Ownership and Empowerment

In the days of apostle Paul, goods shipped from one place to another would be stamped with a wax seal and imprinted with a signet ring, bearing a unique mark of ownership. The same was true of an important document from a ruler. No one would dare open it other than the recipient of the document.

Similarly, the Holy Spirit seals us after our conversion. Apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Ephesus, "In Him 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" (Ephesians 1:13).

God has set His royal seal on us by the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And when the devil comes to wreak havoc on our lives, he is stopped cold by that seal of ownership. He sees in us, an imprint on us that says, "Property of Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God," because we are under the protection of God.

As believers, we come under God's protection. Ephesians 1:14 says the Holy Spirit "is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. . . ." It is the idea of putting a deposit down on something. And it is a reminder that God will keep His promise to us, that we will see Him one day in Heaven. Now that is a serious down payment.

The Book of Acts teaches us that the empowering of the Holy Spirit differs from the indwelling Holy Spirit who is in every believer. A number of events in Acts reinforce the empowering of the Holy Spirit as being something that is separate from salvation, though it can happen at the same time.

When the disciples learn of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, they basically doubted his conversion. Saul was after all, a notorious persecutor of the church. His conversion was unexpected to say the least. However, God spoke to a man named Ananias and told him to go visit Saul and pray for him, because Saul was a chosen vessel to bring the gospel to the Gentiles.

Saul had already place his faith in Christ. He had already met our risen Lord and Savior on the Damascus road. But Ananias arrived and said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit" (Acts 9:17). Saul would become the apostle Paul, one of the most powerful preachers in the history of the church who wrote a good portion of the New Testament.

Peter is another example of the difference the Holy Spirit's power makes in a believer's life. Prior to Pentecost, we see him filled with fear, even denying the Lord. But after Pentecost, he was a changed man.

So not only does the Holy Spirit indwell us as believers, not only does the Holy Spirit seal us as believers, but the Holy Spirit empowers us as well.

It is only by His empowerment that enables us to declare His Gospel simply and powerfully. Anything done outside of His empowerment would be fruitless and futile.

By the grace of God, may all soul winners seek for His empowerment regularly for only He is able and worthy.

-malt