THE SPIRIT AS A GUARANTEE
“In him you…were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it…” (Eph 1:13-14 ESV).
“…in this word ‘sealed,’…is a message of safety and security in God’s love and power. God sends the Holy Spirit as a preserving seal to lock in our faith, as an authenticating seal to validate our sonship, and as a protecting seal to keep out destructive forces. The point is that God wants us to feel secure and safe in his love and power” (ref: John Piper, Sealed by the Spirit to the Day of Redemption, https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/sealed-by-the-spirit-to-the-day-of-redemption).
“…By his Spirit he has stamped us with his eternal pledge—a sure beginning of what he is destined to complete”(2 Cor 1:20-22 MSG).
“…in most cases, the sealing of the Spirit is a…gradualwork. It is a work of time. The soul is placed in the school of deep experience and is led step by step, stage by stage.
The knowledge of self and of Christ increases,
deeper views of indwelling sin are discovered,
the heart’s treachery is more acutely felt,
the devices of Satan are better known,
the mystery of God’s gracious and providential dealings with His children are more clearly unfolded and better understood—
and all this may be arrived at through a process of deep and painful, yet sanctified, discipline…” Octavius Winslow (ref#135, April 14th).
FATHER, how precious it is to possess the SPIRIT. For I know I need Him every minute of my unstable, always-changing life. Move me to realize each trial You craft for me is so I might grasp the SPIRIT and find security only in You.
“How independent of outward circumstances the Holy Spirit can make the Christian” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, April 8th, PM)!
Bonnie's Prayer Affair 