LEARNING DAILY

Ephesians 1:13-14, In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory.

Pastor Ed Newton told the congregation “You are completely saved. Faith in Jesus alone. Grace comes from Jesus alone. Christ alone saves a person.” Romans 10:17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ.” Put this verse with what Ephesians 1:13 says and our faith comes from hearing the Word of God. It is very important to be in a church where the Word of God is spoken in Truth and completely. 2 Timothy 2:15, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” The minister/pastor of the church must handle and speak the Word of God in a way that pleases God (not man). Each Believer must study the word of God to share with others correctly, in Truth, and to please God. When done in this way, the Believer has no “need to be ashamed.”

Why is this important? Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Hearing the Word of God becomes heart knowledge (Listener Guide) when we hear and then confess it with our mouth we will be saved. Pastor Newton pointed out that when a Believer (those who “confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart”) does this, changes begin to occur in their life. The Holy Spirit comes to live within the Believer and He helps him/her walk the narrow way, changing them from the inside out.

His second point was, “You are supernaturally sealed.” Being sealed means the Believer is marked. When one is marked it shows who he belongs to. A seal was a mark indicating a letter or scroll was closed or completed. When a king or a dignitary wanted to have an identifying mark with a letter, he would seal it with a resin imprint of his ring. The Holy Spirit puts His mark on the Believer showing he/she is accepted by Jesus. This seal is also a promise of empowerment (lG). The Holy Spirit will teach the Believer all things (John 14:26). This is not something the Believer gains on their own; it comes only through Jesus to help the Believer become more like Him. This seal “guarantees the Believer’s inheritance!” The Holy Spirit will convict the Believer of sin; that is why there is guilt when he/she sins. That is a good thing because the conviction causes the Believer to go to the Father in confession (1John 1:9).

Finally, Pastor Newton said the Believer was “sent” (“to the praise of His glory”). “You were made for worship (Praise) and you were made to be a witness (His glory). Believers are “to live for an audience of One” (EN), to honor the Lord and to give Him glory.