Delighting in God’s Word
Let’s dive into Ephesians chapter 1 and highlight the significance of being marked with a seal by God. The scripture in focus is Ephesians 1:13-14, which says,
“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 possessions.”
There is a parallel between receiving a stamp on the hand after visiting an indoor play place and being marked by God. Just as the stamp grants access to return to the play place, being marked by God through the Holy Spirit gives us full access to Him. This access comes at a significant cost, but it is a gift we have received.
The church often underestimates the power of the Holy Spirit within us. I share my personal experience of feeling convicted, joyful, and delighted when reading God’s Word. I mention a sermon by John Piper, where he encourages believers to delight in God and His Word, comparing it to the satisfaction we feel after a good meal.
Practical Insights:
- Recognize your access to God: As believers, we have been marked with a seal by God through the Holy Spirit. This means we have full access to Him and can come to Him freely. Take a moment to reflect on the privilege of having a personal relationship with God and the access we have to His presence.
Delight in God’s Word: Just as we delight in a delicious meal, we should cultivate a craving for God’s Word. When we read the Bible, let it be a source of joy, conviction, and inspiration. Allow the Holy Spirit within you to ignite a passion for God’s Word and spend time regularly in its pages.
Action Steps:
- Make time for the Word: Set aside a specific time each day to read and meditate on Scripture. Create a quiet and distraction-free environment where you can focus on God’s Word. Start with a small portion of Scripture and gradually increase your reading as you develop a habit.
Engage with the Word: As you read, ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you and reveal His truth. Take notes, underline meaningful passages, and reflect on how the verses apply to your life. Consider joining a Bible study group or finding a devotional resource to deepen your understanding and application of Scripture.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for marking us with the seal of the Holy Spirit, granting us access to You. Help us to recognize the privilege and significance of this relationship. Ignite a passion within us to delight in Your Word, just as the speaker shared in this podcast episode. May the Holy Spirit within us guide us as we read, study, and meditate on Scripture. Open our hearts and minds to receive your truth and apply it to our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Remember, as you engage with God’s Word and delight in His presence, may your relationship with Him deepen and flourish.
Podcast Transcript: The Power of God
Introduction
[00:00:01-00:00:11]
Boom! Good morning! I am back in Ephesians chapter 1. I’ve just been doing some preparation work. I get the opportunity to speak to the youth this week and just super pumped about it. So I’m in Ephesians. We’re talking about basically the power of God, but God is the series that we’re in. Super pumped about it.
Context and Preparation
[00:00:11-00:00:42]
So in Ephesians chapter 2, there’s a phrase there and I’m going to talk about that this week. But just Going back, I like to have a really good context of what’s going on, so I read the whole book of Ephesians and do some studying in there just to make sure that everything I’m saying is legit, that’s exactly what the author intended, that’s what God is actually saying. I don’t want to take anything out of context, so I take this all seriously. I’m in chapter 1 today, and what stands out to me is in verse 13 and 14. It says, 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 possessions. to the praise of His glory that we’ve been marked with the seal.
The Mark of God
[00:00:53-00:01:24]
Whenever it’s Christmas time, it gets crazy at our house. We have four kids who are seven and under, and we just, the amount of plastic that we get in our house gets super overwhelming. So we do ask, like for my mom, for the kids, let’s go for an experience instead of more stuff. And that’s super hard for grandparents to do. It basically doesn’t happen. They just try to add an experience to what we’re doing. So I remember a couple years ago we got a couple month pass to a place that’s basically an indoor play place. Almost like a McDonald’s playground inside with all the slides, the ball pits and all that fun stuff but it just had a massive scale because in Michigan here it gets snowy and you can’t go outside and they just get really rambunctious like they just need some energy out so that was a perfect gift and when we go in we settle down we get everything ready we have fun but then on the way out like a lot of other places they give you a stamp on your hand in case you want to come back in And that’s what this reminds me of, that sticks out in my head when I read this. It says in verse 13 again, having believed, you were marked in him with a seal. I’m just like, I’ve been marked. That God has marked me and I have access to him and I can come back to him and come back to him and come back to him as much as I want. I have a full access pass and that was at a major cost, but I have it. And the evidence of that is the Holy Spirit within me.
The Power of the Holy Spirit
[00:02:28-00:03:00]
And the Holy Spirit within me, I feel like the church can under emphasize the power that we have God living within us. And the more that I’m in the Word, and it just pierces my heart and gets me excited. I was reading some things that John Piper wrote back in 1985. I mean, that’s one of the reasons why I love the Internet. You can post stuff and it’s there forever. And in 1985, he had a sermon, and I don’t know when it got posted, probably from the last ten years, but I got a chance to read it. And one of the things that he emphasizes is that we delight in Him, that we should be delighting in Him, that when we get into His Word, that that should be like when we go out to eat and we have a good meal, you just want it, you crave it, you delight in it. And I think the reason that is, is the more I get into the Word, the more I just feel convicted, the more I feel joy, and I feel that delight in wanting to get into His Word more.
The Inspiration of the Holy Spirit
[00:03:44-00:04:16]
I believe it’s because the Holy Spirit within me is the same Holy Spirit that wrote this passage, that wrote all these passages, through different authors throughout history. And so, that to me is like the Holy Spirit going, yeah, that’s good stuff! I remember writing that. I remember inspiring the Apostle Paul to write that. That is legit! And I just feel like I have that same Holy Spirit within me, and reading this gets him fired up, and gets me fired up, and gets me excited.
Conclusion
[00:04:16-00:04:27]
So those are the couple things that stand out to me in Ephesians chapter 1. Hopefully you have the opportunity today, or you make time today to get into the Word yourself. But for what it’s worth, those are my thoughts. Ephesians chapter
