Sealed with the Holy Spirit of Promise

         I thought I'd try my hand at thread portraiture to explain this month's fabric roll challenge of the sealing of the promised Holy Spirit from Eph 1:13. I wanted to personalize being sealed with the Holy Ghost. 

        Since thread painting interested me for a long time, I decided to give it a try. I always admire the work of thread artists. However, the result of my self-portrait as sealed looked rather messy to me, even though I worked many hours on it. But, it fits this month’s theme. 

        Regardless of my messiness, God marked me through the seal of the Holy Spirit as His. The seal in Eph 1:13 reflects ownership of an official completion of a transaction. Through the Holy Ghost, God claims possession of His people.

        From the sealing, I have all possessions that believers obtain through Christ—the riches of God’s treasure of redemption. I obtained these from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. This title reflects the new covenant name completing the old covenant in the person of Jesus Christ, the union of God and Christ. The title replaces the God of Israel (1)

        Paul wrote of the riches, the spiritual blessings in heavenly places, in 1:3-12. Scripture tells me I am

• Chosen to be holy and without blame before Him in love before the foundation of the world from Christ's election before the beginning (v. 4)
• Adopted by Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His will (v. 5)
• Acceptance in the beloved (v. 6)
• Redeemed through the blood for the forgiveness of sins, ransomed from the death penalty (vv. 7-8)
• Mystery of His will (vv. 9-12)

        Even though I look messy, the Spirit’s indwelling progressively perfects me as Christ’s purchased possession in redemption. I thank you Lord, that You have given me though the riches of Your grace all spiritual blessings of the future age while in this present evil age.

    "In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, (14) who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory" (Eph 1:13-14 NKJV)

         (1) (Brian Kinsey, Bride's Pearl: Commentary On Ephesians (Hazelwood: Word Aflame Press, 1993).

Jan Paron

February 21, 2022