{"id":6056,"date":"2025-02-04T20:03:38","date_gmt":"2025-02-05T02:03:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/?p=6056"},"modified":"2025-02-04T20:05:18","modified_gmt":"2025-02-05T02:05:18","slug":"the-holy-spirit-of-promise-ephesians-113-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/2025\/02\/04\/the-holy-spirit-of-promise-ephesians-113-14\/","title":{"rendered":"The Holy Spirit of Promise – Ephesians 1:13-14"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cIn 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, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Ephesians 1:13, 14, New King James Version<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

These two verses conclude Paul\u2019s lengthy sentence that began in Ephesians 1:3, weaving from before the foundation of the world to the results of the passion of Jesus and to the present moment with the certainty of future promises.<\/p>\n

We also have the revelation of the triune nature of God in 1:3-14: the Father, the Son, and now in verse 13, the Holy Spirit. Those who argue that the doctrine of the Trinity is a later addition from fourth century church councils fail to recognize that throughout the Bible the nature of God is revealed whereby Old Testament prophets and New Testament apostles recognized this revelation of God\u2019s being.<\/p>\n

Three times in these verses Paul used the phrase, \u201cto the praise of His glory,\u201d to describe the ultimate purpose of redeemed humanity (1:6, 12, 14). God displays His glorious grace in that He not only created us but that He also has engaged on a seek and rescue mission through His only begotten Son (Matthew 18:11; Luke 15:4, 6, 9, 24, 32; 19:10).<\/p>\n

These two verses bring to a resounding conclusion what is essentially an outline of the remainder of Ephesians. It\u2019s a poetic praise from Paul\u2019s heart rooted in the years of teaching he had in Ephesus. If you will allow a moment of imagination, I don\u2019t envision Paul teaching in a cold formal lecture simply imparting information. I believe that when he taught about God\u2019s saving act in Jesus, rooted in the Old Testament, that the gifts of the Spirit were present in that lecture hall. I see people from across Asia Minor being healed; I hear words of wisdom and knowledge being spoken by Paul and others; I see sinners standing on the perimeter falling to their knees in repentance; I see idolators throwing down their silver statutes of Diana and turning to the living God; I see people equipped as missionaries, pastors, prophets, evangelists, teachers, and apostles (Acts 19:9-20).<\/p>\n

It is out of that personal experience with people in Ephesus that Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:13 about those \u201cwho heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation.\u201d He personally knew these Jews and Gentiles who believed the gospel message and were transformed by its power. You may notice in some translations the word \u201ctrusted\u201d is italicized, indicating it is supplied in English and not in the Greek text. It is supplied in most translations because it is found in 1:12 and saving trust, or faith, is implied in response to hearing the word of truth.<\/p>\n

The church father Jerome, who lived from 347 to 420 A.D., and who provided the world with the Latin Vulgate, lived the latter years of his life in Bethlehem. He knew the difference between \u201cpreaching\u201d as a literary style without spiritual power and \u201cthe word of truth.\u201d He wrote, \u201cIt is no small praise for the Ephesians that they have heard not preaching as such but the word of truth<\/em>. Remember that we read in another letter that there is a great distance between preaching and the word of truth\u201d (1 Corinthians 2:4).[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

The \u201cword of truth\u201d has as its content \u201cthe gospel of your salvation.\u201d In the Introduction to this study of Ephesians, we observed the relationship between Paul\u2019s ministry in Ephesus and his letters to the Corinthians.[2]<\/a> The connection to preaching that is simply \u201cexcellence of speech or of wisdom,\u201d and \u201cmy speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power\u201d ring true with Paul and Jerome\u2019s comments (1 Corinthians 2:1, 4). Furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 15:3, 4, Paul made it clear what constitutes the gospel message: \u201cChrist died for our sins, according to the Scriptures (the Old Testament), and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.\u201d The death and resurrection of Jesus was, in the words of Fleming Rutledge, \u201cThe unalloyed proclamation of Scripture is that the death and resurrection of Christ is the hinge of history. It is the unique old-world-overturning and new-world-constituting event that calls every<\/em> human project into question \u2013 including especially our religious projects.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

The \u201cword of truth\u201d included the preaching of Torah that revealed our fallen condition as sinners. Outside of Christ we are sinners and transgressors. This is why we still preach the Ten Commandments and our human condition as sinners against the holy Creator of the universe. But we also point to the panacea, the cure found in the death and resurrection of Jesus. The truth of our condition leads us to repentance, a changing of our mind, heart, and intent, to which God responds with forgiveness and pardon.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cHaving believed\u201d \u201cthe word of truth\u201d constitutes the reality of confession. To confess means more than a modern judicial statement. It means that I agree with the announcement of the Law that I am a sinner, I repent of the direction of my life, and I confess that the blood of Jesus is sufficient to save a wretch like me! It is in the act of this \u201cbelieving the word of truth,\u201d whether we consciously or intellectually understand it, that the Holy Spirit does His miraculous work of \u201csealing\u201d us in Christ.<\/p>\n

Paul used the verb sphragizo<\/em>, sealing, to describe what the Holy Spirit does in our lives before the throne of God. There are spiritual realities in our \u201cborn again\u201d experience that occur in God\u2019s presence.[5]<\/a> This verb, and its noun, sphragis<\/em>, is used throughout the Bible.[6]<\/a> The word describes the securing of an item so that the item is certified, attested, as being complete. This usage related to commercial trading where the sender \u201csealed\u201d that when the object was sent it was complete.[7]<\/a> It was also used as a term to describe a stamp of approval. In the New Testament the following uses are of interest to us:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. John 6:27, Jesus testified that \u201cthe Father has set His seal on Him\u201d as the Son of Man.<\/li>\n
  2. Romans 4:11, the apostle Paul affirmed that the circumcision of Abraham (Genesis 17) was a seal of the righteousness of faith that Abraham had prior to circumcision.<\/li>\n
  3. 1 Corinthians 9:2, the apostle Paul wrote that the Corinthians who had confidence in him were the seal of his apostleship in the Lord.<\/li>\n
  4. 2 Timothy 2:9 is particularly interesting as it affirms that God\u2019s foundation is firm and is certified with a seal that reads, \u201cthe Lord knows those who are His,\u201d and \u201clet everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.\u201d<\/li>\n
  5. Finally, the book of Revelation uses the same word for the seven seals (6:3, 5, 7, 9, 12; 8:1) and for the \u201cseal\u201d that God\u2019s faithful children have on their foreheads (9:4). The seal in Revelation 9:4 contrasts with the \u201cmark of the beast\u201d in 13:17, 17; 14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4). The word translated \u201cmark\u201d is charagma<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Considering these uses, especially Paul\u2019s usage in Romans, 1 Corinthians, and 2 Timothy, the Holy Spirit seals, authenticates, certifies us, as belonging to God through the purchase price of the blood of Jesus. We are redeemed and certified as no longer under the dominion of Satan, the dominion of self-will, but are now God\u2019s possession for the praise of His glory!<\/p>\n

    The sealing of the Spirit in our lives is how the Lord designates us for the \u201cpromise\u201d that we have received and awaits us. The phrase, the Holy Spirit of promise, is about what God has promised regarding the Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28, 29) and about what through the Spirit God promises for our future.<\/p>\n

    Paul was so convinced of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit impacting our lives that he referred to the Spirit\u2019s actions in our lives as a guarantee of inheritance that awaits us in the future. That inheritance has a two-fold meaning. First, it denotes the blessings we will receive from the Lord in His kingdom. Second, it refers to us as God\u2019s possession, His inheritance of us as members of His witness in the world through the spiritual body of Jesus.<\/p>\n

    Think about the difference between the spirit of the world which marks<\/em> us through our thoughts and actions, and the Holy Spirit who seals<\/em> us, puts upon and in us God\u2019s mind and will. One arises from sinful disobedience and willfulness. The other by divine grace and our response to the word of truth.<\/p>\n

    \n

    [1]<\/a> Mark J. Edwards, Thomas C. Oden, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, New Testament VIII, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians <\/em>(Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 1999) 118. Italics in the Edwards, Oden text. The Latin Vulgate is the Latin translation of the Bible done primarily by Jerome.<\/p>\n

    [2]<\/a> https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/2025\/01\/07\/ephesians-the-victory-of-prayer-for-the-church\/<\/a><\/p>\n

    [3]<\/a> Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ<\/em> (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2015) 461 Kindle edition.<\/p>\n

    [4]<\/a> John Wesley\u2019s sermon \u201cThe Witness of the Spirit,\u201d Sermons on Several Occasions<\/em> (London: The Epworth Press, 18th<\/sup> edition, 1995) 118.<\/p>\n

    [5]<\/a> For more on the \u201corder of salvation,\u201d see A.D. Beacham, Jr., Light for the Journey<\/em> (Franklin Springs, GA: LifeSprings Resources, 2000) 55, 56, 74, 75. Much of this is based on Noel Brooks, Scriptural Holiness<\/em>, which is available as a free download at https:\/\/www.librarycat.org\/lib\/IPHCArchives\/item\/246473861<\/a>. Use the Dropbox link to read Brooks\u2019 insightful book.<\/p>\n

    [6]<\/a> In the LXX, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, this same word is consistently used to translate the Hebrew word chatham<\/em>.<\/p>\n

    [7]<\/a> Rick Renner has a wonderful illustration of sealing in Ephesians 1:3 in Sparkling Gems from the Greek, Volume 1<\/em> ((Shippensburg, PA: Harrison House Publishers, 2003) 377-380.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"excerpt","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5833,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6056","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bishops-blog","8":"entry"},"title_es":"","content_es":"","author_name":"Bishop Doug Beacham","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2024\/10\/Bishop-Doug-Beacham-A-Greeting-to-Ukraine.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb62Bx-1zG","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6056","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6056"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6056\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6056"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6056"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6056"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}