May 9 – Marked and Sealed

“When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”  Ephesians 1:13b-14 (NIV)

The promise we find in today's verse is given as a reminder of the special attention which God demonstrates to those who are His. We know that when we believe in Jesus, God gives us His Holy Spirit to live in us. By this we are marked with a seal by God that we belong to Him. Did you notice how our verse explains what the Holy Spirits coming means? We read that He is a deposit that guarantees our inheritance. Often we put down a deposit to secure our ownership of property or perhaps the right to participate in some event.  Yes, friends, the Holy Spirit's presence guarantees that we belong to God. He is a promise that He will be with us until God brings us into His presence where we will enjoy the full benefit of being God's children. Remember the words of our verse that the Holy Spirit is a seal on us placed there by God the Father. 

May 3 – A Deposit Which Guarantees

“Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” 2 Corinthians 5:5 (NIV)

One fact that we can know and rejoice in is that God has plans for those who have believed and accepted the free gift. We are reminded of this truth in our verse today. God is preparing us for living with Him in heaven. We realize that his plans for us are really beyond our ability to comprehend. God knows that and that is the reason He has given us His Holy Spirit. Part of the Holy Spirit's ministry is to show us a bit of what heaven will be like. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is a guarantee of eternal blessedness in heaven. Let us be sure our hearts are open to what the Holy Spirit wants to teach us about heaven.