Ephesians 1:13-14 – Sealed by the Spirit

Verse 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

Pay attention to the order of salvation!

1 – We hear (listen to) the gospel

2 – We believe

3 – We are sealed with the Holy Spirit

Romans 10:13-14, 17

Hear – How shall the believe in Him whom they have not heard?

Believe – How shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed?

Sealed – With the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness.

Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

John 5:24

Hear – He who hears my word

Believe – and believes Him who sent Me

Sealed – has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

Acts 15:7-8 – Peter speaking –

Hear – That by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel

Believe – and believe.

Sealed - …giving them the Holy Spirit…

How are we sealed?

1 – We are sealed as to POSITION – Every instance of a seal in Scripture denotes an unalterable position of those who are sealed.

-The 144,000 – Revelation 7:2-8

-Satan – Revelation 20:2-3

-The kings decree – Daniel 6:17

2 – We are sealed as to OWNERSHIP – Everyone who believes in Christ is purchased by His blood and becomes His very own. The seal of the Holy Spirit is the guarantee of this ownership and since it cannot be broken, believers are secure in Him. It is the one who seals who is responsible for the object upon which the seal is placed.

3 – We are sealed as an EARNEST of our inheritance (see also 2 Cor. 1:22). An earnest is a payment made by the purchaser to guarantee the completion of the transaction. To say that a believer could ever lose his or her salvation is to say that God will not honor His earnest payment.

The Holy spirt of promise – The Spirit is often promised in the Old Testament (Isaiah 32:15, 44:3, Ezek. 37:14, Joel 2:28-29) and also was promised by Jesus (John 7:39, 14:16, 15:26, 16:13, Acts 1:5).

Verse 14

Who is given as a pledge of our inheritance – The pronouns have shifted from *we *(Jewish believers) to you (Gentile believers) to our, all believers!

With a view to the redemption of God’s own possession – We belong to God! We have been redeemed by the blood of Christ and we now look forward to the day when we will be with Him. Note 2 Corinthians 5:1-5, 1 Peter 2:9.

To the praise of His glory – This first section begins with praise, ends with praise, and is filled with praise for God!

-Verse 6 – To the praise of the glory of His grace

-Verse 12 – To the praise of His glory

-Verse 14 – To the praise of His glory

The work of the Father, Son, and Spirit results in the praise of His glory!

The more we understand how much God loves us and has chosen us to be like His Son, the more we understand what Christ did for us in redeeming us, and the more we understand the work of the Holy Spirit in sealing us and empowering us, the more we will praise Him!