Eph 1:11-14

Sealed and Secured in Jesus

The blessedness of those who were chosen…the evidence of being chosen is faith - to believe in Christ (our daily pursuit of Christ, not just a one time event)

We believed in Christ because were were predestined by God.

Ephesians 1:11 NASB95

11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

It is God who worked in all things for us to hear and believed the Gospel.

Let’s do a word study

Inheritance

(klēroō). vb. appoint by lot. To assign to a category or group based on the result of something which cannot be temporally controlled.

This word appears in the nt only in Eph 1:11; Paul says, “We [i.e., Christians] were appointed by lot (klēroō).” God alone determines the means by which Paul and the Ephesians become part of the church body.

It is for God’s glory that we are saved so we can live for Him!

Ephesians 1:12 NASB95

12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.

How is a person saved?

Ephesians 1:13 NASB95

13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,

Listened to the Gospel

Believed the Gospel

Sealed with the Holy Spirit

sealed . I seal and thus close, for guardianship or protection,

I mark with the impress of the signet ring.

In the ancient world, a seal indicated ownership and protection

example: Matt. 27:66

Matthew 27:66 NASB95

66 And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they set a seal on the stone.

example: Daniel 6:17

Daniel 6:17 NASB95

17 A stone was brought and laid over the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the signet rings of his nobles, so that nothing would be changed in regard to Daniel.

Ephesians 1:13 NASB95

13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,

The notion of sealing in this context is related to the Day of Judgment: Sealed believers will be kept for their ultimate inheritance—redemption at the end of the age —by the gift of the promised Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is our guarantee of ownership and perseverance

Ephesians 1:14 NASB95

14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

pledge (arra), an earnest, earnest-money, a large part of the payment, given in advance as a security that the whole will be paid afterwards.

Ephesians 1:14 NASB95

14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

The gift of the Holy Spirit not only empowers believers to live holy lives (Eph 3:16), but also serves as a guarantee and reminder that God will one day fully complete His work in believers.