YOU'RE A SAINT!
By: Dennis Harworth
As I flipped the calendar page from October to the first of November, I was reminded of this story: There were two brothers in a small town who, over the course of many years, cheated, swindled, robbed and generally stole from everyone they had ever done business with. The entire town and surrounding community detested and despised these two brothers as everyone was aware of just how disreputable and dishonest they were.
One day, one of the brothers mysteriously died. Although they had never attended church, the one remaining brother went to the local priest and said, “I will give you $100,000 if during the funeral, you say my brother was a Saint."
The priest was troubled by the request, but was tempted by this offer because it was a very poor church and the church desperately needed repairs. The parishioners had heard about the priest’s dilemma and were curious as to what he would do.
The funeral began with the church packed, and the pastor started with the usual prayers as he followed the rites and traditions required by the church’s teachings. In closing, after referring to the man in the box, he paused and turned to face the remaining brother. He began, "As you all know, the departed was an awful individual who robbed, cheated, swindled and stole from everyone he ever did business with. However, compared to his brother, he was - a Saint!"
The 1st of November is known as All Saints Day, but it is also known as All Hallows' Day, or Hallowmas. It is a Christian celebration in honor of all the saints from Christian history, whether known or unknown. Did you know the day before October 31st, Halloween, started out as a holy Christian celebration? Hallow means to render or treat as holy. Thus, "Hallows' Eve," or "Halloween," simply means the evening of holy persons and refers to the evening before All Saints Day. Just like Christmas and Easter, Satan has put a deceptive twist on a day originally set apart as a Christian holy day.
The celebration of All Saints Day became widespread in 900 AD. The saints were mostly people that had died who had been known for notable good works or were martyrs who died for their faith. However, one does not have to die, be martyred, or be canonized after their death in order to be classified as a saint.
Who then is a saint? If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, then ...YOU ARE! When you are born-again, you are a saint: a “holy one,” a “true believer,” someone who is sanctified and set apart for God's own special purposes (1 Corinthians 1:2). That means that every follower of Jesus Christ is a saint. Isn’t that really good to know? Because you are set apart for God, the Lord revealed to me three things you should keep in mind as a saint:
1. REMEMBER you are bought with a price to glorify God (1 Corinthians 6:20). God paid for you with the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:19) and when you become a believer, you are immediately set apart for God. Now that you belong to Him, you are obligated to His service.
You might not take this seriously, but the bottom line is this divine ownership requires your consecration – the setting apart to honor God by living a holy life in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose, and action. God tells you to be holy like Him (1 Peter 1:15-16), Know that since God paid for you, He will also empower you and help you.
– if you choose to be…a saint.
2. REALIZE you must make a daily, determined, and disciplined effort to allow the Holy Spirit to set you apart. Since you probably would admit that you are far from perfect, then know your sanctification will be a work in progress. And as long as you are on this earth, you will need to be continually conforming into the image of Jesus.
But be patient because this process will only be complete when you see Jesus face to face (1 John 3:2). The good news is God has given you all the things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him (2 Peter 1:3). That means God will give you all the power of the Holy Spirit as well as the patience with perseverance to pursue a life of holiness,
– if you choose to grow as…a saint.
3. REVERENCE the Lord and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you (1 Samuel 12:24). Those great things you should never take for granted because when you trusted Him for your salvation, you were set apart for His special purposes.
By reverencing the Lord and walking in His ways, you will be rewarded with prosperity, happiness, and well-being (Psalm 128:1-2, TPT). If this is not enough, Psalm 34:9 in the Living Bible says if you belong to the Lord, reverence Him; for everyone who does this has everything they need. These are the Lord’s sure and precious promises to you.
– if you choose to live as…a saint.
Therefore, as a true believer, keep these three things in mind and you will experience God’s power, patience, and promises. But wait! That’s not all. There’s more! The Lord will speak peace to you (Psalm 85:8). He will deliver you (Psalm 97:10). The Lord will never desert you; you will be kept forever in His faithful care (Psalm 37:28,TPT). You might not think you deserve all this, but you can receive them anyway. Why? Because once you choose to be set apart to follow Jesus…
YOU’RE A SAINT!
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