by Cleve Stafford<\/p>\n
When you hear the word “saint,” what comes to mind? For many, it’s a statue in a cathedral, a figure in stained glass, or someone canonized long after death by religious authorities. In some traditions, sainthood is regarded as a special status, reserved for only a select few extraordinary individuals. But when we read the Scriptures, a very different picture appears. God calls all His people saints, not just a handful. And that truth changes how we see ourselves and others in Christ.<\/p>\n
Let’s start with how the New Testament writers addressed everyday Christians. Paul begins his letter to the Romans like this: Romans 1:7, “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.<\/em>” Did you catch that? He wasn’t writing to a select group of miracle-workers or martyrs. He was writing to every believer in Rome, ordinary men and women trying to live for Christ in a pagan city, and he calls them saints.<\/p>\n The same thing happens again in Corinth. That congregation was not exactly the model church. They had divisions, pride, and immorality, yet Paul still writes the following in I Corinthians 1:2, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.<\/em>” Even in a disorderly church with struggling Christians, Paul doesn’t withhold the title. What his words prove is that every believer who calls on Jesus is called a saint.<\/p>\n What is striking about what we’ve learned so far is that being a saint isn’t about what we accomplish but about what God has already done for us in Christ. The word “saint” means “holy one,” and holiness isn’t something we create by our good works – it’s something given to us through the blood of Christ: Hebrews 10:10, “And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.<\/em>” Jesus offered Himself on the cross once for all, and because of that sacrifice, everyone who belongs to Him is made holy. That’s why Paul can freely call entire churches “saints.” The holiness isn’t theirs; it’s His.<\/p>\n Some traditions argue that saints must be confirmed by the church after death, based on their extraordinary lives. However, Scripture clearly contradicts that idea. The moment a person obeys the gospel and is washed in baptism, they are made holy. Act. 22:16 says, “And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.<\/em>” In that washing away of sins, God declares us clean. From that moment on, we belong to Him as His saints.<\/p>\n Think of what Peter wrote to scattered Christians, many of whom were suffering and feeling like outsiders: I Peter 2:9, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.<\/em>” Who is he talking to? Not a small circle of canonized heroes, not to anyone long gone from this world, but to every believer. All of us are God’s holy people, saints by His grace.<\/p>\n Have you ever felt unworthy of that title? I know I have. Maybe you’ve thought, “I’m no saint. I know my weaknesses.” And yet, God’s Word insists that if you are in Christ, you are already sanctified, already set apart, already His saint. Not someday in the future. Not if enough people vote for you. Not if you live a flawless life, but rather, right now, because of Jesus’s sacrifice. This matters because it changes the way we live. If I see myself as “just a sinner,” I may excuse sin or feel stuck in it. But if I see myself as a saint, not because of my perfection but because of Christ’s, I’m called to live up to what God has already declared me to be.<\/p>\n Paul eloquently states it: Ephesians 4:1, “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.<\/em>” So here’s the truth Scripture emphasizes again and again: sainthood isn’t a status earned by a few; it’s a shared identity given to all who are in Christ. That’s not just good news; it’s life-changing news. When you look in the mirror tomorrow morning, remember this: you’re not just a face in the crowd. You are one of God’s saints, called, sanctified, and sent into the world to shine His light. So, go and live like you are one.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Cleve Stafford When you hear the word “saint,” what comes to mind? For many, it’s a statue in a cathedral, a figure in stained glass, or someone canonized long after death by religious authorities. In some traditions, sainthood is regarded as a special status, reserved for only a select few extraordinary individuals. But when…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[494,289],"class_list":["post-91050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-christian","tag-saints"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":80322,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/saints-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":0},"title":"Saints (Benton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 26, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton The term \"saint\" has been hijacked to mean something different from the way the Bible uses the term. Today, you can hear churches exalt a \"Christian\" after death to the status of a \"saint.\" This is not according to scriptural usage. Sometimes, we may hear someone\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58500,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/saints\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":1},"title":"Saints (Harris)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 27, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Webb Harris, Jr. Guardian of Truth XXXII: 13, pp. 402-403, July 7, 1988 The Problem of Avoided Terms It is fundamental to a proper understanding of divine revelation that we appreciate that the \"popular\" definitions of many words common to the Scriptures differ from the intended ideas of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":90337,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-do-but-i-dont\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":2},"title":"I Do, but I Don’t","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jim Sasser I believe in proper methods, but I don't wear the name \"Methodist.\" I believe in baptism, but I don't wear the name \"Baptist.\" I believe presbyters (or elders) should oversee the local church, but I don't wear the name \"Presbyterian.\" I believe one should be holy, but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":35538,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/will-god-condemn-a-new-christian-who-still-has-a-lot-to-learn\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":3},"title":"Will God condemn a new Christian who still has a lot to learn?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 26, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Will God condemn a newborn babe in Christ who is striving with every fiber of his being to grow and mature as the Bible commands? This babe in Christ realizes the urgency of studying to rightly divide God's word, and every time he learns he is guilty of sin,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":64515,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-i-pray-for-someone-i-do-not-have-anything-particular-to-request\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":4},"title":"How do I pray for someone I do not have anything particular to request?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 10, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Good evening, I wanted to ask you something that came to my mind recently. I am trying to get better at praying for others; specifically, people who have not given me any ways that I can pray for them. How can I pray for someone if I do not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12161,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-christian-love-demand-a-willingness-to-lay-down-your-life-for-a-friend\/","url_meta":{"origin":91050,"position":5},"title":"Does Christian love demand a willingness to lay down your life for a friend?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 7, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: While teaching the adult class I made the statement that a true characteristic of Christian love is that one would be willing to lay down his\/her life for his\/her friends.\u00a0 One lady stated that she could not do that.\u00a0 What are your thoughts?\u00a0 How would you answer this lady's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91050\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}