I'VE BEEN PRESERVED AND SEALED

My brother Deb preached a sermon about God's preservation of Christians and how He seals us until redemption. He used a jar of preserves, a sealing lid and the bible verse Psalms 16:1: Preserve me, Oh God: for in thee do I put my trust. The Psalmist was speaking for himself, making it personal by saying Preserve me, Oh God. The same goes for us. We must have a personal relationship with Christ. "Why should God preserve me?", Deb asked. Referring to the bible verse, "for in thee do I put my trust." Using the meaning of the word preserve from the Webster's dictionary, he explained that is what God does for Christians. He protects us, keeps us safe, alive, intact, free from decay and reserving us for personal or special use. Other bible verses were read to show some things God will preserve: Those that trust Him, the faithful, the souls of His saints, the simple (those that do not know right from wrong such as young children or persons with mental illness), all those that love Him and the way of His saints. Reading bible verses; Job 36: 6 and Psalms 37: 8, he explained God would not preserve life of the wicked or seed of the wicked. In order to preserve something it must be sealed. The lid with the rubber seal was used to illustrate what God meant by sealing us. Ephesians 4: 30 "sealed until the day of redemption." Redeemed means to retrieve. We are sealed until Christ comes for us either by the grave or the rapture. I am so grateful Deb shared this sermon with me. I have a personal relationship with The Lord Jesus Christ and in Him I put my trust. Because of God - - - I'VE BEEN PRESERVED AND SEALED.