"Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God." – (Rev 7:3) Two specific Churches, Smyrna and Philadelphia are servants of God.

To Smyrna (Rev 2:8-11) "This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Smyrna: I am the first and the last. I died, but now I am alive! Listen to what I say. I know how much you suffer and how poor you are, but you are rich. I also know the cruel things being said about you by people who claim to be Jews. But they are not really Jews. They are a group that belongs to Satan. Don't worry about what you will suffer. The devil will throw some of you into jail, and you will be tested and made to suffer for ten days. But if you are faithful until you die, I will reward you with a glorious life. If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. Whoever wins the victory will not be hurt by the second death."

To Philadelphia (Rev 3:7-12) "This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia: I am the one who is holy and true, and I have the keys that belonged to David. When I open a door, no one can close it. And when I close a door, no one can open it. Listen to what I say. I know everything you have done {your works}. And I have placed before you an open door that no one can close. You were not very strong, but you obeyed my message and did not deny that you are my followers. Now you will see what I will do with those people who belong to Satan's group. They claim to be Jews, but they are liars. I will make them come and kneel down at your feet. Then they will know that I love you. You obeyed my message and endured. So I will protect you from the time of testing that everyone in all the world must go through. I am coming soon. So hold firmly to what you have, and no one will take away the crown that you will be given as your reward. Everyone who wins the victory will be made into a pillar in the temple of My God, and they will stay there forever. I will write on each of them the name of My God and the name of His city. It is the New Jerusalem that My God will send down from heaven. I will also write on them My own new name."

Why is God sealing these servants that He calls elect? Because He wants to limit any harm that might come to them. (Rev:7:3) Shows that above, before harm can go out on land or sea, God wants His servants to be protected from what is to come on the world, which is the Great Tribulation. (Mat 24:21-22) "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved (alive): but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened."

Tribulation is a time of refining and purifying; a cleansing to wake up those who are straddling the fence, trying to seek the mammon of the world, while still hoping that maybe they will reveive salvation because they do some "good" and are "not really evil or that bad." (Laodacian) (Rev 3:14-22). (Mat 6:24) "No one is able to serve two masters....You cannot serve God and mammon {riches}."

(Zec 13:7-9) " 'Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, and against the Man who is My companion,' says the LORD of hosts. 'Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. And I will turn My hand upon the little ones. And it shall come to pass in all the land,' says the LORD, 'two parts in it shall be cut off and die (Note: Ezek 5:7-12); but the third shall be left in it. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried. They shall call upon My name, and I will answer them; I will say, 'It is My people;' and they shall say, 'The LORD is my God.' ' " These in (Zec 13:7) are those people who are waking up, learning how duped they had been and repenting and turning from their evil ways, rejecting the false doctrine of the world and the New World order. God said He brings one third through the fire and refines them as silver and tries them as gold. Some may die, and in, (Rev 7:13-14) "One of the elders asked me, 'Do you know who these people are that are dressed in white robes? Do you know where they come from?' 'Sir,' I answered, 'you must know.' Then he told me: 'These are the ones who have gone through the great suffering. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and have made them white.' " Those in (Zech. 13:9) are the same ones as in (Rev. 7:14). They are those who woke up, repented, and were purified like silver and tried like gold because of the gospel of truth being preached by the sealed elect and the two witnesses of (Rev 11). These people heard what was preached and these people repented. Some however will suffer or die during this time because their belief in God and their repentance.

These are those of the Laodocia Church. (Rev 3:14-22 CEV) "This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Laodicea: I am the one called Amen! I am the faithful and true witness and the source of God's creation. Listen to what I say. I know everything you have done, and you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other. But since you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of my mouth. You claim to be rich and successful and to have everything you need. But you don't know how bad off you are {spiritually}. You are pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. Buy your gold from Me. It has been refined in a fire, and it will make you rich. Buy white clothes from Me. Wear them and you can cover up your shameful nakedness. Buy medicine for your eyes, so that you will be able to see I correct and punish everyone I love. So make up your minds to turn away from your sins. Listen! I am standing and knocking at your door. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in and we will eat together. Everyone who wins the victory will sit with Me on My throne, just as I won the victory and sat with My Father on His throne. If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches."

(Rev 7), God puts a seal on 144,000 heads of households and their families: God made a counting in Num 1:3 of heads of households, all men 21 and older, thus the bible showed that age is 21 is old enough to be head of a household. The women and children and at that time, as well as the Levite were not included in the warrior head count. (1Co 7:14): "For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy." Children should reside in your household until they reach an age of accountability. (1Pe 2:9) "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."

Those 12,000 from each tribe make up 144,000 Spiritual sealed warriors. Those that are sealed go unto the world and are witnesses for Christ during this period known as the Great Tribulation. These elect, chosen have proven their faith and are already refined and able to teach and spread True Word of God right up to the day Christ returns with all His holy angels. The gospel will be preached to those lost people who have learned there was not a rapture and they are neither saved nor protected. They will begin to realize as God's two witnesses do appear and (Rev. 11). prophesy during the 3 ½ years of tribulation; that they have been lied to, enslaved, trapped, and harmed. (Mat 24:21-22) "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened." God is going to shorten the tribulation for the sake of His sealed, chosen elect. If He does not do that, then there will be no life left on earth, no humanity not even His chosen elect. His elect chosen and sealed are NOT duped nor deceived by the "New World Order" government of Satan; who wants humanity to bow down and serve him and his "Tare's," (his children). God's elect are preaching the gospel and refuting false prophets just like Christ and His apostles did.

(Mat 24:30-31) "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." (Note Rev. 7: 1) If his elect chosen were all dead or killed, or beheaded the angels would not be gathering them up to meet Christ in the air where they will be changed from their begotten mortal flesh to immortal spirits and glorified bodies.

#1 Guarantees safety

#2 Is a mark of ownership

#3 Certifies that something is real or authentic

The seal of God is God’s mark of identification or ownership. In biblical times, as well as today, when a seal was attached to a document, it gave that document legitimacy. It guarantees your eternal safety certifies that your relationship with God is real.

(Psa 91:1-16) "He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flies by day; Nor for the pestilence that walks in darkness; nor for the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand shall fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because you have made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, your; There shall no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. They shall bear you up in their hands, lest thou dash your foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt you trample under feet. Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he has My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him My salvation."

What Is the Provision of the Seal of God?

There are three things the seal of God provides (Eph 1:13-14) "In whom you also trusted, after that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory." You are marked and sealed by God's Holy Spirit. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.

1. Inclusion – You are included in Christ. This means that because you belong to Him, then what He has belongs to you. because you are in Christ, His righteousness becomes your righteousness. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. – (2 Cor 5:21) Because you are included with Christ, His ability works in you and through you because of the Holy Spirit that lives inside you. (Php 4:13) "I can do all things through Christ, Who empowers me."

2. Identity – Because you are sealed, your identity is found in Christ. When God sees you, He identifies you as one of His very own, because you have been sealed. It also means Satan recognizes you as belonging to God as well.

Satan is the great copycat. God sealed the 144,000 with a mark on their forehead identifying them as His very own. Notice what Satan does with the mark of the beast in (Rev 13:15-17) "And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." He creates a way of sealing or identifying those that are his own.

3. Inheritance – The third thing we see from Ephesians is this seal, the promised Holy Spirit, guarantees your inheritance. It certifies that something is real or authentic.

What Does the Seal of God Mean
for Living in the Last Days?

As you begin to look at the signs, it feels more and more evident that the return of Christ is drawing closer.

Consider what happens after the 144,000 are sealed in Revelation 7:

"After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: 'Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.' "

"Then one of the elders asked me, (Rev 7:9-14) 'These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?' I answered, 'Sir, you know.' And he said, 'These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.' " But these are not the elect saints that were sealed. They are those who were woken up, they are the five virgins who did not have enough oil, so when the bridegroom came the door on them was shut. The five virgins with oil represent the sealed elect who were prepared and ready for the Tribulation. The five without are those who were not ready and had to buy oil and were too late to be protected and sealed from Tribulation's harm. Study Matt 25:1-13.

Why is this scene so important?

This multitude clothed in white represents those who receive Christ because of the witness of the 144,000 sealed, prepared Elected/Chosen spiritual warriors who along with the two witnesses proclaim the truth of the gospel and decry the teachings of false prophets who said, "There would be a rapture, that people would go to heaven and live," and all manner of false doctrine.

God doesn’t want us to sit idly by or hide in some remote place called "Petra" or some hideaway, waiting for our inheritance to be revealed. God wants you and me to be active participants sharing the gospel and hopefully winning more people for the kingdom before the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord which follows the Great Tribulation. It is hoped that many will repent and accept salvation during the time of tribulation on the earth. Your sealing or marking comes with a purpose, you are marked, you are sealed, you belong to God, your eternity is secured. Your sins are forgiven and the elect do not suffer the persecutions of tribulation. However they see it with their eyes, but do not fear because their salvation is already secured with the seal of God. He is sure of them and that they will not fall away nor go astray. "As you are marked and empowered by the Holy Spirit, do allow God to use you to be His witness in the earth." (Acts 1:8) This was the last thing Jesus told His disciples before He ascended into heaven and it should be the top priority for you and me until He comes again. (Mat 24:14) "...this gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in all the world for a witness to all nations; and then shall the end come."

Elect are not fooled (Mat 24:21-24) "For then shall there be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until this time, nor ever shall be again. And if those days were not limited, there would no flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be limited. Then if anyone says to you, 'Behold, here is the Christ,' or, 'He is there,' do not believe it. For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and they shall present great signs and wonders, in order to deceive, if possible, even the elect."

We are warriors for the truth of God and that's why we (Eph 6:11) "Put on the whole armor of God so that you {we} may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." (Also study Eph 6:10-20).

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore, choose life, so that both you and your seed {children} may live." (Deu 30:19). Decide whom you will serve! (Mat 6:24) "No one is able to serve two masters....You cannot serve God and mammon {riches}.

Strong's Concordance Definitions: Time of Trouble, Tribulation, Testing, & Temptation

Trouble:

Greek: G5015 tarassó: to stir up, to trouble; Definition: to be troubled Usage: I disturb, agitate; pass: I am troubled, alarmed. Definition: to stir up, to trouble/ I disturb, agitate, stir up, trouble.

Hebrew: H7451ע raʻ, rah: trouble from H7489: bad or (as noun) evil (natural or moral) Definition:—adversity, affliction, bad, calamity, displease(-ure), distress, evil((-favouredness), man, thing), + exceedingly, × great, grief(-vous), harm, heavy, hurt(-ful), ill (favoured), + mark, mischief(-vous), misery, naught(-ty), noisome, + not please, sad(-ly), sore, sorrow, trouble, vex, wicked(-ly, -ness, one), worse(-st), wretchedness, wrong. (Including feminine raaah; as adjective or noun.)

Tribulation:

Greek: G2347 thlipsis: tribulation; Definition: persecution, affliction, distress, tribulation.

Hebrew: H6869 tsarah: adversary or adversity; Definition: straits, distress.

Testing:

Greek: G3985 peirazó: to make proof of, to attempt, test, tempt Definition: to make proof of, to attempt, test, tempt; Usage: I try, tempt, test.

Hebrew: H5254 nasah: to test, try; Testing: H6884 tsaraph: to smelt, refine, test Definition: to smelt, refine, test Usage: goldsmith (5), goldsmiths (2), pure (1), refine (3), refined (5), refiner's (1), refining goes (1), silversmith (2), smelt (1), smelter (2), smith (1), test (2), tested (4), tried (2).

Temptation:

Greek: G3986 peirasmos: an experiment, a trial, temptation; Original Word: πειρασμός, οῦ, ὁ Phonetic Spelling: (pi-ras-mos') Definition: an experiment, (a) trial, probation, testing, being tried, (b) temptation, (c) calamity, affliction.

Hebrew: H4531 maccah: temptation; Definition: despair; Hebrew: H4531b massah: a test, trial, proving; Definition: a test, trial, proving.

The Elect's Role During the Great Tribulation

"©" 02-11-2023 Ekklesia Church of God
– A New Covenant Church