The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1909-11-02
PULPIT.
Grieving the Spirit.
Text, "Grieve Not the Holy
Spint of God. by Which You
Were Sealed Unto the Day Of
Deliverance" Gphesians iv. 3O).

is these that are mentioned In our text
as sealed by the holy Spirit Of prom
Use and waiting for the resurrection
morning, the deliverance day, the day
of attainment to the glorious things
which God has In reservation for the
faithful. AS a loving parent watches
the progress of his child In school, so
the Heavenly Father is interested In
our progress. and DESTROYS that we
shall make our calling and our election
sure to the heavenly glories. Hence
be pictures himself as pleased with our
progress and as griered when we fail to
learn the necessary lessons. He has
promised us place with our Lord IN
his Millennial Kingdom Throne. but
the promise is a conditional one. Our
Redeemer expresses it thus: ITO him
that overcometh will grant to SIT
with me in my Throne" Thus we get
a glimpse of Gods special interest In
each of his consecrated, spirit-begotten
children. They have his love and favor
and smile in proportion as they follow
the Redeemer's footsteps. A failure
to walk in this way grieves the Lords
spirit or figuratively brings his frown
instead of his smile and tends to sep
arate us from his love.
The child of God should seek to ever
live in the sunshine of the Heavenly
Fathers favor. Whatever clouds arise
between such and their very best
earthly friends will be light Affections
indeed. if they still abide in fellowship
with the Heavenly Father and the Son.
through the holy Spirit-the spirit OF
love. the spirit Of Truth. the spirit Of
obedience. the spirit of self sacrifice.
Indeed, if earthly friendships and
earthly loves be entirely severed
through faithfulness to the Lord. the
loyal one may reach the place where
he can "rejoice in tribulation also"
Sealed by the Holy Spirit.
A seal is an authoritative mark.
With a signature a seal implies that
the contract of the document Is no
longer open. no longer mere pro-
posal but an accomplished. finished
agreement or bargain. In olden times.
seals were usually impressed in wax
while it was yet soft; the seal itself
represented a coat of arms or some
thing representing the personality of
the one who used it. The pressure
upon the soft wax was gradually in
creased and then held firmly until the
wax had cooled. hardened. and permit
ted the removal of the seal. without
injury to the impress which then was
clearly revealed This is the mental
LECTURE which our text brings before
our minds. God our Creator. our Fa-
ther. inlpresses upon our willing hearts
by his holy Spirit his own character
likeness. which is specially exemplified
for us In the words and doings of our
Redpemer and the apostles who walk
ed in his steps Of devotion to God and
to righteousness and in self sacrifice liz
the interest of others.
What beautiful picture our text
then gives us of the holy Spirits opera
ton upon our hearts. sealing us, mark
ing us, continually deepening the I'M
preston. eventually transforming us.
until. by the final change Of the First
Resurrection, the sealing processes
shall have been accomplished. Then
the glorious promises of Gods Word
having been fully realized, we shall be
like our Lord on the spirit plane and
sharers of his glory. Then we shall be
granted the privileges of association
with him in his Millennial Kingdom
work for the uplifting, the restitution.
the blessing, of Israel and all the fam
lilies of the earth. But let us not for
get that no one is sealed with the holy
Spirit of promise, except he has turn
ed from sin and accepted our Lord
Jesus as his Redeemer and who has,
additionally. consecrated unto death
all his human rights and interests OF
every kind-to sacrifice the same as
guided by the holy Spirit of the Lord.
The Sealing Operation.
Gods holy Spirit. in effecting this
sealing of our hearts, in making. this
impress of the Divine character upon
us as New Creatures. uses various
means. One of these is the Word of
God. sometimes called 1.-The sword OF
the Spirit" Its Instructions, eneour-
agements. warnings aud promises con-
stitute power of God upon the hearts
of those who love righteousness and
hate iniquity aud who are striving to
serve the Lord with willing and self
sacrificing hearts. The Word OF God
may reach others and influence them
more or less this way or that, but only
upon this one special class does it exer-
else this sealing power. Another agen-
cy for the impressing of the Divine
will, 1.-The mind of Christ" the holy
Spirit. upon our hearts is Gods Prov
licences. These. however. can be right
" understood only by those enlighten-
ed by the Word. the Bible. and can be
rightly applied only by the meek. the
humble, the trustful, who have made
the conservation and are seeking to
make their calling and election sure.
The holy Spirit uses these different
means of developing in the consecrated
ones the mind of Christ. the spirit of
God. the holy Spirit; and the sealing
thus effected marks each individual as
one of the Lords "jewels." one of the
Lords "members." in preparation for
a share with the Lord in the heavenly
Kingdom. There is a blessing expert
enced in conjunction with the sealing
itself-a joy. peace. rest or heart.
which the world can neither give nor
take away. However. these blessings
of the present time are merely fore
taste or earnest" of the great inherit
ance which is to be theirs with the
completion Of their experiences In the
School of Christ. In the end Of this
age all of these faithful ones. mot.
many" ga little flock" will reach the
end of the journey and. by the First
Resurrection. be changed in moment.
in the twinkling of an eye" into the
glorious likeness of the Redeemer.
That wonderful moment will be in the
early dawn of the Millennial Day.
which is the Day of Redemption. the
Day of Deliverance.
Deliverance For the World.
But while the Church viii be the
first to be blessed in that deliverance
day, the Scriptures assure us that 9th
ers also will be delivered-''the grOan-
ing creation" But the Church will be
first every way. and then through 1t as
the Body of Christ. the blessings OF
restitution opportunities will be extend
ed to all others. That will be earth's
great Deliverance Day or. as shown in
the Jewish types. it will be the anti
typical Jubilee Year. in which the
world will be released from its bond
age to sin and death. AS st. James de-
clares q. 49, the Church is ga kind of
frst-fruits unto God of His creatures