“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” (Romans 8:9). 

“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). 

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

            The scriptures above are absolutely beautiful! It is a wonderous theme of scripture that the Spirit of God dwells with those who are led by God. And it would be blasphemous to say that there’s no such thing as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is important to recognize first that this is the true reality for those who are true Christians. From there we must move further to understand this truth, looking to the scriptures for answers about what the indwelling of the Spirit is and how it affects our lives.

            Oddly, without considering the biblical record, many automatically interpret the indwelling of the Spirit to be a personal abidance, i.e. that the person of the Spirit of God personally dwells within our bodies and is a force of direct guidance upon our decisions. I find that very strange from a biblical perspective, for if this idea is true, then why is the new testament filled with instruction in living righteously, and turning away from sin? The new testament should be a lot shorter, including only the good news of Jesus’ sacrifice for us and how to come to salvation; after that, what further need of instruction do we need? If the Spirit personally lives within our flesh, guiding us, what need would there be of the letters of guidance and instruction from Romans to Revelation? Interestingly, those who believe in the direct guidance of the Spirit often come from many different forms of denominationalism. But if the Spirit was giving direct guidance to these people, wouldn’t they all receive the same guidance? So, why then do they all have conflicting religious practices? Something isn’t adding up. The reality of the new testament documents alone, and the information therein, should lead us to believe that the Spirit does not personally lead us.

How did the Galatians stray away from the true doctrines of Christ? They were in fact true Christians (Galatians 1:6), meaning that the Holy Spirit certainly dwelt with them. So how could they be led away by strange guidance? Because this is not what the indwelling of the Spirit is about.

“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. (2)  Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? (3)  Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:1-3).

Notice that Paul does not reject that the Galatians had received the Holy Spirit, he accepts that they did, but he also shows how the Spirit had no work in the personal guidance of individuals. They had the Spirit with them so long as they lived spiritually.

            The scriptures are consistent that God dwells with us when we are perfected away from sin. It is not a force, nor a power, nor a direct guidance that removes our own free will; rather, it is a relationship that the scriptures describe. And it is not only our relationship with the Spirit of God that is described in this manner, but with the Father and Son as well. Consider a few scriptures that show that Christ dwells within us:

“If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.” (Romans 8:10).

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

“so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love” (Ephesians 3:17).

Likewise, consider that the Father is also said to dwell within us:

“Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” (1 John 4:15).

Consider the scripture above, notice that not only does God dwell in us who confess the Lord, but we also dwell in him! So here’s the million-dollar question: Do true Christians personally indwell within God? Can we manipulate his actions by our direct guidance within him? Of course not, no one accepts such an idea. So, why is it so easy for us to say that our indwelling within God is not a personal manifestation, and that the Father and the Son’s indwelling within us are also not a personal indwelling, but that the Holy Spirit – who is spoken of in the same manner – does personally manifest himself within our bodies? It’s just not logical, and it is unfair to the scriptures, the word of God.

            Interestingly, the bible also talks about the Christian indwelling in the Spirit:

“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25).

We also live in the Spirit, but we know this isn’t a personal indwelling, this is a relationship! If we have a relationship with the Spirit, i.e. he dwells in us and we in him, then “let us also walk in the Spirit”, i.e. do the very things that are befitting one who has a relationship with God.

            If I told you that I dwell within my children and they in me, you would not jump to the conclusion that my spirit lives personally within them, nor theirs with me. Everyone understands this idea to be an illustration of a close and loving relationship. This is how God constantly illustrates his relationship with man under the covenant. He abides in us and we in him because of the covenant that was sealed by the blood of Christ, effectively taking sin out of the way so that we can have a relationship with him.

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” (Revelation 21:3).

Article by Tanner Campbell