David Diga Hernandez - Symbols of the Holy Spirit: The Seal

Perhaps one of the greatest works that the Holy Spirit does in our lives is assure us of our salvation. The scripture says in Romans chapter 8, verse 15, «So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves; instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him 'Abba, Father.'» Verse 16: «For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.» The Holy Spirit is the one who affirms the saving work of God in your life. The Holy Spirit is the one who assures you that you belong to the Father. The Holy Spirit is the one who gives you confidence that Jesus is your Savior, your Lord, your King, and your friend. The Holy Spirit speaks against the voices of doubt. The Holy Spirit speaks against the voices of fear—those lies that would try to deceive you and cause you to believe that God has rejected you, that you’re an outcast, or that God has run out of patience for you. I can’t tell you how many people come up to me asking if God has rejected them. I can’t tell you how many people have messaged, texted, and called me, fearful and wondering whether or not they are saved. This is an important work of the Spirit because many believers struggle with believing that they, in fact, belong to God. Second Corinthians chapter 1, verse 22, says this: «And he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.» So the Holy Spirit is God’s deposit upon your life that assures you that you, in fact, belong to Him, and that when you die, you will go to be in the presence of God.

Now, in Jewish wedding culture, the father of the groom would usually be the one who picked the bride for his son. After the father of the groom found whom he believed to be the chosen bride, he would approach the bride and her family. There would be a written marriage agreement made. After the written agreement was finished, it was customary for the father of the groom to give a gift to the father of the bride. That gift acted as a deposit for the bride; it was a promissory note, a guarantee of the groom’s intentions to marry. Once that deposit was made, the intent to marry would become official. The Jewish wedding traditions, like many of the Jewish customs, mirror the spiritual realm. Just as the father of the groom selects the bride, so God the Father has chosen to give the Church to His Son. And just as the father of the groom leaves a gift representing a promise, so God fills you with His Holy Spirit, His divine promise. The Holy Spirit is that guarantee that He’s coming back for you. That was the gift that the father of the groom would give to guarantee that, in fact, there was an intention to marry—he was going to make good on that marriage contract.

Now Christ has ascended into Heaven, and He’s placed upon us, within us, a seal. That seal is the Holy Spirit—the stamp of God’s approval, that mark upon our lives that we, in fact, belong to Him. The Holy Spirit is God’s seal in you, guaranteeing that you will eventually receive it all. Watch this now; this is powerful. Go to Second Corinthians chapter 5 and we’re going to begin reading at verse 3: «For we will put on heavenly bodies. We will not be spirits without bodies. While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us; rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee, he has given us His Holy Spirit.» Ephesians chapter 1, verses 13 and 14 say this: «In whom you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom, after you believed, you were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest, or that gift, or that deposit of our inheritance; that’s the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of His glory.»

In other words, the Holy Spirit in you is more than just the mark of God upon your life guaranteeing your salvation. The Holy Spirit in you is more than just the guarantee upon your life that tells you and assures you that you belong to God. In fact, the Holy Spirit within you is God’s guarantee that everything He promised in His word will be yours—your new heavenly body. God promised that to you, and though we exist in these mortal bodies, though we sigh and we groan, though we experience pain, sickness, fatigue, and hunger, though we experience all of the results of the fall of man in our bodies, one day we are guaranteed new heavenly bodies, a new way of existing, a new way of life, and all that was promised in the word, including those new heavenly bodies, are guaranteed to us. That guarantee is marked by the Holy Spirit.

So not only does the Holy Spirit give you assurance of your salvation, not only does the Holy Spirit give you assurance that you belong to God, but the Holy Spirit gives you assurance that eternity is yours—that every promise of the Father will be fulfilled. Now, this guarantee we receive, this seal, is final. It’s that mark of God upon your life. You don’t need to live another minute fearful.