Yesterday was All Saints Day and we’ll celebrate it on Sunday in our services. It’s a celebration of all the saints, living on earth and alive in heaven, and an opportunity to reflect on the example set by saints in the past and present and to the hope we have for a future safe with Jesus. Of course, one problem we have is that we’ve often been taught to think of saints as ancient, dead, very holy, special people. However, the biblical understanding of a saint is someone whom God has made holy. For the Old Testament people of God, this meant belonging to God’s chosen people, the Jews. For New Testament believers and beyond, this means belonging to the body of Christ, a people made holy through Jesus’ sacrifice. That’s us! For both groups, being a saint has implications about how we live our lives. ‘But you are God’s chosen and special people’ writes Peter. ‘You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things he has done’ (1 Peter 2:9). A group of royal priests? All of us? Absolutely - no dog collar required!
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