You are a saint

When we think of saints, we think of people like Mother Teresa, or Billy Graham, or, in our church, our dear graduated sister Jane Elder. Definitely “saint material,” all. But did you know that you are a saint? That I am a saint? That’s right. Paul called saved sinners “saints” in his letters to the churches. If you were a Christian, to Paul’s way of thinking, you were a “saint.” He used the term no less than sixty times in the New Testament! So, Christian: what kind of saint are you?

Basically, saints in the church fall in one of three categories. First, there are those we call the real saints, or the “saintly saints.” They are committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, have a deep personal relationship with Him, are led by the Holy Spirit, rooted in God’s Word, and available to be used by God in the Body of Christ. Then there are the “side-tracked saints,” or the lukewarm saints. They’re not hot, but they’re not cold either. They’re for what God is doing as long as it makes them comfortable. They sit on the sidelines saying, “Feed me, help me, nurture me, love me.” When these sidetracked saints are asked to do something, they have plenty of reasons why they shouldn’t—most of them selfish. (The Bible says this kind of saint makes Jesus nauseated.) Finally, there are the “pseudo-saints,” or the phony saints. They have their name on the church role, and know a bit of religious lingo. They pass through worship every Easter or Christmas or Mothers’ Day and nod at God as they go. But they don’t have a clue about what it means for Jesus to be Savior, let alone Lord. The pseudo-saints.

It matters what kind of saint you are. Because if there is ever to be a hope of revival and renewal in our culture, we need the side-tracked saints to come alive and the pseudo saints to get a clue. That’s the only hope we have. So what kind of saint are you?