripture, and I also personally feel it never adds unscriptural "truths" to Scripture.
It is even worse when naive people blindly follow others that claim to experience such spiritual contacts. I say "naive" because the exact same situations are present in deeply occult and Satanic faiths. But, of course, the naive "spirit guided" people or followers of others that have contact with otherworldly spirits always accuse the "other guys" of having come under occult influences and NEVER consider that perhaps THEY are the ones being grossly and dangerously led astray.
IMPORTANT POINT: The TRUE Holy Spirit confirms or helps one to understand the Scripture, but I believe He does NOT add to them, because there is no need to. He may also guide one in their daily walk or service, which is a different function of the Creator's Spirit. Guidance of ones daily, physical life, is different than guiding one's interpretation of Scripture. I believe the Holy Spirit will do both, but the performance of one does not infer the other. Daily guidance in life and daily guidance in the study of Scripture are not necessarily mutually inclusive. In addition, one cannot ASSUME that their actions or Scriptural interpretations are a result of that guidance.
The Holy Spirit GENTLY GUIDES. He does not FORCE! We all have freedom of choice as to whether or not we will follow His guidance, which is MOST often accomplished THROUGH THE HOLY SCRIPTURE! Sometimes Holy Spirit guidance is difficult to determine. The ONLY sure way to determine if what we perceive as guidance is from the Holy Spirit is through proper contextual study of Scripture.
Ultimately, one must realize that the details of how YHVH's Spirit works in our lives are impossible for the human mind to decipher. Anyone that claims to fully understand the workings of the Holy Spirit of our Creator is either very poorly taught or infinitely arrogant and full of "self" glory.
When pressed for proof, some of the more honest "spirit guided" individuals will openly admit that their beliefs cannot be supported from Scripture; however, their lack of Scriptural backing does not deter them from firmly believing or teaching whatever they wish. It amazes me how even though they admit a lack of Scriptural support they often emphatically express that their beliefs cannot be changed and that they are certain they are correct because it was "spiritually revealed" to them! The irreverence shown the Eternal God and His inspired Scripture as "spirit guided" individuals proclaim "spiritual inspiration" for their personal opinions is repulsively shocking. This is particularly true of leaders that knowingly teach unscriptural doctrines as though they came straight from the mouth of God, since the Scriptures clearly warn teachers are more strictly judged and held to a higher standard. However, such warnings have little affect on them as they continue to promote teachings that even they often confess have no Scriptural support. Such is a sadly typical attitude "spirit guided" individuals exhibit.
How does one recognize those that utilize false "spirit guidance?"
I discuss elsewhere on this web site how "Hebraic" thought is not necessarily the same as "Judaic" or "Jewish" thought.
Most that claim Torah is abolished or of little importance do so with virtually no understanding of what Torah is. This is almost always the case within Constantinian Christianity as Christian leaders preach against the relevance of Torah without having every really studied it in-depth! They shamelessly blaspheme God's eternal teachings from a position of blatant and fearless ignorance. Christians and Christian leaders are grossly ignorant of Torah, yet do not hesitate to vigorously defame it.
I have often suggested to various "Spirit guided" individuals that they study Torah. They respond that they are "filled with the Spirit" and have no need to study Torah because the "Spirit" instructs them. I have asked them if they ever have taken part in in-depth study of Torah. With few exceptions they haven't and usually refuse to respond to the question. I have suggested they consider purchasing various Hebraic study aids, such as Torah commentaries, so that they can grasp the HEBRAIC foundations of YHVH's eternal teachings (Torah). They generally do not want to "waste their time or money" on such things. So they reveal their ignorance of Truth by either ignoring my questions, stating they do not consider Torah study important, or revealing their defective logic and underlying anti-Semitism by arguing "if Torah study is so useful the Jews would not have rejected Messiah." One way or another they show basic ignorance of Torah and an anti-Torah and anti-Hebraic mentality.
Most of those that reject study of Torah and Hebraic thought do so because it causes them to confront the fact that they may not be as knowledgeable of Scripture as they think or wish others to believe. Religious "leaders" are threatened by the possibility that they may need to unlearn much of what they know and return to the basics. This realization suddenly places them in the "lower echelon" of being a student instead of a teacher, which is something their pride will not allow them to accept. This confrontation with their own ignorance is not something most "Spirit led" individuals wish to do; therefore, they excuse away the need to study Torah or Hebraic thought. What they are actually doing, however, is running from the fact that they are more ignorant than they wish to admit - something their self-centered egos will not allow. Think about it. How many "Spirit led" leaders do you honestly feel would admit that they may need to scrap much of their beliefs and undertake a renewed search for truth? Such a realization would instantly remove them from the status of "leader" or "teacher." It may also mean they would have to resign their profitable leadership positions with all the perks that go along with it. VERY few would do this. This is actually a primary reason Constantinian Christians do not accept much of what we present. Their pride and/or careers will not allow them to sincerely acknowledge their own ignorance.
I state elsewhere in my article on Hebraic thought that if one does not study Scripture from the Hebraic context in which it was written, he or she is guaranteed to wrongly interpret it. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it, unless one understands foundational Hebraic thought and then uses the lessons learned to interpret Scripture, he or she has absolutely no hope of properly understanding the deeper truths of Scripture - or even some of the basics. I will not waste time arguing with those that deny this obvious common sense fact. I've tried in the past and finally realized the spirit of anti-Semitism and arrogance has too strong a foothold in their soul. If you wish further explanation for my opinion please read the article linked to above. The primary point is that "Spirit guided" individuals claim the "Spirit" reveals all they need to know; therefore, they see no need to undertake such "intellectual" pursuits.
Scripture unambiguously teaches that Torah is the "mark" of God. Apathy or opposition towards the study of Torah is proof that one is NOT being lead by the Holy Spirit!
In fact, it is among the clearest proofs for the influence of the "spirit of delusion" that one can find. Instead of "Holy Spirit" guidance, those that oppose or resist Torah study are willfully accepting and promoting the mark of the Beast and being lead by the "spirit" of the Beast. I find it extremely difficult to believe how anyone that denigrates HEBRAIC based Torah study can possibly be under the influence of the TRUE "Holy Spirit" - the same Holy Spirit that authored Torah! Yet the world is full of allegedly "inspired" teachers that resist study of Torah and the Biblical Hebraic context.
Those that consistently claim "Spirit guidance" place themselves on the Throne of YHVH by implicitly (sometimes explicitly) claiming to be His anointed mouthpiece. To them, whatever opinion they form is a "thus sayeth the LORD" truth. They do not seem to realize that the positions of G-d and Messiah are already taken and that they hold neither of those positions. They truly do consider themselves "anointed," though they usually dare not voice this for fear their arrogance will be exposed. They are infected with a Messiah complex, thinking themselves to be Divinely anointed as the spokesman of the Holy Spirit. They are tragically full of "self" glorification and consistenly promote their "self" centered opinions to be direct Spiritual enlightenment, even if they have no Scriptural support.
I will NOT allow anyone to try and elbow their way onto G-d's Throne and will oppose it with all the energy I possess! This is one issue on which I will not compromise. Those that consider their Scripturally unsubstantiated "Spirit revealed" knowledge to be equal to, or superior to (as is often the case) Scripture represent the most self-centered and deluded humans on the face of the earth. They are a legend (or prophet) in their own mind and honestly feel that rejection of their "spiritually revealed" knowledge is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit; therefore, they literally equate themselves to G-d! This is one of a few issues for which I give no refuge to compromise.
I am generally tolerant of the opinions of others, but when those opinions are presented as "Spiritually revealed" Divine knowledge without Scriptural support, my tolerance abruptly ends, and I passionately defend the ULTIMATE authority of Scripture! History is littered with anti-Semitism, anti-Hebraism, and false doctrines spawned from the "spiritually revealed" teachings of an individual or group that present themselves as G-d's anointed spokesmen while reducing the supreme authority of Scripture. I will oppose such a mind set all the way to my grave and do all I can to prevent it from flourishing.
One excellent example I have personally encountered of the tragic nature of allowing yourself to feel you are being "Spirit" led to Truth apart from Scripture involves a man that was once closely affiliated with the SHeMA Bulletin Board community and a site ring I once managed. I do not wish to divulge the name of the individual or his site since I agree with much that he promotes and do not wish to spread "evil talk" about someone who appears to wish to spread truth as he knows it. Nevertheless, within that person's web site are constant references to the "Spirit of Yahweh," "Yahweh's Mindset," and many other similar references to direct Spirit guidance with which he feels himself to be endowed. On the Bulletin Board he started a topic to discuss the issue of which should be the ULTIMATE authority one uses to determine Truth, Scripture or "Spirit guidance." His unyielding position is that his "Yahweh Mindset" should take precedence over proper Hebraic contextual study of Scripture. Everyone involved, myself included, agree that the Spirit of our blessed Creator guides us as we seek Truth; however, to the dismay of that individual, the overwhelming majority disagreed with his opinion that his personal feelings of spirit guidance should take authority OVER Scripture. And the majority of us voiced our opinion that a proper contextual interpretation of Scripture is the ULTIMATE and FINAL authority on all matters of faith and practice.
Here is the irony of the situation. That individual who insists he is filled with the "Spirit of Yahweh" feels that the Holy Spirit is the ULTIMATE source of truth instead of Scripture. Ok. Let's assume he is correct. Then, when numerous people, all of whom believe in the guidance of the Holy Spirit, reached a majority opinion regarding a topic, shouldn't the majority opinion have ruled? Of course! In fact, that is precisely what is meant when we are told to "test the spirits." Well, not so for that individual. He believes in testing the spirits as long as it is not the "spirit" he claims to be guiding him that is tested! He feels his "spirit guidance" is beyond testing.
Despite the fact that an overwhelming majority disagreed with him, all of whom believe and pray that they are under Holy Spirit guidance in their Scriptural interpretations, he bitterly rejected the majority view. Therefore, proof was irrefutably established that what he actually considered the ultimate authority was HIS opinion. Remember, he forcefully rejected the MAJORITY opinion of others who also felt THEY were being lead by the Spirit in their interpretations! So, it was proven that he DID feel he had superior "Spirit guidance," which proved him to be dangerously self-exalting. He clearly revealed his TRUE self - a self that worships "self" and lets "self-will" determine all that he believes, even to the point of overruling Scripture! That self-glorification situation is a primary issue discussed in this article.
The story did not stop there. That individual was so enraged by the "rejection" of his authority, that he undertook a treacherous effort to undermine SHeMA. (Note what I just said, "enraged by the rejection of his authority." That is a PRIMARY characteristic of those that claim "Spirit Guidance." They are very offended when their "Spirit filled" opinions are rejected. They strongly covet authority and harbor deep resentment for those that do not honor their desire.) Among his devious actions, he utilized special Bulletin Board moderator privileges to ransack the Bulletin Board, deleting all references to the topic he started, which included posts by others that he deleted without their consent, as well as other posts he placed on the Board that revealed his true heart. Why did he do this? His motivation was clearly to "cover his tracks," to erase all evidence of his self-exalting nature. As if that was not enough, he posted a "description" of his web site on the Site Ring I managed that was actually a blatant attack on the principles it promoted. I was forced to remove him from both the Site Ring and the Bulletin Board.
There was another web site that was once affiliated with that site ring (By the way, this web site was recommended to me to accept into the Site Ring by the individual I just discussed.) When the author of that site publicly exhibited fierce resentment towards those who dared to disagree with his Scriptural understanding, a bitter and oppressive demand for agreement from others, lust for "respect," and an anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist heart, I exercised my authority as manager of the site ring by terminating his membership. After threatening to take legal action, (yes, he was so hate-crazed that he actually wanted to sue me!) he next completely revamped his site to include diatribes in which he accuses those who disagree with him of "blaspheming" the "Spirit" that he insists dwells fully within him. (I firmly believe a "spirit" was within him, but not the "Spirit" he claims. No true Holy Spirit would induce the bitterness he displayed.) For a while he prominently displayed on his revised site a viciously slanderous attack aimed directly and publicly at me, but he eventually removed it. He also publicly distributed emails in which I was verbally crucified. I suppose he felt "spirit lead" to try and destroy me. Unfortunately, I sinned by wrongly allowing him to lure me into the battle, which I should have resisted. His site now bounces from one extreme to the other (Scriptural proof vs. "Spirit revealed" truth) depending upon whether or not his opinions have legitimate Scriptural support. He is a perfect example of what this article discusses; however, I know of others who are just as bad or almost as bad.
One of the worst cases of literal "spirit guidance" I have ever personally encountered involved a young man that was convinced the Holy Spirit was guiding him. This "spirit guide" literally talked with him. Strangely, despite his professed "guidance" he declined my request to discuss the issue of the alleged deity of Messiah using only the Scriptures and NEVER responded to the common sense evidence I present. He preferred to mix the discussion with mysticism and "divine revelations" he felt he had experienced and which biased his Scriptural interpretations. It seems to me, if the spirit guiding him were truly the Holy Spirit, he would not flee Scriptural discussions. Such fear of confrontation from Scripture is evidence that the spirit guiding him may have been from a different source.
In the few email conversations we had he openly suggested that to reject him was to reject God! This is typical of those that arrogantly suggest the Holy Spirit is guiding them. He felt anyone that disagreed with him was blaspheming the Holy Spirit. In short, he had implicitly - actually explicitly - elevated himself to modern-day prophet status. Though he never stated it, I sincerely feel this person considered himself a sort of Messiah (anointed) figure. It was scary, and I have no doubt that he truly was in communication with a "spirit." He also became extremely offended with any disagreement since he felt disagreement with him was the same as disagreeing with God! This is another typical characteristic of "spirit lead" individuals. Again, IF the Holy Spirit guides one he/she would welcome Scriptural debate. Only those that fear what is taught in Scripture avoid Scriptural based discussions. No one will ever be able to convince me that the "Holy Spirit" discourages study of the Scripture to verify truth, since that very Holy Spirit (if it is the true HS) authored the Scriptures.
I hasten to add this young man and his wife exhibited a true and uncommon love for YHVH, and I do not doubt for a second their sincerity. My doubt concerns their dependence upon this otherworldly spirit guide and the way in which they appeared to elevate their revelations above the clear Word. In virtually all cases where someone claims the "Spirit" is leading them to accept what they believe, they are actually misinterpreting their biased feelings as being some sort of "Spirit" guidance. Or, in the case of the young man, they are allowing a supernatural messenger to largely dictate their faith.
I am constantly dismayed at how often people mistake their own strong PERSONAL convictions or bias as being Holy Spirit guidance. It is quite evident that many people lack the capability to discern their own human "feelings" or strong OPINIONS from Holy Spirit guidance. The Holy Spirit is blamed for countless differing beliefs.
You may recall that in Acts 17:11 the Bereans were praised as being "noble" NOT because they were basing their knowledge of truth on "spirit guidance", but because they "searched the Scriptures daily (KJV)".
Sha'ul (Paul) very clear teaches us that even if a messenger from heaven (angel - a spirit) was to reveal to us what is not taught in Scripture it should be accursed. This admonition destroys the notion that "spirit guidance" is to take precedence over the absolute authority of Scripture.
Sha'ul, as well as numerous other Biblical authors, clearly shows that study of the Scriptures is THE road to truth.
As I point out in the previously mentioned article that discusses what is true Holy Scripture, the "Scripture" to which Sha'ul refers is undeniably proven to be the Tanakh (Old Testament), a fact that is a surprise to Constantinian Christians and angrily rejected by most of them. It is those Scriptures (NOT the "New Testament"), the Hebraic Tanakh, that is "able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Messiah Yeshua." There is nothing in those Scriptures that suggest we need additional writings, regardless of the presumptuous and false arguments of those within various groups that wish us to believe otherwise. I hope someday such people actually put down their extra-biblical "spirit inspired scriptures," pick up the TRUE Holy Scriptures, and put aside their bias as they search for truth.
With the exception of the contact with an otherworldly spirit guide, the examples I presented above are actually rather typical. It is very revealing how few individuals ever attempt to refute common sense Scriptural reasoning using Scripture or study from a Hebraic context. Instead, they often tell us "the Spirit" is convincing them. In fact, this is a primary situation which prevents others from studying with us. Most are convinced the "Spirit" is leading them, despite their lack of Scriptural support. It seems unlikely the "Spirit" would contradict Scripture or resist the study of Scripture. I am convinced the true Holy Spirit tirelessly and constantly encourages the study of Scripture and NEVER discourages it.
Let me end this by restating my original position: I firmly accept and promote the fact that the Eternal and Loving Creator DOES gently guide those that seek Him. One may be far from understanding truth; however, as long as he or she hungers and thirsts for it, God will lead them in their search. God draws near to those that sincerely and continuously strive to draw near to Him. I personally DO believe that there ARE examples of legitimate audible, visual, and maybe even physical contact with Holy Spirit commanded divine beings and do NOT wish anyone to think I discard ALL such occurrences as being illegitimate. I believe ALL spiritual gifts are available today, which actually places me in somewhat of a "charismatic" reference frame. This article was not specifically addressing such forms of Spiritual guidance, though I feel they may often be wrongly interpreted as YHVH inspired. The subject of this discussion was generally limited to those that claim "Spiritually revealed" knowledge and that allow their personal bias to dictate subsequent understanding.
I also firmly believe Scripture presents a physical/spiritual parallel. The Holy Scriptures are FILLED with implicit spiritual teachings. The Holy Spirit DOES assist us in finding truth. Please remember I am NOT reducing the spiritual intent of Scripture. Where I draw the line is when someone consistently presents their own personal "spiritually revealed" opinion as though it is straight from the mouth of God, especially when they have no Scriptural substantiation for their claim and when they conspicuously refrain from pointing out that it is their opinion and is subject to error.
Those that feel they possess "spiritually revealed" knowledge deny their imperfection, elevate their "revealed" knowledge ABOVE Scripture, and therefore place themselves on God's Throne. That is a mind set that I will not allow to go unchallenged.