Does the Holy Spirit lead everyone to the thuth?

[Benadam]

Hi, the Holy Spirit reveals to individual persons the truth about individual persons. He leads the universal Church to uuniversal truth.The Church being a universal reality is lead in a way appropriate to it’s state. The Holy Spirit does lead people personally in that He will lead one to the revelation of their own heart in relation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

 

[Zooey]

The Holy Spirit does indeed lead everyone to the truth.
Being a Gentleman, however, He does** not** drag us all, kicking & screaming!!
He shows the way…If someone chooses to run as far & as fast as possible in the opposite direction, He, sadly but lovingly, allows this.
That’s part of what God is really like.
God bless all here.

 

[Thal59]

Greetings everyone,

I have been away for a while, having grown tired of the same old arguments. But I would like to chime in on this one.

Virtually every Christian I know claims the Holy Spirit is guiding them, but I have never seen a tongue of flame over anyone’s head. The next response is that they acknowledge the guidance of the Holy Spirit as an act of faith… One cannot expect the Holy Spirit to guide one if one does not believe He will.

But, pray to the Holy Spirit for knowledge regarding the life of Christ that is not contained in Scriptures and see how far you get. What I am saying is twofold:

1. The Holy Spirit does not waste blessings. Recall the parable of the sower who cast seed upon rocky ground, weed-strewn ground, and fertile ground. Seed has no chance to grow on rocky ground. It starts life amongst the weeds, but is quickly choked off. Only on fertile ground can it grow and produce fruit. Therefore, the Holy Spirit will not cast a blessing of guidance or truth upon someone whose heart is as stone, incapable of receiving that blessing. ( This is why many Protestants can never see Peter as the rock no matter how clear scripture is on it. They do not wish to accept that which will strengthen a Catholic claim so they have hardened their hearts to that truth. The Holy Spirit therefore will not give them the truth because they have already resolved in their hearts not to accept it.) In order for the Holy Spirit to guide someone, they must first be fertile to receive it - or else the blessing is wasted and God does not waste.
2. One must have a true “need to know.” Search and ye shall find, ask and it shall be answered, knock and it shall be opened. My experiences have shown that one must have a deep rooted need for such a truth, and this is demonstrated by the individual’s persistant searching for that truth over time. In other words, one must search and search, and ask and ask, and knock and knock. When one is in desperate need of the guidance and truth, the Holy Spirit is more apt to give it since the heart of the one in need is fertile; more apt to hold onto that gift and use it profitably.

Back to example one. If a Protestant is content with his theology, then he has no need to know the truth about Peter as the rock. Anything given to him, no matter how superbly rendered, is wasted.

It seems to me that the Holy Spirit expects us to do our homework. When we study, seek, search, ask, and knock, we gain much without requiring the Holy Spirit’s divine intervention. But at times, when what we have learned are like pieces of a puzzle and we can’t make them fit… then the Holy Spirit helps us put together what we have learned so we can see the bigger picture.

He will not give us the puzzle pieces we have not searched for… only the method for putting the ones we have together.

This is what I have learned.

Thal59

 

[runandsew]

God does Not answer any of my prayers.

Are you sure that God didn’t answer your prayers, or did he not give you the answer that you had hoped for?

He is not some genie in a bottle who will give you all your wishes.

God does answer all prayers, but the answer is his will, not ours.

 

[runandsew]

In John’s Gospel Jesus said "I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; " (John 16:12-13) Are there any examples of truths that the Holy Spirit led us to after Jesus ascended to heaven?

Yes, the council of Jerusalem was led by the Holy Spirit in their decision that circumcision was not necessary for Gentiles to become Christians.

Acts 15:27-29

We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth. For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell."