Ephesians 1:13 - When you believed in Christ you received the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13 (NLT): When you believed in
Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you
the Holy Spirit.
CONTEXT
Ephesians 1:13, 14 (NLT) And now you
Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News
that God saves you. And when you believed in
Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you
the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14
The Spirit is Gods guarantee that he will
give us the inheritance he promised and that he
has purchased us to be his own people. He did
this so we would praise and glorify him.
INTRODUCTION
The Holy Spirit is God's guarantee that we
belong to him and that he will do what he has
promised. The Holy Spirit is like a down payment, a
deposit, a validating signature on the contract. The
presence of the Holy Spirit in us demonstrates the
genuineness of our faith, proves that we are God's
children, and secures eternal life for us. His power
works in us to transform us now, and what we
experience now is a taste of the total change we will
experience in eternity. [Life Application SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
Simply Stay Connected
The Holy Spirit enters the believer upon
confession of faith (Ephesians 1:13). From that point
forward the Christian has access to the very power
and personality of God. As the Spirit has his
way in the lives of believers, a transformation
occurs. They begin to think the way God thinks, love
the way God loves, and see the way God sees.
They minister in power and pray in power and walk
in power.
This power includes the gifts of the
Spirit: "love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control"
(Galatians 5:22-23). These attributes appear in the
life of the saint in the same way an apple
appears on the branch of an apple tree. Fruit
happens as a result of relationship. Sever the
branch from the tree, and forget the fruit. Yet if
the branch is secured to the trunk, nutrients
flow, and fruit results.
So it is with the fruit of the Holy
Spirit. As our relationship with God is secured and
unmarred by rebellion, sin, or stubborn behavior, we
can expect a harvest of fruit. It simply falls
to us to stay connected. [You Can Count On God
by Max Lucado]
COMMENTARY
God's Mark Is on You
A seal is a stamp, a mark of ownership or
of approval. It says: This person belongs to
me; they are mine. Paul wrote his letter to the
Ephesians and used the phrase "sealed with the Holy
Spirit" in chapters 1 and 4. In his second letter to
the Corinthians, he used the same language.
Both of those cities (Ephesus and
Corinth) were centers for the lumber industry. The
logs would arrive on rafts and be held in the
harbor where buyers would come and choose the logs
they wanted. After making their choice, they paid
a little earnest money and cut a notch in the
logs that now belonged to them.
The logs might sit in the harbor for a
long time before they were claimed, but no one
tried to take them because they had the owners'
seal or mark on them.
We are sealed with the Holy Spirit, and
that means we are protected by God, who is our
owner. We may be in this world for a while, waiting
for Christ to return and take us to our home in
Heaven, but even though conditions may become quite
difficult in the world, we can be at peace because we
are marked! We have been chosen by God, paid for
by the blood of Christ, and branded and sealed
with the Holy Spirit. We are safe! [My Time with
God by Joyce Meyer]
Gods Guarantee
Long ago, before the days of online
shopping, people stamped their letters and goods with
wax seals to send them from one place to
another.
When a king sent out a document, for
example, he stamped his signet ring in wax to seal
it. Someone who came across that document knew
better than to open it, because it had the kings
mark.
In the same way, God puts His mark on us
when we put our faith in Jesus Christ. Ephesians
1:13 tells us, And when you believed in
Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you
the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago
(NLT).
The Holy Spirit also gives us the inner
assurance that were believers. Romans 8:16 says,
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit
that we are children of God (NKJV). So we have
an inner witness.
In addition to what the Bible says, there
is something deep inside that tells us were
children of God. This comes from the Holy Spirit. His
Spirit bears witness with our spirits that we are
children of God.
And not only can we sense that we are
children of God, but we also know it when we meet
other believers. Theres an immediate
connection, because the same Holy Spirit that lives in
us lives in them as well.
The Bible tells us the Holy Spirit is
also a deposit: The Spirit is Gods
guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he
promised and that he has purchased us to be his own
people. He did this so we would praise and glorify
him (Ephesians 1:14 NLT).
God gives us His Holy Spirit as a
guarantee to reassure us that He will keep all the
promises He has made to us. Thats what it means to
be sealed with the Holy Spirit. [Greg Laurie
from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com]
ILLUSTRATION
I Won!
I really enjoy bowling with my two
youngest grandsons - ages three and four. In their
already very independent way, they pick up the ball,
march up to the line, and hurl the ball with all
their strength. Many times the ball moves so
slowly that it barely makes it to the pins. But the
lane we use has bumper pads instead of gutters,
so eventually, some pins go down. It doesnt
matter to the boys how many. They watch intently as
the ball rolls down the lane. Then they jump for
joy with hands raised in the air and shout, "I
won!"
I can't help but wonder how much better
my life would be if I were to follow the
technique my little grandsons have chosen. After all,
my heavenly Father has said that I've already
won. I've been crowned with salvation because of
Jesus. He has given me bumpers - his Holy Spirit -
to keep me out of the gutter. He isn't
concerned about how many pins I knock over; he just
wants me to keep doing the things he has asked me
to do.
Throughout the day and especially at the
end of each day, I should be jumping for joy,
raising my hands, and shouting, "I won!"
Father, you are so good to me, so
merciful and gracious. Thank you for the promise of
an unqualified win! In Jesus' name, Amen.
[Celebrate Recovery Daily Devotional by John & Johnny
Baker]
CLOSING THOUGHT
God places a seal on us when we receive
Christ. And that seal is a person - the Holy Spirit.
By the Spirit's presence God gives us security
and establishes His ownership over us.
The Spirit is also God's pledge. He not
only seals the arrangement, but He represents
God's commitment to see us through. And fellowship
with the Spirit is a sample of what we can expect
when we come into our inheritance in Heaven.
Finally, the Spirit witnesses to us, by
the Scriptures and within our hearts, that
Christ died for us, and by faith in Him we have
become God's children.
What a wonderful thing to know the Holy
Spirit has been given to us as a seal - a pledge -
and a witness! May each of these give us new
assurance of God's unchanging love for us, and give us
confidence as we seek to live for Him.
Have you ever felt unexplainable peace in
a difficult time? Inner conviction when
tempted to go astray? Boldness to stand up for one
right? These are reminders from God that you
belong to him and he will not let you go. [Hope
for Each Day by Billy Graham]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Galatians 5:16 - Living by the Spirit.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2022/20220422-0854.html
John 15:5 - LEARNING TO ABIDE IN JESUS.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210503-0932.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20211031-1051.html
YOUR COMMENTS
If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in
hearing from you. Thanks in advance and let's keep
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred
Gibbs
