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In biblical times anyone who was anyone had a seal.

What Is Our Destiny? - Sealed By the Holy Spirit - Ephesians 1: 13-14 - November 23, 2008 - Cicero United Methodist Church - Everett 1. Bassett

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            In biblical times anyone who was anyone had a seal. This was the instrument you would use to put your individual mark in the soft wax or clay that sealed an important letter or document. Thousands of these have been found across the Middle East, and the designs can be quite artistic. People carried their seals in different ways - at the end of a tube on a rope, or hung around their necks - or, most commonly, as a ring. It was carefully guarded - passed on from generation to generation, from king to king. Perhaps a modem image for us is the Presidential Seal of the United States of America, which signifies the authority of that office. Or the seal that is impressed into an important legal document, that might say "Town of Cicero", or "Cicero United Methodist Church."

            Not surprisingly, seals show up often in the Bible - usually in the practical sense of doing ordinary business; but also as a symbol. For example, some of the prophets talk of promises of God that are held under a seal until the right time. At the end of the Bible, one of the poetic images used in the Book of Revelations for the imagined end of the world is the breaking of seven seals that release great forces on the earth.

            And the seal is an important image in this morning's scripture lesson from the Letter to the Ephesians. Over the last couple weeks I have been using the first chapter of Ephesians to talk about our destiny. That chapter is full of beautiful images to tell us how specially destined we are in God's eyes. The writer uses phrases like 'blessed in the heavenly places', 'chosen since before the foundation of the earth,' and 'adopted as a child of God.' He talks about our inheritance of redemption and forgiveness and understanding of God's mystery, and being part of an unfolding plan.

            And when we hear some of those things, we can't help thinking that it must be far in the future. Okay, so I am chosen by God for great things since before the foundation of the world.  That's nice. But here I am in Central New York in 2008, trying to stay one step ahead of a recession, trying to get along with my impatient boss, trying to keep from going crazy in rush hour traffic, and trying to stay a few steps ahead of the bill collectors. I don't get much sense of destiny. I saw a little scene on TV of a woman who was surrounded by crying babies, teasing kids, piles of laundry, dirty dishes, and spills and stains all over the place, and the phone rings and somebody says, "Hello, is this Dreams Come True?" And she says, "Buddy, have you got the wrong number!" It's pretty hard to have a sense of destiny when you're just trying to survive the day's mess. And the writer to the Ephesians acknowledges that our inheritance has not yet come to be. It is a future promise - the fullness of what God has in mind is something yet to come.

            But, at the same time, it is not just about the future; it has a present reality because we are 'marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit.' The Kingdom of God may not be fully realized yet. But we are still living in it because we belong to God. His seal is upon us. The Book of Revelations, in chapter 7, uses the same image -- it tells of an angel bringing to earth the 'seal of the living God,' to mark the foreheads of the faithful. So this morning we're going to imagine that everyone here has a seal on your forehead that signifies your destiny -- you have been chosen by God. We probably shouldn't stare at

each other's seal, or try to touch it without the person's permission. In fact, of course, it is invisible. But it is real. It is, I believe, our most significant identifying mark. So let's talk for a moment about this mark that God has placed upon us. What does it mean to be sealed by the Holy Spirit? I'd like to suggest four things:

            First of all, when someone places a seal, it's for something important. People did not put their seals on random things, but only on the extraordinary. We need to remember that in a world that so often belittles or dehumanizes people. I was reading recently about the slaughter of Tutsi people in Rwanda by Hutu revolutionaries in 1994. When asked how human life could be taken so easily, it was pointed out that the killers rarely referred to their victims as human. They would refer to them as cockroaches, or dogs, or rats, but not humans. That way they could tell themselves they were not killing anything of value. That kind of degrading is happening every day, in big and small ways.

            But human beings are not cockroaches. In fact, we are created, every one of us, in God's own image, and when we embrace that, then God places His own unique seal upon us. Let no one tell you that you are just a number, or a client, or a consumer, or a fare, or just collateral damage, or a nobody. Let no one tell you you are expendable, or your life doesn't matter. God wouldn't put his seal on something that wasn't extremely special.

            Secondly, the seal was often used to signify a sacred relationship. The biblical word for that is 'covenant,' and this is one of the key words to describe how God wants to relate to us. A covenant is holy, and in the Old Testament God made a covenant of salvation with Noah, and a covenant of promise with Abraham. God made a covenant of faithfulness to the Hebrew people through Moses, and of favor for the Jewish nation through David. In every case, God gave of Himself in grace and love.

            But the heart of the covenant reached new heights in Jesus, who lifted a cup before his disciples and proclaimed, "This is the blood of a new covenant, shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins." The seal of the Holy Spirit upon us signifies that God is not impersonal or unconcerned about you and me - he desires so deeply to be in covenant with us that He sent His Son to make that possible. That seal was placed upon us at great cost to God. And again, if you get to thinking that your life doesn't count for much, think about your value in God's eyes, and the relationship He desires with you. That has to change who you are, and how you think of every last human being you meet.

            Thirdly, when a seal was placed on a document, it was a layer of protection. It was a warning against tampering with that document. If someone broke the seal without authorization, they would need to answer to the One who had placed it. It is important to remember that as we live in this precarious world. There's a fable about a knight who was starting out on a journey. He knew that there were many dangers, so he began to anticipate them. He put on heavy armor, a thick helmet, a great shield, a sturdy sword. "Nothing can harm me now," he said, as he ventured to cross the river. And his armor was so heavy, he fell through the bridge. So it is with us, as we try to anticipate every possible pitfall to our lives, and burden ourselves down with such worry and stress, and so many precautions, that we can't really live. We have made a god of security.

            The alternative is to live in trust that the One who has placed His seal upon us will watch over us. We belong to God. With that assurance, Christian people through the centuries have been able to face anything. That doesn't mean we live carelessly, and don't take advantage of the securities that are available to us. But we don't become enslaved to security, because we live ultimately under the sure protection of God's seal.

            And closely related to that, the seal upon a document signifies authority and power.  And we who claim God's seal do not live in fear and dread of the world - we live in confidence and hope, because we live by the power of Almighty God.

            All four of these meanings of the seal of the Spirit are counter to what the world tries to tell us. The world paints people as insignificant and expendable; the seal of God says we are precious in God's sight. The world tries to say that we're out here on our own - ­God is impersonal or indifferent about us. The seal of the Spirit says we are in a sacred covenant with the God of love through Christ. The world wants us to cower before terror and fear, and to worship worldly security. The seal of the Spirit says that we can live in love and faith, and these will overcome fear. The world tells us that we are powerless to change things, powerless to make a difference. The seal of the Spirit bids us to seize our destiny - to live as people of real power. The choice is ours.

            It is Stewardship season in the church. Next week we will gather in our pledges of prayers, presence, gifts, and service for the Lord's work. Every year the Stewardship Team wonders if the church's ministry can continue at the level that seems to be required of us. It takes so much prayer, so many pledges, so many people helping us stay afloat. The obstacles seem bigger than the resources. This year is no different, and, given everyone's concern about the economy, maybe even a little more worrisome.

            But I have absolutely no doubt about the continuing ministries of this church ­because I believe in the seal of the Holy Spirit. We are the baptized people of God. We have the mark of the Holy Spirit; the authority of the Lord is upon us. And here at church is where we join together to seize our destiny as God's people. We are making a difference in this world through the programs of this church at Cicero, and the effectiveness of our United Methodist connection. It's not easy; there are great obstacles. But nothing greater than the power of God's Spirit. Again and again, throughout history, God has prevailed. And the church has stayed the course - not perfectly, but steadfastly.

            But we have to decide to be that church. There is a process for the seal of the Lord to be placed. "In (Christ)," says Ephesians 1:13, "you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit." This is the process. It begins with Christ. Then the word of truth comes to us; then the good news of salvation; then we choose to believe in it. Then we are marked by the seal of God. We are no longer people desperately searching for some sense out of this brief earthly life. We are forces of nature; children of the covenant; people of destiny. That's what God sees in this church today. What do we see?