Believe it or not, Christmas is only 44 days away if I’ve calculated correctly. Before we know it, we’ll be gathered around the Christmas tree with our family, exchanging presents and opening them up to see what has been given to us. Chances are, we will either receive or give an item that is sealed so tightly and securely that it will take a box cutter, heavy-duty scissors, or other tools to break the seal, and even then, there will be a rambunctious struggle to release the gift from the Ft. Knox packaging.
Tell me you haven’t experienced the frustration of trying to open something encased in that industrial-strength plastic.
“Wrap rage, also called package rage, is the common name for heightened levels of anger and frustration resulting from the inability to open packaging, particularly some heat-sealed plastic blister packs and clamshells. People can be injured while opening difficult packaging: cutting tools pose a sharp hazard to the person opening the package, as well as to its contents.”
The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimated that attempts to open packaging caused about 6,500 emergency department visits in the U.S. in 2004.” [i]
As annoying and maddening as those types of packaging can be, they serve several purposes.
They deter thieves. The sealed packaging is much greater and bigger than the product itself; therefore, it’s more difficult to conceal it. And because the packaging is so difficult to get into, a potential thief wouldn’t be able to discreetly open it in the store to retrieve the product itself.
Along with that, there is normally an anti-theft device within the packaging. So, unless a thief took the time and risk to remove the product from the packaging, the implanted security device would sound an alert when the thief tried to make their escape.
But the nearly impenetrable packaging protects the product itself. Because the packaging is specifically molded and formed around the product, the risk of damage is reduced. Products well sealed can usually be dropped or stacked upon without any harm.
As Christians, we are sealed. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13-14 HCSB “13 When you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed in Him, you were also sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. 14 He is the down payment of our inheritance, for the redemption of the possession, to the praise of His glory.”
Paul is writing to the Gentile believers in Ephesus. He explains that when they heard the gospel and believed, they were sealed with the Holy Spirit that had been promised to them.
We know that the Holy Spirit is one-third of the Trinity. He is referenced in the very beginning, Genesis 1, when Scripture tells us that “the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” He is referenced in Revelation 22:17 NLT “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.”
All throughout Scripture, the Spirit of God or the Holy Spirit is mentioned. In the Old Testament, we are told that the Holy Spirit would fill certain people at certain times for certain purposes.
The Holy Spirit came upon Saul, and he was equipped to prophesy. (1 Samuel 10)
David was empowered by the Holy Spirit in 1 Samuel 16 and begged God not to remove His Spirit from him in Psalm 51.
Gideon was clothed with the Spirit of God. (Judges 6)
The Holy Spirit experience wasn’t widespread. It wasn’t something that was a common occurrence. And those who did experience Him only did so for periods of time. But God spoke to the prophet Joel and said, “Later, I will give my Spirit
to everyone.
Your sons and daughters
will prophesy.
Your old men
will have dreams,
and your young men
will see visions.
29 In those days I will even give
my Spirit to my servants,
both men and women.” (Joel 2:28-29 CEV)
This prophecy indicated that the day would come when the Holy Spirit would indwell in all believers and, of course, this prophesy was fulfilled at Pentecost.
Paul writes to the people of Ephesus and explains that they have been sealed with the Holy Spirit that had been promised to them. And this sealing takes place when they hear the gospel and believe.
The Greek word used for sealed in Ephesians 1:13 indicates security, ownership, and full authority.[ii]
Being sealed with the Holy Spirit changes us and changes our life. One of the most important changes is the sealing of the Holy Spirit identifies us as God’s child. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is what authenticates us and our salvation.
In Acts 19, Paul comes across some disciples and asks about their encounter with the Holy Spirit.
Acts 19:1 NIV “While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?”
“John’s baptism,” they replied.
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.”
These disciples had been baptized in the water, but they had not been sealed by the Holy Spirit. There’s a difference. How many times have we heard someone in the baptistry giving their testimony and state that they had been baptized earlier in their life, but didn’t feel as if it was genuine. Being dunked or sprinkled with water isn’t what saves us. It isn’t what seals us. That’s part of the Holy Spirit’s role in a Christian’s life.
In His conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus said in John 3:5 ICB “But Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Unless you are born from water and the Spirit, you cannot enter God’s kingdom.”
The Holy Spirit within us is what identifies us as a Christian.
And the Holy Spirit is Who protects us. He protects us from evil, our sin, and our self. Galatians 5:17 ERV “So I tell you, live the way the Spirit leads you. Then you will not do the evil things your sinful self wants.”
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can live our lives in ways that are pleasing to God. It’s the Holy Spirit Who convicts us of our sins and nudges us when we need to repent. The Holy Spirit protects us with self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7 GNT “For the Spirit that God has given us does not make us timid; instead, his Spirit fills us with power, love, and self-control.” But, of course, we have free will to exercise that self-control or not.
The Holy Spirit transforms us and re-purposes and redefines us. We become a new creation because of His indwelling with us. He empowers us to do what we were created for. “When God set (affixed) His seal on you, He claimed you to commission you. You have a new purpose in life!”[iii]
1 Corinthians 12 gives us a list of spiritual gifts. Here are just a few verses from that chapter.
12 “Now, concerning what you wrote about the gifts from the Holy Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:1 GNT)
“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them.” (1 Corinthians 12:4 GNT)
“The Spirit’s presence is shown in some way in each person for the good of all.”(1 Corinthians 12:5 GNT)
“But it is one and the same Spirit who does all this; as he wishes, he gives a different gift to each person.” (1 Corinthians 12:11 GNT)
Who gives spiritual gifts? The Holy Spirit. And why does He gift us as He does? For the good of all. We talked about unity last week and how each person is specifically gifted so that they can contribute in their own unique way.
Those of you who work in the nursery can identify with this. When it’s getting close to the end of the service, we try to get the kids to start cleaning up the toys, puzzles, and books. Some children can just be told to “clean up” and they’ll start doing just that. But most of the children need direction; they need to be assigned a certain task. One child is told to pick up all the cars and trucks. Another is responsible for putting away the play food. Another child is given the responsibility of gathering the dolls. Another is assigned the puzzles. Now if everyone does what they are assigned to do, the job gets done in no time! But that rarely happens. The child tasked with putting away the play food wants to get the baby dolls too because they’re all in the same area. The one who is supposed to be putting the baby dolls in their beds gets mad and pouts and doesn’t want to do anything. The one assigned to the puzzles doesn’t want to do anything so the puzzle pieces stay scattered. The one who is supposed to be picking up the cars and trucks gets distracted playing with them instead. And the child who wasn’t given a certain task and is just doing a general clean-up gets angry and frustrated because they are the only one doing any work.
Adults aren’t much different. We are specifically and uniquely gifted to work together for the Kingdom of God. Make no mistake- the Holy Spirit knows what He’s doing. He knows which of us is going to best use the gift of leadership without inserting our own agenda. He knows who among us is most likely to be an effective encourager and not a know-it-all. We are gifted by the Holy Spirit Who knows us through and through and knows how and where we are most valuable to do God’s work.
In reading over some commentaries this week, I came across one that is so well-worded. Look at Ephesians 1:1 GNT. “From Paul, who by God’s will is an apostle of Christ Jesus—”
Chuck Smith’s Bible Commentary has this to say. “Now, if you were writing this epistle, take out the name Paul, and insert your name and then, whatever it is that you are: Jim, a service station attendant by the will of God. John, a foundry worker by the will of God. You see, not all are called to be apostles. Not all are called to be pastors, and not all are called to be preachers. Also, it is a mistake to try to be something that God hasn’t called you to be, something that God hasn’t equipped you for.
I really do not like the phrase, “He is following the highest calling of God; he’s gone into the ministry.” The ministry is not the highest calling of God. “Oh, he’s following the highest calling of God; he’s a missionary.” That is not the highest calling of God. Whatever God has called you to be and equipped you to be is God’s highest calling for your life. And you don’t need to feel like a second-rate heavenly citizen just because you have a job as a service station attendant, or you are a secretary, or if you are blessed of God with the privilege of being a housewife. Whatever it is that God has called you to be is the highest calling of God for your life. And you know, that’s the hardest thing in the world to try to be something that God didn’t make you.”[iv]
Among the many things the Spirit does, He gives peace, comfort, encouragement, conviction, instruction, unity, and spiritual gifts. The Spirit is continuously active in your life because He lives in you!
But that’s not all. Here is verse 14 of Ephesians 1 in several different translations.
The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory. (CSB)
This Holy Spirit is the guarantee that we will receive our inheritance. We have this guarantee until we are set free to belong to him. God receives praise and glory for this. (GWT)
Who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory. (NASB)
Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of his glory. (WBT)
In other words, verse 14 of Ephesians 1 tells us that the Holy Spirit is the downpayment of our inheritance. What is a downpayment, exactly? It’s a partial payment that is made to secure the purchase of something valuable. It represents a percentage or a portion of the full price. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the seal of ownership, the protection, the newfound purpose, along with any spiritual gift is simply a percentage of what God has for us. One commentator said the Holy Spirit is a “foretaste of the blessedness of heaven”.[v]
Galatians 4:4 CEV “But when the time was right, God sent his Son, and a woman gave birth to him. His Son obeyed the Law, 5 so he could set us free from the Law, and we could become God’s children. 6 Now that we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. And his Spirit tells us that God is our Father. 7 You are no longer slaves. You are God’s children, and you will be given what he has promised.”
We are sealed. We are protected. As indestructible as the packaging may be on products we buy in the store, the Holy Spirit’s seal on us is even more so. It doesn’t mean that Satan and his minions don’t try. Like a thief, he attempts to steal us away from our time with God. He tries to steal away our faith, our hope, and our joy. He tampers with our lives, our situations, and our emotions. But our salvation, our heritage cannot be stolen.
The indwelling and the presence of the Holy Spirit affords us all that we could possibly need.
Palette knife painting
by Alfonso Garcia
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Corinthians 3:17)
The Holy Spirit is our Helper (John 14:16)
Our Interceder (Romans 8:26-27)
Our Counselor (Isaiah 11:2)
Comforter (John 14:26)
Sanctifier (1 Corinthians 6:11)
Teacher (1 John 2:27)
As much has been done for us, how could we not recognize and appreciate the gift of the Holy Spirit?
How does the truth that God chooses, redeems, and seals you affect the daily choices you make to love and serve God and others?
[ii] Strong’s Greek: 4972. σφραγίζω (sphragizó) — to seal (biblehub.com)
[iii] Credit to Andy Cauble
[iv] Ephesians 1:13 – Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary – StudyLight.org
[v] What is Earnest? Bible Definition and Scripture References (biblestudytools.com)
Beacons of Light 