Sealed - by the Spirit

Ephesians 1:11-14

Ever have somethinghappen to you that’s too good to be true? Ever look at an opportunity beforeyou and say, “Wow, this can’t be real!” In fact, we have a saying about this, “Ifit sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

One such opportunityyou may be able to relate with is buying your first home. Signing the papers. Getting the keys.Going inside and closing the door to your very own place. If you’ve never experiencedthis moment, you hope that you will someday. We all do.

It’s one ofthose “pinch yourself” moments that’s hard to believe. You feel like somethingmay still go wrong. Can I keep on affording the mortgage? Did the home inspectormiss a building flaw somewhere? Did the sellers insert some fine print into thedeal that I somehow missed? Will the housing market bottom out? What if itburns down?

You don’t haveto be a real estate agent to know a few things about real estate. Estaterefers to a piece of land and the building(s) on it. It can also include rightsto the air space above the land and ground space below. Real refers toactual physical, material property.

As we know,real estate is complicated business in NYC, and it’s also expensive. As ofJanuary 2020, Zillow estimates the median home value in the five-boroughs at $649,026.In Queens, it is $529,085. Believe it or not, this is a buyers’ market.

I’ve mentionedreal estate and the experience of buying a home because these concepts andexperiences help us understand Eph 1:11-14 in a more accurate, personal way.

Like a personowns real estate, God owns us and he will never let us go.

In fact, lateron in this letter, Paul illustrates our new relationship with God as “Christdwelling in our hearts,” as though our hearts are his home (Eph 3:17).

Eph 1:7-10teaches us that redemption is “deliverance by the payment of a price.” In thecase of our salvation, God the Father redeemed us out of slavery to sin throughthe violent, bloody death of God the Son in our place. We’ve been written into God’swill, purchased at the greatest cost, and marked as his forever.

Yet redemptionteaches more than costly deliverance.

Redemption teachesthe transfer of ownership from one party to another.

Throughredemption, we don’t begin to belong to God. We are restored to himas the one to whom we rightfully belonged in the first place. To understand redemptionthis way, we need to know how real estate worked in OT Israel (cf. Lev 25:23-34).

• God gave land to the nation of Israel. Technically, this land belonged to himnot to them. He entrusted it to them to manage and use.
• Theydivided the land among the twelve tribes of Israel, who in turn divided itamong the families in each tribe.
• Whena father died, his sons inherited equal portions of his land. This arrangementkept the real estate in both the family and the tribe.

By thisarrangement, God intended for property to be a permanent possession. As such,property was not a liquid commodity to buy and sell as we do in the U.S today.

Nevertheless, some circumstanceschallenged this intention, as when a man died without an heir, with no one topossess the land. Another such challenge occurred when a man faced financialhardship so severe that he must sell the land to survive. In both cases, theact of redemption provided a solution through the payment of a price

The paymentcame from a person called the “kinsman-redeemer.”

According tothis law, the nearest paternal relative was obligated to redeem the land sothat it remained within the family.

In the case offinancial hardship, this meant that a child, sibling, or cousin would pooltogether the monetary value of the property and “buy it back” into the familyfrom whomever purchased it. Doing this did not return the real estate to itsoriginal owner, but it ensured that the property would remain within the familyat large.

In the case of havingno heirs, this meant that the nearest paternal male relative would marry hisbrother or cousin’s widow. To do so, he would purchase her deceased husband’sreal estate property. Together, they would hope to conceive a son to raise inher deceased husband’s name. This action would restore and perpetuate herhusband’s name and inheritance, yet it was a sacrificial, selfless act forsure.

What does this “kinsman-redeemer”practice have to do with our relationship to God?

The OT book ofRuth tells the story of a kinsman-redeemer named Boaz, a wealthy and godly man,who helps us understand how God has redeemed us through Christ.

Boaz purchasedland that belonged to a Jewish widow’s (Naomi) deceased husband and marriedRuth, Naomi’s daughter-in-law. This example is remarkable because Ruth was aMoabite, not an Israelite. She was a foreigner and outsider.

Moabite peoplewere notorious for their idolatry, rejection of God, hostility to Israel, andparticipation in child sacrifice. For these reasons and more, God cursed thenation of Moab and banned them from entering into the tabernacle or Temple ofIsrael (Deut 23:3).

However, God reversedthis curse for any foreigner – including Moabites – who “joined himself to theLord” (Isa 56:3).He intended for the Jerusalem Temple to be a “house of prayer for all nations”(Isa 56:7). This intention applied to Ruth because she had abandoned her pagangods and placed her trust in the God of the Bible (Ruth 1:16).

Many Jewish menwould have refused to redeem the property of Naomi’s husband for they wouldhave resented marrying a Moabite woman, even though she had believed on theLord. In fact, a man who was a closer relation refused to do so (Ruth 4:1-6).

Yet, as akinsman-redeemer, Boaz demonstrated the lavish grace of God towards this womanof pagan ancestry and her helpless mother-in-law. All of his resources becametheirs. They enjoyed a close, committed relationship with him though they hadformerly been outsiders (Naomi and refugee and Ruth an enemy). This new familyprovided them with the protection and security they needed for a bright andfruitful future.

God blessedBoaz and Ruth with a son, Obed, who would be the grandfather of king David andthe eventual great forefather of Jesus our ultimate redeemer (Ruth 4:13, 17).

Christ is ourkinsman-redeemer.

Through thecost of his death, he has restored back to God what rightfully belongs to him –and that includes you. Just as Ruth was an outsider from Israel, so most of uswere also pagans and outsiders as well. Yet through Christ’s redemption, bothJews and Gentiles are brought together into one spiritual family (Eph 2:11-13).

Christ redemptionfrees us from the record of our sins (Eph 1:7). What’s more, he does thispermanently. His redemption is eternal (Heb 9:12). Once he restores you to God, you belongto God forever. Christ bought us back as God’s rightful possession (Eph 1:11).

The phrase “wehave obtained an inheritance” is difficult to translate. It probably has moreto do with us being God’s inheritance than us receiving aninheritance. In this instance, then, we are like the plots of ground in Israelwhich had been lost to their rightful owners but were redeemed by a closerelative. Christ brought (lit. bought) us back to God, something which wereunable to do for ourselves.

Our redemptionis part of God’s deliberate, predetermined plan.

Impulse buyingis buying something on a whim. It’s going to the store to buy some groceriesbut walking out with a TV. It’s going for a leisurely afternoon drive in thecountry to view autumn leaves but buying a farmhouse you discovered for salealong the way.

That’s not howGod redeemed you through Christ. He redeemed you based upon a well-thought-outplan. Paul uses three words for “planning”: purpose, counsel, and will. Thesewords are similar in meaning and don’t contribute three different nuances here.Instead, they “layer up” as a threefold emphasis to ensure we get the point –God planned to redeem you and it was certain to happen. Nothing would preventhim from getting it done.

This plan wasso certain that Paul also describes it as “predestined,” which means God cameto this decision beforehand – before you believed, before you were conceived,and before he made anything at all.

It is also certainfor another major reason – because the God who made these plans works out “allthings,” not just your redemption, according to his plans. This is the problem whenanyone else but God makes plans.

We make plans,but we also make backup plans. Why? Because we don’t control all the circumstancesthat affect our plans. All sorts of things can “go wrong” and unexpectedsurprised will likely occur.

God is the onlyone who always carries out his plans.

Solomonexplained it this way: “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless theLORD’s counsel—that will stand” (Prov 19:21).

His father,David, made a similar observation: “The counsel of the LORD stands forever, theplans of his heart to all generations” (Psa 33:11).

The prophetIsaiah made this especially clear: “I am God, and there is no other; I am God,and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and fromancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, andI will do all my pleasure’” (Isa46:10).

God is sovereign;he reigns and rules over everything. Nothing exceeds his authority and allother authorities are subject to him.

He is also aGod of providence, which means that through all that happens in the world, heis actively working out his plan – through weather, world events, and people’s choices.

Because God is sovereignand enjoys the full exercise of providence, he makes plans and whatever heplans, he ensures that it happens. He always does what he wants to do, and ourredemption through Christ is as the center of his plan.

Our redemptionis no half-hearted endeavor or an emergency response to some unfortunate eventsthat surprised God one day. It is the focal point of his eternal plans which heset in motion before he made the worlds.

Our redemption willinspire maximum praise for his overwhelming greatness and goodness.

The word “firsttrusted” means something like “begin to have confidence.” It refers to how welook forward today to what Christ will do tomorrow. In this case, it refers tothe way that our lives will bring ultimate praise to God in eternity when hecompletes his work of redemption in the future.

Though ourlives give us reason to celebrate God’s glory today, the glory in our livestoday is small compared to the glory we will exhibit in eternity. If you thinkthat what God is doing now in our lives is amazing, just wait until you seewhat he’s doing then – you’ll be in absolute awe, and so will everyone else whosee it.

Paul tracesthis process of glory out for us in the following verses (Eph 1:13-14). He presentsa three-phase progression.

• Salvation– this is the moment of our conversion when God reveals the gospel to ourhearts and we believe in Christ. For the first time, we realize the truth abouthow good God is when we understand and depend on Christ’s death for our sins asour salvation.
• Sanctification– this is the duration of our post-conversion life as we learn to behave likeGod’s children day by day. That’s what we’re going through right now.
• Glorification– this is the end result of our conversion when God takes full possession ofour lives, including the complete restoration of our bodies to a sinlesscondition and the remaking of the entire world under his reign and free from evilin every way.

Anyone who’s believedon Christ for salvation will agree that …

It’s the middlephase of our transformation that challenges us the most – our sanctification.

Our electionand conversion are certain and secure. Our glorification and final destinationare also secure. But what about the ups and downs of our everyday lives?

Some days we dowell and reflect the glory of God through our attitudes, words, and actions.Other days, not so much. Some days we behave so poorly that we wonder whetherwe can lose our salvation and abandon our relationship with God. That’s wherean important ministry of the third person of the Godhead (the Trinity) comes intoplay – not the Father, not the Son, but the Spirit.

• TheFather chose us.
• TheSon redeemed us.
• TheSpirit sealed us.

This threefoldwork, cooperation, and partnership, if you will, of the Trinity to secure mysalvation reminds me of what Solomon said, “Though one may be overpowered byanother, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken” (Eccl 4:12). Nothing canundo the salvation that God has worked out on your behalf. He is the strongestpossible cord that secures your salvation

The Holy Spiritguarantees your final and complete redemption.

In ancienttimes, people placed wax seals on letters, scrolls and important containers.Each seal featured a personal, customized mark pressed into it by a metal ringor something similar. Each mark was unique and distinct to the person who authorizedor owned the document. Only the authorized person could break the seal, andwhen they did, whatever the document contained could be enacted. That’s what happensin Rev 5-6, for instance, as Jesus breaks seven seals to unleash seven judgmentson the world.

The apostlePaul used this same seal terminology to describe a way that the Holy Spirit functionsfor us today (Eph. 1:13-14; 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:22).

• Whogets this seal? Everyone who believes in Christ, the good news of salvation(Eph 1:13; 2 Cor 1:22).
• Whatis this seal? The Holy Spirit himself (Eph 1:13-14).
• Howlong does this seal last? Until the day of your full redemption, when you seeChrist in eternity and enter his kingdom (Eph 1:14; 4:30; cf. Phil 3:20-21, 1 John3:2).
• Whatis the purpose of this seal? It serves as the guarantee of our future inheritancein God’s kingdom. The word guarantee means something like “firstinstallment,” “down payment,” or “earnest money.”

By giving usthe Spirit as a seal, the Father ensures that his inheritance will never belost.

The Spiritguarantees your safe delivery to heaven, ensuring that God gets what he paidfor. Yet the Spirit also guarantees that you will also get what’s coming to youas God’s child. You will also have an inheritance in God’s kingdom.

In the OT, theIsraelites enjoyed their own pieces of real estate (houses, gardens, and lands)in the land God had promised them (though they and all the land ultimately belongedto God who had redeemed them from slavery in Egypt). Now, on a grander, spiritual,and eternal scale, God has given us our own place in his eternal kingdom, inthe new heaven and earth that he will make, under his reign and free from evilin every way.

Yet to get fromthe moment of faith in the gospel to our future entrance into God’s kingdom, wemust navigate the challenges of life. Sometimes hard things happen to us. Othertimes, we bring hard things upon ourselves. Even the devil assails us (Eph6:11).

Whatever thecase, we should remain confident in our relationship with God and our comingeternity with him. Why? Because the Father chose and predestined us, the Sonredeemed us, and the Spirit has sealed us.

This seal ispermanent. To anyone who suggests that a person may “walk away” from salvation,I reply that doing so would be impossible. No one can break God’s seal. God’sinheritance is secure, and your inheritance with God is also secure – thanks tothe sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. God keeps what he redeems.

Whoever Christsaves he saves completely. Whoever the Spirit seals, he seals forever.

This is God theFather’s guarantee. Either you believed in Jesus for salvation and God hassaved you forever, or you have never been saved. You cannot lose your salvation,nor can you walk away, because you are sealed by the unbreakable seal of theSpirit.

In Eph 1:1-14,Paul has painted a picture of us as Christians which is much different from howwe normally perceive ourselves. We are children of God. Christ has redeemed us,forgiven us, and made us fabulously wealthy forever, in both a spiritual and physicalway in heaven. We have also been sealed and secured by the Holy Spirit. We arenot who we used to be.

Perhaps you’rethinking, “I want to believe all this, but I’m having trouble. I don’t feellike I’m that valuable to God. Look at all the things I’ve done. How can Godlove me with all my problems and failures?” If this seems too good to be true,then think about it this way.

God loves usthe way we’d love to buy a gold mine if we could afford one.

When wepurchase a gold mine, we don’t buy it because it looks beautiful. We know thegold is there, but its hidden, raw, and dirty. Even so, we buy it knowing whatit will become.

Once we buy that gold mine, weget to work bringing out the gold from the ground in train cars and buckets,one pile of dirt at a time. We clean out the rubble and set the gold aside.Then we heat that gold until it melts, over and over again until it’s perfectlypure.

At the end ofthis process, all we have is gold – pure, solid gold, all kinds of it. Itbelongs to us because we bought it – and because we bought it, we do whateverit takes to finish the job, mining and purifying that gold until it’s glisteningand refined.

At the end ofour salvation, when our redemption is complete, God will have purified andrefined us so perfectly that our lives bring ultimate praise and glory to himas we enjoy our place in his perfect kingdom forever. That’s why we’ve beenredeemed – and the seal of the Holy Spirit ensures that God will never let yougo. He will complete this process of saving and purifying you through Christ intoeternity.

Peter says itthis way, “That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious thangold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor,and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet 1:7).

Believe in Christ,then rest confidently in him to complete your redemption.

Is that what you’redoing today? Does this describe your life and relationship to God?

If you have notyet believed on Jesus Christ as your God and Savior, then you should come tohim for salvation today. If you will place your hope in the truth of thegospel, Christ will release you from your sins and place you into God’s familyforever. Turn away from any other gods, religious practices, or sinfullifestyles and trust in Christ alone.

If you havetrusted in Christ for salvation, then rest confidently in him. We have theassurance that the Triune God is on our side. We are God’s inheritance and hehas guaranteed us a place in his perfect and eternal kingdom. Nothing can take usaway from him. We are chosen for sure by the Father, purchased at the greatest costby the Son, and sealed by the Spirit forever. Therefore we should do all thatwe can to live – not to preserve our salvation for he already guarantees that,but for the praise of his glory.