Our Riches In Christ (4): Sealed In Christ

After the death of Joshua, the Israelites settled into the land of Canaan but soon faced times of difficulty. The Midianites in conjunction with the Amalekites and other nomadic tribes, invaded the country initially every year, at the time of the harvests, in great numbers, with their flocks and herds, pillaging the land. Their ravaging activities became so terrible that sustenance became a serious problem and the Israelites were driven to dens, caves and rocky strongholds for safety. After 7 years of such repeated invasion and prolonged suffering, the people cried out to God and He sent them a deliverer whose name was Gideon (Judges 6).

When the angel of the Lord brought God’s message to him however, Gideon found it a bit tough to accept. The angel called him a valiant warrior and told him he had been chosen to be Israel’s deliverer but Gideon evidently did not conceive of himself that way- he saw no qualifications in himself, or in his family or tribe, for the exalted position of a saviour to his people. Gideon therefore asked for some assurance that the message he had received was really from God, and not a mere dream or delusion.

Many believers in Christ often respond to God like Gideon. We are not always on the same frequency as God. We consider our personal qualifications, family upbringing, past experiences and the likes while God expressly communicates to us our exalted position in His grace. I encourage you to look away from everything else and focus on what God says about you.

Sealed In Christ

“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit”

Ephesians 1:13 NIV

Not only are believers blessed in Christ, we are also adopted, redeemed, forgiven and also sealed in Christ. From our verse in focus today as well as other verses of Scripture, the Holy Spirit Himself is the seal:

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption”

Ephesians 4:30 NIV

“Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come”

2^nd Corinthians 1:21, 22 NIV

A seal is an instrument of stone, metal or other hard substance (sometimes set in a ring), on which a figure is engraved and is used for making an impression on some soft substance, such as clay or wax to be imprinted on a document or other object. The use of seals dates back to very remote antiquity; they were commonly used in older civilizations and they portrayed a number of things that are also relevant to us as people who have been sealed by God:

1. Possession or ownership: In Jeremiah 32 we see the example of Jeremiah becoming the legal owner of a piece of land he had purchased after the deed of purchase was signed and sealed. In the same way, God purchased us (as we saw last week) and He sealed us-an official ratification of the purchase through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the mark placed on us as God’s possession. 

2. Protection or security: In Daniel 6:17 and Matthew 26: 66, we read of how the authorities secured the lions’ den and Jesus’ tomb respectively by putting seals on them. We are sealed in Christ and as such we are secured in Him.

3. Proof of genuineness or authenticity: In 1^st Kings 21 we read the story of Jezebel writing a letter in King Ahab’s name and when the recipients got the letter, they accepted it as authentic because it had the King’s seal. The seal was like a stamp or signature that served as evidence of genuineness. In the same way, believers are sealed in Christ as God’s way of placing His stamp or signature on our lives (see Romans 8:9b).

Allow the word of God settle deep in your heart this week, oh child of God: you are sealed with the Holy Spirit in Christ. You are God’s possession, you are secure in Him and He has placed His mark of authenticity on you.

Our Riches In Christ (3): Redeemed In Christ

2^nd Samuel 9 verses 1-13 narrate the story of David and Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth was Jonathan’s only surviving son but he was crippled in both feet. After David had ascended the throne and crowned as King, he wanted to show kindness to any surviving member of Saul’s household for Jonathan’s sake (most of us will remember that David and Jonathan shared a deep bond of friendship). Mephibosheth’s name came up in the course of the inquiries so King David sent for him. When the King told Mephibosheth what he had in mind-how he wanted to restore to Mephibosheth all the land that belonged to Saul and how Mephibosheth was going to eat at the King’s table, his response was almost like “No, it can’t be me!” (2nd Samuel 9:8).

Many Christians today are like Mephibosheth. Our response to God’s revelation of His grace appears to be that of incredulity. Sometimes we practically reject God’s gift of grace. Don’t be like Mephibosheth, don’t call yourself a dead dog when the King has given you a seat at His table by grace!

Redeemed In Christ

“In Him we have redemption through His blood…”

Ephesians 1:7 NIV

Redemption is a process of buying back a lost item by paying a ransom. The Greek words used in the New Testament and translated into English as “redeem” and “redemption” carry the sense of paying a ransom, paying the ransom in full, buying from a market and buying completely out of the market.

The whole of humanity was lost, enslaved by the devil and sold under sin (Romans 7:23). Ours was a hopeless case as no human being could redeem other humans:

“No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him…”

Psalms 49:7 NIV

No ordinary man could have redeemed us. Man’s redemption could only have been done by a Special Person and that is exactly why Jesus Christ came into the world as that Special Person to procure our redemption:

“Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

Matthew 20:28 NIV

“Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death-that is, the devil-and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death”

Hebrews 2:14, 15 NIV

God did not redeem us by merely wishing away our sins or with the wave of a magic wand or a mere pronouncement. A payment was made, a ransom was actually paid. The payment was the blood, the life of Jesus Christ.

“...the church of God, which He bought with His own blood…”

Acts 20:28 NIV

“You were bought at a price…”

1^st Corinthians 6:20 NIV

“…our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself to redeem us from all wickedness…”

Titus 2:13, 14 NIV

“…Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all men…”

1^st Timothy 2:5, 6 NIV

“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed..., but with the precious blood of Christ”

1^st Peter 1:18, 19 NIV

This week I proclaim the word of the Lord to you dear believer in Christ: The price Jesus paid for you was paid in full. You have been fully redeemed through the blood of Christ. Your redemption is an eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12). Never are you going to be returned to the slave market; the devil has no claim over you anymore. You now belong to your redeemer.

Note: For more teachings on this, join us at my home church in our Sunday Services in April 2017 as we go through a mini-series titled “The Redemptive Work of Christ”.

Our Riches In Christ (2): Adopted In Christ

In the book ‘Be Rich’, Warren Wiersbe tells a story of how late American newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst once read of valuable pieces of art and decided that he wanted to add them to his collection. Hearst had been collecting great pieces of art from around the world and had been keeping them in warehouses in different locations. He sent his agent abroad to find and secure them. After months of searching his agent came back and told him that he had finally found the treasures. They were in Mr. Hearst’s warehouse all along, he had purchased the pieces of art years before but had forgotten. He had been searching frantically for treasures he already owned! Mr. Hearst would have saved himself a good deal of stress and money if only he had read the catalogue of his treasures.

                                               

Quite a number of us believers in Christ are like Mr. Hearst, scrambling around for the things we already possess because we do not remind ourselves of our riches in Christ. We do not take time to go through our catalogue of treasures.

Adopted In Christ

“…He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will….”

Ephesians 1:5 NIV

The word translated adoption in this verse of Scripture means literally “to place as a son”. The Israelites had a different social system for taking care of orphans so they did not usually practice adoption. The term was borrowed from Greek and Roman culture with roots in perhaps ancient Egyptian or Oriental practices as we read of Moses and Genubath in Exodus 2 and 1^st Kings 11 respectively go through processes that could be termed adoption.

Adoption is a legal process by which a man brings an “outsider” into his family. It signifies the legal act of placing a child with parents other than the birth parents. Through adoption, a new status is conferred on a child who did not naturally belong to the family. An adoption order has the effect of severing the parental responsibilities and rights of the birth parents and transferring those responsibilities and rights onto the adoptive parents. After the adoption process is finalized, there is no legal difference between adopted children and those naturally born to the parents. Once adopted, a person has all the rights of a natural-born child.

“But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.” 

Galatians 4:4 & 5 NIV

 We are no longer fatherless, hopeless, dejected, left alone on our own (Ephesians 2:11-13). God has brought us into His family, we now have a loving Father and have become members of His household (Ephesians 2:19). He has also given us the full privileges of His family, the full rights of sons by adopting us in Christ.  

“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ”

Romans 8:15-17 KJV 

From our catalogue of riches in Christ this week I say to you dear believer in Christ: Christ’s position is your position, His possession is your possession, and His privileges are your privileges. You are adopted by God in Christ. Live in this consciousness.

My song for the week is "No Longer Slaves" by Jonathan David.

Our Riches In Christ (1)

Hetty Green (November 21, 1834 – July 3, 1916) was an American Businesswoman who managed an inherited fortune so well that she became arguably the richest woman in the world at that time. By 1916 when she died, estimates of her net worth ranged from $100 to $200 million. Yet she was said never to turn on the heat or use hot water because she didn’t want to spend the money. It is also said she only ate cold oatmeal or sometimes warmed the oatmeal on the office radiator. She wore one old black dress and underwear that she changed only after they had been worn out. One story asserts that she instructed her laundress to wash only the dirtiest parts of her dresses (the hems) to save money on soap. Her son eventually needed to have an amputation from a relatively minor injury because Hetty tried to get him admitted into a free clinic for the poor rather than calling a doctor. She was also said to have lived with a severe bulging and extremely painful hernia for 20 years because she did not want to pay the $150 fee for the surgery. She had massive resources but did not utilize them.

I have come to realize that many of us believers in Christ are a bit like Hetty. We have so much available to us in Christ Jesus but we make use of very little of those resources. Beginning this week, I will be sharing snippets of these endless treasures available to us in Christ Jesus.

We are blessed in Christ

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ”

Ephesians 1:3 New International Version

It is important to point out that need to pay attention to the tenses of the verbs used in the Bible to get the best out of scriptural revelation. Ephesians 1:3 for instance does not say that God will soon bless us or that He will bless us tomorrow or the next week or the next year. God has blessed us (past tense) already! Every possible spiritual blessing for time and eternity have been bestowed upon us in Christ.

“For out of His fullness (abundance) we have all received [all had a share and we were all supplied with] one grace after another and spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing and even favor upon favor and gift [heaped] upon gift”

John 1:16 Amplified Version

There is a whole world of difference between conducting one’s life like a victim or a beggar, hanging around for handouts or crumbs from a rich man’s table and taking on the mentality of one who knows that he/she is blessed and favoured of God.

In Genesis 26 for instance, we read the story of Isaac’s experience with the people in the land of Gerar. There was a famine at that time but God spoke to Isaac and reaffirmed the promise He had made to Abraham his father. God told Isaac to remain in Gerar and assured him of His blessings. Later on we read of Isaac becoming so wealthy that the King asked him to move away from them (Genesis 26:12-16). Even after Isaac moved away to a different area of the land, he continued experiencing hostility from the other herdsmen from Gerar while his servants were digging wells. Each time, Isaac repeatedly moved his base of operation without a fuss until he dug a well that no one quarreled with him over which he named Rehoboth (Genesis 26:19-22). Isaac understood that he had God’s blessings, he knew that God had favored him so there was no reason to struggle.  

Dear child of God, will you rest in this knowledge that God has blessed you in Christ already? And you see, just as Balaam the syncretic prophet realized, if God has blessed, no one can reverse it! (Numbers 23:20). So don’t run helter-skelter like a deprived beggar anymore, soak in the depths of this powerful revelation of truth that your being in Christ has conferred on you manifold blessings.

This week I say to you: You are blessed, blessed by God, blessed with everything that heaven has to offer (God’s Word Translation of Ephesians 1:3). Live with this mentality this week and always.

References:

Hetty Green. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hetty_Green. Retrieved 5^th March, 2017.

The Life and Times of Hetty the Hoarder, the Witch of Wall Street. http://mentalfloss.com/article/49379/life-and-times-hetty-hoarder-witch-wall-street. Retrieved 5^th March, 2017.