I Am A Saint

I once read a devotional plan called “It Is Finished”. One of the days said about the words “it is finished”:

It could be understood in a negative context. [Such as “I’m ruined,” “It’s all over,” or “I give up.”] Jesus did not intend these thoughts with His phrase.
He meant [it] as a call of triumph. His saving work is completed. Because of His complete sacrifice on the cross, we have forgiveness of our sins. We have redemption. We have atonement. Jesus is declaring Sin has been defeated. Death has lost its power. Victory is in our hands now.

“It Is Finished” devotional plan, provided by NorthBridge Church

I’ve written before about how those words were a shout of triumph from Jesus. So today’s post is taking a different route. 🙂

Jesus declared that it is finished: the work of salvation is completed; a way to Heaven is opened up; Satan, Sin, and Death are defeated and no longer can have a complete hold over someone forever (if they turn to Christ); forgiveness is freely offered; chains are broken, etc., etc.

That means “victory is in our hands”–because of what Jesus has done, we too can shout in triumph! Satan cannot keep us, sin has no power to keep us, and chains can’t always hold us down!

Jesus cried “It is finished!” so why don’t we? Why are we not living in that proclamation? Beloved, you are loved and set free, the veil is torn and you are allowed to go in Christ’s power to all the corners of this world. …

T.B. LaBerge, from Pinterest

In another devotional plan I read, it stated:

… At one time you were a sinner, but now that you are saved, your sin-driven past is behind you. You are currently a saint who sometimes sins. …
… If you continue to say that you are “just a sinner saved by grace,” you are saying that your identity is still that of a sinner.
Not true! At the very moment you trusted Christ, you stopped being a sinner and started being a saint. You were indeed saved by grace from your sin, but your identity as a sinner, which you inherited at birth, is gone. Because Christ saved us, we are now God’s sons and daughters.
…
If we walk around constantly identifying ourselves as sinners saved by grace, we are communicating to ourselves and to others that we are defined by our previous identity as a sinner. … We want to fully acknowledge to the Father and those around us that we continue to sin, but the Father does not want His children to run around and identify themselves as sinners.
… The distinction between seeing yourself as a sinner or seeing yourself as a saint makes a huge difference in the way you live your life. Because you will act out the way you view yourself. …

Pete Briscoe, “You Are a Saint Not a Sinner” devotional plan

I believe we do need to realize we are sinners (because otherwise, we won’t see our need for a Savior). We need to keep that fact and the salvation/deliverance God has given us and how far He’s brought us in mind. But I also believe that we can’t see ourselves as sinners, can’t claim that as our identity. “You become what you focus on” is true in so many ways.

We are saints!

But what does that even mean? What is a saint?

One of the definitions is “(in or alluding to biblical use) a Christian believer.”

In its most basic sense, a saint is a “holy one,” someone who is set apart for God’s special purposes. As a result, every follower of Jesus Christ is a saint. …
…
… In 1 Corinthians 1:30 Paul writes that Christ Jesus “became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption.” The word translated “sanctification” (or “holiness” in some translations) is part of the same word family as the word for “saint.” All who are identified with Jesus Christ by faith are given the status of “holy” before God because of what Jesus has done for us.

Matthew Harmon, “What Does ‘Saint’ Mean?”

Every Christian believer. Every follower of Christ. You! Me!

Jesus died because we were sinners. We are saints because of Him.

It is finished.

P.S. The word saint (or a variation thereof) is found in the Old Testament 36 times and in the New Testament 62 times. Below are just five of those references! 😊

… let thy priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation, and let thy saints rejoice in goodness.

2 Chronicles 6:41 (KJV)

And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

Romans 8:27 (KJV)

…to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints,…

1 Corinthians 1:2 (KJV)

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Ephesians 2:19 (KJV)

…to all the saints in Christ Jesus…

Philippians 1:1 (KJV)