Sealed By The Holy Spirit And Awaiting To Be Delivered

"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, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession, to the praise of His glory."  Ephesians 1:13-14 (NIV)

In his letter to the Ephesian Christians, the Apostle Paul told them that from the very moment that they believed the gospel, they were saved and sealed by The Holy Spirit, and that they belonged to God just as he did.  They were all just waiting to be redeemed and possessed by God.

As Christians, we are already bought and paid for, Jesus paid it all.  The Holy Spirit has already wrapped us up and sealed us.  We are now just awaiting delivery to our Father in heaven.

God Lives Within Us

"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?  If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him;  for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple."  1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (NIV)

In this letter to the Corinthian Christians, the Apostle Paul told them that they themselves were the temple wherein God resided, not some physical building.  Their bodies were the temple of God and should be treated as such.

That is a lesson that we should be aware of today.  From the moment that we accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, The Spirit of God took up residence inside of us.  Our bodies are God's temple.  With that in mind, we should be much more careful about how we treat and care for our bodies.  We also should be careful how we treat God's other temples, other Christians. 

Only What We Do For Christ Will Count #2

"I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.  So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.  The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.  For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."  1 Corinthians 3:6-9 (NIV)

The Apostle Paul told the Christians at Corinth that leaders like he and Apollos were not important, they were both just servants of God.  And just like all Christians, they had a job to do, working for The Lord, and they would be rewarded by Him according to how well they did their job. 

Today we should understand that our positions and what we do here on earth is not about us.  All that matters and what is important is what we do for Christ.  Our individual efforts are just a very small part of His overall plan for things.  We each have a job to do as part of His kingdom building plan.  We each need to make sure that we are doing what He has called us to do, because in the end, only what we do for Christ will count when we have to give an account on judgement day.

Our Haters Can Be A Blessing

"The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions.  Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut.  While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar.  He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd.  When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.  The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains.  Then he asked who he was and what he had done."  Acts 21:30-33 (NIV)

Because of his preaching and teaching, the Apostle Paul had angered some of the Jewish leaders so much that they stirred up a crowd of Jews against him.  They had seized him and were beating him with the intent of killing him.  The commander of the Roman troops was responsible for keeping order within the city.  When he heard about the riot, he took some troops to the scene to restore order.  To control the crowd he arrested Paul.

In those days, Christians were hated by the Roman leaders and by the Jewish leaders. So basically, one enemy saved him from another enemy.  We need to recognize that God can use our enemies and our haters to be a blessing to us, in spite of their feelings and intentions towards us.  The Lord can make our enemies our footstool.  (Psalms 110:1, Matthew 22:44, Mark 12:30, Luke 20:43, Acts 2:38, Hebrews 1:13, & Hebrews 10:13)   Our blessings can come from what seem to be some strange places.

God's People Can Disagree Without Being Disagreeable

"Paul also and Barnabas continued in Antioch, teaching and preaching The Word of The Lord, with many others also.  And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, 'Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached The Word of The Lord, and see how they do.'  And Barnabas determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark.  But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work.  And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other; and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;  And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God.  And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches."  Acts 15:35-41 (NIV)

Though they had been teaching and preaching together for some time, when it came time for their next trip, they could not agree on whether to take John Mark with them.  Their disagreement was strong enough for them to part company over it.  However, even though they went their separate ways with different partners, they both continued to teach and preach and do the work of The Lord.

The point here is that Christians, and even men of God will disagree, but it is possible to disagree without being disagreeable.  Some people are not meant to be with you or go with you always.  You may need new friends to go with you on the next part of your journey.  Just because you disagree with another Child of God, that does not give you cause to stop working for The Lord.  Learn to agree to disagree, and keep on working either with them or with others.  Remember, what we are doing here is not about us, it is all about Jesus.

You Are Not Who You Used To Be

"... Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.  At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is The Son of God.  All those who heard him were astonished and asked, 'Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?' "  Acts 9:19-21 (NIV)

While he was still known as Saul, the Apostle Paul was well known as a persecutor of Christians.  Because of his prior well earned reputation, he frequently had to tell people of his Damascus road conversion.  Some believed him and some didn't, but he continued to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

All of us have done some things in the past that are an embarrassment to us now.  It does not matter how many skeletons there are in our closets, God can still use us.  All of the great men of the Bible were sinners, except Jesus The Christ, and God used them.  Don't let your past sins get in the way and stop you from serving God now.  You have changed, you are a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17), thanks to The Holy Spirit you are not who you used to be.  The fact that you have stopped doing what you did in the past may help you reach someone who is lost in sin where you used to be.  God has a plan for each of us, and I am sure that part of that plan involves helping someone else and sharing what you know about Jesus.

Health Wealth A Long Life And Happiness

"Blessed are all who fear The Lord, who walk in His ways.  You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours ... Thus is the man blessed who fears The Lord.  May The Lord bless you from Zion all the days of your life ... and may you live to see your children's children ..."  Psalms 128:1-6 (NIV)

The unknown author of this psalm is clearly addressing issues of the home and personal blessings.  He addresses four areas of blessings: provisions, prosperity, partner, and progeny.  These blessings are for those who walk in His ways.

May you enjoy the fruit of your labor.  May all of your needs be supplied.  May you be blessed with prosperity.  May your spouse and your children also be blessed.  May you be happy all of the days of your life.  May you live a long life, long enough to see and enjoy your grand children.  In other words, may The Good Lord bless you with health, wealth, a long life, and happiness.