The Seal Of The Holy Spirit
In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 1:13)
Over the last few days of the month, I want us to take a look at the specific blessings we get to experience because of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives. The first blessing I want to talk about is the fact that the Holy Spirit seals us as children of God.
“When you believed,” Paul says, “you were marked with a seal of the promised Holy Spirit.” The audience reading and hearing this letter would have clearly understood what Paul meant by this idea that the Holy Spirit seals us. In the ancient world when letters or official documents were sent, they were stamped and sealed with a wax seal. Hot wax was placed on the document and a signet ring pressed into the wax. So what Paul is saying is that when God saves us, He places his seal or his stamp on us which is the Holy Spirit.
With that seal comes implied authenticity. The seals on the documents showed that the letter was authentic; that the contents of the document could be trusted because they were verified by the seal. In 1 Kings 17:8-14, Jezebel forged letters in the name of Ahab commanding the men of Naboth’s village to have him put to death. The letter was filled with lies; but since they bore the King’s seal, they were authentic, and they were accepted and carried out by the elders of that village.
Similarly, the Holy Spirit confirms the authenticity of the believer. In other words, Paul is trying to say that when you become a follower of Christ and you are marked with His seal, you are clearly distinguished as His child. This lets everyone know who you belong to and who sent you. What a blessing and comfort it is to know that we are authentically God’s children through the presence of the Holy Spirit in us!
Over the last few days of the month, I want us to take a look at the specific blessings we get to experience because of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives. The first blessing I want to talk about is the fact that the Holy Spirit seals us as children of God.
“When you believed,” Paul says, “you were marked with a seal of the promised Holy Spirit.” The audience reading and hearing this letter would have clearly understood what Paul meant by this idea that the Holy Spirit seals us. In the ancient world when letters or official documents were sent, they were stamped and sealed with a wax seal. Hot wax was placed on the document and a signet ring pressed into the wax. So what Paul is saying is that when God saves us, He places his seal or his stamp on us which is the Holy Spirit.
With that seal comes implied authenticity. The seals on the documents showed that the letter was authentic; that the contents of the document could be trusted because they were verified by the seal. In 1 Kings 17:8-14, Jezebel forged letters in the name of Ahab commanding the men of Naboth’s village to have him put to death. The letter was filled with lies; but since they bore the King’s seal, they were authentic, and they were accepted and carried out by the elders of that village.
Similarly, the Holy Spirit confirms the authenticity of the believer. In other words, Paul is trying to say that when you become a follower of Christ and you are marked with His seal, you are clearly distinguished as His child. This lets everyone know who you belong to and who sent you. What a blessing and comfort it is to know that we are authentically God’s children through the presence of the Holy Spirit in us!
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