Blessing Inventory sealed with the spirit

Blessing Inventory: Sealed with the Spirit

Ephesians 1:13-14

For the last two Sundays, we have been counting our blessings. Oh how blessed we are in Christ. We are immediately summoned by this letter to bless God for all the blessings we have been blessed with in Christ. We noted that this text is built on the framework of the work of the Trinity in our salvation. We are chosen by the Father before the foundation of the world. We are redeemed by the Son through His sacrificial death on the cross. Today, we will look at the final portion of this great paragraph by noticing that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit.

This is important for us to understand. The Father is the great Planner of our salvation. He planned it in eternity past when nothing existed but the Triune God Himself. It flows from His eternal counsel and will. The Son, Jesus, is the Purchaser of our salvation. In obedience to the Father’s plan, Jesus came to earth as a man, lived a perfect life of obedience, suffered a sacrificial death on the cross, and rose again to purchase our redemption. The Holy Spirit, as we shall see, is the Applier of our salvation. That is, what the Father planned and the Son purchased, the Spirit applies to the believer. As someone said, “the Father though, the Son bought, and the Spirit wrought.”

Today, let’s look closely at vv. 13-14 to see exactly what the role of the Spirit is in our salvation according to this passage. There are two key ideas in these verses. First, those who are in Christ are sealed with the Holy Spirit. Second, the Holy Spirit is the pledge of our full redemption.

I. Those who are in Christ are sealed with the Holy Spirit.

            A. Those who are sealed first heard the gospel.

                        1. The gospel is the message of truth.

                                    a. It is true and reliable.

                                    b. It is about the truth, Jesus Christ.

                        2. The gospel is the good news of your salvation.

                                    a. It is good news because sin and judgment are

                                        bad news.

                                    b. It is good news that saves. Rom. 1:16.

3. This gospel is essential to salvation.

                                    a. It must be declared clearly.

                                    b. It must be believed sincerely.

APPLICATION: Friends, we are living in a time when the gospel has become quite cloudy, even in the church. The gospel is not self-help. It is not therapy. It is not a moralistic, “do-your-best-to-be good” message. It is not a “Jesus wants to fulfill your dreams” message.

In an article entitled Christless Christianity, Michael Horton states, “Jesus as life coach, therapist, buddy, significant other, founder of Western Civilization, political messiah, example of radical love, and countless other images can distract us from the stumbling block and foolishness of “Christ and him crucified.”

The gospel is the good news that we can be set free from sin and rescued from God’s wrath through faith in His crucified and risen Son, Jesus Christ. We are reminded that before we were sealed with the Spirit, we first listened to the clear message of the gospel.

            B. Those who are sealed believed in Christ.

                        1. They heard the gospel and believed in Christ.

                        2. Believing is logically prior to the sealing.

                        3. I believe that the sealing takes place immediately

                            upon belief in Christ. The moment a person

                            exercises saving faith in Christ, they are sealed.

            C. Those who hear and believe are sealed with the Spirit.

                        1. The seal is an ancient practice of placing an official

                            seal on important documents or possessions. It was

                            usually done by pressing a signet into clay or wax.

                        2. The seal was used to indicate three things.

                                    a. Ownership – to mark as one’s possession

                                    b. Authenticity – to show genuineness

                                    c. Security – to protect and preserve

                        3. The seal is the Spirit Himself.

                                    a. 2 Cor. 1:21-22

                                    b. Eph. 4:30

                                    c. The Spirit Himself comes to dwell in us.

APPLICATION: This is astounding! How do you know you belong to God? Because He gave you His Spirit to live in you. How do you know you are a genuine believer? He gave you His Spirit to live in you. How do you know you are preserved by God until your final redemption? Because God gave you His Spirit to live in you.

TS – So, the first idea related to the Spirit’s work in the believer is the idea of sealing. There is another key idea in the text.

II. The Holy Spirit is the pledge of our full redemption in the future.

            A. The Spirit is given as a pledge of our inheritance.

                        1. The term pledge means “down-payment, guarantee.”

                            It is the first installment which serves as a guarantee

                            that full payment will be made.

                                    a. 2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5

                        2. The gift of the Spirit to the believer secures our

                            inheritance as we await our final redemption.

                                    a. With a view to the redemption of God’s

                                        possession. This refers to the final redemption

                                        of the believer who is God’s own possession.

                                    b. Our final redemption will be when we are

                                        glorified to be like Christ and fitted for an

                                        eternity with Him in heaven. This is when we

                                        will finally inherit all God has promised to us.

                        3. The gift of the Spirit is a foretaste of our inheritance.

                                    a. What the Holy Spirit give us now is a small

                                        taste of what heaven will be like. The joy,

                                        peace, love, etc. which the Spirit imparts to us

                                        will be multiplied exponentially when we

                                        finally inherit all God has promised to us.

APPLICATION: I am so glad that God gave us the Spirit as the down-payment of our full salvation.

• When something is long in coming, we tend to start doubting it’s certainty without some reminder. The Spirit is God’s ever present reminder that the promise of full redemption is certain.
• When difficulties and disasters overtake us, we may doubt our status with God. Tough times sometimes cause us to wonder if we have lost favor with God or He has abandoned us. It may be that some believer here today is going through such painful circumstances that you are tempted to wonder if God has forgotten you or revoked His promise to you. The Spirit reminds you that you are His beloved possession and He is going to give you your inheritance.

CONCLUSION:

Fanny Crosby wrote the wonderful words, “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. O what a foretaste of glory divine. Heir of salvation, purchase of God. Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.”

It is the Holy Spirit given to us when we believe in Jesus Christ that ultimately produces the blessed assurance. It is the Spirit who is a foretaste of glory divine in our lives. It is the Spirit that causes us to know that we are heirs of salvation and purchased by God.

How can you have the promise of the Spirit? Only by faith in Jesus Christ. Have you trusted in Jesus Christ? Have you turned away from your life of sin and self and cast your life on the mercy of the crucified Jesus? Dear friend, listen to the gospel, believe in Jesus Christ, and be sealed with the Spirit.