What comes to mind when you hear, “That
guy’s a saint?” Maybe you picture some guy who lived centuries ago appearing in
old paintings with a halo around his head. Or maybe you think of some dead guy
who somehow earned such a title by living heroically, having multiple miracles
performed as a result of their prayers and the approval of certain church
leaders. Or maybe you think of a person who is the black sheep of the family
and say, “Boy that guy sure is a saint?”☺
Regardless of what thoughts may come to your mind
concerning sainthood, the Bible clearly calls all Christians saints in at least
42 verses (see Acts 9:13, 32, 41; 26:10; Rom. 1:7; 8:27; 12:13;
15:25, 26, 31; 16:2, 15; 1 Cor. 1:2; 6:1, 2; 14:33; 16:1, 15; 2 Cor. 1:1; 8:4;
9:1, 12; 13:13; Eph. 1:1, 15, 18; 2:19; 3:8; 4:12; 5:3; 6:18; Phil. 1:1; 4:22;
Col. 1:4, 12; 1 Tim. 5:10; Philemon 1:5, 7; Heb. 6:10; 13:24; Jude 1:3).
Hebrews 10:10 defines sainthood very plainly.
We, as Christians, have been “sanctified (made saints) through the
offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Thus, as a result of what
Jesus did for us on the cross, all Christians are saints.
Even though we may frown and scoff when hearing
such a title attached to our name knowing where we’ve been, God’s Word tells us
that you as a Christian are someone very special! God took all of our sins and
placed it on the One who had never sinned, Jesus, so that we could be made
completely new (2 Cor. 5:17, 21).
Jesus took our brokenness, guilt, sin, and shame,
and replaced it with His perfection. All of this means that once we accept
Christ as our Lord and Savior, we now contain the righteousness of God within
us.
God the Father sees Jesus living in us. We are
completely new, enjoying a close personal relationship with the very One who
created you and me. Sainthood is not earned, it is simply received, or traded
you might say— Jesus’ perfect life in place of our imperfections. We are
saints!
We have been chosen before the foundations of the
world, by God for sainthood. With such a
title, we have the responsibility to live a life of high moral character and
integrity. We can and are enabled to live far beyond the immorality which is rampant
in our society.
Therefore, it is my prayer that you as a Christian
see yourself as God sees you. You are a saint because of what Christ has done
for you; He is living within you through the Holy Spirit. Thus, may we live as
we truly are, a new creation, our old self is gone, the new has come.
For His glory,
Matt
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