Week 1, Day 6: Sealed by the Spirit: The Gospel as a Trinitarian Accomplishment

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“In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”

Ephesians 1:11-14 (ESV)

Recent years has seen great growth in Trinitarian reflection.  We have been reminded that, YES, ministry power is by the Spirit, YES, the Spirit of God is working to sanctify us, and YES, that all of this is a result of the Spirit taking the Gospel and applying it to our hearts like a balm.  The Gospel would not be good news if there were no Holy Spirit to apply it to hearts of stone.  Hear that again, if God were not triune, there could be no good news.  As one theologian has written,

“Jesus…commissioned his church to make disciples of all nations by baptizing them ‘in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’ (Matt. 28:20). These three names, or rather this one divine name that points to three distinct persons, is spoken over every person brought into the church. It is not merely a formula to be recited for its own sake, but a kind of summary of the gospel, explaining the depths beneath what every believer experiences in salvation.  When we encounter the gospel of God, the reality we come into contact with is the God of the gospel, and it is the task of the doctrine of the Trinity to explain that connection.”[1]

In light of that, not only has the doctrine of the Trinity moved out of stuffy classrooms and dusty tomes and into the realm of man’s desperate need, but the Gospel itself has become sweeter because it calls us to glory in the very nature of God.

Therefore, let us join our hearts together in praise to the Triune God: to the Father who has called us to himself, to the Son who has won our redemption, and to the Holy Spirit who brings salvation to reality in our lives. Sing out:

Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

-Thomas Ken

[1] Fred Sanders, “The Trinity: The God behind the Gospel,” Credo Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 2: April 2013, Pages 21-22.

This blog is a part of the Lausanne Global Prayer Focus. We invite you to journey with The Lausanne Movement in prayer throughout the month of May. This journey will be a personal one, and a collective one. It will be focused on the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, his good news for all people.

In week 1, we are focusing on The Message of the Gospel. pdfDownload a prayer guide for the week, or visit lausanne.org/pray to access the new content daily. You may also enter your email on this page to be sent a weekly email reminder with the new prayer content each week of May. Be sure to select “Prayer” as a Topic Interest.