I believe in the communion of saints. This is the second clause of the ninth article of faith found in the Apostles’ Creed, and it is intimately tied together with the first clause. You cannot confess with a good conscience “I believe in the holy universal church” without also confessing “and the communion of saints.” The Body of Christ—His Church—is not made up of bricks and mortar, 2x4s and Sheetrock, plumbing and wiring. We may announce to family or friends, “I’m going over to the church today,” but this is an error. More correctly you should be telling family or friends, “I’m going to the building complex where the Baptist saints periodically meet together for worship, edification, and fellowship.” But that’s a mouthful, and so we just say, “I’m going over to the church today,” We must never forget that the Church is not a building, but a community of believers.

The Body of Christ is made up of living saints—saints either living on Earth or saints now living in Heaven. This article of the Apostles’ Creed reminds us of the spiritual solidarity which binds together the faithful on Earth with the faithful in Heaven. The primary difference between the two is that the Saints on Earth see Jesus and spiritual things through a mirror dimly. The Saints in Heaven see Jesus and spiritual truth face to face. The Saints on Earth should reverence the Saints in Heaven and seek to emulate the best of their lives. This is why the Apostle Paul lists for us the role call of Saints in the eleventh chapter of the Book of Hebrews. He ends his role call with a pointed admonition,

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us," (Hebrews 12:1, ESV)

The Saints in Heaven are to serve as an example of faith to us, and their lives should motivate us to lay aside all those things that hinder us as we run the race of faith set before us.

So then, let me take a few moments to dissect for you the meaning of the clause, “I believe in the communion of saints.”

I. WE ARE SAINTS

in Western culture, saint is a word that has come to refer to a Christian of deep spiritual piety that is a cut-above your “normal” run-of-the-mill believer

sometimes you’ll hear someone refer to their mother as a saintly woman

isn’t it interesting that we never hear of a father being praised as a saintly man
it’s only our mothers who are saintly

our Catholic friends, as you know, have a tradition of canonizing certain men and women as bonafide Saints

once these individuals are canonized they are considered a model of the virtuous Christian life to be emulated, and will intercede before God on the behalf of believers here on earth

those who the Catholic Church canonizes as Saints are seen—for lack of a better description—as spiritual nobility

the Catholic Online website lists about 10,000 individuals who have been named Saints over the centuries

as with the nature of the church, we are in sharp disagreement with the Catholic Church over the identity of the saints

the word Saint is never-ever used in the New Testament to identify some kind of spiritual nobility, or Christian elite, but is a reference to the People of God regardless of the depth of their spiritual maturity
Saints, in the New Testament, are never deceased individuals who have been canonized by an ecclesiastical council and given sainthood

they are living individuals who have been born from above by the Spirit of God, who have become a new creation and have dedicated themselves to the worship and service of the one true God as revealed through his Son, Jesus Christ

Saints are indeed a distinct and special people—not because of their own merits, but because of the merits of Christ

in his second letter to the Christians at Thessalonica, the Apostle Paul makes it clear that “His saints”—God’s saints—are described as “all who have believed”

"when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed." (2 Thessalonians 1:10, ESV)

half of the Apostle Pauls’ letters begin with the phrase, “ ... to the saints at ... “

was the apostle writing merely to a select group of Christians in each of those churches, or is he addressing the entire congregation?

if God has done a miraculous work in your life—what Jesus called ‘being born from above’—then you are one of God’s Saints

every believer has the right to call himself a saint
none of us is worthy of the title—we don’t always act saintly—but God has declared us to be saints because of our trust in His Son
this leads me to my second point

II. WE ARE SAINTS BY THE GRACE OF GOD

the word translated saint in the New Testament is from the Greek adjective ἅγιος (hagios)

it is used 61 times in the New Testament
it means to sanctify or to make holy
ours is not an earned holiness, but an imputed holiness

ILLUS. In the tradition of the Catholic and Orthodox churches, sainthood is something that has to be earned by the believer in question. The official process for declaring someone a saint is called canonization, and is an involved process. When a Catholic dies who has, what they refer to as, a "fame of sanctity" or "fame of martyrdom," the Bishop of the Diocese usually initiates an investigation of the believer’s life. One requirement is whether any miracle has been granted through the candidate saint's intercession. The Church will also investigate the candidate's writings to see if they possess "purity of doctrine," essentially, nothing heretical or against the faith. All of this information is gathered, and a faithful copy, duly authenticated and sealed, is submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints. Once the case is accepted by the Congregation, further investigation is conducted. Throughout this investigation an official known as the "devil's advocate,” raises objections and doubts which must be resolved. Once a candidate is declared to have lived life with heroic virtue, he or she may be declared Venerable. The next step is Beatification. A martyr may be beatified and declared "Blessed" by virtue of martyrdom itself. Otherwise, the candidate must be credited with a “First Class Miracle”—a miracles that is an obvious intervention of God against the laws of nature. In verifying the miracle, the Church looks at whether God truly performed a miracle and whether the miracle was in response to the intercession of the candidate saint on the behalf of living believer who sought the candidate saint’s intervention. After Beatification, another miracle is needed for Canonization and the formal declaration of sainthood.

as Christians we should live holy lives, but holy living does not make us holy nor turn us into a saint
Christ’s work in us, not our own effort either in this world or the next, makes us holy

ILLUS. Many of the men and women who have been canonized by the Catholic and Orthodox churches over the centuries were indeed pious, and holy believers. Many were martyred for their faith. But they were saints by the grace of God and not because some ecclesiastical council decided to make them so. Jesus is the only Congregation for the Causes of the Saints we need!

believers are sanctified by the Holy Spirit, not by their own good deeds or by religious ritual

it is through this sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit that we are called to be saints
the Apostle Paul spells this out in his writings

"Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, 2To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:" (1 Corinthians 1:1-2, ESV)
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-11, ESV)
"And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (Hebrews 10:10, ESV)

God provides us our holiness through His Son

man’s part is to claim holiness, to claim sainthood, by faith in the Son
we have a new nature, the divine nature, and we possess everything we need to live a life holiness and godliness

"His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire." (2 Peter 1:3-4, ESV)

A. THE REDEEMING WORK OF CHRIST MAKES THE BELIEVER PART OF A HOLY PRIESTHOOD

"As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 2:4-5, ESV)

our holiness in Christ is both individual and cooperate

each and every true Saint is holy by nature

God sees us as righteous, and holy, because He sees us through His righteous, and holy Son, who took our place on the cross of Calvary, and because He has planted in us a righteous new nature
Presidents do not always act presidentially, diplomats do not always act diplomatically, kings do not always act kingly—but they are still presidents, diplomats, and kings
Christians do not always act like Christians, but they are still Christians

but Christianity was never, ever meant to be experienced as a solitary life

in Christ, we are called into a communion of saints that the Apostle Peter here describes as a spiritual house that is to be a holy priesthood

the Apostle is teaching us that our position in Christ should translate into practice in the world

now, I talked to you last week about our priesthood in Christ and what spiritual sacrifices are, so I’m not going to address that again
but I do want to address the holiness aspect of the believer’s priesthood
that leads me to me final point

III. WE ARE SAINTS BY THE GRACE OF GOD CALLED INTO COMMUNION WITH OTHER SAINTS

so what exactly does the phrase “communion of saints” mean?

let me break it down for you

the word “communion” translates the Greek word koinonia

that’s a very common word in the New Testament that means fellowship or partnership

it means to share together in a close relationship

in secular Greek it was used for a marriage, a business partnership, a community, or a nation bound together by common goals

preeminently the word applies to friendship

Acts 2:42 uses this word to describe the intimate closeness of the early Christians who lived together, ate their meals together, and shared all things in common

A. SAINTS ARE TO LIVE IN HOLINESS

"Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16, ESV)

this passage is a call to action to believers

we are to prepare ourselves for spiritual effort

the Apostle writes that we are to prepare our minds for action

prepare literally means gird up and can refer to tightening a belt, cinching up a cord or tying something down in preparation for a certain action

ILLUS. In ancient times, this concept referred to the gathering up of one’s robe. If a person wanted to move quickly and easily, he would pull the corners of his robe up through his belt or sash to tie those corners in place.

Peter metaphorically applies this process to the mind

he urges believers to pull in all the loose ends of their lives
as Christians we are to discipline our thoughts so that we might live according to biblical priorities

we are also to be God’s obedient children and who refuse to allow ourselves to be shaped by the world around us

the word obedient in this passage is a genitive noun

I know you all wanted to know that!
It means that obedience characterizes every true child of God and distinguishes Christians from non-Christians

"And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked." (1 John 2:3-6, ESV)

lastly, Peter writes that believers should not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance

we are to disentangle ourselves from the world’s sinful hindrances, and conduct life righteously and godly, in view of the future grace that accompanies Christ’s return
Peter’s call to holiness was not new but echoed that of the Old Testament
the dominant, compelling reason for God’s people to live in holiness is our relationship with God

ILLUS. C. S. Lewis once commented to an American friend, “How little people know who think that holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing, . . . it is irresistible. If even 10% of the world’s population had it, would not the whole world be converted and happy before a year’s end”

B. SAINTS ARE TO LIVE IN FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHER HOLY SAINTS

John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give unto you, That e love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
ILLUS. God has provided the ideal place for children to grow into productive members of the community. That environment is called the family. God has also provided the ideal place for the Christian to grow into a productive citizen of the Kingdom. That place is called the family of God. The church is the brotherhood of God's people who join together in worship, praise, prayer, encouragement, and confession.

every Sunday we celebrate a time of communion among the Saints

in no other gathering can we experience the level of fellowship that we can in a church where love is shared by believers
from their inception true Baptists have known that which brings us together

it is not doctrinal similarity which binds us together
it is not theological unity which holds us together
it is not even a semblance of worship styles

that which binds us together as a people is the person of Jesus Christ

ILLUS. Charles Wesley, the great Methodist preacher, once said, "Is your heart as my heart? Then give me your hand."

the first focus in worship is on God, our second focus is on "One Another"

Paul uses the term "one another" repeatedly in his Epistles

we are to be kind to one another
we are to love one another
we are to serve one another
we are to show hospitality to one another
we are to confess our faults to one another

fellowship is a total team effort

ILLUS. One of Winnie the Pooh's friends is an old gray donkey named, Eeyore. Eeyore is fond of saying, "Thanks for noticing me." The otherwise over-looked and lonely Eeyore is always happy when someone pays particular attention to him.

many people who go to church every Sunday are like Eeyore

a friendly smile and a warm handshake may be the most intimate interaction they have during the week
these people are sometimes visitors and sometimes our members

Eeyores may be people who have had a hard week or who just feel a little down

they may be young people, small children, or the elderly
they are people who need someone to call their name and notice them as individuals
they need to be more than a face in the crowd

let's face it–we all are a little like Eeyore–we like to be noticed by others
we also need to notice the Eeyores

perhaps the hallmark of the a true New Testament Church is the fellowship among the redeemed not merely membership among the religious

Friends, I end by asking you a simple question: “Do you love the communion of the Saints?” Consider 1 John 3:14 “We know that we have passed out of death into life because ... you prayed a prayer? ... because you signed a church membership card? ... Because you were baptized? ... No. ... because we love the brethren."

You see, loving the brethren isn’t the way you’re saved, but loving the brethren gives evidence that you have been saved. We’re saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone; but all who are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and united to Jesus, and therefore, to one another. And so, it is impossible to love Jesus and not also love the brethren.