THE HOLY SPIRIT OUR SEAL

STUDIES ON THE ROLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (IV)

THE HOLY SPIRIT OUR SEAL

SCRIPTURE:

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. 1 Corinthians 1:22

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1:13

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:20

OBSERVATION:

In the letters of Paul, time and again, he described the Holy Spirit as a seal on every Believer, as a deposit, guaranteeing what was to come. The Greek Word for Seal “Sphragis” denotes an emblem of ownership and security, combined with that of destination. A person might go to the market and pay a deposit for a carpet and that carpet would be set apart as already owned by that buyer and not to be sold to any other third party. In that sense, the moment we put our trust in Jesus Christ, He puts the Holy Spirit in our hearts as a seal for us, which says that we belong to God.

It is as if God has taken a chop and chopped on our foreheads “belonging to Jesus Christ”. The more powerful a person or body was, the more strength the seal would have, and the less likely anyone would dare to tamper with it. Therefore, if we are sealed by God Almighty Himself by the Holy Spirit, we have a powerful and secure guarantee indeed!

What are we sealed for? Ephesians tells us that it is for the day of redemption. It reminds us of the Lord’s promise that He will one day return for us and then we will be with Him forever.

How do we know we are saved? We know it mentally based on our belief in the Word of God but we know it spiritually, because we know that the Holy Spirit is with us. How do we know the Holy Spirit is with us? It is when we can sense His presence with us, giving us a deep peace in our hearts. It is when we are able to think of God and feel love flood our hearts in thanksgiving and praise for Him. It is when we are able to worship God, and feel His presence wash over us.  It is when we find ourselves praising God easily and naturally, spurred on by the Holy Spirit from within us. When we have these inclinations, and especially a strong sense of thinking of God and turning to Him, we know beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Holy Spirit is in us.

However, when we find ourselves being more drawn to the things of the world, and God becomes absent in our thoughts, when we become entrenched in sins we refuse to give up, and when we start keeping away from the people of God, these are dangerous warning signs for us that something is wrong. It is like our Seal begins to recede and fade as we think less and less of Him. Can we lose this living Seal who is the Holy Spirit? The Scripture warns us that the Holy Spirit can be quenched in us, when we refuse to listen to Him, when we refuse to believe Him. We can grieve the Holy Spirit, and in places where the Holy Spirit is quenched and grieved to greater and greater degrees, His presence may not abide for long.

APPLICATION:

How precious is our Living Seal, our precious Holy Spirit. He is our Seal, our Guarantee of the Salvation we have in Jesus Christ. Yet, we must never take Him for granted, but yearn to allow Him to work with us, to shape our lives into homes that He delights in dwelling. To have the Holy Spirit strongly in us is to be willing to yield to Him, to trust Him, to depend on Him to lead us, to guide us, to empower us.

How precious it is to walk by the Holy Spirit, to live by Him, to go about life being aware of His power and presence with us!

PRAYER

We praise thee, Father in Heaven, Lord Jesus Christ, Precious Holy Spirit. You gave us the Seal of Your Living Spirit, who resides in our hearts, who guides us and protects us and gives us peace. You are marvelous O Jehovah, Mighty and Worthy of All Praise! Help us O Lord, cooperate with You and allow You to work Your precious work in us. Change us and help us we pray, precious Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.