GUARANTEED SALVATION!

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,

Ephesians 1:13 (ESV)

When we receive Christ, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit!

He dwells in us and we become partakers of His Divine Nature! (2 Peter 1:3-5)

Christ in us is the hope of glory! We are in Him and He in us! (Colossians 1:27)*

* We must not confuse this powerful theological fact with the new age concept that God is in all of us.    

  Nor does this mean that we can ever be in any way equal to God! Many great books have already been written to clarify the differences. But it is critical that we do understand this important distinction!

To be sealed is to be stamped or marked - similar to the mark of a signet ring used by ancient kings to seal a document as a proof of its authenticity. We have been stamped or marked by The Holy Spirit's Himself dwelling within us.

How significant is this sealing mark? 

The very next verse tells us:

14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

Ephesians 1:14 (ESV)

The Holy Spirit Himself is our GUARANTEE - the DOWN PAYMENT on our inheritance!

God has put a down payment on our salvation. It is inconceivable that He will not return to claim His own.

UNTIL...

Vs. 14 tells us that our further inheritance is still yet to come! And again, He has personally guaranteed it. There is no small print or "legalese" - the kind man includes in his contracts and guarantees.

Yes we already have an inheritance. But there is a further, greater inheritance to come.

And it has been GUARANTEED by the Creator and Ruler of the Universe - the ONE, TRUE, LIVING GOD!

If you have the Holy Spirit in you through the new birth - your salvation is guaranteed and you have eternal life!

11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 WHOEVER HAS THE SON HAS LIFE; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (capitalization added)

1 John 5:11-12 (ESV)