Jn. 7:39 But This He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. (NKJV)
In my previous post on this subject (Part I) I contended that this verse "cannot be properly understood apart from appreciating the historical context, the Feast of Tabernacles and the part that this Feast played in the whole year long drama of feasts, which formed the God ordained context in which Jesus' and John's words were spoken." Consequently I there developed a view of the three God ordained festivals which punctuated the Israelite calendar year as being revelational of God's decree of salvation: Atonement and the dividing of a people unto Himself (Passover), the harvest of the First Fruit (Jesus) and the first fruits (initial Jewish Christians) (Pentecost/Weeks) and the glorious "ingathering" of all the saints in the final harvest (Tabernacles).
In this post I wish to distinguish how to understand the clause "for the Holy Spirit was not yet given" in the context of the revelational content of the feasts.
Cross Posted at Theologica
There are many lay Christians and some theologians who maintain that the Holy Spirit did not indwell and regenerate people in the Old Testament dispensation as He does in the New Testament times. (cf. Gary Fredricks, Rethinking The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Lives of Old Testament Believers, Trinity J. 9-1, Spr. 88 for a fine synopsis of the various views). Often in casual conversation, usually with a layperson, you will hear a comment that almost seems to excuse David's failures, or Sampson's, by asserting "Well, they didn't have the Holy Spirit back then."
One who thinks along these line will quickly conclude that in Jn. 7:39 John is clearly indicating that the disciples who stood with Jesus had not yet been regenerated or "saved" in the same sense that Christians in the Post-Pentecost Church age are. Yet there is that troublesome initial clause that clearly identifies that John was speaking of "those believing in Him (who) would receive" the Holy Spirit subsequent to this statement. Some might wish to say that John was referring not to the immediate crowd as being "believers" but rather to the ones who would believe after Jesus' glorification. These folk might wish to translate the sentence this way "which those who would believe would receive" rather than as it is.
I do not think such a translation is tenable based on the pure mechanics of the underlying text. The force of the original language clearly indicates that John was speaking of a group gathered about Jesus who actually believed and who would one day receive the Holy Spirit .
But it is clear that John is telling us, that in some fashion, the Holy Spirit was not yet given and would be given subsequently. How might that be understood?
First, I think we have to distinguish between two operations or better, two levels of operation of the Holy Spirit.
There is first, His "hidden" or "private" work of individual regeneration. If, as we earnestly believe, all men are born dead in their sins and incapable of any meritorious work commending them to God unto salvation, then some serious reworking of our soul, will, thoughts and emotions must be undertaken before any man will draw near to Christ. Here I am not necessarily refuting the idea of prevenient grace, but I am pointing out the magnitude of the work that must be done in any man before he is able to believe. Whether New Testament or Old, the reality of the situation is that Abraham, David, Isaiah and all the other great forebears in the Faith (cf. Heb. 11) must have had the work of the Holy Spirit present in them unto salvation else they would not be held up for our emulation by Paul and the other apostles (cf. Rom. 4:1-12). If their faith was in any way different than ours then Paul and the writer of the Hebrews would not be able to advance their arguments for salvation through faith alone as they did.
Thus, Old Testament or New, it seems inescapable that the origination of faith, unto the end of believing, is through the work of the Holy Spirit and unto the end of salvation. Abraham was saved by faith even as we and therefore, Abraham had the Holy Spirit working in Him unto that end.
If such is admitted then those "believers" standing around Jesus already did have the Holy Spirit present in them. Yet, He was not yet "given." So, it remains that there must be some difference in the "giving" of the Holy Spirit between the two dispensations. What might that be?
Which brings us to the second level of operation of the Holy Spirit (among many, second for this line of reasoning), His "public" work.
Clearly the fulfilment of the implied promise of the Holy Spirit contained in the words of Jesus which John interprets for us, is the outpouring we see in Acts 2 during the Feast of Pentecost. There we see Peter interpreting the events in terms of Joel 2 - I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Now notice that this prophesy of Joel speaks to "all flesh" or "all people groups" which certainly meant that ethnic Israel was not to be the sole beneficiary. Peter understands the missional implications of the prophecy being fulfilled. The tongues of fire which rested on the disciples had equipped them to "prophesy" and that speaking was heard by the gathered listeners as being intelligible in their own native language.
Now this brings us to the feast of Pentecost. As I said in my last post, we need to remember that it was the celebration of the first harvest, the first fruits. People from all over the world gathered in Jerusalem and such was the case during this day of fulfillment. If you look at the list of nations represented in Acts 2:7-11 you will see that for all practical purposes the entire Roman empire, which meant the entire world to people of that day, was represented. Jews who had been raised in Asia, Egypt, Italy and the other nations, who had been raised with those dialects as their first language, heard the news of Jesus Christ and were gladdened. What it meant was that now, they could go back and speak to their kinsmen and their neighbors, in their home language. Now, the word of Jesus Christ was not limited to Koine Greek or Aramaic or Hebrew. There were no longer any barriers or race or ethnicity to the Gospel in even the most elementary form. The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples and filled them with power to speak. The same Holy Spirit filled the lives of those hearing in their own language and enabled them to hear. The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost is about empowering "prophecy" or "prophetic speech" which communicates the living reality of the Person of Jesus Christ in an effective and powerful manner.
No longer would the work of the Holy Spirit be primarily among the Israelites and essentially concerned with preserving them as a people, a heritage for the Messiah. As a nation, their work was done. Now their descendents would join the ranks of the other nations, equally standing in need of the Savior who came into His own things but Whom His own people did not receive (Jn. 1:11). At Pentecost, the first fruits of God's harvest came from the vineyard He had lovingly tended and but it also come from the seeds He had transplanted throughout the whole known (Roman) world.
Pentecost was the harvest of first fruits from among the Jewish people. But the difference in giving of the Holy Spirit was not a difference unto salvation but rather a difference unto power. Heretofore, Israel had been singularly unequipped to fulfill God's plan of bringing the Gentiles into His Kingdom. Jonah had preached powerfully to the people of Nineveh and yet, despite his preaching, it was these self-same Assyrians who powerfully destroyed the Northern Kingdom of Samaria not many years later. Though there were a few scattered Gentiles brought into the kingdom through the witness of Israel (Naaman) yet there was never a true harvest.
After Pentecost was fulfilled that all changed. The first harvest was complete so now the harvest of the Gentiles could begin in earnest and God sent forth His Holy Spirit to accomplish just that. Now the Holy Spirit was poured out in power so that the gates of Hell could not withstand God's prophetic people as they bore witness to the One who had delivered them out of the darkness and into His glorious light. The people who were once not God's people, now are and this True Israel, the inheritance promised to Abraham, would do what Ancient Israel could not. God's Holy Spirit now inhabited His expanded people with greater power and provided them with all that they needed to bear efficacious witness to the Gentiles as they entered into the harvest fields for the second great harvest which would fulfill the promise of the Feast of Tabernacles.
It is in this light we can understand John's words. I have not attempted a definitive defense of this understanding of how the giving of the Holy Spirit differs between the two dispensations, Old and New, I have only given the broad outlines. But it should suffice to furnish a place to stand while staring in gawking astonishment at God's majestic redemption.
Hello, i loved this article, but do you have any verses that show that OT saints had the PERMANENT indwelling as we do today..plus, what is the difference in the NEW covenant in regards to the SPIRIT's work in beleivers..some in acts were saved and said they had not received the spirit and didn't even know there was one...
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