All Saints
Do you know that you are a saint? The protestant reformer, Martin Luther popularized the phrase “priesthood of all believers”. This doctrine asserts that all humans have access to God through Christ. In other words, we do not need mediators. This is why, while we acknowledge church saints, we do not pray to them. All people are equal in the eyes of God. Church leaders are not superior. Bishops, Popes, and the saints of the church are no closer to God. The fancy word for this is called “sanctification,” which is the process of being made Holy. We are made Holy by Christ alone.
When we celebrate All Saints Day, know that your loved ones are counted among the saints. You are counted among them as well. Traditionally, this time of the year is meant to resemble the beginning of winter. As leaves fall and flowers wither, death is often associated with winter. Being from Ohio, winter generally brings a sadness and gloom. However, now that I am in Florida, the sunshine of November reminds me that death doesn’t have to bring sorrow. In fact, we ought to celebrate the new life that our loved ones have been given through the passage into eternal glory.
At the Lord’s table, especially on All Saints Day, we gather with the faithful of every time and place, trusting that the promises of God will be fulfilled and that all tears will be wiped away in the new Kin-dom of God’s creation. All people are made righteous and will join us for the heavenly feast. Yes, I mean ALL people. There are some who seek to put caveats and exceptions on the word “all.” This would mean that Christ only sanctifies a portion of us. Or in others words, the event on the Cross only applies to some people. I will certainly never be the one to claim that Christ’s saving work falls short.
That said, there is a worthy caution. From the very moment Luther made these declarations, he was accused of antinomianism, which is a fancy word that conveys the view that Christians are released by grace from the obligation to observe moral laws. I could give a long list of reasons why morality is important. There are thousands of reasons why we should do the right thing. However, to earn God’s love is not among those reasons. We are saved first, and then our response to being saved is to act in loving, kind, and righteous ways.
God loves you and Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient. The problem with morality is that as long as there’s suffering in the world, then we are guilty. As soon as we believe that we are moral people, then our sin becomes self-righteousness. The truth is, we do good things and we do bad things. Sometimes we make Christ-inspired decisions, sometimes we don’t. God sees us… messy, sinful, and fallen. But God does not leave us there. Christ picks us up and carries us into righteousness. Through Christ, we are made saints. We don’t deserve the title, but are given it. The Gospel of Christ is less about doing and more about what has already been done.
Leaning on the saving Christ,
Pastor Lucas
Photo by Nick Castelli