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I. TO BE ESTABLISHED IN CHRIST. Brought into ever closer union with him. More and more firmly settled in faith. Increased in knowledge of him and of his doctrine. Made constant to Christ. Developed in likeness to him. Perfected increasingly along all the lines of Christian character. A work continuous; so Paul uses the present tense. The Christian's course is like that of the shining light, which shineth more and more unto the perfect day. Not all at once is he at his best. The seed of the kingdom takes time to develop. The points of contact at first may be few; but we are to be established "into" Christ. Believers should seek closest association with their Lord. True self-interest does not prompt the question - How far may we safely keep from Christ? but - How near to him may we draw? "Abide in me... if a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered" (John 15:4-6).

II. TO BE ANOINTED. The believer is made like his Lord. Christ was the Anointed; so therefore is the believer anointed. Christ was the Anointed of God; so by God is the believer also anointed. Christ was anointed as King and great High Priest; so as king and priest is the believer anointed - "a royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9). Christ was anointed for a special life and a special work; so is the believer. It is not for nought that we receive our anointing from the Holy One (1 John 2:20). We are consecrated, set apart, to carry out the Divine purposes. Christ was anointed with the Holy Ghost (Acts 10:38); so is the believer. With the anointing comes the power to realize the purpose of the anointing (1 John 2:27). Here is great privilege, but at the same time great responsibility. Are we fulfilling the design of our anointing?

III. TO BE SEALED. Believers are sealed by the reception of the Holy Ghost (Ephesians 1:13 and Ephesians 4:30). This is the Divine mark or seal put upon them. This sealing:

1. Indicates protorietorship. Believers have God's seal upon them because they are God's. He lays claim to them. They are in a most special sense for God. "Ye are not your own."

2. Authenticates. The genuineness of a believer is guaranteed by this marl If he is sealed, then he is of God, though in some things he may seem eccentric. No spurious goods pass under this brand. Yet imitations of the Divine seal are many, so that we have need to "try the spirits," to ascertain whether they are truly of the Holy Spirit. The true seal authenticates us to ourselves. "The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Romans 8:16). Our assurance springs from the Divine sealing. Dreamings, frames and feelings, and fancies, even opinions of others, are as nought compared with the witness of the Spirit.

3. Invests with authority. That which bears the royal seal has weight and authority among men; and those who bear the Divine seal are intended by God to exercise large influence over their fellows. They have the weight and authority of accredited servants of God. Not lightly are they to be esteemed; not contemptuously are their words to be received. So far as they are true to their sealing, they are of God, and are to be regarded as his messengers.

4. Preserves. Safety is often ensured by the human seal, always by the Divine. If God has marked us for his own, none shall pluck us out of his hand. Though the universe should rise up against a sealed saint, it should ingloriously fail; for the Divine seal is the pledge that Omnipotence will defend the sealed. God is not mocked. What he has set apart for himself he will have, and who shall say him nay? The saints are safe, for they are sealed of God.

5. Testifies to value. We seal only that which we value. And yet there may be no intrinsic value in that which is sealed. In itself it may be of no account; but we seal it because we can use it for some important purpose. So with the believer. Of himself he is nothing and less than nothing, and vanity. The sealing is no teacher of pride. He is sealed of God, not because he is excellent or of himself of any service, but because God in his infinite grace designs to make him so. The seal praises, not us, but God, who of us can make that which will redound to his glory and accomplish his purposes.

IV. TO BE ENDOWED WITH THE EARNEST OF THE SPIRIT. The Divine Spirit with which believers are sealed is the "earnest money," the pledge of that which has yet to come. The expression refers to that part of the purchase money which was paid in advance as a security for the remainder. Of what, then, is the possession of the Divine Spirit a guarantee?

1. Of yet fuller possession of the Spirit.

2. Of complete salvation. The "firstfruits" of the Spirit a pledge of the great harvest (Romans 8:23; Ephesians 1:13, 14).

3. Of fulfilment of all Divine promises.

4. Of our enjoyment of the eternal inheritance. The heaven is begun. No great heaven above for those who have no lesser heaven below. This pledge of the future does not conflict with diligence and faithfulness in Christian walk. These are the signs of the possession of the Divine Spirit - a mirror in which alone we may see the reflection of the great privilege we claim. The holier we are in inner and outer life the more clearly shall we see what we possess. If we walk unholily the mirror will reflect only sin and condemnation. The perseverance of saints is saints persevering.

V. THE SOURCE OF THESE PRIVILEGES. God. We are debtors for these vast mercies. In them we are "enriched by him." Knowing the Source, we shall know where to seek for those things which are "more precious than rubies." - H.

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KJV: Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;

WEB: Now he who establishes us with you in Christ, and anointed us, is God;