The Seal of God – Jesus Christ

The people were looking for Jesus. He had fed a multitude of people the day before, and they need more handout from him.  They found him in Capernaum, on the other side of the sea; then they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” (John 6:25-27)  Jesus is the Seal of God.  The father has set His Seal on the son of God.

On two occasions, God confirmed this seal. In Matthew 3:16 When Jesus was been baptized, behold the heavens were opened, and the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Jesus, and suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”   Again when Jesus was on a high mountain – mount of transfiguration, while the disciples who were with him, were amazed by the scenery, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”   Jesus as the Seal of God is confirmed by God the Father.  God has sealed others before. In Ezekiel 28:12, the Bible said that Lucifer was the Seal of Perfection: “you were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.” Now God has given Jesus as the Seal of God to save the human race.  Paul testifies of this in Acts 4:12. There is salvation in no other, “… for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved,” other than the name of Jesus. Paul also refers to the Comforter sealing actions to whom Jesus has sanctified to represent him when he is gone. Paul said, “In Him – Jesus, you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.” (Ephesians 1:13). He continued by saying “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” (Ephesians 4:30).

Those who will truly have Jesus as their savior will have the seal of God.  Jesus knows who are His. Timothy said that the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”  (Timothy 2:19).  In Revelation 7, we saw where the angel put the mark of Jesus (the sealing) on the 144,000 witnesses.  “After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God (which is Jesus). And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” (Rev 7:1-3). This was similar to how Moses, Joshua, and Aaron put blood on the doorposts of all the Israelites so that the death angel would pass over them.  Here the angel is putting the Name of Jesus on the 144,000 Christians so that the death angel would pass over them.

The Seal of God is Jesus Christ, not the 4^th Commandment.  Sister White wrote, “This crowning miracle, the raising of Lazarus, was to set the seal of God on His work and on His claim to divinity.” (DA 530) shows that this seal is Jesus and all that he stands for – His works, His divinity, etc.  Sister White also quoted the Bible “The Lord commands by the same prophet: ‘Bind up the testimony, seal the law among My disciples.’ (Isaiah 8:16) The seal of God’s law is found in the fourth commandment. This only, of all the ten, brings to view both the name and the title of the Lawgiver. It declares Him to be the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and thus shows His claim to reverence and worship above all others. Aside from this precept, there is nothing in the Decalogue to show by whose authority the law is given. When the Sabbath was changed by the papal power, the seal was taken from the law. The disciples of Jesus are called upon to restore it by exalting the Sabbath of the fourth commandment to its rightful position as the Creator’s memorial and the sign of His authority.” (GC 453). This she is pointing to one of the commandments which also has the sealing power and acts of God. The other laws, each uniquely seals the true believers of God.

Since Jesus is the Seal of God – restoring mankind to God, all things, including all the commandments of God falls within the preamble of his sealing power: the 4^th Commandment as well as all the other nine commandments.  The 4^th Commandment is the sealing commandment for evangelicals and all who say that Jesus is their savior.  The 1^st commandment is the sealing law for those atheists who do not believe in God. All the laws of God have their sealing power for true Christians.

“Those who receive the seal of the living God (or received Jesus) and are protected in the time of trouble must reflect the image of Jesus fully” (Maranatha 255). “Those who would have the seal of God (or received Jesus) in their foreheads must keep the Sabbath of the fourth commandment. This is what distinguishes them from the disloyal, who have accepted a man-made institution in the place of the true Sabbath. The observance of God’s rest day is the mark of distinction between him that serves God and him that serves Him not (Manuscript 27, 1899).”

When Sister White wrote, “The enemies of God’s law, from the ministers down to the least among them, have a new conception of truth and duty. Too late they see that the Sabbath of the fourth commandment is the seal of the living God” (Great Controversy, p. 640), she is making reference to one of the sealing commandments of Jesus Christ, and is not giving exclusive power on the 4^th commandment, thus excluding the power of the other sealing commandments.  Remembering that the religious leaders in the time of Jesus asked him, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? “  Jesus said unto them, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Mat 22:36-40.

Because most Christians are not fully following all of God’s laws, and especially the commandment that deals with the day of worship, Sister White is giving special emphasis on the sealing-power of the 4^th Commandment;  when we isolate the other commandments and teach this, we are jeopardizing the effect of the other sealing power of Jesus Christ and all principles that he stands for.

When Jesus said, “… because God the Father has set His seal on Him”  He is referring to all things he taught and sanctified to be requirements for us to see and be part of the Kingdom of God.  All his commandments have his sealing power, and especially the 4^th commandment for the evangelicals – those who would bear the name of Jesus.