will be our text Ephesians 1
verse 13 in whom ye also trusted after
that you heard the word of truth you trusted in Christ after you
heard the word of the truth the gospel of your salvation sinners
trust the Savior by the instrumentality of the gospel preached to them
in the power of the Holy Spirit. In whom also, after that ye believed,
ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. Having believed
on Christ, you were sealed with that Holy Spirit which God promised
to those who are born of Him called by Him, redeemed by Him,
chosen by Him, the Spirit of promise, which is the earnest,
the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased
possession. That is, we being sealed with
the Holy Spirit have in our breast God's pledge of eternal life
for body, soul, and spirit in resurrection glory, and this
seal we have until the day of our resurrection. God the Holy
Spirit, having created faith in us, is the Holy Spirit of
promise by which believers are sealed, the earnest of our redemption,
our final consummate redemption. the resurrection of our bodies,
the redemption of the purchased possession, and this to the praise
of His glory. I want to talk to you tonight
about that word sealed. That's my subject. That's the
title of my message, sealed. Ye were sealed. I believe God's given me something
for your soul's comfort, joy, and edification. I've gone through
the book of God several times, marking those things God has
told us he has sealed. And every time I've gone over
them, I've been instructed in my soul and blessed of God, and
I pray you will be. Let's begin back in John chapter
6, John the 6th chapter, verse 27. Our Lord Jesus is speaking. He says, labor not for the meat
which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you. For him hath God
the Father sealed. The Lord Jesus here declares
that he, as the Son of Man, That one who gives everlasting life
to all who trust Him is a sealed Savior. Him hath God the Father
sealed. What does that mean? The word
sealed throughout the New Testament means stamped, stamped for security,
preserved, or kept secret. Really, the sentence might read
like this, Him hath the Father sealed God. Him hath the Father
sealed God. That is, God the Father has sealed
the God-man Jesus Christ as God before the eyes of men. Over
in Acts chapter 2, if you want to turn there, this is exactly
what the Apostle Peter tells us on the day of Pentecost. God
the Father has demonstrated beyond question that this man, Jesus
of Nazareth, is himself God. Acts chapter 2, verse 22. Ye
men of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved
of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which
God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know. Him, being delivered by the determinate
counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken and by wicked
hands have crucified and slain. You remember when John the Baptist
was in prison. He sent two of his disciples
to the Lord Jesus to ask the question. Are you the Christ
or do we look for another? Now John the Baptist was not
doubtful concerning the matter. John had the privilege of baptizing
our Redeemer and the Holy Spirit descending upon him as a dove
and hearing God the Father speak from heaven saying, this is my
beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. John didn't have any
question. But he sends his disciples to
the Lord Jesus because he wanted those disciples to know from
the Savior's own mouth that he is indeed the Christ promised
in Scripture, God in human flesh. And the Savior sent those disciples
back to John with this declaration. He said, you go tell John, the
poor are ministered to. The blind receive their sight. The deaf are made to hear. The lame are made to walk. And women receive their dead
raised up again to themselves. And by that, he's testifying
to those disciples that the prophecy of Joel has been fulfilled in
him. He is indeed that one who's come
to make sinners whole. In this passage here in John
6 and verse 27, We have one of those many precious places in
Holy Scripture in which we see in very few words a huge volume
of divine revelation. In just seven words, our Lord
Jesus declares that all three persons in the triune God concur
and cooperate in the work of redemption by the grace of our
Lord Jesus. Robert Hawker made this observation
on John 6, 27. There is a peculiar blessedness
in these sweet portions which at one view represent the holy
three in one, unitedly engaged in the sinner's redemption. Who
could be the him here spoken of if not the Lord Jesus? Who
other than God the Father could seal him? With whom was Christ
sealed and anointed except God the Holy Spirit? Who but God
could give us such a full declaration of divine truth in those seven
words? For him hath God the Father sealed. Let us ever behold as the warrant
of our faith the divine authority of the Lord Jesus, the Son of
Man, our Mediator. He and He alone is infinitely
suited for our soul's needs in every state and circumstance.
The validity of all His gracious acts and deeds as our substitute
are found here. Him hath God the Father sealed,
marked and stamped from eternity by His choice, His appointment,
and His decree, as the Lamb slain and accepted from the foundation
of the world, marked and stamped in time by His Spirit. This is
the one of whom the spirit of prophecy spake, to Him give all
the prophets witness. This is He who was anointed with
the Spirit at His baptism. The Spirit was given to Him without
measure, and He gives the Spirit to all who trust Him. He is that
One who sends us the Spirit of revelation, who takes the things
of Christ and shows them to us. It was the Spirit of Jehovah
that was upon Him when He was anointed to preach the gospel
of peace and set the captives free. This great Savior, whom
the Father has sealed, is held forth and recommended to us by
the great seal of heaven to every poor sinner who needs his salvation. Him hath the Father sealed. In every act of faith, in every
tendency of our souls, let us live unto our Savior with this
same earnest longing that's expressed by the church in the Song of
Solomon. Set me as a seal upon thine heart. Set me as a seal
upon thine heart. Now turn over to Revelation chapter
5. First, we have a sealed Savior. Here in Revelation 5, we're given
a sealed book. Revelation 5 verse 1, John's
caught up into the heavens to behold the throne of God and
the things in heaven. And I saw in the right hand of
him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside
sealed with seven seals. Here's a sealed book, a huge
book written within, throughout, on the backside, wrapped up and
sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming
with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book and loose the
seals thereof? Who's worthy to open this book
and show us what it contains? Who's worthy to open this book
and fulfill its word? Who's worthy to unloose these
seals? And no man in heaven nor in earth,
neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither
to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man
was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to
look thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not.
Behold, the lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David,
hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof.
And I beheld and lo in the midst of the throne. and of the four
beasts, and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb, as it had
been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the
seven spirits of God sent forth into all the world. Now watch
this. And he came and took the book. He came and took the book
as one having the right to do so. He came by virtue of his
finished work and took the book out of the right hand of him
that sat on the throne. The book, John saw, is the book
of God's eternal decrees. It represents God's purpose of
grace and sovereign predestination. It includes all things that must
come to pass in time. It is this book our Savior referred
to when he said, Lo, I come. In the volume of the book it
is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God. William Hendrickson said, it
symbolizes God's purpose with respect to the entire universe
throughout history concerning all creatures in all ages to
all eternity. You see, the God we worship,
He who is indeed God, is a God of purpose. Absolute, unalterable
purpose. Would to God, I can declare this
to this generation, He who is God rules the world according
to an absolute purpose, his purpose of grace to save his people,
established from eternity so that all that comes to pass in
time is brought to pass in time according to the purpose of God
who says, I will do all my pleasure. He says, I've spoken it. I will
bring it to pass, so that everything in time is but the fulfilling
of God's purpose from eternity. And the object of that purpose
is the salvation of His elect. O God, teach me to be satisfied,
content, yes, and delighted with the accomplishment of Your purpose. Teach me to be satisfied, content,
and even delighted with the accomplishment of your purpose. That means I
ought to be, and you who are God's ought to be, delighted
with everything that comes to pass in time as it is the accomplishment
of God's purpose. Brother Scott Richardson observed
that, had we the power of God, we would change everything. Had
we the wisdom of God, we would change nothing. Oh, God, give me some of that
wisdom that would change nothing. That which God has purposed is
good. And he brings to pass that purpose
for the effectual accomplishment of the everlasting salvation
of his people. That means that everything that
comes to pass in time was purposed by God in eternity for us. And is brought to pass in time
for us by the hand of our crucified Redeemer, the Lamb of God, took
the book and has the right to open the book and fulfill every
desire of his own heart from everlasting because he is the
Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world. As John saw it
the book was closed, a mystery sealed, what the prophet refers
to as secret things, secret things. People have the idea, well, we
ought not talk about predestination and election because those are
secret things. Well, they're secret until he
makes them known. Our Lord Jesus is seen in Revelation
10 as an angel, the angel of the covenant, standing with one
foot on the earth and one on the sea, and he has this book,
this book in his hand, this little book, this little book. What? The book? containing all history
before ever history was accomplished? The book containing all the events
of time before anything was done? Well, that's a huge book, yes,
but it's in His hand. And in His hand it is but a little
thing. He who is the ruler of the universe
is God our Savior and He rules the universe well pages of the
book. Third, I have a sealed Savior,
a sealed book. Turn over one page to Revelation
chapter 7, here we read about a sealed people. There is a vast
multitude of people in this world called the elect, the elect. Now when you start to speak to
folks, I hope for you it is just natural for you to speak of God's
people as His elect. I hope that you're so comfortable
with the revelation of God's truth that when you speak of
God's people you're just comfortable to speak of them as God's elect.
Why should we do that? Charlie, we are referred to in
this book more often than in any other way as God's elect. That's how God refers to His
people, His chosen, His elect, the objects of His love. God's
elect are a people chosen in eternity, redeemed at Calvary,
who must be sealed by the Spirit of His grace. All the works of
grace are accomplished for the same people. The Father, Son,
and Holy Ghost loved His elect, chose His elect, The Son of God
redeemed his elect, and his elect shall be called, sealed by the
Spirit of God. Look here in Revelation chapter
7, verse 1. After these things I saw four
angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four
winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth,
nor the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending
from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried
with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was given to
hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the
sea, nor the trees. Now watch this, till we have
sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. till we have
marked them as God's people. And I heard the number of them
which were sealed. And there were sealed an hundred
and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children
of Israel. What's that talking about? All
the host of God's elect, chosen among the children of Israel,
all the host of God's elect, God's Israel, They shall be sealed
by the hand of God in time, called by His grace in time. Now, there's
lots of talk about when Christ is coming. Let me tell you exactly
when He's coming. I'll tell you, I'm going to set
a date. I'll tell you exactly when He's coming. When the last
of God's elect has been sealed, Christ will appear. Don't hurt
the earth. till we've sealed the 144,000
chosen out of the earth. God is not slack concerning His
promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to usward,
not willing that any should perish, but that all should be saved
and come to the knowledge of the truth. He's longsuffering
to usward. Therefore the earth remains. often say if God doesn't judge
this world soon, he'll owe an apology to Sodom and Gomorrah.
What fool speaks such a way? God Almighty will not rain fire
upon Sodom until lot has been delivered from Sodom. He will
not bring judgment upon the earth for the destruction of the earth
until he's saved all his elect. Read on, Revelation 7 verse 9.
After this I beheld and lo, multitude, which no man could number, of
all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before
the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and
palms in their hands. And they cried with a loud voice,
saying, Salvation to our God, which sitteth upon the throne,
and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round
about the throne, and about the elders, and the four beasts,
and fell before the throne on their faces, and worship God
saying amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God
forever and ever. Amen. John's described these
144,000. And then in the next breath he
says, he said, what I saw in heaven when the 144,000 had all
been sealed, I saw a multitude which no man could number. out
of every nation, kindred, tribe, and tongue, which tells us God's
Israel is all the host of God's elect. When God saves a sinner,
that sinner is sealed by the Holy Spirit, marked as God's
own. That's what we're told in the
text we read in Ephesians 1. When the sinner is called by
grace, that one who is marked as God's own, sealed, preserved,
and kept by God the Holy Spirit. It is this sealing which in the
Old Testament was symbolized by circumcision. The sealing
of the Spirit is what the book of God calls circumcision of
the heart. Circumcision made without hands
by the Spirit of God. And then we're urged, grieve
not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed under the day of
redemption. We would be wise to make that
statement in Ephesians 430 the motto of our lives day by day. Oh, Spirit of God, give me grace
not to grieve you. Is God the spirit grieved when
the child of God forgets the Lord Jesus? By indulgence in
any sin, loses sight of those sufferings he endured because
of sin. What a tender word. Grieved. Grieved. Only one attached to
you in the most loving way is grieved by you. You may anger
others, you may upset others, you may bring upon you the wrath
of others, but only one who loves you indescribably can be grieved
by your actions. Oh God give me grace not to grieve
your spirit, by which I am sealed unto the day of redemption. Shall I grieve the Spirit of
God, my divine keeper, by the allowance of wickedness in me,
by being comfortable with ungodliness, Would you grieve for me, my Lord,
by such a sight? That ought to be enough to cause
me ever to beg of God to keep me from the evil that's in me. The same ceiling is spoken of
over in 2 Corinthians. Turn back there if you will.
2 Corinthians chapter 1. I want you to see it. Now he which establisheth us
with you in Christ, and hath anointed us is God, who hath
also sealed us, and given us the earnest of the Spirit in
our hearts. The Spirit of God, who has sealed
us, has established me with you, and you with me, even as he did
Paul and his collaborators with the Corinthians. God's church
in this world is described in the psalm of Solomon chapter
4 as a sealed garden, a fountain of gardens full of fruits. The church of God, His garden,
flourishes with good works, works done for Him, works He has created
in us. Now she never looks upon her
works in such a manner. She recognizes that her works
are but filthy rags. But this is how he describes
her. A garden enclosed is my sister, my spouse. A spring shut
up, a fountain sealed. Thy plants are an orchard of
pomegranates. with pleasant fruits, camphor
with spikenard, spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense, myrrh and aloes, with all chief
spices, a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and
streams from Lebanon." What a description. The Lord Jesus describes His
church as a garden flourishing with fruits with which the world
itself is fed. a fountain of waters by which
the world itself is refreshed. And we, by the preaching of the
gospel, by the work God's put in our hands, as laborers together
with Christ, are ministers of God to the good of this world,
to the saving of His elect throughout the world. Oh, what a privilege. A sealed Savior, a sealed book,
a sealed people. Now turn to Isaiah 29. Isaiah
chapter 29. Here we learn that there are
many in this world to whom the gospel of Christ, the word of
God which we proclaim to them is but a sealed vision. We preach the gospel and men
becoming confused. We preach the gospel and folks
get angry. We preach the gospel and people
enraged. Why? Because the gospel we preach
is to the unregenerate a sealed vision. Look at Isaiah 29 verse
9. Stay yourselves and wonder. Cry
ye out and cry. That is preach and weep. They
are drunken but not with wine. They stagger but not with strong
drink. For the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep
sleep, and hath closed your eyes. The prophets and your rulers,
the seers hath he covered, and the vision of all is become unto
you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver
to one that has learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee. And they
sayeth, I cannot, for it's sealed. And the book is delivered to
him that has not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee. And he
saith, I have not learned. You see, to the unbelieving,
to the natural man, this book is foolishness. To the natural
man, it cannot be understood. Until God gives eyes with which
to see, until God opens the book, it's sealed to all men. A sealed
Savior, a sealed book, a sealed people, Sealed vision now if
you'll turn back to Deuteronomy chapter 32 Deuteronomy 32 We read about a sealed vengeance,
you know a 32 Vengeance that's sealed closed
up stopped Cannot be abated cannot be turned back In this chapter,
the Lord God warns the ungodly. Those who, because they have
no understanding, do not trust Christ. Because they have no
understanding, refuse to worship God. He warns them of vengeance
and wrath that he will execute upon them as a sealed vengeance
set for a time appointed. Oh, sinner, be warned. You won't
escape the wrath of God. Deuteronomy 32, verse 34. Is
not this laid up in store with me and sealed up among my treasures? Sealed up among my treasures.
Sealed up among my treasures. This is not contrary to God.
This is not wrong for God. This is not something about which
God is ashamed, and it's not something about which his people
should be ashamed, and not something about which servants are ashamed.
This is sealed up among my treasures. To me, belongeth vengeance. Vengeance. Now, when we think
about vengeance, we think about getting even. We think about
vengeance, we think about somebody's wronged us and I'm gonna get
you. I'm gonna get you. You see it all the time, you've
experienced it enough to know exactly what I'm talking about.
You get upset, buddy you hang on. I don't know how but I'm
gonna get you. That's horrible, that's evil,
that's malicious. Not with God. When God says this
is my treasure, This is something I hold in my treasures. Vengeance
belongs to me. What does that mean? Recompense
is mine. You see that? I will recompense. I'm going to give you what you
have earned. The wages of sin is death. Their foot shall slide in due
time. For the day of their calamity
is at hand. and the things that shall come
upon them make haste. Now you who yet refuse to believe
on the Son of God, you think like men described in Ecclesiastes
8, because the sentence against an evil work is not executed
speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set
in them to do evil. Men vainly imagine that because
justice is not immediately executed, it will not be executed. But
this God holds as a treasure. As much a treasure is his justice
as is his grace. As much a treasure to him as
his righteousness or as his mercy is his righteousness. God has
set the wicked in slippery places. Their feet shall slide into hell
in due season. And when they have filled up
the cup of their wrath, wrath shall be given them. Now turn
to Job 14. Job 14. All who are taught of God and
come to Christ by Him, living by faith in Him, have learned
of the Father, and they come to Him because they've learned
of the Father. And all who come to Christ, as
they come to him, find that their sins are in a bag, cast behind
God's back into the depths of the sea of God's infinite forgetfulness. So the sixth thing described
in the scripture as being sealed is a sealed bag. Job 14, verse
14. If a man die, shall he live again? All the days of my appointed
time will I wait till my change come. I had a note from a friend
yesterday asking me, people talk about an untimely death, an untimely
death. And our doctor sitting here will
advise you to practice good health and good health practices and
exercise and eat right and all that stuff. And that's good.
That's good advice. That's good advice. I'm not one
to follow the advice. That's good advice. That's good
advice. But you're not going to die an
untimely death. That's not going to happen. God
has appointed the time when you will take your last breath. And
he's appointed the means by which your last breath will be snuffed
out of you. and not anything you or any doctor
or any group of surgeons is going to do to make that moment be
a little bit more distant. No, no. All the days of my appointed
time will I wait till my change come. Thou shalt call and I will
answer thee. Thou wilt have a desire to the
work of thine hands. For now thou numberest my steps,
dost thou not watch over my sin? What a statement. What a question. Can that be raised for comfort? Can that be raised for joy? For peace? For assurance? Is
he asking God I'm comforted by this. I know
you watch over my sin. Well, read the next line. My
transgression is sealed up in a bag and thou sowest up mine
iniquity. In days gone by when men died
at sea, their bodies were put into a bag, a weighted bag. The bag was sewn together. and they were dropped into the
sea, and they sank to the depths of the sea. That's exactly how
God describes what He's done with our sin. They're cast into
the depths of the sea. When our Savior, the Lord Jesus,
died, by His one sacrifice for our sins, He put away our sins. They were buried in the sea of
God's infinite forgiveness, which is the sea of God's infinite
forgetfulness. And he says, I will not remember
thy sins. He's put him in a bag. He's cast
him behind his back into the depths of the sea. And he says,
I will not remember thy sins. But Job asked the question, does
thou not watch over my sin? Yes, he does. And if he finds
any, we are forever damned. But that can't be because he's
cast them away in a sealed bag. Listen to this. Listen to this. In those days, Jeremiah 50 verse
20, if you want to look at it later, And at that time, saith
the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there
shall be none. And the sins of Judah, and they
shall not be found, for I will pardon them whom I reserve. The Lord hath not beheld iniquity
in Israel. Isn't that wonderful? He has not beheld sin in Judah. He watches for it. He watches
for it. And if He should find any sin
upon any man or any woman, He'd cast them into hell. But those
who trust His darling Son have this word from God, I put your
sins in a bag and I've cast them into the sea and I watch for
them. I watch for them all the time.
And they're not to be found, because they're not. A sealed
Savior, a sealed book. Turn back to the Song of Solomon.
A sealed people, a sealed vision, a sealed vengeance, a sealed
bag. Now here is a sealed desire.
Song of Solomon chapter 8, verse 6. When you find your place there,
turn to Exodus 28. We'll look at that, and I'll wrap this up. Exodus chapter 28. Just hold
your hands there. All right. Solomon chapter 8,
verse 6. Set me as a seal upon thine heart,
as a seal upon thine arm, for thy love is strong as death. Jealousy is cruel as the grave. The coals thereof are coals of
fire which hath the most vehement flame. Here is a prayer for every
saved sinner and a prayer for every sinner who seeks God's
mercy. Set me as a seal upon thine heart,
as a seal upon thine arm, therefore telling me how you love me. with love that cannot be quenched. Now we have a picture of this
back in Exodus chapter 28. Exodus 28 verse 12 is describing
Aaron, God's high priest, the picture of Christ, our great
high priest. Thou shalt put two stones upon the shoulders of
the Ephod for stones of memorial unto the children of Israel.
And Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord shoulders for
a memorial. Oh Lord, set me as a seal on
your broad shoulders, on your mighty arm, on your tender heart. Look at verse 29, Exodus 28,
and Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in
the breastplate of judgment upon his heart when he goeth in unto
the holy place for a memorial before the Lord continually.
The Lord Jesus bears the names of his people upon his heart,
upon the breastplate of judgment. He who was judged of God for
our sins bears our names before God in the holy place today. Verse 30, and thou shalt put
in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, the
lights and perfection. And they shall be upon Aaron's
heart when he goeth in before the Lord. And Aaron shall bear
the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before
the Lord continually. Verse 36, And thou shalt make
a plate of pure gold and engrave it upon it, like the engraving
of a signet. Holiness to the Lord. Holiness
to the Lord. Aaron goes about his business
as the priest with this gold, sticking on his forehead, holiness
to the Lord, holiness to the Lord. And thou shalt put it on
a blue lace, that it may be upon the miter, upon the forefront
of the miter it shall be. And it shall be upon Aaron's
forehead, that Aaron may bear it, that Aaron may bear the iniquity
of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow
holy gifts and it shall be always upon his forehead that they may
be accepted before the Lord. Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal on your mighty arm, attest to me, O God, my Savior,
that I am yours. Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. Give me this assurance. You bear
me on your heart all the time. You bore me in my place in judgment
before God in holiness, righteousness, justice, and truth. And now I
offer my praise to you. I offer my praise to you. Rex
read David's psalm of praise back in the office. Psalm 145. Don Fortner, what makes you think
God's going to accept your praise? So mingled with pride? So mingled
with self? So mingled with all the corruption
of your heart? What makes you think God's going
to accept anything you offer Him? Lord, set me as a seal on
your heart, on your arm. And as I bring my hallowed things
to you, things I've sent for you alone, bear me on your heart and on
your arm with this brilliant gold plate on your forehead.
holiness to the Lord. And with that, bear the iniquity
of my holy things, that I may be accepted of God. And God do that for you, for
Christ's sake. Amen.