Sealed With The Holy Spirit
- Pastor Michael Heil
- Sep 5, 2018
- 5 min read
"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, 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." Ephesians 1:13-14
Too often, the church today has treated the Holy Spirit as the little brother who is always trying to get in the game. You know, the two big brothers are star athletes, and to their chagrin and embarrassment, Mom makes them take their little brother along too. I am not using this analogy to in any way demean the blessed third person of the trinity; I am reflecting on what I have sensed in the church for many years.
I think this subtle ignorance comes from two primary reasons - One, which I have mentioned already, is our union with the Holy Spirit, who is God, is so perfectly bonded we often take for granted the moving and leading of the Spirit within. With a sly grin and puzzled look we say, “I guess that was just me wondering” when in reality it was the Spirit leading.
The other reason saints sometimes overlook the Holy Spirit is because He is God; He is supernatural, and He is mighty.
I remember reading C.S. Lewis brilliant series “The Chronicles of Narnia,” when Lucy asks Mr. Beaver about Aslan (who represents Christ) if he is safe. Mr. Beaver replies, "No, He is not safe, but He is good." Because we live in a world and our conscious of how people perceive us it is easy, if we are not careful, to tip toe around the Holy Spirit. What if He directs us to visit with a person I don’t get along with? What is He leads me to prophecy in church? What if He wants me to give $500 to a ministry for children this month? Remember, it is much more important He is good; and since He is good, everything He leads us into will be safe. You might ask how do I know the Holy Spirit is inside me since He moves so easily and gracefully with my normal desires. The first thing you and I noticed when the Spirit ignited our spirit towards God was our love for God which exploded in our heart. Remember before you asked Christ into the your life, you may have respected God and maybe even honored God by attending worship, but your heart had other allegiances. Besides God you may have had a passion for shopping, hunting, television, exercise, or who knows what, but once you yielded your heart to Christ in faith, the Holy Spirit placed a “holy hunger” for Him within. Remember, how after that moment you might still like shopping, hunting, television, exercise, but now all pales in comparison to knowing Christ, serving Him. Like Paul said in Philippians 3:8, “. . . I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ.” We know the presence of the Spirit of God by the love we have for Jesus.
Saints of God, not only is our heart filled with love and our spirit united with the Greater One, but the Holy Spirit seals us into Christ. In Roman history sealing a document or a home was a binding, legal transaction. Once the seal was affixed, it meant the property legally belonged to the owner whose seal was on it. The seal was so important that breaking the official Roman seal was punishable by death.
In Christ, we have been sealed by the Holy Spirit! Satan might rage, presidents might mock, Kings might protest, you might not feel like it, none of that matters. Immediately, when we surrendered our life to our living Lord, the Spirit sealed us to Him, and that seal is also a pledge, a pledge of our inheritance.
Pastor Michael Heil
INSIGHT: Love for God, a zeal for Him and His Word, fuels all that you do in the producing of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and in living your life out loud in speech and in action. The Lord keeps His side of the covenant, and you must also keep your side of the covenant He has made with you. Your God has sealed you with His Spirit. You are His child, and as His child, you are called to love. With all that you are you are to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all that you are from the innermost part of you to the outer parts of who you are. "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." (Deuteronomy 6:5-9)
MEDITATION: "Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and tender-hearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you." (Ephesians 4:29-32)
The Holy Spirit is not to be taken lightly. The Holy Spirit is your Comforter and Guide into all truth, and the Holy Spirit is your Teacher. God has sealed you with His Holy Spirit who empowers you to live a holy life before God, to walk blamelessly before the Lord Your God and to walk upright. It is important you do not grieve the Holy Spirit, and to understand knowing the eternal perfection you will be entering in the afterlife should drive your desire to please God in everything you do, all you say, and how you conduct yourself.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, you are the Sealer of my Redemption. You, O God, are Truth. You are Holy, and You are glorious. Father, let me never bring shame to the name I claim to bear. Let me be a light for You in this dark world. May my speech be salted, and may my conduct reflect who You are. Be the center of my life. Teach me Your ways that I might not grieve Your Holy Spirit. Remind me always I am Your child, and if I should fall to the wayside, help me back up and show me Your truth. Convict me of what is unpleasant to You, and let me fall into Your hands of mercy and grace. Father, thank You for Your goodness and Your faithful that endures forever. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
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