An odd sight
In college I took some classes at the pool. One particular semester I would often arrive at the pool before the last class let out. It was a SCUBA class. I remember the walking in and seeing a bunch of SCUBA divers in an indoor pool. It looked very odd. Here they were, equipped and ready for the open ocean swimming around in the university pool. Though they would train in the pool, before they were certified they had to go out into the open ocean.
The pool provided greater safety than the open ocean, but none of the interest or excitement. These people weren’t learning to SCUBA dive to stay in pools, but to head out into deep water.
We are like those SCUBA divers. We are equipped for going much deeper – to leave the safety of the comfortable, predictable physical world and explore greater depths. Don’t you feel that way sometimes? Don’t you yearn to go deeper?
Launch out into the deep
One of Jesus’ first encounters with Simon (later Peter) was at the seashore (Luke 5:1-11). Jesus got into Peter’s boat to teach those who were gathered on the shore. Peter heard His teaching for the multitude, but then Jesus said something personally to Peter. He said, “Launch out into the deep.” You can stay in the shallows with the crowds and hear good teaching. But to see your life used miraculously you must obey and launch out into the deep. Peter had a decision to make. I think you and I do, too.
In order to go deeper we have to be willing to leave the shallows.
“The shallows” is what we can see, what we can feel, what we can control (see Ezekiel 47:5). Do you know that there is more to life than what we can see, touch, taste and measure? There must be more.
You are more than a collection of cells. You are more than biological processes. You are more than you can see. How can you see love and hope and fear and beliefs and faith and dreams and personality – the core of who you really are?
You are spirit. God is spirit. These are the deep things, the really important things. Are you ready to launch out into the deep?
1 Corinthians 2:9-13 (NKJV)
9 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
Throughout this eight week series, and in our Host Homes, we are going to dedicate ourselves to the deep things of God. We want to go deeper in the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and the things freely given to us by God.
HEAVEN’S SEAL
The Holy Spirit is the One who seals.
Ephesians 1:13-14 (NKJV)
13 In Him [Jesus] 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, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
1. A seal has many purposes.
Why does God seal us with the Holy Spirit of promise? A seal has many purposes.
- Ownership
A seal indicates identification or ownership. Something was sealed to indicate that it was identified with, or the property of, someone else. Think of a cattle brand. A rancher rounds up all of his cattle into one pen. These all belong to him. Then, one by one he takes them out and heats up a branding iron until it is red hot. The branding iron has his seal on it – a mark that is associated with his ranch. If it’s the Lazy H ranch, it may be an ‘H’ with a rocker on it. It may be letters or symbols, but it will be some type of appropriate, identifying mark.
We could really illustrate this today if you would, after service today, file by the fireplace in the family room. We’ll have an iron poker there with a very attractive leaf and the initials ‘NH’ on it. As you go by, we’ll just gently give you a little tap with the branding iron. Pay no attention to the screams of the people in front of you. It won’t hurt a bit. This way we’ll put our seal of identification on you.
Instead of putting that kind of seal on you, God has chosen instead to seal you with the Holy Spirit. Isn’t that a better plan? The Seal reflects His ownership. The Seal of the Holy Spirit will always be consistent with the character and nature of God, never contradictory.
- Authority
A seal also denotes authority. Think of the Presidential Seal that you see on lecterns during press conferences or on the side of Air Force One. That seal is used by that office to indicate its authority. In order to establish legimate authority, documents will be stamped with that seal showing it carries the authority of the President’s office. Notary Publics and others use a seal in the same way.
In the ancient world, a seal carried great authority. When Joseph became Prime Minister of Egypt under Pharoah it was designated by the Pharoah’s signet ring. Whenever the authority of Pharoah was needed, wax was melted and the ring was pressed into the wax making a seal. That seal carried the full authority of Pharoah.
When Jesus’ tomb was secured, a large rock was rolled in front of the entrance and it was sealed with cords, wax and the seal of Rome (Matthew 27:66, Daniel 6:17).
The Holy Spirit is the granting of God’s authority and power to us.
- Future promise
A seal also preserves for the future like the seals in the book of Revelations that preserves something for a future time. In relationship to sealing something for the future I kept thinking of tupperware. You put something in it and then you seal it. (Of course you have to burp it to make sure you have a good seal.) That seal locks in the freshness.
Maybe you have never thought tupperware when thinking of the Holy Spirit, but as we just read, the Holy Spirit “is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.” The Holy Spirit keeps that inheritance fresh for us. The Holy Spirit is a downpayment on our future inheritance. That’s great news!
So, how is this seal used?
2. Jesus was sealed by the Spirit.
Jesus, the Son of God, was sealed by the Holy Spirit.
John 6:27 (NKJV)
27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”
People found out quickly that there was more to Jesus then meets the eye. He appeared to be like every other man. They knew his father, his mother, his brothers and his sisters. They knew He was from Nazareth and one even wondered, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” He ate. He slept. He worked. He got weary. In the natural, He was just one of the guys.
But if you were around Him for long, you couldn’t miss that fact that there was something else about Jesus that you couldn’t see. You had to go deeper. It was the Seal of Heaven in His life.
You could see God in Him. Everything He did was consistent with the character and nature of God. He loved people. He forgave people. Even the Roman centurion standing at His death on the cross said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
He had authority. He taught with authority, not as the others did. He healed people that no one else could heal. He had authority over demons. He said, “Peace be still” to the waves and they obeyed Him.
This authority that He had was not a governmental authority or an authority bestowed upon Him by the church. It was a supernatural authority. It was the seal of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus lived for a future promise. He knew He was staying here permanently.
3. God’s seal for me is the Holy Spirit.
I have the very same seal as that which Jesus had on Him. “If the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwell in you, He will quicken your mortal bodies.” (Romans 8:11) I have His brand, His authority and His promises!
Being filled with the Holy Spirit
About two years after I surrendered my life to Jesus, I was part of a youth study group that met before the regular church services. I was learning a lot during this time and was enjoying everything I was learning from the bible.
One day the teaching and discussion was on the Holy Spirit. I didn’t know anything about that subject. As we studied more, I realized that this wasn’t just something you learned, but something more. I was asked, “Have you ever asked God to fill you with the Holy Spirit to empower your life?” I had no idea what they were talking about. It was like when the Apostle Paul met those believers in Ephesus when he said, “Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed?” And they answered him, “We’ve never even heard about the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 19:2)
So they prayed for me that morning. They prayed and I prayed. Nobody shouted. Nobody convulsed. All I can tell you is that I was filled with such peace and joy and confidence that I didn’t want to leave that spot. I remember staying right there, in that room, long after everyone else had left. The entire time the church service was going on in the other room, I felt like I was just soaking in God’s presence without moving a muscle. (And I never miss church…)
It was quite a while later when I really began asking God to fill me regularly and allowing Him to use me in supernatural ways. And He does. Not every day. Not even most days. But when it is needed and as I have opportunity.
I have prayed for people and they have been healed. Not by me, but by the Spirit of God. I believe for healing each time and pray. The rest is up to God.
I have been given specific insight and knowledge about people. The bible calls it a word of knowledge. A couple of weeks ago I was praying for a couple up here at the altar and prayed a specific prayer about restoration – something that had been broken down and God was restoring. After the prayer time the woman came to me with tears in her eyes and said, “I don’t know how you knew, but that was the exact prayer that we needed.”
I have shared prophetic words, affirmed by others. I have needed gifts of discernment. I strengthen myself spiritually by speaking in an unknown language. All of these, and more, are gifts of the Holy Spirit that affirm His seal in your life and are talked about in the bible.
- I am a spirit with a body.
I am not predominantly a physical being that carries around a spirit. I am a spiritual being that temporarily occupies a physical body. In fact, the bible calls this body a tent.
- Not a one-time experience.
There are a lot of misunderstandings about the Holy Spirit and His activity. Some refer to a ‘Second Blessing’ or a ‘Second Work of Grace.’ Some ask, “Is it a subsequent event?” I say no. It is many subsequent events. Keep being filled. Keep being used.
- Counterfeits don’t discredit the genuine
“But there are sure many things out there that I know aren’t really genuine,” you might say. Amen! I have also heard of counterfeit twenty dollar bills, but I’m not going to throw all of mine away. (If I had any…) To use counterfeits as an argument against the genuine article just doesn’t make sense.
- No place for spiritual elitism.
One of the certainties of a genuine work of the Holy Spirit is this: It always produces humility, not pride. To think that being used by the Holy Spirit in any way makes you a better Christian than anyone else is about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
CONCLUSION
If anything I have said today intrigues you, then stick around through this series as we go deeper. I would also encourage you to be a part of a Going Deeper small group where there will be additional teaching and opportunity for honest discussion.
In closing, I would like to read something from the end of the first chapter in the Going Deeper book:
"One of the nineteenth century’s mightiest men of God was Dwight L. Moody. Not only was he the founder of the Moody Bible Institute, but he was also an international teacher of the Bible. Hundreds of thousands of people came to know Christ under his teaching. Those who knew Moody said that one of the most noticeable characteristics of his life was that of total surrender to God. Every ounc eof his two-hundred-eighty pound frame belonged to God. He wasn’t perfect. He was surrendered. Dwight Moody’s successor, R.A. Torrey, speaks of Mr. Moody’s intense hunger for God, and of one of the divine encounters he had with the Holy Spirit:
The first month I was in Chicago, we were having a talk about something upon which we very widely differed, and Mr. Moody turned to me very frankly and very kindly said: “Torrey, if I believed that God wanted me to jump out of that window, I would jump.” I believe he would. If he thought God wanted him to do anything, he would do it. He belonged wholly, unreservedly, unqualifiedly, entirely, to God. Henry Varley, a very intimate friend of Mr. Moody once said to him: “It remains to be seen what God will do with a man who gives himself up wholly to Him.” I am told that when Mr. Varley said that, Mr. Moody said, “I will be that man.”
In his early days Moody was a great hustler, he had a tremendous desire to do something but he had no real power. He worked very largely in the energy of the flesh. But there were two humble Free Methodist women who used to come over to his meetings in the YMCA. One was Auntie Cook and the other Mrs. Snow. These two women would come to Mr. Moody at the close of his meetings and say: “We are praying for you.” Finally, Mr. Moody, being somewhat nettled said to them one night: “Why are you praying for me? Why don’t you pray for the unsaved?” They replied, “We are praying that you may get the power.”
Mr. Moody did not know what that meant but he asked that he might pray with them and not they merely pray for him. Auntie Cook once told me of the intense fervor with which Mr. Moody prayed on that occasion. She told me in words that I scarecely dared repeat, though I have never forgotten them.
Not long after that, he was walking up Wall Street in New York in the midst of the bustle and hurry of that city, and his prayer was answered. The power of God fell upon him as he walked up the street and he had to hurry off to the house of a friend and ask to have a room by himself. In that room he stayed alone for hours; and the Holy Ghost came upon him filling him with so much joy that at last he had to ask God to withhold His hand, lest he die on the spot from joy.” (Going Deeper, page 25-26)
In college I took some classes at the pool. One particular semester I would often arrive at the pool before the last class let out. It was a SCUBA class. I remember the walking in and seeing a bunch of SCUBA divers in an indoor pool. It looked very odd. Here they were, equipped and ready for the open ocean swimming around in the university pool. Though they would train in the pool, before they were certified they had to go out into the open ocean.
The pool provided greater safety than the open ocean, but none of the interest or excitement. These people weren’t learning to SCUBA dive to stay in pools, but to head out into deep water.
We are like those SCUBA divers. We are equipped for going much deeper – to leave the safety of the comfortable, predictable physical world and explore greater depths. Don’t you feel that way sometimes? Don’t you yearn to go deeper?
Launch out into the deep
One of Jesus’ first encounters with Simon (later Peter) was at the seashore (Luke 5:1-11). Jesus got into Peter’s boat to teach those who were gathered on the shore. Peter heard His teaching for the multitude, but then Jesus said something personally to Peter. He said, “Launch out into the deep.” You can stay in the shallows with the crowds and hear good teaching. But to see your life used miraculously you must obey and launch out into the deep. Peter had a decision to make. I think you and I do, too.
In order to go deeper we have to be willing to leave the shallows.
“The shallows” is what we can see, what we can feel, what we can control (see Ezekiel 47:5). Do you know that there is more to life than what we can see, touch, taste and measure? There must be more.
You are more than a collection of cells. You are more than biological processes. You are more than you can see. How can you see love and hope and fear and beliefs and faith and dreams and personality – the core of who you really are?
You are spirit. God is spirit. These are the deep things, the really important things. Are you ready to launch out into the deep?
1 Corinthians 2:9-13 (NKJV)
9 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
Throughout this eight week series, and in our Host Homes, we are going to dedicate ourselves to the deep things of God. We want to go deeper in the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and the things freely given to us by God.
HEAVEN’S SEAL
The Holy Spirit is the One who seals.
Ephesians 1:13-14 (NKJV)
13 In Him [Jesus] 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, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
1. A seal has many purposes.
Why does God seal us with the Holy Spirit of promise? A seal has many purposes.
- Ownership
A seal indicates identification or ownership. Something was sealed to indicate that it was identified with, or the property of, someone else. Think of a cattle brand. A rancher rounds up all of his cattle into one pen. These all belong to him. Then, one by one he takes them out and heats up a branding iron until it is red hot. The branding iron has his seal on it – a mark that is associated with his ranch. If it’s the Lazy H ranch, it may be an ‘H’ with a rocker on it. It may be letters or symbols, but it will be some type of appropriate, identifying mark.
We could really illustrate this today if you would, after service today, file by the fireplace in the family room. We’ll have an iron poker there with a very attractive leaf and the initials ‘NH’ on it. As you go by, we’ll just gently give you a little tap with the branding iron. Pay no attention to the screams of the people in front of you. It won’t hurt a bit. This way we’ll put our seal of identification on you.
Instead of putting that kind of seal on you, God has chosen instead to seal you with the Holy Spirit. Isn’t that a better plan? The Seal reflects His ownership. The Seal of the Holy Spirit will always be consistent with the character and nature of God, never contradictory.
- Authority
A seal also denotes authority. Think of the Presidential Seal that you see on lecterns during press conferences or on the side of Air Force One. That seal is used by that office to indicate its authority. In order to establish legimate authority, documents will be stamped with that seal showing it carries the authority of the President’s office. Notary Publics and others use a seal in the same way.
In the ancient world, a seal carried great authority. When Joseph became Prime Minister of Egypt under Pharoah it was designated by the Pharoah’s signet ring. Whenever the authority of Pharoah was needed, wax was melted and the ring was pressed into the wax making a seal. That seal carried the full authority of Pharoah.
When Jesus’ tomb was secured, a large rock was rolled in front of the entrance and it was sealed with cords, wax and the seal of Rome (Matthew 27:66, Daniel 6:17).
The Holy Spirit is the granting of God’s authority and power to us.
- Future promise
A seal also preserves for the future like the seals in the book of Revelations that preserves something for a future time. In relationship to sealing something for the future I kept thinking of tupperware. You put something in it and then you seal it. (Of course you have to burp it to make sure you have a good seal.) That seal locks in the freshness.
Maybe you have never thought tupperware when thinking of the Holy Spirit, but as we just read, the Holy Spirit “is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.” The Holy Spirit keeps that inheritance fresh for us. The Holy Spirit is a downpayment on our future inheritance. That’s great news!
So, how is this seal used?
2. Jesus was sealed by the Spirit.
Jesus, the Son of God, was sealed by the Holy Spirit.
John 6:27 (NKJV)
27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”
People found out quickly that there was more to Jesus then meets the eye. He appeared to be like every other man. They knew his father, his mother, his brothers and his sisters. They knew He was from Nazareth and one even wondered, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” He ate. He slept. He worked. He got weary. In the natural, He was just one of the guys.
But if you were around Him for long, you couldn’t miss that fact that there was something else about Jesus that you couldn’t see. You had to go deeper. It was the Seal of Heaven in His life.
You could see God in Him. Everything He did was consistent with the character and nature of God. He loved people. He forgave people. Even the Roman centurion standing at His death on the cross said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
He had authority. He taught with authority, not as the others did. He healed people that no one else could heal. He had authority over demons. He said, “Peace be still” to the waves and they obeyed Him.
This authority that He had was not a governmental authority or an authority bestowed upon Him by the church. It was a supernatural authority. It was the seal of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus lived for a future promise. He knew He was staying here permanently.
3. God’s seal for me is the Holy Spirit.
I have the very same seal as that which Jesus had on Him. “If the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwell in you, He will quicken your mortal bodies.” (Romans 8:11) I have His brand, His authority and His promises!
Being filled with the Holy Spirit
About two years after I surrendered my life to Jesus, I was part of a youth study group that met before the regular church services. I was learning a lot during this time and was enjoying everything I was learning from the bible.
One day the teaching and discussion was on the Holy Spirit. I didn’t know anything about that subject. As we studied more, I realized that this wasn’t just something you learned, but something more. I was asked, “Have you ever asked God to fill you with the Holy Spirit to empower your life?” I had no idea what they were talking about. It was like when the Apostle Paul met those believers in Ephesus when he said, “Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed?” And they answered him, “We’ve never even heard about the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 19:2)
So they prayed for me that morning. They prayed and I prayed. Nobody shouted. Nobody convulsed. All I can tell you is that I was filled with such peace and joy and confidence that I didn’t want to leave that spot. I remember staying right there, in that room, long after everyone else had left. The entire time the church service was going on in the other room, I felt like I was just soaking in God’s presence without moving a muscle. (And I never miss church…)
It was quite a while later when I really began asking God to fill me regularly and allowing Him to use me in supernatural ways. And He does. Not every day. Not even most days. But when it is needed and as I have opportunity.
I have prayed for people and they have been healed. Not by me, but by the Spirit of God. I believe for healing each time and pray. The rest is up to God.
I have been given specific insight and knowledge about people. The bible calls it a word of knowledge. A couple of weeks ago I was praying for a couple up here at the altar and prayed a specific prayer about restoration – something that had been broken down and God was restoring. After the prayer time the woman came to me with tears in her eyes and said, “I don’t know how you knew, but that was the exact prayer that we needed.”
I have shared prophetic words, affirmed by others. I have needed gifts of discernment. I strengthen myself spiritually by speaking in an unknown language. All of these, and more, are gifts of the Holy Spirit that affirm His seal in your life and are talked about in the bible.
- I am a spirit with a body.
I am not predominantly a physical being that carries around a spirit. I am a spiritual being that temporarily occupies a physical body. In fact, the bible calls this body a tent.
- Not a one-time experience.
There are a lot of misunderstandings about the Holy Spirit and His activity. Some refer to a ‘Second Blessing’ or a ‘Second Work of Grace.’ Some ask, “Is it a subsequent event?” I say no. It is many subsequent events. Keep being filled. Keep being used.
- Counterfeits don’t discredit the genuine
“But there are sure many things out there that I know aren’t really genuine,” you might say. Amen! I have also heard of counterfeit twenty dollar bills, but I’m not going to throw all of mine away. (If I had any…) To use counterfeits as an argument against the genuine article just doesn’t make sense.
- No place for spiritual elitism.
One of the certainties of a genuine work of the Holy Spirit is this: It always produces humility, not pride. To think that being used by the Holy Spirit in any way makes you a better Christian than anyone else is about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
CONCLUSION
If anything I have said today intrigues you, then stick around through this series as we go deeper. I would also encourage you to be a part of a Going Deeper small group where there will be additional teaching and opportunity for honest discussion.
In closing, I would like to read something from the end of the first chapter in the Going Deeper book:
"One of the nineteenth century’s mightiest men of God was Dwight L. Moody. Not only was he the founder of the Moody Bible Institute, but he was also an international teacher of the Bible. Hundreds of thousands of people came to know Christ under his teaching. Those who knew Moody said that one of the most noticeable characteristics of his life was that of total surrender to God. Every ounc eof his two-hundred-eighty pound frame belonged to God. He wasn’t perfect. He was surrendered. Dwight Moody’s successor, R.A. Torrey, speaks of Mr. Moody’s intense hunger for God, and of one of the divine encounters he had with the Holy Spirit:
The first month I was in Chicago, we were having a talk about something upon which we very widely differed, and Mr. Moody turned to me very frankly and very kindly said: “Torrey, if I believed that God wanted me to jump out of that window, I would jump.” I believe he would. If he thought God wanted him to do anything, he would do it. He belonged wholly, unreservedly, unqualifiedly, entirely, to God. Henry Varley, a very intimate friend of Mr. Moody once said to him: “It remains to be seen what God will do with a man who gives himself up wholly to Him.” I am told that when Mr. Varley said that, Mr. Moody said, “I will be that man.”
In his early days Moody was a great hustler, he had a tremendous desire to do something but he had no real power. He worked very largely in the energy of the flesh. But there were two humble Free Methodist women who used to come over to his meetings in the YMCA. One was Auntie Cook and the other Mrs. Snow. These two women would come to Mr. Moody at the close of his meetings and say: “We are praying for you.” Finally, Mr. Moody, being somewhat nettled said to them one night: “Why are you praying for me? Why don’t you pray for the unsaved?” They replied, “We are praying that you may get the power.”
Mr. Moody did not know what that meant but he asked that he might pray with them and not they merely pray for him. Auntie Cook once told me of the intense fervor with which Mr. Moody prayed on that occasion. She told me in words that I scarecely dared repeat, though I have never forgotten them.
Not long after that, he was walking up Wall Street in New York in the midst of the bustle and hurry of that city, and his prayer was answered. The power of God fell upon him as he walked up the street and he had to hurry off to the house of a friend and ask to have a room by himself. In that room he stayed alone for hours; and the Holy Ghost came upon him filling him with so much joy that at last he had to ask God to withhold His hand, lest he die on the spot from joy.” (Going Deeper, page 25-26)
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