TUESDAY, APRIL 4
1 Corinthians 1:1-3
Ephesians 4:1-3

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

CALLED TO BE SAINTS

A local church is not made of bricks and mortar, but of believers who are "called to be saints" (1 Cor 1:2). Unlike the Roman Catholic Church who reserves the privilege of sainthood to a selected few, the Bible teaches us that all who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ are called saints of God.

The term "saints" (hagioi) literally means "holy ones." When a man embraces Christ as his Lord and Saviour, he is cleansed of his sins by the blood of the Lamb and is clothed with the righteousness of Christ. He is positionally sanctified in Christ Jesus and declared holy before God the Father. When the Roman Catholic Church teaches that only some can become saints of God, it is in effect a denial of the efficacy of Christ’s work on the cross of Calvary.

When a man is designated the title of the "holy one" of God, he is expected to conduct himself in a manner that is worthy of his calling (Eph 4:1). He must show forth a life that is separated from worldliness and dedicated unto holiness. This opening description of Paul is thus a call to the Corinthian Christians to examine their lives to see if they had been walking in a manner that was consistent with their profession of Christ. If they were truly saints of God, why were they embracing sin rather than holiness?

In his commentary, Calvin noted that though a man professes Christ, he may not be part of the true church of God if he is not committed to holiness. "For if you do not by holiness of life show yourself to be a Christian, you may indeed be in the Church, and pass undetected, but of it you cannot be." The danger of one who is consistently walking in sin is that he may not be born again in the first place and is deceiving himself. "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother" (1 John 3:10).

THOUGHT: Am I walking worthy of my calling as a saint of God?
PRAYER: Help me to walk in holiness, O Lord!