The Spirit as a Seal

This sermon was preached on 3/7/2011

In addition to the reference in Ephesians 1:13-14, there are two other references in the New Testament to the sealing of the Spirit. One is in Ephesians 4:30 and the other is 2 Corinthians 1:22. The verses in Ephesians 1 come at the end of Paul’s opening statement of praise, one that is very rich in doctrinal understanding as a framework for worship, with its references to election by the Father, adoption by the Father, redemption of the believer and his inheritance by the Son, and the indwelling of the Spirit, and each of these activities resulting in the glorifying of God. The revelation of salvation is Trinitarian in its contents.

The Prerequisite for the Seal

Paul says quite clearly what the pre-requisite is. The Ephesians heard the gospel and believed in Jesus. To them had been brought the message of good news that their sins could be forgiven. They did not deserve to hear this message; instead it was an expression of God’s kindness to the undeserving as through his servants he conveyed to the Ephesians that they should respond to the gospel. The response required of them was faith in Jesus. Their response involved accepting what they were told about Jesus, but they were told that they had to believe in Jesus, that is, make a personal response to him. It is possible to believe about a person and not believe in that person.

As we think of what such faith in Jesus is, let me mention three features of it. First, such faith includes dependence on Jesus, therefore the believer thinks Jesus is reliable. Second, faith includes delight in Jesus, therefore the believer thinks Jesus is desirable. Third, faith is accompanied by repentance for one’s sins, a turning away from them, with sorrow at having offended God; this change of direction means that the believer thinks Jesus is valuable, that this relationship is one that is to treasured the more because it is offered to sinners.

It is impossible to possess the seal of the Spirit without true faith in Jesus. This means that any pre-conversion work of the Spirit is not the same as the sealing of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit does engage in convicting sinners about their sins, but this convicting work is not the same as the sealing. The sealing cannot take place while a person does not yet trust in Jesus.

The Fact of the Seal

So the sealing of the Spirit is God’s response to those who believe in Jesus. We know that when a sinner believes in Jesus the Holy Spirit comes and indwells him. A variety of terms are used to describe this new relationship, and one of them is sealing. In order to understand what Paul has in mind, we need to appreciate the everyday usage of the word. It was common at the time Paul wrote for persons to put a seal on property to indicate ownership; a seal was also used to authenticate the genuineness of an object as well as providing security if the object was in transit. What can be deduced from Paul’s use of this illustration? Several deductions can be made.

First, we can ask, ‘Who does the sealing?’ The sealing of the Spirit is an act of God the Father and follows on from his other acts of justification and adoption. To follow on is not used in a chronological sense but in a dependant sense, because these blessings occur simultaneously with the initial exercise of faith in Christ. When a sinner believes in Jesus, he is justified, adopted and sealed with the Spirit by the Father. Paul does not say that the Holy Spirit applies the seal but that the Holy Spirit is the seal.

Second, this sealing is a privilege that belongs to all believers. Several blessings are mentioned in the context of Ephesians 1, such as election and redemption, and all of the blessings mentioned belong to all of God’s people. The Corinthians were sealed by the Spirit even although their lifestyles fell far short of basic Christian behaviour, as we can easily deduce by reading through 1 and 2 Corinthians. We should not use the word ‘sealing’ to suggest differences between Christians as if some had the Spirit as a seal and some did not.

Third, we should also observe the time when every believer receives the Spirit as a seal. It always occurs at conversion. There is not a time gap between the person believing in Jesus and then receiving the Spirit in this way. We cannot say that we believed on a certain date and then were sealed on a subsequent date.

Fourth, this sealing of the Spirit is not dependant on subsequent workings by the Spirit in the lives of believers. We know that the Spirit comes to each Christian in several different ways and at various levels of interaction. For example, the Spirit groans within believers, and at times this groaning is more deep than on other occasions. That feature of the work of the Spirit in the life of a Christian is not the same as them having the Spirit as a seal.

Similarly, a Christian will increase in the fruit of the Spirit, but such spiritual growth is not the same as the sealing of the Spirit. A great and radical change happens to a Christian at conversion – he is regenerated and given new life, he is set apart to God and begins the process of sanctification. Over time, he will become more sanctified, but he does not become more sealed by the Spirit.

The seal of the Spirit

The Spirit is given a particular title here – he is the Holy Spirit of promise or the promised Holy Spirit. Jesus, shortly before he ascended to heaven, described the coming of the Spirit as the promise of the Father, which probably refers to a promise made by the Father to the Son as a reward for his sacrificial atoning death on the cross. The Spirit was also promised in the Old Testament – there are many prophecies that refer to his coming during the predicted reign of the Messiah.

This particular title reminds us that God has made great promises to sinners, and these promises are connected to different desires and intentions of the three persons of the Trinity. Here is a wonderful promise that involved each of the divine persons – the Father desired to give the Spirit to his Son so that his Son would then give the Spirit to his people.

This is not only a great promise given to us, it is also a great privilege. The sealing of the Spirit is a reminder that he is always with us. No doubt we can appreciate how his presence will be there when we make progress in the Christian life. But what happens when we sin? Paul refers to this reality in Ephesians 4:30 when he tells his readers not to grieve the Holy Spirit by whom they have been sealed to the day of redemption. When a Christian sins, he will lose the comforting work of the Spirit, but he will not lose the Spirit as the seal.

We should observe the way Paul describes the response of the Spirit. The apostle does not say that our sins make the Spirit angry or annoyed. Instead Paul uses a word that is connected to love. Grief is linked inevitably with love.

The fact is that every believer belongs to God. He is not like a trader who may throw away his goods because they have been damaged in transit, even although they had his seal on it. These traders, of course, could not repair their damaged goods, so their seal was useless. Even the emperor’s seal could not give any guarantee that his own possessions would remain safe. But God’s seal, the Holy Spirit, is the guarantee that the property, which belongs to the Father and the Son will not only get safe to the destination, but will get there in perfect condition at the day of redemption.

There is another aspect of the Spirit as a seal. When a trader purchased an item, he would his seal on it to indicate he had bought it. In a far higher sense, each Christian has been purchased by the blood of Christ, and the proof that he has been bought is the permanent presence of the Holy Spirit. How can we grieve him when we know that he is the evidence that a great price was paid for our deliverance?

The presence of the Spirit as the seal is the divine stamp that we belong to God’s family. There is a strong connection in Ephesians 1 between the status of adoption and the presence of the Spirit as a seal. The same seal is on all the family members. It is not your earthly career or interests that tells others whose family you belong to. Instead, the Spirit is the badge of family membership.

The presence of the Spirit as a seal is an ongoing reminder that full salvation will yet come. God’s people are sealed until the day of redemption, the day that will involve the resurrection of our bodies (Rom. 8:23). One aspect of the comfort that comes to God’s people when they attend the funeral of a fellow-believer is that although he or she is dead they are still marked by the seal of the Spirit. We cannot see their bodies as they are in transit towards the resurrection day, but the Owner does and he also still sees his enduring Seal upon them.

Obviously the presence of this seal on Christians is something for non-Christians to consider. The big difference between them and believers is the seal that each of the latter possesses. Those who are not yet Christians may have greater learning, strong commitment, great resolve, firm determination, but without the seal all of them are unsafe and heading for God’s wrath. The big question for each of us, ‘Do I have the seal of the Spirit?’ The way to know we have the seal is by believing personally in the Lord Jesus.

This illustration of the apostle gives us a marvellous insight into the heart of God. It tells what he values, what he purchased, what he secures throughout life, and what will be his treasured possession for ever – the people of God, those who have trusted in Jesus Christ.