The Witness of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit abides in us to reveal what is true and what is false. He speaks with a still, small voice, deep within the heart. Many of our holy forefathers believed in this operation of the Spirit within believers. They preached much about “having the witness.” I don’t hear this truth being preached much anymore. In fact, the witness of the Spirit is virtually unheard of in most churches today!

Believers need the Spirit’s witness as never before, and we’re going to need it more and more as the day of the Lord draws near. Satan has come brazenly as an angel of light to deceive, if it were possible, the very elect of God (see Matthew 24:23-25). His evil seductions are going to flourish in the form of false doctrines and false teachers.

If you sink into sin and do not confess it or deal with it, your heart will start feeding you a steady stream of lies. You’ll hear teachings that make you at ease in your sin. You’ll think, “My problem couldn’t be that bad. I don’t feel convicted.” However, you will be totally led astray. Isaiah speaks of a people who went out claiming to desire the true counsel of God. They said, “Let him make speed and hasten his work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, that we may know it” (Isaiah 5:19).

These people had deceit in their hearts, and they ended up perverted in all their counsel. Sin had perverted their judgment. As a result, they weren’t able to discern evil. The things that were holy and pure, they called unrighteous. Isaiah said of them, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).

When your peace is disturbed, you can be sure the Holy Ghost is speaking to you. When your spirit is troubled and there’s a shaking and turmoil deep inside, God is telling you that something is false. You will feel his grief and anger. The Spirit’s inner witness operates on the “principle of peace.” The peace of God is the greatest thing you can have.

When it comes to God giving you direction — that is, the still, small voice that tells you what to do and where to go — he will not operate in an unclean vessel. Let the Spirit speak to you to correct you; he will deal with sin in your life.