The Rapture

By Martin Girard, used by permission from www.skywaymessages.co.uk – adapted.

Suppose an interviewer raised that question with a hundred truly born-again believers selected at random. It is likely that three different responses would emerge. There will be those who reply, “What rapture? I don’t know what you are talking about. I’ve never heard it mentioned in my church.” Others may say, “The rapture? Oh, you’re not one of those odd people who believe that, are you?” Then there will be those who respond, “Yes I’m looking forward to it, and many signs make me feel it can’t be very far off.”

What is meant when people speak of “the rapture” and why can it be such a contentious subject? In this article we are going to see what the expression means and attempt to discover why such differing responses may be heard when a question like the one above is raised.

First, it must be stated that the expression “the rapture” is not found in the Bible – though its meaning is certainly there. It is an expression that is closely connected with the coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ. In 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Paul writes of those who are “alive and remain” being “caught up together with them [that is, the believing dead who have been raised] in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air” (KJV). Notice the expression “caught up together” which Paul uses in this verse. Without being too technical, the Greek word used by Paul was translated into Latin and then into the English language as “rapture.” It means the sudden snatching away of believers from an evil world to meet the Lord in the air.

A Promise Given 
To any careful reader of the New Testament it will be obvious that before the Lord Jesus Christ left the earth He promised to return. In John 14:3 He spoke of going from His disciples to prepare a place for them and of coming again to receive them unto Himself. No date was specified in the promise – simply that He would “come again” for them. The following words “that where I am, there ye may be also” make it clear that the Lord Jesus was not speaking of reappearing to the disciples after His resurrection. The promise is clearly connected with the “Father’s house” (v.2) and concerns bringing His disciples there.

Not long after making the promise, the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven before the wondering gaze of His disciples. As He disappeared from view an angel appeared with the message, “This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). He would return! A clear promise remained in the minds of those first disciples.

From the beginning of the church age (Pentecost) the coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ has been an important doctrine and a vital hope. The apostle Paul, having spent a short time in Thessalonica preaching the gospel and establishing a church there, made known to the new believers that their Savior would return “from heaven” (1 Th. 1:10). The closing words of the Bible also confirm the promise made by the Lord that He will come again, to which His people respond, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20).

Why then does the question raised at the beginning of this article produce such different responses from born-again believers? It is not too difficult to draw a conclusion. In some churches the return of the Lord Jesus is rarely mentioned and certainly never taught in detail. Others know and believe that the Lord will come again but they have a different understanding of how it will all take place. 

In Two Parts 
One thing that many overlook is that there are two different aspects to the second coming of Christ. This was true of His first coming too. Prophecies in the Old Testament anticipated the Messiah’s “coming” to Bethlehem and also to Jerusalem. How could both be true? With hindsight we can understand perfectly that His birth was in Bethlehem and was very much a “private” affair witnessed by very few, while His entry into Jerusalem on a colt years later was a very “public” event before an enthusiastic crowd.

In His second coming something parallel can be traced. The New Testament speaks of the return of Christ being unexpected (which is why the Lord taught the need to watch) and yet “every eye shall see Him” (Rev. 1:7) – without any mention of having to watch. How can such apparent contradictions be explained? Put simply, there will be two parts to the return of Christ. First He will come to the air, and then He will come to earth. His coming in the air will be “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor. 15:52) while His coming to earth will be in a display of power and great glory (Mt. 24:30). Clearly this cannot all take place at the same moment. The only way to harmonize these and many other Scriptures is to realize that the Lord will come in the air for His own and then will return from heaven with His own. Both things cannot take place at exactly the same moment.

The Rapture Scripture 
The main passage of Scripture dealing with the rapture is 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. To comfort these recent converts who were distressed because of the death of believing loved-ones, Paul pointed them to the coming of the Lord: “The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (vv.16-17). 

At the moment Christ comes, the church age will end. The events described here will take place in a split second, as we learn from 1 Corinthians 15:51-52. In this passage we are told that not all shall “sleep” (physically die), but all believers shall “be changed” instantaneously. It is important to notice that this was “a mystery” – something that had not been revealed before in Scripture (1 Cor. 15:51). We must therefore not expect to read about this in the Old Testament, although there were two men of God who fulfilled this in figure: Enoch and Elijah. These two men were both taken up into the Lord’s presence without experiencing death (Gen. 5:24; 2 Ki. 2:11). 

This event, the rapture, could happen at any moment. Certain conditions do not need to be fulfilled first. The Lord Jesus made it clear that it is vital to be ready because we do not know when He will return (Mk. 13:35-37).

Why The Disagreement 
Perhaps at this point we should ask why some Christians pour scorn upon the idea of the rapture. Do they not believe in the personal return of the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes, they do believe; but they lump everything together. Some picture the Lord coming from heaven into the air, catching up His redeemed people and then returning at once with them to the earth. Of course, this could be concluded from Scripture, but it fails to bring one significant matter into consideration: Israel.

God has not finished with that nation. Although He is not dealing directly with them at this particular time, many Old Testament prophecies await fulfillment. In Daniel 9:24-27 we read of a very specific period of seventy “sevens” relating to Israel. The last of those “sevens” has not yet been fulfilled – an extremely significant seven-year period time that is mentioned elsewhere in Scripture. Piecing it all together we can see that a time of terrible suffering awaits that nation, but it will be curtailed by the return of their Messiah whom they shall see (Zech. 12:9-10) when “His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives” (Zech. 14:4). There is no good reason to “spiritualize” such verses and deprive them of their literal meaning.

The church age is a period of time when God is calling from this world a heavenly people described as “the bride of Christ.” Failing to distinguish between this heavenly people and the earthly people of Israel leads to confusion. When the Church is complete and all who are going to make up the number of the redeemed have been gathered in, the Lord Jesus will come to receive His people whom He will take to their heavenly home. Believers will then stand before the judgment seat of Christ, that their lives of service may be evaluated before sharing the joy of the marriage supper of the Lamb (2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 19:6-9). 

Many today simply fail to discern these differences because their theological training has taught them to think in a certain way. The views of Augustine of Hippo prevail in many institutions of learning and consequently a literal interpretation of prophecy is rejected. Knowing only too well that people with strange ideas exist, these theologians reject whatever appears to contradict with Augustine, making the assumption that he interpreted every aspect of Scripture correctly. This accounts for the scorn that is often poured upon those who teach “the rapture” and distinguish between the Lord’s coming in the air and His coming to earth. Believers who sit under the teaching of men trained in theological college therefore usually hear nothing about the rapture.

A Practical Truth 
Christ is coming again! His people are heaven-bound. The Lord Jesus may return at any time, and we must be ready. Events in the Middle East and in Europe point to the imminent fulfillment of prophecies; however that is another vast subject beyond the scope of this article. A discussion of the rapture should not become a heated debate, but neither should it be simply an academic exercise. Although “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15) is vital, the knowledge that Christ is coming at any moment should make us want to live holy lives. By doing so we will not be ashamed when He shall appear (1 Jn. 3:2-3).

The Blessed Man

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” —Psalm 1:1-2 NKJV


By H. A. Ironside (Lord Is Near, 1988)

This blessed man is God’s ideal of what man ought to be in this scene. It finds its perfect fulfillment in the holy behavior of the Lord Jesus Christ, who ever did the things that pleased the Father. We, in our measure, are called to walk as He walked (1 Jn. 2:6), according to the example He has left us (1 Pet. 2:21). To do this we must be regenerated (Ti. 3:5). It is a life of holy separation from all evil that is in view. The blessed man is careful to avoid any participation with the ungodly so far as their attitude toward divine things is concerned. His piety does not consist in a negative attitude toward evil alone, but in the positive enjoyment of what is good. The Word of God is precious to him and is his spiritual food, assimilated [absorbed mentally] by meditation (Jer. 15:16).

Perennially fresh and always fruitful, the blessed man is likened to a tree whose roots go down to the water streams, ever drawing up that which tends to growth and enrichment, so that he is a witness for God to all who know him, as they see how richly grace is working in his soul.

God’s Remedy For Our Problems

Reflections In 2 Corinthians 2:14–7:1


By Jacob Redekop

Introduction
We are well aware that there are many problems facing the Lord’s people today. New difficulties arise before old ones are cleared away. Being firmly persuaded that the Word of God furnishes the answers to help in every situation, I asked myself these questions: How is it that God’s people can be so divided on so many issues? Would not obedience to God’s Word and dependence upon the Lord unite us together? I found the answer in Paul’s epistles to the Corinthians. The Corinthian saints were divided because they were occupied with the wrong man (1 Cor. 1:11-12). They were powerless to cope with the problems until they had learned what Isaiah 2:22 (KJV) states: “Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for what account is to be made of him?” In 2 Corinthians we are given God’s answer – the solution.

Reflections 
The two epistles of Paul to the Corinthians are “wilderness” epistles. The saints are viewed as having been set apart from this world by a divine call (1 Cor. 1:2). This world, which to the eye of faith has become a wilderness, furnishes nothing to sustain that faith. The Christian passing through this world has the responsibility to live in complete dependence and obedience to the Lord. Failure to do so is the root cause of all the break-ups and break-downs in the family as well as in the assembly (church) testimony.

God allows this time of testing in the wilderness in order that we might learn what is in our hearts. But what is of much greater value is to learn what is in the heart of God, and that is Christ. Then, as we learn this, we turn away from ourselves to find in Christ the answer to every need. 

The Root Cause Of Problems 
In reflecting on this portion of Scripture in Corinthians we must bear in mind the great object the apostle had before him. He longed to see the Corinthian saints lifted out of their low spiritual condition as he had described it in 1 Corinthians 3:1, “And I brethren could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal.” Their carnal [self-centered] condition had led to worldliness and moral laxity, which further opened the door to assembly disorder and doctrinal error. It left them with little spiritual discernment and no spiritual strength to cope with their problems. This is much of what we are facing today.

This condition, exposed in the first epistle, is addressed in the second epistle to show God’s way of transforming us into the moral likeness of our Lord Jesus Christ. There are two aspects of this truth. Objectively, or in an absolute sense, God has purposed this transformation for us in Christ. Subjectively, or in a personal way that applies to each believer, this change is accomplished in us by the Spirit, who works out God’s purposes for us. As that transformation is accomplished, problems are solved in a God-honoring way. Self is set aside, in all its varied forms. In its place Christ is seen in all His moral beauty.

It is not the intent of this article to be occupied with difficulties and problems, but to see God’s remedy for them. That does not mean that we try to avoid or escape the problems, for we cannot run away from them. Rather, we see God’s provision to meet every need – and that provision is in Christ.

Change Is Possible 
The apostle Paul himself had been in extremely stressful situations as expressed in 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 and 4:8-9, “Pressed out of measure, above strength … despaired even of life … troubled on every side … persecuted … cast down.” In spite of these outward dangers, Paul did not faint nor become discouraged. Instead, he saw himself identified in testimony with a victorious Christ (2:14-15). By his conduct and preaching, a sweet fragrance of Christ rose up to God. Paul, who called himself the chief of sinners, was now the greatest vessel God had raised up for the shining forth of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (4:6). Only God could bring about such a change in the life of any person. What God did in Paul He is also doing in each one of us who have believed. God, by His Spirit, is writing Christ upon our hearts (3:3). The law could not do that. It could only tell man what he ought to do – what was expected of him, but it could not change him (Rom. 8:3-4). 

The Christian has received new life (Christ) and a new nature that delights in what is of God. The Holy Spirit now dwells in the believer and occupies us with Christ, where He is in the very presence of God. As I am occupied with the Man Christ Jesus where He is now, a transformation will take place in me, a moral change, making me more and more like Christ (2 Cor. 3:18).

One Great Hindrance 
The greatest hindrance to the work of the Holy Spirit in the believer is self. Good self or bad self is still self. Self-esteem, self-worth, self-image and self-love are at best an occupation with the wrong man – the very man whom God has set aside and condemned in the death of Christ. God is not attempting to improve man in the flesh: “Old things have passed away; behold all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17).

The question might now be asked, “How does this teaching help solve problems?” First of all, we have to admit that “in me [that is, in my flesh] dwelleth no good thing” (Rom. 7:18). The problems which cause us so much trouble in our individual lives, in our families and in the assemblies find their source in our flesh. If we do not learn from God’s Word that the flesh profits nothing, then God teaches us by our own failures. How sad it is if we have to learn it that way. Yet, what is even sadder is that we have grieved the Holy Spirit; every failure or sin necessitated those unfathomable sufferings of Christ on the cross. But as I learn how wretched the flesh is in me, I turn the eye of faith away from self and find in Christ an Object of supreme delight – that One in whom God finds eternal joy and satisfaction!

It Begins In Me 
After experiencing how wretched the flesh is in me (not in my brother or sister), I must accept the teaching God has given in many portions of Scripture. He is teaching us to look away from self to Christ and, in so doing, we take on His moral features. These include obedience and dependence upon God, and patience, meekness, self-control as well as many other qualities as seen in Galatians 5:22-23. It is the fruit of the Holy Spirit working out practically in the life of each believer. In 2 Corinthians 4:7 Paul explains that our bodies, which he calls “earthen vessels,” contain this treasure – which is Christ dwelling in the believer. As the vessel is broken up, the light that is within shines out.

In 2 Corinthians 5:10 the apostle Paul reminds us that we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. Then everything we have done in our lifetime will be manifested in the light of His holy presence. Our motives, our self-seeking, even if they were mixed in with our service for the Lord, will all be made known.

What was done in secret or in public, at the workplace or at home, in private counseling or in public preaching, all will be laid bare. How searching this is! But remember, when we stand before the judgment seat of Christ, the sinful nature in which we sinned is no longer in us. We will then be with and like Christ; and we will rejoice that our old selfish, sinful nature is once and forever done away. Only what was of Christ will remain forever. If we, like Paul, would live our lives in the light of that Day of Judgment, what a difference it would make.

Christ Really Is The Remedy 
It is far easier to sing, “Nothing but Christ as on we tread,” than it is to live it. To live it means that it will govern my manner of behavior, what I wear, how I spend my money, where I take my vacation, how I speak to my wife or husband and my attitude towards my children. It will affect relationships in the home, at the workplace and in the world. You can be sure it will also introduce an atmosphere in the assembly that is Christ-honoring, showing forth indeed the mind of Christ. Having the mind of Christ equips us to face all dangers and difficulties and enables us to make the right spiritual decisions. Then the question is never asked, “What’s wrong with this or that?” Instead, the question will be, “What is pleasing to Christ?” “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13).

Paul concludes our subject in 2 Corinthians 7:1 by giving a word of encouragement: “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved.” If we allow God to work in our lives to put aside self and to fix our eyes on the Lord, then we will experience the deep peace and joy of fellowship with the Father. Then all the suffering or sorrow that we pass through here will be worth it. Faith looks beyond the present and evaluates everything in the light of eternity (4:17-18). May Christ be reflected in greater measure in my life – and in yours.

The Holy Spirit

IN THE LIGHT OF THE BIBLE / Part Two


By Erwin H. W. Luimes; adapted from, “Fire From Heaven.”

The Seal Of The Holy Spirit
When someone is converted he receives the Holy Spirit as a seal. A seal is like a stamp, an imprint which reveals that the person is the property of God. But a seal goes further than a simple stamp. A stamp can perhaps be rubbed out, but with a seal no one is allowed to break it. In this way the tax authorities or the police can seal an office or a house and there is no one who then has the right to enter it. In the same way the Holy Spirit is a seal on the believer: His indwelling guarantees the fact that the believer is saved and that he is the property of the Lord Jesus for eternity. Only someone who is stronger than God would be able to change this – and no such person exists (read Ephesians 1:13, 4:30; John 10:28)!

The Anointing With The Holy Spirit 
Every person who is converted and believes the gospel of salvation, putting his trust in the Lord Jesus, receives the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit comes to live in him. But God’s Word also speaks of our being anointed with the Holy Spirit (2 Cor. 1:21; 1 Jn. 2:20,27). This is another aspect of the one, same fact. The anointing emphasizes that God’s Spirit is given to us because we are chosen by God and that His Spirit is now leading us into the full truth. It goes so far that those who are born of God, according to 1 John 2:20, now know all things. This is a consequence of our position in Christ; it is our ability, in principle, to know everything through the help of the Holy Spirit and without the need for the “new light” offered by the false teachers the apostle John was warning about – it is our ability, even though at the same time we still have to learn many things in practice.

Baptism With The Holy Spirit 
On the day on which he is sealed with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13), the believer is added to the Church, the Body of Christ, which has existed for twenty centuries now. The Church was formed on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, when the believers at the time were baptized with one Spirit to form one new Body, an entity and unity unknown until then and to which all believers ever since have been added. This is the only event in the Bible which is mentioned in connection with baptism with the Holy Spirit (Mt. 3:11; Acts 1:5,8, 11:16; 1 Cor. 12:13).

Some people would like to be baptized “with the Holy Spirit and with fire,” but they do not understand that they are asking for something impossible. In Matthew 3:11-12, which speaks about this, it is also explained that baptism with the Holy Spirit is for believers. Likewise, Acts 1 only mentions that within a few days the disciples would be baptized with the Holy Spirit, but not with fire!

Why? Because baptism with fire indicates something terrible: submersion in the fire of God’s judgment. Every tree which does not bear fruit (every person who does not live to the glory of God) will be cut down and thrown into the eternal flame; even the ax is ready, very close to the root (v.10)! Equally close is the judgment of God for those who reject God and shall be thrown into the inextinguishable fire! So “baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire” can never happen to the same person; you cannot receive the Spirit of God and at the same time go into the eternal fire. This is why the expression “baptize with fire” is never used in reference to believers.

But it goes even further. Nowhere in the Bible do you find that believers today must pray to receive the Holy Spirit or to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Only in Luke 11:13 does the Lord Jesus tell His twelve disciples (the apostles) that the Father will give them the Holy Spirit when they ask Him. This is a promise which we see fulfilled in Acts 1 and 2. When the Lord Jesus had gone up into heaven, the disciples met together in a room and persevered in prayer while they were waiting for the coming of the Comforter, who is the Holy Spirit. The promise was fulfilled and their prayers were answered when a short time later, in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came upon them. The Lord Jesus came to the earth once, not time and again; and in the same way the Holy Spirit came to the earth once and will continue to live here in the Church until the Church is taken up into glory. This one time “outpouring of the Holy Spirit” on this group of individual believers, in the Bible, is called “baptism with the Holy Spirit.”

Nowhere else in the Bible do you read about baptism with the Holy Spirit. Nowhere do we find a believer in the Bible who prayed to be baptized with God’s Spirit, and neither do we read about a church that was praying for this.

If your experience and emotions show you something else, you must simply mistrust your experience because the Bible is the ultimate authority for a child of God. Otherwise you are in danger of being misled by your emotions, through which Satan works, and of believing in something that is plainly contradictory to God’s Word.

Negative: To Grieve Or Quench The Holy Spirit 
When a believer sins the Holy Spirit is not taken away from him.* But God’s Spirit is grieved (Eph. 4:30). When a believer continues to ignore warnings and admonitions by the Spirit through his conscience and the Word of God, the working or activity of the Holy Spirit in this believer (or collectively, in the assembly life) is quenched (1 Th. 5:19). This continues until he confesses his sin and can again enjoy complete fellowship with the Father and the Son (1 Jn. 1:9).

Positive: Being Filled With The Holy Spirit 
When the Holy Spirit has every opportunity to guide us, He will lead us into complete truth (Jn. 16:13). We will be filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:18) – and this will become evident. But this is not revealed through ecstasy, as is customary in certain religions or paganism when someone is possessed by higher (occult) powers. No, it is revealed through a life in fellowship with the Lord, a life of prayer, worship and thanksgiving, a life in which as believers we encourage one another to follow the Lord faithfully (Eph. 5:18-21; Col. 3:16-17).

For What Purpose Does The Holy Spirit Dwell In The Believer And In The Church? 
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is a special and unique blessing for the believers of our time only; it was not known in the dispensations before. Though the Holy Spirit from the very beginning was working in souls and came upon some of them for special purposes and tasks, He only came to live in the believer and in the Church as a whole from the day of Pentecost in Acts 2 and after (see John 7:39; Acts 1:5; 1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22).

As we have already seen, He came to cause us to worship the Father and to glorify the Son. The Spirit does not glorify Himself and He definitely does not bring about the glorification of any person, however spiritual he or she may seem to be or however great his gifts may seem to be in the eyes of people (Jn. 4:23-24, 16:13-14)!

This is why the singing of Christians and the Spirit-led thanksgiving and worship of believers should never be an endless repetition of superficial phrases without substance, accompanied by rhythmic or even ecstatic music as has been customary among pagans since the days of Cain’s descendants (Gen. 4). Words which are (or seem to be) Christian but which are accompanied in this way are a mixture of Christianity and paganism – characteristic of Babylon, the great harlot in Revelation 17:1.

Many contemporary Christian songs have hardly any spiritual depth and do not reflect the abundance of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge that are hidden in Christ. They tend to be like the mantras of some religions or other forms of paganism, which seem to have found their way into certain forms of gospel music as well.

No, Christian worship is something spiritual, something which is brought about in our spirit by the Spirit of God through reflection on the glory of the Person and the work of Christ. This is expressed in a spiritual way, not with overt pomp and circumstance or features which appeal to the flesh. We do not come to adoration or true worship through drumming or rhythmic clapping and dance which is meant to lead us into ecstasy and to cause us to lose self-control, as is sometimes the case in what is supposed to be worship.

No, it is the Holy Spirit who leads us to live soberly, righteously and godly (Ti. 2:12) – and this applies to our worship too. Outwardly, this is calm and solemn, but it rises up from the depths of our hearts to God and is brought about through His Spirit. This worship is the believer speaking openly to his Savior, Jesus Christ, and to his Father in heaven, to glorify Him because of His great love and because of the majesty of His Person.

Let us not use idle repetitions of little substance, as pagans still do. God’s Word warns us expressly about this in Matthew 6:7 and Ecclesiastes 5:2. Some believers have the habit in their prayers and songs of endlessly repeating the same question or remark. They sing twenty-five times or more that Jesus has saved us. They pray endlessly, “Will You please do this?” This endless repetition is far from adoration or worship. Let us be realistic: Would we speak in this way to our father or mother? They would consider this to show a lack of respect or trust. How much less should it be that a child of God address God with such an ill-considered, repetitive sentence?

As we draw to an end, let us take note that when people are glorified for their gifts, whether it is a vicar, pastor, priest or church denomination, when authority is wielded by people and everything is centered around a person, when nothing can be done without the agreement of a person, whatever his title may be (3 Jn. 9-10) – then it is abundantly clear that this is a work that is not brought about by God’s Spirit because He did not come to the earth to glorify people.

May we follow the exhortation presented by God Himself through the apostle Paul, “Do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31 NKJV). “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Eph. 3:20-21).

ENDNOTE 
* Bible passages such as John 14:16 and 1 John 2:27 show clearly that the Holy Spirit remains in the believer eternally. The case of David in Psalm 51:11 was very different. Firstly, David was an Israelite under the law; he lived long before the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 and hence long before the Holy Spirit came to the earth to live in believers. At the time of the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit worked on earth but did not live here in any person or company. Then He was not known as a divine Person (the truth of God’s trinity is only clearly taught in the New Testament). This means that the translation “Do not take Your spirit of holiness from me” is more accurate than “Do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” The apostle John tells us that the Holy Spirit could be with Old Testament believers, but in the future would be in them (from Acts 2 on, as explained).