WEBVTT 00:00:16.980 --> 00:00:19.359 Before you get too settled, I'd like to ask those 00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:23.559 who are dads or granddads here this morning to 00:00:23.559 --> 00:00:26.879 stand up. Would you do that, please? Would you 00:00:26.879 --> 00:00:34.659 like to join me in congratulating them? Please 00:00:34.659 --> 00:00:36.560 don't be seated yet because we're going to have 00:00:36.560 --> 00:00:40.000 word of prayer for you. Let's bow together. Father, 00:00:40.100 --> 00:00:43.520 we are glad that you, as our Heavenly Father, 00:00:43.799 --> 00:00:48.700 give us an example to follow. leading, loving, 00:00:49.000 --> 00:00:53.719 nurturing our families. For the privilege that 00:00:53.719 --> 00:00:57.939 you've given to us to have a loving spouse and 00:00:57.939 --> 00:01:01.780 children, grandchildren in some cases. How glad 00:01:01.780 --> 00:01:05.200 we are. And we stand before you today in humility. 00:01:06.540 --> 00:01:10.959 And we cry unto you for the wisdom, the grace, 00:01:11.000 --> 00:01:15.560 the understanding and compassion. But we need 00:01:15.560 --> 00:01:19.519 to be men of God, the fathers and grandfathers 00:01:19.519 --> 00:01:22.659 that you've designed for us to be in our family. 00:01:23.560 --> 00:01:28.019 And so with gratitude and yet with supplication, 00:01:28.019 --> 00:01:31.420 we give ourselves afresh to you on this Father's 00:01:31.420 --> 00:01:36.120 Day. In Jesus' name, amen. Be seated, please. 00:01:40.730 --> 00:01:43.109 have you open your Bibles with me, please, to 00:01:43.109 --> 00:01:46.349 the book of Ephesians, where we'll be looking 00:01:46.349 --> 00:01:54.090 in chapter 1, verses 13 and 14. This epistle 00:01:54.090 --> 00:01:58.030 begins with a doxology to God, expressing praise 00:01:58.030 --> 00:02:03.670 for all that he has done on our behalf. The Apostle 00:02:03.670 --> 00:02:08.110 Paul recounts the works of God in saving us. 00:02:09.039 --> 00:02:14.240 He tells us in the sentence which begins in verse 00:02:14.240 --> 00:02:18.360 3 that God has blessed us with every spiritual 00:02:18.360 --> 00:02:21.780 blessing in Christ and there's nothing that we 00:02:21.780 --> 00:02:26.400 lack in Christ. He tells us that God has chosen 00:02:26.400 --> 00:02:29.900 us even before the foundation of the world to 00:02:29.900 --> 00:02:34.259 be his own in Christ. He further explains that 00:02:34.259 --> 00:02:40.039 God has predestined us to be full -grown children 00:02:40.039 --> 00:02:43.219 in his family with all the rights and privileges 00:02:43.219 --> 00:02:47.599 that go with that adulthood he tells us that 00:02:47.599 --> 00:02:50.620 god has redeemed us by the precious blood of 00:02:50.620 --> 00:02:55.460 the lord jesus christ he tells us that god has 00:02:55.460 --> 00:02:59.500 made known to us the mystery of his will that 00:02:59.500 --> 00:03:05.930 he might sum up all things in christ with an 00:03:05.930 --> 00:03:08.509 administration that is suitable for the fullness 00:03:08.509 --> 00:03:12.909 of the times, in other words, the kingdom. And 00:03:12.909 --> 00:03:15.530 then explains to us that God has given us an 00:03:15.530 --> 00:03:19.509 inheritance in Christ. Now this sentence concludes 00:03:19.509 --> 00:03:22.550 in verses 13 and 14, and I say it's one sentence 00:03:22.550 --> 00:03:24.409 because that is the way it is in the original 00:03:24.409 --> 00:03:27.189 language as it's written in the book of Ephesians. 00:03:27.909 --> 00:03:31.389 This sentence concludes with the seventh work 00:03:31.389 --> 00:03:34.960 of God on our behalf. It is closely linked to 00:03:34.960 --> 00:03:37.580 the previous one because you will see again the 00:03:37.580 --> 00:03:43.080 word inheritance used. I want you to notice that 00:03:43.080 --> 00:03:50.620 he says here, you also. Your salvation. You were 00:03:50.620 --> 00:03:53.800 sealed. If you've read closely, you'll remember 00:03:53.800 --> 00:03:58.099 that up to this point, he's used a plural personal 00:03:58.099 --> 00:04:02.639 pronoun in the first person. He's used we. Now 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:07.419 he uses second person, you. It seems that Paul 00:04:07.419 --> 00:04:10.240 is here planting a seed that later he's going 00:04:10.240 --> 00:04:14.960 to blossom fully. He's going to develop it as 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:18.180 a theme in chapter 2 as he talks about the Gentiles 00:04:18.180 --> 00:04:25.720 and the Jews. In verse 11, he talks about we 00:04:25.720 --> 00:04:29.720 who were the first to hope in Christ. He has 00:04:29.720 --> 00:04:33.379 there in mind the early converts. who were primarily 00:04:33.379 --> 00:04:37.779 Jewish by nature, by birth. Now he speaks to 00:04:37.779 --> 00:04:41.980 you, and he seems to have in mind the later converts 00:04:41.980 --> 00:04:45.779 in his ministry, who were primarily Gentiles. 00:04:45.959 --> 00:04:48.639 In chapter 2, you'll see him repeat this same 00:04:48.639 --> 00:04:51.980 kind of thought. He says in verse 11, you, the 00:04:51.980 --> 00:04:56.279 Gentiles in the flesh. In verse 12, you were 00:04:56.279 --> 00:04:59.639 at that time separate from Christ, excluded from 00:04:59.639 --> 00:05:02.730 the commonwealth of Israel. And then again in 00:05:02.730 --> 00:05:06.589 verse 13, he says, you who were formerly far 00:05:06.589 --> 00:05:09.930 off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 00:05:10.449 --> 00:05:13.149 And so it seems that the you that he mentions 00:05:13.149 --> 00:05:16.589 in verse 13 seems to focus especially on the 00:05:16.589 --> 00:05:19.790 Gentiles. But the point is this, that whether 00:05:19.790 --> 00:05:23.750 you're part of the we or the you, together we 00:05:23.750 --> 00:05:29.069 are in Christ. And in Christ we are sealed. Notice 00:05:29.069 --> 00:05:32.860 how he puts it. In him you also, after listening 00:05:32.860 --> 00:05:36.279 to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, 00:05:36.319 --> 00:05:40.300 having also believed, you were sealed in him 00:05:40.300 --> 00:05:43.699 with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given 00:05:43.699 --> 00:05:46.879 as a pledge of our inheritance with a view to 00:05:46.879 --> 00:05:50.000 the redemption of God's own possession to the 00:05:50.000 --> 00:05:54.939 praise of his glory. He tells us that God has 00:05:54.939 --> 00:06:00.209 sealed us into Jesus Christ. I want you to think 00:06:00.209 --> 00:06:03.310 with me first today about the action that is 00:06:03.310 --> 00:06:05.930 involved in the sealing. What does it mean that 00:06:05.930 --> 00:06:11.509 God has sealed us in him? The word seal was a 00:06:11.509 --> 00:06:15.430 common word with a wide variety of uses in the 00:06:15.430 --> 00:06:19.550 New Testament days. For example, the word seal 00:06:19.550 --> 00:06:23.189 had the meaning sometimes of securing or protecting 00:06:23.189 --> 00:06:26.589 something. It's used that way in Matthew 27, 00:06:26.730 --> 00:06:32.129 66. where it says they sealed the stone at the 00:06:32.129 --> 00:06:35.310 tomb of Christ. In other words, they put the 00:06:35.310 --> 00:06:40.290 seal of Rome upon it to protect the content so 00:06:40.290 --> 00:06:42.769 that no one would break into it and steal the 00:06:42.769 --> 00:06:45.610 body of Christ. Of course, that didn't stop the 00:06:45.610 --> 00:06:48.930 resurrection, did it? But the idea was to protect 00:06:48.930 --> 00:06:53.569 or to secure the contents of that tomb. It's 00:06:53.569 --> 00:06:57.579 used again in Revelation 20, verse 3. For the 00:06:57.579 --> 00:07:02.639 great angel takes Satan the dragon, binds him, 00:07:02.759 --> 00:07:05.860 and casts him into the abyss. We read about this 00:07:05.860 --> 00:07:10.120 last week, maybe two weeks ago. And having put 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:13.600 him into the abyss, he then closes it up and 00:07:13.600 --> 00:07:17.019 seals it for the duration of a thousand years. 00:07:17.240 --> 00:07:20.180 The idea being that the abyss is then secure, 00:07:20.540 --> 00:07:24.860 that the contents of the abyss, Satan, have been 00:07:24.860 --> 00:07:28.600 sealed into there. secured there so that Satan 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:32.160 cannot escape until his appointed time. That's 00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:37.019 one meaning of the word seal. It was also used 00:07:37.019 --> 00:07:40.779 in that day to speak of the ratification of a 00:07:40.779 --> 00:07:45.279 document or to testify of the finality of a transaction. 00:07:46.540 --> 00:07:49.600 The Apostle Paul uses it this way in Romans 15 00:07:49.600 --> 00:07:54.480 .28 when he speaks about the fruit that he was 00:07:54.480 --> 00:07:57.670 delivering to Jerusalem. as needing his seal. 00:07:58.490 --> 00:08:01.389 That fruit was a monetary offering collected 00:08:01.389 --> 00:08:03.990 among the Gentile churches for the Jewish believers 00:08:03.990 --> 00:08:06.750 in Jerusalem who were being persecuted and were 00:08:06.750 --> 00:08:10.529 therefore poor. Paul says he is delivering this 00:08:10.529 --> 00:08:12.930 fruit of money as a gift from the Gentiles to 00:08:12.930 --> 00:08:15.910 the Jews, and he wanted to finalize that. He 00:08:15.910 --> 00:08:19.269 wanted to put his seal on it before going on 00:08:19.269 --> 00:08:23.920 to other plans and desired travels. And so it 00:08:23.920 --> 00:08:26.899 was used to testify the finality of the transaction, 00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:30.459 to conclude a deal. Paul is saying, I want to 00:08:30.459 --> 00:08:33.360 get to Jerusalem and finish what I am trying 00:08:33.360 --> 00:08:38.320 to get accomplished. The word seal is used thirdly 00:08:38.320 --> 00:08:43.080 to authenticate as true, genuine, or approved. 00:08:44.980 --> 00:08:49.600 In John 3, 33, John the Baptist says, He who 00:08:49.600 --> 00:08:54.120 has received his witness, has set his seal to 00:08:54.120 --> 00:09:01.600 this, that God is true. John says, I put my seal 00:09:01.600 --> 00:09:06.460 to this. This is my testimony. I authenticate 00:09:06.460 --> 00:09:09.940 this as genuine. What I have seen and heard, 00:09:10.059 --> 00:09:15.120 God is true. It is used by the Lord Jesus in 00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:19.570 John 6, 27, when he says, On him, the Son, The 00:09:19.570 --> 00:09:24.669 Father, even God, has set his seal. The Father 00:09:24.669 --> 00:09:28.350 approved the Son, put his seal on him, authenticated 00:09:28.350 --> 00:09:33.049 him as genuinely the Son of God. This is my beloved 00:09:33.049 --> 00:09:38.909 Son in whom I am well pleased. The same thought 00:09:38.909 --> 00:09:41.149 is found again in the book of Esther in the Old 00:09:41.149 --> 00:09:43.850 Testament in the third chapter of the twelfth 00:09:43.850 --> 00:09:48.379 verse. For the signet ring of Ahasuerus was used 00:09:48.379 --> 00:09:52.500 to seal the scrolls that had been written ordering 00:09:52.500 --> 00:09:56.639 the death of the Jews in Persia. The wax was 00:09:56.639 --> 00:10:02.279 warm, moldable. His ring was put into it, sealing 00:10:02.279 --> 00:10:04.960 that document, indicating that it was authentically 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:10.840 from Ahasuerus. And finally, the word seal was 00:10:10.840 --> 00:10:13.580 used in the New Testament days to signify ownership. 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:18.840 In Revelation 7, verses 2 through 5, it is used 00:10:18.840 --> 00:10:22.840 several times in that sense. In that context, 00:10:23.039 --> 00:10:28.159 144 ,000 Jews, 12 ,000 from each of the 12 tribes, 00:10:28.399 --> 00:10:33.600 are sealed as the servants of God. They are sealed 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:37.059 to indicate that they are genuinely God. They 00:10:37.059 --> 00:10:40.879 belong to him. They are his servants for ministry 00:10:40.879 --> 00:10:45.340 during the days of the tribulation. So you say, 00:10:45.399 --> 00:10:47.419 well, if it can be used in that wide variety 00:10:47.419 --> 00:10:51.019 of ways, which way is it used in Ephesians chapter 00:10:51.019 --> 00:10:56.860 1? Is it 1, 2, 3, or 4? Well, the answer is 5. 00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:01.460 You know, all of the above. In the first place, 00:11:01.480 --> 00:11:05.360 it means that God has secured us in Jesus Christ. 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:08.820 We are protected in Christ under the day of our 00:11:08.820 --> 00:11:13.019 redemption. Secondly, it means that God has finalized 00:11:13.019 --> 00:11:15.720 the transaction of our salvation. It's complete. 00:11:16.820 --> 00:11:20.740 Christ's work is finished. Our salvation in Christ 00:11:20.740 --> 00:11:23.279 is done. There's nothing more that needs to be 00:11:23.279 --> 00:11:26.899 added. Thirdly, it means that God has authenticated 00:11:26.899 --> 00:11:32.019 us as his genuine children. And finally, when 00:11:32.019 --> 00:11:34.940 it says that we have been sealed, it means that 00:11:34.940 --> 00:11:43.200 God has marked us for his ownership. There is 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:45.580 a text in the Bible that we can turn to, and 00:11:45.580 --> 00:11:47.779 almost without turning a page in your Bible, 00:11:47.820 --> 00:11:50.720 depending on the Bible you have, I can prove 00:11:50.720 --> 00:11:53.220 that all four of these meanings can be wrapped 00:11:53.220 --> 00:11:56.519 up in the word sealed. Now the word itself isn't 00:11:56.519 --> 00:12:00.179 used, but all four of the thoughts that can be 00:12:00.179 --> 00:12:03.720 found in the word sealed are used in that context. 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:07.720 The book is 1 Peter. I invite you to turn there 00:12:07.720 --> 00:12:10.980 with me to the first chapter. We have said that 00:12:10.980 --> 00:12:13.759 God... has sealed us and that he has secured 00:12:13.759 --> 00:12:18.799 us in Christ. We are protected. Notice in chapter 00:12:18.799 --> 00:12:22.860 1 and verse 5, he says, who, that's referring 00:12:22.860 --> 00:12:26.700 to those who are born again, who are protected 00:12:26.700 --> 00:12:31.460 by the power of God. That means we are watched 00:12:31.460 --> 00:12:35.340 over. It's in the present tense. We are continually 00:12:35.340 --> 00:12:38.279 being guarded, continually being watched over 00:12:38.279 --> 00:12:42.389 and protected by the power of God. through faith 00:12:42.389 --> 00:12:45.350 for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last 00:12:45.350 --> 00:12:48.169 time. So you see, here's the meaning of our being 00:12:48.169 --> 00:12:51.429 secured. Just like the tomb of Christ was secured 00:12:51.429 --> 00:12:54.750 with a seal, we have been sealed. We are protected. 00:12:54.929 --> 00:13:01.149 We are secured in him, in Christ. Then look down 00:13:01.149 --> 00:13:03.889 at verse 18. We have said that God has finalized 00:13:03.889 --> 00:13:07.429 the transaction. Well, it says, knowing that 00:13:07.429 --> 00:13:10.980 you were not redeemed, with perishable things 00:13:10.980 --> 00:13:14.379 like silver or gold from your futile way of life 00:13:14.379 --> 00:13:17.019 inherited from your forefathers, but with precious 00:13:17.019 --> 00:13:20.539 blood as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, 00:13:20.600 --> 00:13:24.460 the blood of Christ. We were not redeemed with 00:13:24.460 --> 00:13:27.500 certain things, but we were redeemed with the 00:13:27.500 --> 00:13:31.539 precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. That 00:13:31.539 --> 00:13:34.139 word redeemed means that we have been purchased. 00:13:34.159 --> 00:13:37.809 There has been a transaction. And the tense of 00:13:37.809 --> 00:13:41.330 it means that it is completed once and for all. 00:13:42.629 --> 00:13:46.009 God is never again going to redeem us. He doesn't 00:13:46.009 --> 00:13:51.029 have to. The price has been paid. We never need 00:13:51.029 --> 00:13:53.830 to go through the process of being redeemed again 00:13:53.830 --> 00:13:58.769 because we have been redeemed once and for all 00:13:58.769 --> 00:14:02.029 by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. A completed 00:14:02.029 --> 00:14:06.259 transaction. We are sealed. In this sense, that 00:14:06.259 --> 00:14:09.700 the transaction is done, it's over, once and 00:14:09.700 --> 00:14:16.659 forever. Look in verse 14. We have said that 00:14:16.659 --> 00:14:19.100 we are sealed in the sense that God authenticates 00:14:19.100 --> 00:14:23.159 us as genuine. Here he says, as obedient children, 00:14:23.440 --> 00:14:28.240 do not be conformed to the former lust. He calls 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:35.090 us children. He says in verse 23. You have been 00:14:35.090 --> 00:14:39.929 born again, not of a seed which is perishable, 00:14:39.970 --> 00:14:42.730 but imperishable, that is, through the living 00:14:42.730 --> 00:14:45.929 and abiding word of God. Chapter 2, verse 2, 00:14:46.190 --> 00:14:50.970 like newborn babes long for the pure milk of 00:14:50.970 --> 00:14:55.009 the word. And so you see, God calls us his children 00:14:55.009 --> 00:14:58.850 here, not something less. We are genuinely, truly 00:14:58.850 --> 00:15:02.080 his children. God approves us. He calls us his 00:15:02.080 --> 00:15:04.360 children, his born ones. We have been brought 00:15:04.360 --> 00:15:08.720 into his family. That seal of authenticity is 00:15:08.720 --> 00:15:12.820 true. And then finally, we have said that we 00:15:12.820 --> 00:15:16.580 are secured in the sense that God owns us. Look 00:15:16.580 --> 00:15:21.960 with me in chapter 2 and the 9th verse. You are 00:15:21.960 --> 00:15:26.080 a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy 00:15:26.080 --> 00:15:31.220 nation, a people for God's own possession. that 00:15:31.220 --> 00:15:33.559 you may proclaim the excellencies of him who 00:15:33.559 --> 00:15:36.440 has called you out of darkness into his marvelous 00:15:36.440 --> 00:15:41.220 light. For you once were not a people, but now 00:15:41.220 --> 00:15:45.899 you are the people of God. And so you see, we 00:15:45.899 --> 00:15:49.720 have been sealed in this sense that we are God. 00:15:49.860 --> 00:15:54.460 In a peculiar and special way, we belong to him. 00:15:55.179 --> 00:15:58.970 That's why I say when in Ephesians 1, It says 00:15:58.970 --> 00:16:03.570 we have been sealed in Christ. It includes all 00:16:03.570 --> 00:16:07.269 of these thoughts. That sealing into Jesus Christ 00:16:07.269 --> 00:16:11.269 is our position in him and it's unchangeable. 00:16:12.870 --> 00:16:15.230 Now having looked at the action that's involved 00:16:15.230 --> 00:16:18.070 in the sealing and what that means, let's think 00:16:18.070 --> 00:16:21.289 for a moment of the agent. Because you will notice 00:16:21.289 --> 00:16:24.529 if you look at the verb that it's passive. We 00:16:24.529 --> 00:16:29.440 did not do the sealing. We did not do something 00:16:29.440 --> 00:16:35.379 here in order to be sealed. We were acted upon. 00:16:37.580 --> 00:16:41.139 The subject of the sentence is acted upon when 00:16:41.139 --> 00:16:45.000 a verb is passive. Now who was it that acted 00:16:45.000 --> 00:16:49.179 upon us? Well, the answer is given likewise in 00:16:49.179 --> 00:16:53.220 the context. It is the Holy Spirit of promise. 00:16:54.299 --> 00:16:58.190 The Holy Spirit is the one. He is the agent who 00:16:58.190 --> 00:17:02.450 has sealed us into Christ. The Holy Spirit is 00:17:02.450 --> 00:17:06.710 the third person of the blessed Godhead. He is 00:17:06.710 --> 00:17:10.470 distinct from the Father and from the Son, and 00:17:10.470 --> 00:17:14.069 yet he is equal to them and of one essence with 00:17:14.069 --> 00:17:18.230 them. He is God. Here he is given the specific 00:17:18.230 --> 00:17:23.890 title, the Holy Spirit of promise. Why is he 00:17:23.890 --> 00:17:29.369 called that? It is because the Holy Spirit himself 00:17:29.369 --> 00:17:34.630 is a promise. Turn with me to the Gospel of Luke, 00:17:34.710 --> 00:17:37.089 where we see the words of the Lord Jesus in the 00:17:37.089 --> 00:17:42.089 24th chapter, shortly before he ascended back 00:17:42.089 --> 00:17:46.490 to heaven. He speaks to his disciples, and he 00:17:46.490 --> 00:17:51.150 says in the 49th verse, And behold, I am sending 00:17:51.150 --> 00:17:57.990 forth the promise of my Father upon you. He doesn't 00:17:57.990 --> 00:18:00.569 identify the promise as Luke records it here. 00:18:01.150 --> 00:18:04.309 But turn with me to Luke's continued account, 00:18:04.589 --> 00:18:08.910 the book of Acts, and the first chapter. And 00:18:08.910 --> 00:18:11.470 notice that he states it again a little more 00:18:11.470 --> 00:18:16.150 fully this time. Acts 1, verse 4. And gathering 00:18:16.150 --> 00:18:18.910 them together, he commanded them not to leave 00:18:18.910 --> 00:18:22.490 Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had 00:18:22.490 --> 00:18:25.880 promised. which he said, you have heard from 00:18:25.880 --> 00:18:29.460 me, for John baptized with water, but you shall 00:18:29.460 --> 00:18:32.880 be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days 00:18:32.880 --> 00:18:36.259 from now. And so Jesus says that this promise 00:18:36.259 --> 00:18:41.759 is the Holy Spirit. And so in chapter 2 of the 00:18:41.759 --> 00:18:44.960 book of Acts, in the 33rd verse, it says, Therefore, 00:18:45.059 --> 00:18:48.019 having been exalted to the right hand of God, 00:18:48.099 --> 00:18:51.700 Peter's preaching here, and having received from 00:18:51.700 --> 00:18:55.759 the Father, The promise of the Holy Spirit, he, 00:18:55.940 --> 00:18:58.579 Jesus, has poured forth this, which you both 00:18:58.579 --> 00:19:03.259 see and hear. And so the Lord Jesus said, When 00:19:03.259 --> 00:19:05.400 I go back to heaven, I will receive from the 00:19:05.400 --> 00:19:07.819 Father the Holy Spirit, and I will pour him out 00:19:07.819 --> 00:19:12.779 upon you. On the day of Pentecost, from the Father 00:19:12.779 --> 00:19:16.420 and the Son, the Spirit of promise came forth. 00:19:17.039 --> 00:19:21.559 And from that day until this day, he indwells. 00:19:21.920 --> 00:19:26.099 the believer in Jesus Christ, every single one 00:19:26.099 --> 00:19:31.759 of us. He is the fulfillment of what Jesus called 00:19:31.759 --> 00:19:34.839 the promise of the Father. And so he's called 00:19:34.839 --> 00:19:39.519 here the spirit of promise. I think there's also 00:19:39.519 --> 00:19:41.799 a more personal meaning to us. It is that the 00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:46.160 Holy Spirit brings to us the promises of the 00:19:46.160 --> 00:19:48.700 Lord Jesus Christ and fulfills them in our lives. 00:19:49.799 --> 00:19:52.039 You see, the Holy Spirit is the administrator 00:19:52.039 --> 00:19:56.319 of the salvation planned by the Father and provided 00:19:56.319 --> 00:20:01.059 by the Son. It is the Holy Spirit who convicts 00:20:01.059 --> 00:20:06.039 us of sin, who calls us to the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:20:06.180 --> 00:20:10.720 who regenerates us. It is the Holy Spirit who 00:20:10.720 --> 00:20:14.259 administrates the salvation that the Father thought 00:20:14.259 --> 00:20:19.190 and the Son provided. As someone has put it, 00:20:19.250 --> 00:20:23.529 the Father sought it, the Son bought it, the 00:20:23.529 --> 00:20:29.829 Spirit wrought it. Faith wrought it. The devil 00:20:29.829 --> 00:20:33.410 fought it. The Bible fought it, but I got it. 00:20:33.710 --> 00:20:37.849 There it is. It is the Spirit who wrought it, 00:20:37.869 --> 00:20:41.130 who worked it out in our lives. It is the Holy 00:20:41.130 --> 00:20:45.049 Spirit who administrates the promise of God. 00:20:46.319 --> 00:20:49.819 And thus he is called here the pledge, going 00:20:49.819 --> 00:20:53.420 back to Ephesians 1, the pledge of our inheritance. 00:20:55.059 --> 00:20:59.599 This word pledge is a wonderful word. It literally 00:20:59.599 --> 00:21:04.440 means a down payment, a deposit given to secure, 00:21:04.539 --> 00:21:10.000 a guarantee of the completion of a transaction 00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:12.119 that has begun. If you've ever bought a house, 00:21:12.180 --> 00:21:16.190 you know what earnest money is. When you buy 00:21:16.190 --> 00:21:21.569 something, very often you have to put down something 00:21:21.569 --> 00:21:24.069 of value to guarantee that you're going to follow 00:21:24.069 --> 00:21:29.750 through with that purchase. Something of value 00:21:29.750 --> 00:21:34.029 has to change hands. Now God has said that he 00:21:34.029 --> 00:21:36.890 has purchased us through the blood of the Lord 00:21:36.890 --> 00:21:40.529 Jesus Christ. Now to guarantee that he is going 00:21:40.529 --> 00:21:44.309 to complete that purchase, i .e. the rapture, 00:21:45.130 --> 00:21:49.289 Take us to heaven. To guarantee that, he has 00:21:49.289 --> 00:21:55.069 given us a down payment. The pledge of our inheritance 00:21:55.069 --> 00:21:59.009 is the Holy Spirit. He dwells within us to guarantee 00:21:59.009 --> 00:22:04.130 that God is going to fulfill in us, to us, what 00:22:04.130 --> 00:22:07.970 he has promised to do. Our inheritance, as we 00:22:07.970 --> 00:22:11.329 saw last week, is the glory. that we will share 00:22:11.329 --> 00:22:13.950 with Jesus Christ. How do I know that I'm going 00:22:13.950 --> 00:22:17.089 to be in heaven? How do I know I'm going to reign 00:22:17.089 --> 00:22:20.569 with Christ? How do I know that I'm really going 00:22:20.569 --> 00:22:23.210 to inherit eternal life? Because the Holy Spirit 00:22:23.210 --> 00:22:28.029 has been given to you as a pledge, a down payment. 00:22:29.250 --> 00:22:32.410 In Ephesians 4 .30 it says, And grieve not the 00:22:32.410 --> 00:22:36.069 Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto 00:22:36.069 --> 00:22:38.890 the day of redemption. The day of redemption 00:22:38.890 --> 00:22:42.170 being defined even in our text today as when 00:22:42.170 --> 00:22:45.250 the Lord will come back and take home his position. 00:22:46.269 --> 00:22:48.930 And body, soul, and spirit will be conformed 00:22:48.930 --> 00:22:51.329 to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. What a 00:22:51.329 --> 00:22:54.890 great day that's going to be. Now, as a guarantee 00:22:54.890 --> 00:22:57.390 of that day, as a promise of that day, the Holy 00:22:57.390 --> 00:23:00.970 Spirit has sealed us and become a down payment, 00:23:01.190 --> 00:23:04.869 guaranteeing that God is going to fulfill what 00:23:04.869 --> 00:23:07.890 he's begun. There are those who say, well, we 00:23:07.890 --> 00:23:10.150 can grieve away the Spirit. Look, in the very 00:23:10.150 --> 00:23:12.390 context in the Bible, I'm the only one where 00:23:12.390 --> 00:23:15.329 it mentions grieving the Holy Spirit. It says 00:23:15.329 --> 00:23:19.869 nothing about grieving him away. But don't say 00:23:19.869 --> 00:23:22.569 we should not grieve him because he as a person 00:23:22.569 --> 00:23:26.369 has holy sensitivities. We grieve him by our 00:23:26.369 --> 00:23:29.650 sins. So he says, don't grieve the Holy Spirit. 00:23:29.690 --> 00:23:32.589 Don't sin. Don't live in sin. But he goes on 00:23:32.589 --> 00:23:36.720 to say, whereby you are sealed. of the day of 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:41.759 redemption. This word can also mean, and was 00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:46.559 used in that day, of an engagement ring. Isn't 00:23:46.559 --> 00:23:49.180 it fun to watch a gal who's just got an engagement 00:23:49.180 --> 00:23:52.160 ring? She begins shaking hands with the left 00:23:52.160 --> 00:23:54.940 hand. Have you ever noticed that? The right hand 00:23:54.940 --> 00:23:57.039 suddenly becomes paralyzed. It's the left hand 00:23:57.039 --> 00:23:59.759 that goes out. And she'll sit here in church 00:23:59.759 --> 00:24:02.319 under all these lights and just watch the sparkles 00:24:02.319 --> 00:24:05.319 and the diamond move it around like that. That 00:24:05.319 --> 00:24:08.319 engagement ring is pretty special because that 00:24:08.319 --> 00:24:12.799 is a promise that there is a young man who is 00:24:12.799 --> 00:24:17.759 going to marry her. It is his guarantee that 00:24:17.759 --> 00:24:20.319 his proposal will be carried out in a marriage 00:24:20.319 --> 00:24:24.920 ceremony one day. Isn't it wonderful to think 00:24:24.920 --> 00:24:31.470 of the Holy Spirit as our engagement ring? guaranteeing 00:24:31.470 --> 00:24:33.950 that one day we are going to be married to Jesus 00:24:33.950 --> 00:24:39.170 Christ because we are the church, his bride, 00:24:39.329 --> 00:24:44.349 the Holy Spirit seals us into Jesus Christ, the 00:24:44.349 --> 00:24:49.410 one who is our engagement ring, our down payment. 00:24:52.609 --> 00:24:56.529 In 2 Corinthians 1, verses 21 and 22, the apostle 00:24:56.529 --> 00:25:01.980 repeats this. He says, he who establishes us 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:05.859 with you in Christ and anointed us as God, who 00:25:05.859 --> 00:25:10.039 also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our 00:25:10.039 --> 00:25:15.900 hearts as a pledge. Same word. So the Holy Spirit 00:25:15.900 --> 00:25:21.559 is the agent. Now think with me, if you will, 00:25:21.619 --> 00:25:25.519 of the application of it. When was it that the 00:25:25.519 --> 00:25:29.410 Holy Spirit did this? When was it that he applied 00:25:29.410 --> 00:25:34.049 the seal securing us to Jesus Christ? When did 00:25:34.049 --> 00:25:39.109 it occur? I want you to notice first the completed 00:25:39.109 --> 00:25:42.769 action in the verb. It's not a present tense. 00:25:42.789 --> 00:25:47.349 He's not continually sealing us. It's not in 00:25:47.349 --> 00:25:51.049 the future tense. He will seal us. It's in a 00:25:51.049 --> 00:25:54.670 completed sense. And by the way, all of the other 00:25:54.670 --> 00:25:57.089 key verbs that we've looked at in this sentence, 00:25:57.170 --> 00:26:00.490 in verses 3 through 14, have been in the same 00:26:00.490 --> 00:26:04.170 aorist tense. It's an action that is done already, 00:26:04.369 --> 00:26:08.130 once and for all. But the question is, when did 00:26:08.130 --> 00:26:12.230 this once and for all sealing take place? Well, 00:26:12.250 --> 00:26:14.509 look in the context of our verse again. He tells 00:26:14.509 --> 00:26:18.849 us. He describes it, first of all, as after that 00:26:18.849 --> 00:26:21.250 time when we listened to the message of truth. 00:26:22.859 --> 00:26:26.119 In other words, the sealing did not occur if 00:26:26.119 --> 00:26:29.559 you were sprinkled as an infant. It didn't occur 00:26:29.559 --> 00:26:33.960 then. It didn't occur at some point when you 00:26:33.960 --> 00:26:38.519 may have been confirmed. He says it was after 00:26:38.519 --> 00:26:42.980 you heard the message of truth. So that narrows 00:26:42.980 --> 00:26:45.400 it down somewhat, doesn't it? Because you didn't 00:26:45.400 --> 00:26:49.279 always know the message of truth. There was some 00:26:49.279 --> 00:26:51.720 point in your life as a child or a teenager or 00:26:51.720 --> 00:26:55.180 maybe an adult when for the first time you heard 00:26:55.180 --> 00:27:01.920 the gospel. The sealing took place not before 00:27:01.920 --> 00:27:05.839 you heard, sometime after that. He goes on to 00:27:05.839 --> 00:27:09.700 describe it as the gospel of your salvation. 00:27:09.759 --> 00:27:13.940 And then he says, having also believed, you were 00:27:13.940 --> 00:27:17.539 sealed. And so now he tells us specifically when 00:27:17.539 --> 00:27:20.640 it was that we were sealed. It was at the moment 00:27:20.640 --> 00:27:24.519 that we believed. The two verbs are in the very 00:27:24.519 --> 00:27:28.000 same tense. Now there are some translations which 00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:30.220 frankly confuse this, and the King James is one 00:27:30.220 --> 00:27:33.380 of them. It says, after that you believed, you 00:27:33.380 --> 00:27:37.019 were sealed. And it implies that at some time 00:27:37.019 --> 00:27:39.640 after you believed, maybe a week later or a year 00:27:39.640 --> 00:27:42.779 later, who knows, but it was afterward that you 00:27:42.779 --> 00:27:46.200 were sealed. And that is not what the Apostle 00:27:46.200 --> 00:27:50.359 Paul wrote. The NASB puts it more accurately 00:27:50.359 --> 00:27:52.759 when it says, having believed, you were sealed. 00:27:52.980 --> 00:27:55.799 The point is that at the very moment that you 00:27:55.799 --> 00:28:00.119 believed, you were sealed. The time is contemporaneous. 00:28:01.000 --> 00:28:04.460 It occurred at a simultaneous point in your life. 00:28:04.720 --> 00:28:08.599 At the moment you believed, at that same moment, 00:28:08.640 --> 00:28:15.019 you were sealed in the Lord Jesus Christ. That 00:28:15.019 --> 00:28:19.079 means there is no subsequent deeper work of the 00:28:19.079 --> 00:28:22.180 Holy Spirit that a believer must pray for or 00:28:22.180 --> 00:28:26.079 speak for. The Bible never teaches a second blessing 00:28:26.079 --> 00:28:31.480 that we are to look out for. I know that there 00:28:31.480 --> 00:28:33.259 are some people who say, but in the book of Acts, 00:28:33.359 --> 00:28:35.160 listen, when it comes to the book of Acts, you 00:28:35.160 --> 00:28:37.140 have to remember that it's a book of transition. 00:28:39.950 --> 00:28:42.369 Before you select a verse out of the book of 00:28:42.369 --> 00:28:44.569 Acts upon which to base a doctrine, you better 00:28:44.569 --> 00:28:47.009 make sure that you have some evidence from the 00:28:47.009 --> 00:28:50.569 epistles of the New Testament that what is said 00:28:50.569 --> 00:28:55.130 there in the book of Acts is for today. Because 00:28:55.130 --> 00:28:57.150 you see, in the book of Acts there's a transition. 00:28:57.150 --> 00:28:59.309 There are things that happen differently in the 00:28:59.309 --> 00:29:02.450 book of Acts until the norm is established for 00:29:02.450 --> 00:29:06.670 the age in which we live. And the norm for this 00:29:06.670 --> 00:29:12.329 age is... Having believed, you were also sealed 00:29:12.329 --> 00:29:15.930 with the Holy Spirit. It occurred at the same 00:29:15.930 --> 00:29:19.509 moment when the Holy Spirit indwelt you. You 00:29:19.509 --> 00:29:21.569 have to keep in mind, folks, that the Bible is 00:29:21.569 --> 00:29:24.690 progressive revelation. In the Old Testament, 00:29:24.789 --> 00:29:27.970 New Testament, and the like, truth is progressively 00:29:27.970 --> 00:29:30.970 revealed to us. We can't go to one isolated place 00:29:30.970 --> 00:29:35.970 and base a doctrine on it. We must allow the 00:29:35.970 --> 00:29:41.140 whole of Scripture. to interpret for us individual 00:29:41.140 --> 00:29:49.019 passages. The Holy Spirit has come into us the 00:29:49.019 --> 00:29:51.519 moment that we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ 00:29:51.519 --> 00:29:58.799 and brings to us the feeling into Christ. Now, 00:29:58.819 --> 00:30:01.200 I'm glad that God included this in this paragraph 00:30:01.200 --> 00:30:06.970 because it brings to our heart a wonderful note 00:30:06.970 --> 00:30:10.650 of assurance that we may have regarding our salvation. 00:30:11.910 --> 00:30:15.009 You see, God wants us to have complete assurance 00:30:15.009 --> 00:30:20.170 that we are saved. He who has the Son has the 00:30:20.170 --> 00:30:22.730 life. He who has not the Son of God has not life. 00:30:23.490 --> 00:30:26.109 These things I have written unto you, says John, 00:30:26.309 --> 00:30:29.009 who believe in the name of the Son of God, that 00:30:29.009 --> 00:30:33.430 you may know that you have eternal life. God 00:30:33.430 --> 00:30:35.930 wants us to know beyond the shadow of a doubt 00:30:35.930 --> 00:30:41.349 that we are saved. And we can know that. I know 00:30:41.349 --> 00:30:45.309 from my own personal experience that it's very 00:30:45.309 --> 00:30:48.170 difficult not to have the assurance of salvation. 00:30:49.410 --> 00:30:51.950 But after I had trusted the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:30:52.049 --> 00:30:55.190 I went through several years of wondering whether 00:30:55.190 --> 00:30:57.109 I was really saved. If someone were to ask me, 00:30:57.130 --> 00:30:59.410 when did you pray to receive Christ, I'd have 00:30:59.410 --> 00:31:04.210 to honestly say, oh, many times. Because, you 00:31:04.210 --> 00:31:06.390 see, after I first trusted Christ, I was not 00:31:06.390 --> 00:31:11.470 taught the Bible. And so I got involved in sin 00:31:11.470 --> 00:31:13.890 as a child, and I felt guilty about that, but 00:31:13.890 --> 00:31:17.170 I didn't know what to do with it. And consequently, 00:31:17.509 --> 00:31:21.890 I began to doubt my salvation. And so an evangelist 00:31:21.890 --> 00:31:24.789 would come through, or I'd hear a message from 00:31:24.789 --> 00:31:27.730 the Bible from our pastor, and I would ask Jesus 00:31:27.730 --> 00:31:30.460 to come into my heart and save me again. and 00:31:30.460 --> 00:31:32.559 things were okay for a while, and then after 00:31:32.559 --> 00:31:35.180 a while sin would accumulate, and I had no joy 00:31:35.180 --> 00:31:38.079 in my salvation, I wanted if I was saved, I would 00:31:38.079 --> 00:31:40.500 ask Jesus to come into my heart again. And some 00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:41.960 of you are smiling because you've been through 00:31:41.960 --> 00:31:46.059 that. That's a terrible way to live. Because 00:31:46.059 --> 00:31:49.160 you don't know from one month to the next if 00:31:49.160 --> 00:31:53.420 you're really going to heaven. It is a wonderful 00:31:53.420 --> 00:31:56.400 day, my friends, when you finally come to that 00:31:56.400 --> 00:31:59.859 point of realizing That that first time when 00:31:59.859 --> 00:32:04.099 you trusted the Lord Jesus Christ, that at that 00:32:04.099 --> 00:32:06.519 moment the Holy Spirit came into you and you 00:32:06.519 --> 00:32:10.799 were sealed into Jesus Christ. So that there's 00:32:10.799 --> 00:32:17.500 no need any longer for doubt about it. I hope 00:32:17.500 --> 00:32:21.319 today you had that assurance. I certainly would 00:32:21.319 --> 00:32:23.980 not want to give you assurance about your salvation 00:32:23.980 --> 00:32:27.789 if you're not saved. If there's doubt there because 00:32:27.789 --> 00:32:30.950 you've never trusted the Savior, then you need 00:32:30.950 --> 00:32:34.650 to deal with that today by trusting in him. But 00:32:34.650 --> 00:32:36.869 I want to speak to you who have trusted Christ 00:32:36.869 --> 00:32:40.730 to let you know that you can rest upon his finished 00:32:40.730 --> 00:32:43.569 work. It's like Sandy Crosby says in her hymn, 00:32:43.569 --> 00:32:46.609 Blessed Assurance. It's like a foretaste of glory 00:32:46.609 --> 00:32:49.890 divine when you can finally come to that point 00:32:49.890 --> 00:32:53.210 inside in your heart of just letting go and relaxing. 00:32:54.109 --> 00:32:57.009 and almost sitting down, as it were, and resting 00:32:57.009 --> 00:33:01.509 upon the finished work of Christ. It's a blessed 00:33:01.509 --> 00:33:04.829 day when you realize you can have assurance regarding 00:33:04.829 --> 00:33:09.789 your salvation because you're secure in the Lord 00:33:09.789 --> 00:33:13.670 Jesus Christ. You say, well, how can I be sure 00:33:13.670 --> 00:33:17.529 whether I've been saved or not and had this assurance? 00:33:17.710 --> 00:33:21.230 Well, notice what he says here. He tells them 00:33:21.230 --> 00:33:23.940 to listen to the message of truth. What have 00:33:23.940 --> 00:33:27.640 you been listening to? There are many messages 00:33:27.640 --> 00:33:32.740 of deceit and lies available today. Have you 00:33:32.740 --> 00:33:35.880 been listening to the message of truth? To what 00:33:35.880 --> 00:33:39.180 is that? Well, he tells us. He calls it the gospel 00:33:39.180 --> 00:33:43.380 of your salvation. The message of truth is the 00:33:43.380 --> 00:33:46.279 good news of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection 00:33:46.279 --> 00:33:50.940 for you. It's the good news that he lives today 00:33:50.940 --> 00:33:55.480 to save all who will come to him. It's the move 00:33:55.480 --> 00:33:59.220 that he will deliver us from our sins. Forgive 00:33:59.220 --> 00:34:02.079 us of it. Take us to heaven. Give us eternal 00:34:02.079 --> 00:34:06.440 life. Because it's the gospel of your salvation. 00:34:06.500 --> 00:34:10.159 It becomes your salvation when you personally 00:34:10.159 --> 00:34:14.619 trust in this Savior. And you believe this message 00:34:14.619 --> 00:34:17.940 about him, the message of truth. Is this the 00:34:17.940 --> 00:34:22.260 message you believe? Is this the gospel that 00:34:22.260 --> 00:34:26.469 you're trusting in today? If it is, then we may 00:34:26.469 --> 00:34:28.710 go on and say regarding you, having believed, 00:34:28.909 --> 00:34:35.289 you were sealed. You were sealed in Christ. That's 00:34:35.289 --> 00:34:41.489 blessing, assurance. Jesus is yours if you believe. 00:34:49.670 --> 00:34:54.739 To conclude this, A wonderful paragraph, as it's 00:34:54.739 --> 00:34:58.179 written in our English version, with a phrase 00:34:58.179 --> 00:35:02.599 that simply says, to the praise of his glory. 00:35:04.519 --> 00:35:07.179 You may notice that that's the third time he's 00:35:07.179 --> 00:35:10.059 used that phrase, to the praise of his glory. 00:35:11.219 --> 00:35:13.699 Do you realize that that's why God has saved 00:35:13.699 --> 00:35:18.199 you, beloved? God has not saved you to keep your 00:35:18.199 --> 00:35:22.400 miserable soul out of hell. Now bless the Lord, 00:35:22.539 --> 00:35:26.300 your soul which was in misery. God had compassion 00:35:26.300 --> 00:35:31.280 on you, and he is saving you from hell. But the 00:35:31.280 --> 00:35:37.079 real heart of salvation, the real meat of it 00:35:37.079 --> 00:35:41.659 is this, that God did all of these things that 00:35:41.659 --> 00:35:48.500 we've studied to the praise of his glory, to 00:35:48.500 --> 00:35:52.099 glorify himself. Are you satisfied with that? 00:35:52.920 --> 00:35:55.320 Are you satisfied with the abuse of the praise 00:35:55.320 --> 00:35:58.820 of his glory? There are some people who want 00:35:58.820 --> 00:36:03.619 to live for their own glory. A person who does 00:36:03.619 --> 00:36:08.480 that competes with God. If you are a Christian, 00:36:08.619 --> 00:36:13.380 God has purchased you for his glory. Don't live 00:36:13.380 --> 00:36:16.420 for your own. Because if you compete with God, 00:36:16.500 --> 00:36:18.820 I want to guarantee you one thing. You'll lose. 00:36:20.219 --> 00:36:24.679 There's no way you're going to win. It is a wonderful 00:36:24.679 --> 00:36:27.000 thing when we finally realize that the reason 00:36:27.000 --> 00:36:30.340 God has saved us is to glorify himself. And that 00:36:30.340 --> 00:36:34.360 the highest purpose we can have in life is simply 00:36:34.360 --> 00:36:37.320 to cooperate with God's purpose and to live for 00:36:37.320 --> 00:36:40.980 it. To live for his glory. Is that the way you're 00:36:40.980 --> 00:36:45.099 living today? To the praise of his glory? Oh, 00:36:45.099 --> 00:36:48.199 child of God, don't live for something less than 00:36:48.199 --> 00:36:52.690 that. Don't pour out the days of your life for 00:36:52.690 --> 00:36:56.869 yourself because you see your own glory saved. 00:36:57.650 --> 00:37:02.650 It's saved. And the things that you may be able 00:37:02.650 --> 00:37:05.849 to stimulate, they're already passing away, the 00:37:05.849 --> 00:37:10.769 Bible says. So live for the praise of his glory 00:37:10.769 --> 00:37:17.130 who has saved you and purchased you and sealed 00:37:17.130 --> 00:37:26.000 you. Let's bow together. Astrid Nelson has written 00:37:26.000 --> 00:37:28.500 a prayer that I'd like to read, and perhaps you'd 00:37:28.500 --> 00:37:32.079 allow these words to flow through your mind as 00:37:32.079 --> 00:37:37.179 your own commitment to Jesus Christ. O may my 00:37:37.179 --> 00:37:42.780 life be to thy praise, O Father. In all I do, 00:37:42.960 --> 00:37:48.139 may thou be magnified. Thou choosest me before 00:37:48.139 --> 00:37:53.260 the world's foundation, thine own to be, that 00:37:53.260 --> 00:37:58.159 thou be glorified. O may my life be to thy praise, 00:37:58.199 --> 00:38:03.300 O Savior, thy finished work in all its glory 00:38:03.300 --> 00:38:09.099 see, and precious thought, that thou entrustest 00:38:09.099 --> 00:38:16.050 to me this task to praise and glorify thee. O 00:38:16.050 --> 00:38:19.670 may my life be to thy praise, O Spirit, this 00:38:19.670 --> 00:38:25.010 temple filled, empowered, and yielded be, that 00:38:25.010 --> 00:38:30.909 in thy strength my life may glorify thee in life 00:38:30.909 --> 00:38:38.389 or death, whatever thou hast for me. Lord, I 00:38:38.389 --> 00:38:40.510 pray that you will help us, who are your children, 00:38:40.630 --> 00:38:43.210 to back away from life for just a moment and 00:38:43.210 --> 00:38:47.630 look at it. And see it as a gift and a privilege 00:38:47.630 --> 00:38:52.489 that it is. Forgive us for getting so involved 00:38:52.489 --> 00:38:59.210 in the day -by -day routines, demands, and instances 00:38:59.210 --> 00:39:03.329 of life that we forget the big picture while 00:39:03.329 --> 00:39:08.889 we're here. It is to the praise of your glory. 00:39:10.190 --> 00:39:13.050 And Father, may that indeed be our motivation. 00:39:14.340 --> 00:39:19.480 as well as our goal through this week, that we 00:39:19.480 --> 00:39:24.820 might glorify you. Before I finish praying with 00:39:24.820 --> 00:39:26.840 our heads down, I wonder if there's one here 00:39:26.840 --> 00:39:29.599 who would say, Pastor Carly, there's a point 00:39:29.599 --> 00:39:33.219 in the message today that's gotten to me. I don't 00:39:33.219 --> 00:39:35.139 know what that point may be. It may be that you're 00:39:35.139 --> 00:39:37.739 doubting your salvation. You're not sure you're 00:39:37.739 --> 00:39:41.119 saved. Or it may be that you're struggling with 00:39:41.119 --> 00:39:43.460 sin. You see, there's nothing that will rob a... 00:39:43.630 --> 00:39:46.829 a Christian of the assurance of his salvation 00:39:46.829 --> 00:39:50.289 quicker than sin that's ongoing in the life. 00:39:51.289 --> 00:39:55.929 If you're a Christian living for yourself, living 00:39:55.929 --> 00:39:59.170 in sin, I'll guarantee you, you do not have assurance 00:39:59.170 --> 00:40:01.630 of your salvation this morning. It doesn't mean 00:40:01.630 --> 00:40:04.289 you aren't secure in Christ if you don't have 00:40:04.289 --> 00:40:07.250 the confidence and the joy that God wants you 00:40:07.250 --> 00:40:12.110 to have. By this lifted hand will you say, Pastor 00:40:12.110 --> 00:40:14.030 Paul, God has spoken to me. I want you to pray 00:40:14.030 --> 00:40:17.469 for me in closing. Just lift it up and pray with 00:40:17.469 --> 00:40:22.030 me. Yes, God bless you. There's been a point 00:40:22.030 --> 00:40:26.010 of stuff in my heart. I'd like to pray for you. 00:40:26.050 --> 00:40:33.369 Anyone else? Yes, thank you. Just before we pray. 00:40:36.429 --> 00:40:38.829 Lord, thank you for speaking to our hearts and 00:40:38.829 --> 00:40:41.329 for bringing to us a reminder this morning of 00:40:41.329 --> 00:40:45.030 your gracious work on our behalf. Especially 00:40:45.030 --> 00:40:49.349 for these who are at a point of struggle in their 00:40:49.349 --> 00:40:52.309 lives, who are facing some internal conviction 00:40:52.309 --> 00:40:56.010 or conflict, you know, meet their needs today. 00:40:57.150 --> 00:41:02.050 And may we be able to depart from here with a 00:41:02.050 --> 00:41:04.650 kind of confidence and assurance regarding their 00:41:04.650 --> 00:41:08.199 salvation. that you've provided for them to know. 00:41:10.320 --> 00:41:11.679 In Jesus' name.