Have you ever heard someone say:
“The Spirit led me to . . .”
”God made it clear to me . . .”
”I felt the Lord saying to me . . .”
All of these catch-phrases are meant to indicate “the Spirit’s leading” in one’s life. People use it to explain (defend?) their decisions, actions, and way of doing things.
But did you know that the expression “led by the Spirit,” occurs only twice in the New Testament?
Romans 8:13-14: For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.
Galatians 5:16-18: So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
In each case, being led of the Spirit has to do with killing sin — refusing to gratify the desires of the flesh. In his helpful article, The Spirit Led Me To …, Mike Riccardi states,
If we are going to be relentlessly Biblical, this has to be the way we primarily understand and use that phrase: being led by the Spirit. “The Spirit led me to put off my anger and bitterness.” “The Spirit led me to mortify my lust for attention and recognition.” And so on.
But let’s face it. We rarely if ever hear someone say that they’re led of the Spirit in that sense. As I stated above, usually folks use that phrase to explain their own decisions and actions.
I do think there’s a little “wiggle room” here, if the phrase is used in a manner that’s consistent with the overall teaching of Scripture. For instance, Ephesians 6:18 says that we are to be “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” Sometimes as we’re praying, we truly sense the Holy Spirit prompting us to pray for a certain person or situation. Then afterwards we hear of how God used that prayer to accomplish his purpose in the lives of his people and glorify himself as a result. That would seem to be a legitimate understanding of the Spirit’s leading.
But in far too many cases, Christians are quick to claim, “The Spirit led me to . . . [fill in the blank]” — and that blank represents whatever they’re bent on doing. Riccardi writes,
Though the person might be sincere, this really is just scrambling for some authority to validate one’s own subjective gut-feelings and impressions. Instead, we should call them what they are: gut-feelings and impressions.
As Clint Archer points out, “personal experience is unsure, untouchable, and unverifiable.”
Unsure. No personal experience is trustworthy enough [in and of itself] to stake your soul on it.
Untouchable. Experiences are subjective, not open to critique. If someone questions your stance, you can simply reply, “I just know it was true.” End of discussion.
Unverifiable. Legitimizing one’s subjective impression as the Lord’s leading opens the door to using spiritual claims for selfish gains. “God told me so” becomes the ace in the hole. “Imagine a deacons’ meeting,” says Archer, “where one guy wants the carpet to be blue and the other prefers beige. The first one to say God sides with him wins.”
Scripture is our ultimate authority. Whenever our subjective impressions would lead us to do something that is out of line with Scripture, whether directly or indirectly by violating clear commands or principles of Christian prudence, then we’re being led by our gut, not by our God.
So let’s make sure that we’re being “led of the Spirit” in the way that the Lord intends, according to Scripture. Then we’ll be better Christians who bless others and bring glory to God.