it amazes me how someone can form a doctrine out of acts chapter 10 Ephesians 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,
2 Corinthians 1:22 and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us...
really no matter what we say/show in scripture they reject .
Eph 1:13 does NOT say... you were “included in Christ” when you heard the message.
Eph 1:13 does NOT say you were marked in him with a seal “when you believed”.
I don’t know where you got that translation but it is false and needs to be thrown away.
When were those in Ephesus “sealed with the HS”? The text says....AFTER they believed. So, when did that happen?
Let’s look at the conversion account of the Ephesians..
Acts 19:1-6
And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus:
This is Paul coming into Ephesus
and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?
Paul comes across people who he believes to be disciples and he asked a question.
And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized?
He knew something was wrong by their answer and he IMMEDIATELY questions their baptism. Why? Because one cannot be saved without the proper baptism. We know he is not talking about HS baptism because we find him giving them the HS in the next couple of verses.
And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
He realizes now they had been baptized, in water, with the wrong baptism. They did not have the proper understand that goes along with baptism into Christ.
When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
So, after giving them the proper understanding he baptized them in water again. They are now saved. They are now “believers”.
And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
Then Paul, sealed the Ephesians with the HS through the laying on of his hands.
Show me where the Ephesians EVER received the Spirit directly without human hands?
A hint....it’s not in the Bible.
When you understand their conversion account you will understand what Paul means in his letter to this church. Were the Ephesians “saved” by themselves? No. They required human interaction.