“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 ‭1‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭ESV‬)

When we first believed upon Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit sealed us for salvation. What does that mean, exactly?

It means once God saves us, He will never let us go—which is one way of defining the doctrine of eternal security. And Him never letting us go has nothing to with us but all to do with Him. It’s His firm grip on us that is the reason we never slip away. In the words of John MacArthur, “If you could lose your salvation, you would.”

A pastor of a different denomination once told me, “It’s not so much that you can lose your salvation, but you can give it back.” Perhaps he didn’t recognize that’s far more preposterous, far worse.

How can God save a man—transform Him into a new creation—and the man have the ability to change his mind about salvation?” Eh, I’m just not feeling it today, God. You can have your salvation back.” This makes man sovereign, not God. God is at the mercy of man’s flimsy feelings.

But praise be to God, He is the sovereign one. And our salvation—our guarantee of a future inheritance in glory—is totally and completely secure in Christ. It is secure because Jesus’s work on the cross is finished. “It is done, it is finished—no more debt I owe!”

Friend, if you are in Christ, you will never become out of Christ. God has a hold on you and will never let you go.