I like what Mike Stallard (click to open Stallard’s article) did when he traced the ministry of the Holy Spirit throughout the Old Testament beginning with the Pentateuch through the Post-exilic books. This is laying a biblical theology foundation upon which you can build a systematic theology. It also avoids starting with the New Testament doctrine and reading the New Testament into the Old Testament.
Should we start with the Old Testament or the New Testament in interpreting a doctrine?
It seems that scholars who defend the permanent indwelling of Old Testament believers by the Holy Spirit start with the New Testament doctrine of indwelling and argue backward. This is the case with Robert McCabe in his article entitled, “Were Old Testament Believers Indwelt by the Spirit,” Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal vol. 9 (2004): 215-264. He exegetes the following passages in the following order: John 7:37-39, John 14:16-17; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 2:14-15; Ezekiel 36:25-27; 1 Corinthians 2: 14-15; Romans 8:9-11; Numbers 27:18, and Psalms 143:10. The majority of passages used to defend the permanent indwelling of the Old Testament believers by the Holy Spirit are from the New Testament.
Leon Wood starts his arguments for the permanent indwelling of Old Testament saints with the Holy Spirit with this statement: “But if the Old Testament saint was not permanently indwelt by the Spirit, how was he able to remain a child of God? The New Testament is clear that believers now are preserved by the indwelling Spirit (2 Tim. 1:12; 4:18; 1 Peter 1:5). Were Old Testament saints able to keep themselves? It is not easy to believe so” (Leon Wood, The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, pages 39-40).
Mike Stallard begins in the Old Testament where progressive revelation commences on this doctrine
The first reference to the indwelling of the Old Testament believer by the Holy Spirit is in Genesis 42:38. This passage cannot be used dogmatically to add to the doctrine of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament because it was spoken by pagan Pharaoh. However, Walvoord makes this comment: “While, of course, it may be held that Pharaoh was mistaken, and Joseph was not indwelt by the Holy Spirit, in view of what Joseph had already accomplished and the later revelation of the doctrine of indwelling in the Old Testament, it may be concluded that Pharaoh unwittingly gave voice to the first specific instance of a great doctrine, and the Scriptures include his testimony” (John Walvoord, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit, Dallas: Dallas Theological Seminary, page 79).
Next, the Scriptures state that the Holy Spirit equipped individuals with natural skills to make garments for priests (Ex. 28:3) and furniture for the Tabernacle (Ex. 31:3; 35:31). This corresponds to the New Testament spiritual gift of helps (1 Cor. 12:28) although not the same since New Testament gifts were God’s enablement for the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-14) which is exclusively New Testament truth. Similarities do not equate sameness. This Old Testament enablement is nowhere said to be permanent.
In Numbers 11:24-25, the Holy Spirit, who was apparently permanently indwelling Moses, indwelt his seventy elders (but not necessarily permanently). Peter in 1 Peter 1:10-11 referring to Old Testament prophets stated that “the Spirit of Christ who was in them did signify when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow.”
The Spirit that was permanently indwelling Moses began to indwell the elders who before this experience did not possess the Spirit. Even though Numbers 11:24-25 uses “upon” [עַל al] to describe the ministry of the Holy Spirit with Moses and the elders, I’m using “in” and “upon” interchangeably because in Isaiah 63:11 refers to Moses and the Spirit is said to be “within him” [קֹ֫דֶש qereb] not just “upon” him.
So here is a case where these believers who were not indwelt became indwelt. Were the elders permanently indwelt from this point? The Scriptures do not say the elders were permanently indwelt after this experience and to teach otherwise is to argue from silence.
The unusual experience of the Holy Spirit coming upon [עַל al which is used also in reference to Moses for indwelling] Balaam (click to open a sermon on Prophets for Profit) the non-Israelite false prophet is recorded in Numbers 24:2. Whatever the significance of this episode, it shows a discontinuity between the ministries of the Holy Spirit before and after Pentecost. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is very much different from before and after Pentecost. This is an important point because those who wish to see permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit of Old Testament believers emphasize the continuity between the Spirit’s work before and after Pentecost. They would argue that the Holy Spirit who regenerates, indwells, and seals in the New Testament must do so in the Old Testament.
The last two references to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Pentateuch are Numbers 27:18 and Deuteronomy 34:9 and both concern Joshua. According to Numbers 27:18 Joshua was “a man in whom is the spirit.” The last reference in the Pentateuch is in Deuteronomy 34:9 which refers to Joshua being “full of the spirit of wisdom for Moses had laid hands on him.” There are examples of permanent indwelling in the case of Moses and Joshua and cases of non-permanent indwelling as with the elders. There is one unusual case of the Spirit sovereignly using an unsaved prophet to pronounce a blessing on God’s people instead of a curse. Again, the ministry of the Holy Spirit is very different before and after Pentecost.
Regarding the regeneration of the Old Testament believer
I agree with Stallard’s following argument: It is thus relatively easy to argue from the teaching of Jesus to Nicodemus in John 3 for regeneration in Old Testament saints. In that chapter, Jesus informs Nicodemus that everyone who wants to enter the kingdom of God must be "born again" (3:3, 7) or "born of the Spirit" (3:5-6). What strengthens the argument is that Jesus thought it was altogether reasonable for a person to experience both being born again and the work of regeneration by the Holy Spirit in the process of experiencing the new birth as judged by the writings of the Old Testament--especially since the New Testament had not yet been written and Christ had not yet gone to the cross and been raised from the dead. Jesus forced such a conclusion with his critical question to Nicodemus: "Are you a teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?" in John 3:10. Consequently, Old Testaments saints were regenerated.
How were Old Testament believers eternally secure?
If all Old Testament believers did not possess the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, how were Old Testament believers eternally secure? Leon Wood argued by the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit. If the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit is questionable as argued by Mike Stallard, is there another answer? The Old Testament believer was eternally secure because of the imputed righteousness of God. The Old Testament believer had the righteousness of God imputed to his record according to Romans 4:3. Paul quotes Genesis 12:6 stating that “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.” Paul next quoted Psalms 32:2 to teach that once the righteousness of God is imputed to the believer’s account in heaven, sin will never again be im-put-ed on his record: “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.” The doctrine of the imputation of God’s righteousness made the Old Testament believer eternally secure and the New Testament believer as well.