Our 79th Word is Saint

The simple definition of saint is one who has been chosen by God and set apart for His holy purposes.

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the church of God which is at Corinth with all the saints who are throughout Achaia…”(2 Corinthians 1:1)

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Ask people “What’s a saint?” and most will answer something like, “An extremely devoted Christian.” Protestants think of the apostles, referred to an older versions of the Bible as St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Matthew, and so on. Catholics have a much longer list of holy men and women venerated through church history. Catholic saints include the familiar names of missionaries like St. Patrick, St. Francis, or St. Teresa (Mother Teresa).

One common assumption from all this “saint talk” is that Christ’s church is made up of two distinct classes of Christians: hordes of bumbling, stumbling, nothing special believers; and a small, rare group of spiritual superstars.

But, is that true? In Christ’s kingdom, are everyday Christians the common house cats and saints the exotic snow leopards?

Almost seventy times, the New Testament writers refer to everyday believers as ‘saints,” translated in some Bible versions as “holy people”. The word comes from the same New Testament root that gets translated “sanctify,” “sanctification,” or “holy.”

If that’s clear as mud, just know this: sanctify means “to set apart.” The first time we see this word in the Bible is all the way back in Genesis 2:3 when God sanctified the Sabbath day. That is, He separated it from the other six days. He deemed it special and not for common use.

The Bible says that sanctification, not sure why we don’t just call it saint-ification, is both a moment in time event and a life-long process. God regards us a holy, as saints, the moment we believe in Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:11), then He helps us become progressively more holy, or saintly, as we love and serve Him (1 Peter 1:15).

This means if you’re a believer in Jesus, in God’s eyes, you are a saint! Right now! And sainthood means at least three amazing things are true. First, you have a new nature. Your new identity is no longer “sinner.” Will you still sin? Of course. But those failures don’t make you a sinner. They make you a saint who sometimes screws up. Second, you’re also under new ownership. God has made you His own. Third, you have a new purpose. God has reserved you for His holy and amazing purposes.

Take the biblical teaching of sainthood to heart. Believe what God says about you. Whenever we forget our God given identity, sin seems reasonable and logical. But when we embrace the biblical claim that God has made and is making us holy, we see sin for what it truly is: foolish and irrational.

One last thing: Because you are a saint, the desire to do right and to please God is always within you. You may not always sense that; that may not always feel true, but it is true. It has to be. In Christ, you’re a new creature with a new nature. You’re a living, breathing saint!

Questions to Ponder

1. Is it hard for you to think of yourself as a saint? Why do you think?
2. How does this passage from this post strike you: “Because you are a saint, the desire to do right and to please God is always within you. You may not always sense that; that may not always feel true, but it is true. It has to be. In Christ, you’re a new creature with a new nature. You’re a living, breathing saint”?