Some people believe that a saint is a Christian who has died and been officially recognized by a church so people can pray to him. Or we may hear people say, "Well, I'm no saint," meaning they are not sinlessly perfect. But what is a saint according to the Bible?Acts 9:13 says that Saul of Tarsus harmed (persecuted) the saints at Jerusalem. Surely he was persecuting, not dead people, but living people. So who were they? Acts 9:1 says he persecuted the disciples of the Lord, who were later called Christians (Acts 11:26). Acts 8:3 says Saul persecuted the church. So saints are simply Christians, disciples of Jesus, members of His church.
The word "saint" literally means, "a person who has been sanctified." To be sanctified means to be set apart or dedicated to God's service. New Testament Christians were saints because they had become sanctified or dedicated to God's service.
So how does a person become sanctified? First, one must hear and believe the gospel. John 17:17 says: "Sanctify them through Your truth. Your word is truth." Then one must be cleansed of sin by the power of Jesus' blood. Hebrews 13:12 says Jesus died "that He might sanctify the people with His own blood." But how does a person receive the benefits of Jesus' blood? Romans 6:3 says that we are baptized into His death. Ephesians 5:26 says that Christ gave Himself for the church "that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word." So a person becomes a saint, when he is baptized in obedience to the word of the Lord.
Anyone can become a saint, and all of us should be saints.
(c) Copyright David E. Pratte, 2005; gospelway.com
To study more articles like this (syndicated for reproduction) visit our Bible study topics web site. This article is freely available to be reproduced in print or on a web site under the following conditions: (1) The article must be reproduced verbatim in total without any change in content, (2) the name of the author and web site addresses must be included (as in this trailer), (3) the use must be entirely non-commercial with no fee or financial charge of any kind to the readers. Click here for more information about our copyright guidelines.
To enroll in a free online Bible course or to receive free Bible study materials by e-mail or to read other online Bible studies, click on the links below.
Use your "back" button to return to the previous page.
View
our menu of brief Bible Study Topics and articles
Please bookmark our site in your favorites.
We welcome links to us from other sites :
gospelway.com
- The Gospel Way: Free Bible Study Materials & Guides
Scripture quotations are generally from the New King James Version (NKJV), copyright 1982, 1988 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. used by permission. All rights reserved.