The debate over the indwelling of the Holy Spirit – whether it is a literal indwelling or figurative – has been going on since almost the beginning of the Restoration Movement. Personally, I am convinced that the Bible teaches a literal indwelling of the Holy Spirit within Christians and I would like to discuss why in this and subsequent articles. But, before looking at any texts, I would like to make a few preliminary observations.
First, there is nothing that would make a literal indwelling of the Holy Spirit impossible. The Bible places no such restriction on the Spirit and for us to insist on the impossibility of a literal indwelling is to stand on nothing more than our own authority. If we are convinced that the Bible teaches a literal indwelling of the Holy Spirit, then we should believe and teach a literal indwelling. Likewise, if it is shown to be the clear teaching of Scripture that the Holy Spirit does not literally, but only figuratively dwell within the believer, then that should be our belief and teaching.
Second, whether or not we understand how it is possible for the Holy Spirit to indwell us is beside the point – we simply want to know if God tells us that the Spirit indwells us. There are many things I do not fully understand, but I still believe they are true because the Bible teaches them. We should not at all be surprised when we do not fully understand God – after all, He is God and we are but men. As Moses declared in Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”
Third, we cannot be reactionary and allow fear of errors (whether of Calvinists or Charismatics) to determine our beliefs. Yes, there is error taught in regard to the Holy Spirit just as there is error taught about practically every doctrine of the Church. There is always a temptation to overreact to one error and find ourselves in the opposite error, but that is a temptation we must studiously avoid. Our task is not to define ourselves against others, but to define ourselves by exactly what the Bible teaches.
Fourth, it is a good rule of thumb to remember that the more obvious and “on the surface” an understanding of the text is, the more likely it is to be the correct understanding. Likewise, if an understanding of the text is subtle or requires fine-grained arguments and re-writing of the text, it is likely to be wrong. Take Acts 2:38 for example. We insist that “for the forgiveness of sins” means exactly that and rightly call out attempts to make the text say something else. I suggest we take the same approach to texts such as Romans 8:9–11 and 1 Corinthians 6:19–20.
Finally, the slogan “Let us say Bible things in Bible ways” contains wisdom. The Bible says that “the Spirit of God dwells in you” and that “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you.” I am happy to use the phrases precisely as given in the Bible without any qualifications.
Nevertheless, the question of whether such phrases are to be taken in their plain sense or modified with qualifications cannot be avoided. In subsequent articles, Lord willing, I would like to explain why I am convinced that a plain, unqualified understanding of such phrases as “the Spirit of God dwells in you” is the correct understanding of the text.
Studies in the Bible 