SEAL YOU HIS

A large stone was placed at the entrance  of Jesus' tomb to seal it.

Note the wax seal over the rope on the stone in this reenactment.

At the conclusion of his address to his people, King Benjamin expressed his hope that the people would always remember the Son of God and keep His commandments.  He wrote: 

Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his that you may be  brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of Him who created all things, in heaven and in earth, who is God above all. Amen. (Mosiah 5: 15)

In the ancient world, sealing attested to the 1) authenticity of the document or artifact; and 2) that the document or artifact was under the protection of someone in authority. The practice was used for centuries, both before the Advent of Christ and after. Even today, when families are sealed in the temple, they receive Christ's acknowledgement of the authenticity of the marriage and Christ's protection that the family thus created will last beyond death and into the eternities.

Many ancient seals have been unearthed by archaeologists attesting to this common practice. 

This ancient Israelite seal says: Hezekiah, son of Ahaz, King of Judah.  By imprinting his seal upon anything of importance, Hezekiah is stating, in fact, that the document or object legally belongs to him.

When we are sealed to Christ, He is acknowledging for all eternity that we belong to Him; we are His adopted sons and daughters,(Mosiah 5: 7); and joint heirs with Christ. (Romans 8: 17)

The  importance of sealing is represented in John's marvelous apocalyptic vision recorded in the Book of Revelation, the scroll with seven seals. Modern-day revelation tells us that each seal represented 1,000 years of earth's history.  The seals protected this history and only one with authority, Jesus Christ, was authorized to open each seal and reveal its contents.

King Benjamin told his people that Christ would seal them His if they would make a sacred covenant with Christ to:

• Take upon you the name of Christ (v. 8)
• Always remember Him I (v. 12) 
• Do His will and to be obedient to His commandments (v. 5) 
• Be steadfast and immovable. (v. 15)

My greatest desire is that Christ may seal me His.  I express my desire by covenant every time I partake of the tokens of the Sacrament. My promise it that I take upon myself His name, always remember Him, and keep His commandments which He has given me (see Moroni 4: 3-4; Doctrine and Covenants 20: 73, 79.)   

In return, I may always have His spirit to be with me.                                  Who could ask for anything more?

© Dr. Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson, April 2020