Sealing Of Holy Spirit
Reading Portion : Ephesians 1: 13 & 14

Now we are Going to Discuss About Holy Spirit Step By Step (Verse By Verse). I hope You Memorized Ephesians 1:13,14. And now you also have heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us everything he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. This is just one more reason for us to praise our glorious God.

He has sealed us:-The entire process of salvation is given in these verses. It just tells us how the sinner is transformed as a saint. First he hears the gospel of salvation, which is the good news that Christ died for our sins was buried and rose again (1 Corinthians 15:1). Ephesians were gentiles, but Paul a Jew brought the gospel to Gentiles. The Ephesians heard the gospel and declared that it was for them - "Your Salvation" (Verse 13).

Even though BIBLE teaches election  it also announces "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature " (Mark 16:15). A soul winner does not discuss election with unsaved people because it is a family secret that belongs to the saints. He simply announces the truth of the gospel and invites men to trust Christ and the HOLY SPIRIT Does the Rest.

Having heard the Gospel the Ephesians believed and it is this faith that brought salvation (2:8,9). Read Romans 10:13-15) carefully. When the Ephesians believed they were "sealed with the spirit". After that "ye believed" should read "When Ye Believed" ( Fundamental Truth in a Christian life ).

 This is an experience NOT subsequent to conversion (Read Acts 10:34 - 48). When U accepted Jesus Christ As Your Personal Savior On 23 May 1999 Evening 6:30 in Your House. That Means You Received Holy Spirit On 23 May 1999 Evening 6:30. The Sealing of Holy Spirit is Occurred On 23 May 1999 Evening 6:30 in Your House. In Your Life.

What is the significance of this sealing of the Holy Spirit?

1.A finished transaction ( Jeremiah 32:9, 10.John 17:4,19:30).Even today when the important documents are processed They were stamped with the official seal to signify the completion of the transaction

2 This sealing also implies ownership (Jeremiah 32:11,12, II Timothy 2:19) God has put his seal upon us because he has purchased us to be his own (1 Cor 6:19,20)

3.It also means security and protection. The Romans sealed on the tomb of Jesus carried this meaning Matt 27:62-66). So the believer belongs to God and is safe and protected because he is part of a finished transaction. According to John 14:16,17. the Holy Spirit abides with the believers forever and ever. It is possible for us to grieve the spirit and thereby lose the blessings of His ministry (Ephesians 4:30) But he does not leave us.

4.Seal is the mark of authentication: Just as signature attested to the geniuses of the document. So the presence of the spirit proves the believer is genuine. If any man have not the spirit of the Christ he is none of His; it is not simply our lip profession of our religious activities of our good-works but the goodness of the spirit that makes our profession authenticate.

5.He has given us the earnest: (Ephesians 1:14). It means "The down payment to guarantee the final purchase of come commodity or price of property. The Holy Spirit is God's FIRST INSTALLMENT to guarantee to his children that he will finish his work and eventually bring him to glory. redemption of the purchased possession refers to the body at the return of Christ"

5 a. Redemption is experienced in three stages:

5B) Earnest also means "Engagement ring": He is the bridegroom and his church is his bride. He gives his spirit as the engagement ring to his church (believers). What a Greatest Assurance!!! What more do we want? In Holy Spirit We Have Reconciliation


Ephesians 2 :13:But Now In Christ Jesus Ye who some times were far off are made nigh by THE BLOOD OF CHRIST "But Now" Parallels "But God" in Verse 4.Both Speaks of gracious intervention of God On behalf of lost sinners. "Enmity" is the key word in this section ( V15-16 ).and you will note that there is two fold of enmity.


                                            Between Jews and Gentiles (V 13 - 15)
                                            Between Sinners and GOD ( V16 - 18)


Paul describes the greatest Peace mission in history. Jesus Christ not only reconciled both to Himself in One body "THE CHURCH". The word reconcile means "To Bring Together" again. A lost sinner needs to be reconciled to GOD .Sin is the Great separator in this world . It has been dividing the People since the very beginning of the History. When Adam and Eve sinned they were separated from each other and Cain Killed Abel. The earth filled with violence (Genesis 6:5 - 13). and only remedy seems to be "JUDGMENT" But even after the flood men sinned against God and each other and even tried to build their unity with out God's help. The result was another judgment that scattered the nations and confused youngest was then that God Called Abraham and through the nation of Israel, Jesus Christ Came into this world. It was his work on the cross that abolished the enmity between Jew and Gentile and between Sinners and God. 


The enmity between Jews and Gentiles. The enmity between Jews and Gentiles ( Ephesians 2:13-15 ) God Put a Difference: God has put a difference between Jews and Gentiles so that his purposes in salvation might be accomplished. But once those purposes in salvation might be accomplished, there was no difference. in fact it was his purpose that these differences be erased through the work of Christ in reconciliation.


It was one of the difficult lessons to understand. Try to understand. God Never Fails in his eternal plans. Question Arises Must a gentile become a Jew to become a Christian? "No! Jews and gentiles are saved the same way. By faith in Jesus Christ".
The enmity was gone. When we accept Jesus Christ Jesus is in You. You are in Jesus. Jesus is in your enemy (now he is Your Brother). A Jew was in Jesus when he accepted Jesus Christ. What is the Result. Love Which results to Peace. Peace is the Cry Of a Politicians today. You wont get anywhere Except By the Blood of Jesus. "There is no difference between the Jew and the Greek. For the same lord over all is rich unto all that called upon him. For whosoever call upon the name of the Lord shall be Saved" ( Romans 10:12-13). In Jesus Christ Jew and Gentile become one. "He is our Peace" (Ephesians 2:14) Through Christ, the far off Gentile is made nigh (vv 13,17), and both Jew and Gentile are made one. The consequences of Christ's work are then the destroying of the enmity by abolishing the law, and creating of a new man - The Church, the Body of Christ. The word abolish simply means to "NULLIFY ". The law no longer holds sway over either Jew or Gentile, since in Christ believer's are not under law but under Grace.
"Christ is Our Peace" (Eph 2:14) and he made "Peace"(V15). That verb to make in verse 15 means "to Create". The church , the body of Christ, is God's Creation (2  Cor 5:15). Every thing in the old creation is falling Apart because of Sin, but in the new Creation there is unity because of Righteousness. "There is neither Jew nor Greek neither bond nor free neither male nor female :for ye all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28).You may contrast the old position of Gentiles with the new Position of the Gentiles and see how wonderfully Christ worked on their behalf on the Cross.                                  

    

OLD POSITION NEW POSITION Reference
With Out Christ   With Christ Eph 2:13
Aliens A Holy Nation   1 Peter 2:9
Strangers No More Strangers  Eph 2:19
No Hope      Called in One Hope Eph 4:4
With Out God  The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ  Eph 1:3

The Enmity Between Sinners and God ( Eph 2:16-18): Not only did the Gentiles need to be reconciled to the Jews, but both the Jews and the Gentiles needed to be reconciled to God!. This was the Conclusion the Apostles came to at the Jerusalem Conference Recorded in Acts 15 Peter Said that God "Put no Difference between Jews and then to Gentiles purifying their hearts by faith... But we believe that through the Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they Did You Received the Holy Spirit? When we heard the truth WE believe it, and Obey It. and as a result, were born into the family of God.

The Holy Spirit is Mentioned in the Book Of Romans for 18 times where as in Ephesians 12 times. The only evidence of conversion is the presence of the Holy Spirit in the Life of the Believer (See Rom 8:9) Paul asks an important question: did they received the Spirit By faith in the Word of God or by the doing the Works of the Law? Of Course, there would be but only one answer :The Spirit Came into the Heart because they trusted Jesus Christ.

Work of Holy Spirit :It is important that we understand the work of the spirit in Salvation and Christian Living. The Holy Spirit Convicts the lost sinner and reveals the Christ to Him (John 16:7 -11) .The Sinner Can resist the spirit ( Acts 7 :51) or yield to the Spirit and trust Jesus Christ. When the sinner believes in Christ, he is then born of the Spirit (John 3:1- 8) and receives new life. He is also baptized By the Spirit So that he becomes the Part of Spiritual Body of Christ ( 1 Cor 12: 12- 14). The believer is Sealed By the Spirit (Ephesians 1:13 - 14) as a guarantee that one day share in the Glory Of Christ. Since the Holy Spirit does So Much for the Believer, this means that the believer has a responsibility to the Holy Spirit, who lives with in His Body (1 Cor 6:19 - 20) . The Christian Should walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:16,25) by reading the word of God, Praying and Obeying the will of GOD. If he disobeys God. Then He is grieving the Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) and if he persists in doing this he may quench the Spirit (I Thessalonians 5:19). This doesn't mean that the Holy Spirit Leave Him, Because Jesus is Promised that the Spirit abides For Ever (John 14 :16). but it does mean that the Spirit cannot give Him the Joy and Power that he needs for daily Christian Living. Believers Should be Filled With Spirit (Ephesians 5 :18 - 21), which Simply means Controlled by the Spirit." This is a continuous experience, like drinking water from the fresh Stream (John 7 :37 - 39)

Date  : 1999

Discussed in Blessed Timings E-Group                                                                 - Golla John Thimothy