Saint or sinner?

Whether taking an exam at school or applying for a job, you’ve likely at some time been exposed to some old school psychological testing …

“Waves are to the ocean as a house is to …”

“Stars are to the galaxy as a hat is to …”

“Blue is to yellow as savory is to …”

The idea is that some things naturally go together, and most of us see these matches.

Kind of like sinner and saint.

Wait …

… sinner with saint?

If you listen to many Christians today, they routinely identify themselves as sinners.

“I’m just a sinner saved by grace.”

But that is not the identity scripture gives to those who have been redeemed. Jesus Christ didn’t suffer a horrendous death on a cross so that we would maintain the identity of sinner; rather, He offered Himself as a sacrifice so that our identity may be forever changed!

There are multiple descriptions the Bible gives to Christians from being the body of Christ, the children or family of God, to New Testament writers routinely referring to Christians as “saints.” Peter amplified his description of a Christian in the following way:

“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession …” 1 Peter 2:9a.

When God looks upon His children, He doesn’t automatically pair them with “sinner” any longer. While it is true there are no perfect Christians, for all who are followers of Jesus Christ there is now a specific change in their lives: they no longer practice sin.

“Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God,” 1 John 3:4-9.

“But it’s just in our nature to sin,” argues some Christians regarding the pattern of sin in their lives.

Not any more, it isn’t!

“When you came to Christ, you were ‘circumcised,’ but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision — the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead,” Colossians 2:11-12.

Many Christians, including many pastors, dismiss this as semantics. But it is much, much more than that! Whether you see yourself primarily as a sinner, or as a saint, is how you establish your identity.

Even some preachers recoil at the thought of people identifying themselves as “saints.” But to do so is to reject precisely what Jesus Christ has accomplished in us! Those who belong to Him are no longer practicing sinners, they are being transformed into saints.

“For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy,” Hebrews 10:14.

Not perfectly sinless saints, but saints nonetheless!

Many stumble over this concept of being a saint because they have a misunderstanding of the word. The word “saint” comes from the Greek word “hagios,” which means “consecrated to God, holy, sacred, pious” or referring to those who have been “set apart.” It is used 233 times in 221 verses in the New Testament. One Bible scholar notes, “Hagios is Paul’s favorite description of believers and designates the believers position in Christ as holy or set apart from that which is secular, profane, and evil and is dedicated unto God, His worship and His service.”

A sinner is one who practices sin; a saint is one who has been set aside as holy unto the Lord and is growing in holy living as the Holy Spirit continues His transforming work in the life of the Christian.

Because of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, “sinner” and “saint” are not a natural pairing.

What’s your identity: are you a sinner, or a saint?

Scotty