Saints and Sinners

Saints and Sinners

Romans 12:1-2

            “Every saint has a past.  Every sinner has a future.” (Edward Pritchard, 16^th century poet)

            We know this is true—intellectually, that is.  We know we don’t begin life as saints.  We begin as sinners—every one of us.  Paul tells us, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).  We can’t escape it.  Whether we believe that our sinful nature was caused by Adam and Eve’s disobedience; or believe that we, like them, were born with a predilection for sin because God created us with free will and an ego; or believe some other form of Christian theology, the result is the same.  We are not sinful because we sin.  We sin because we are sinners—plain and simple. 

            If it were not for God’s free gift of salvation we would have no hope of escaping our past.  We would be doomed by sin throughout our entire lives—and beyond!  No salvation, no reconciliation.  No reconciliation, no hope.  It’s only God’s grace that stands between us and the consequences of our sin.

            So we all begin life in the same sinful condition.  None of us is any better than anyone else—nor any worse.  There is a bumper sticker that declares, “Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.”  True enough—but there is an arrogance in that statement, intended or not, that makes Christians look bad.   In our joy at having been redeemed it’s easy to forget that one of the seven deadly sins is pride.  In fact, it was ego—pride—that made Eve listen to the serpent, disobey God, and eat the forbidden fruit.  Any time we let our egos run loose we stand the chance of succumbing to our sinful nature and giving in to temptation.

            Every saint has a past.  That’s us.  We have a past, and that past is sinful.  There’s no other way to look at it.  I believe, however, that this is the easiest part to accept.  We know we were in need of redemption, and rejoice in the knowledge that we have been forgiven.  It’s the second half of this quote that is most likely to cause us trouble.

            Pritchard says, “Every sinner has a future.”  This is the message of the gospel.  God desires that every human being be saved.  God wants every sinner to become a saint.  Despite what we think John Calvin said, the truth of the gospel is the good news that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).  Paul makes it clear that God makes no distinction between people.  We are all created by God, and God loves us all.  Salvation is not limited to the few, or even to the many, but is available to everyone.

            This is where some people have a problem.  Many want to limit God’s salvation in some way.  Salvation is for those who subscribe to a certain set of doctrines.  Salvation is for those who follow a certain set of steps.  Salvation is for those who believe as we believe.  If you don’t do everything just right, if you aren’t baptized in the correct manner, if you don’t use the right words when you pray, you’re doomed.

            But Pritchard says every sinner has a future—and he’s correct.  There is not one of us who did not begin our lives as a sinner; and there is not one person who does not have the potential of becoming a saint.  Let me remind you that sainthood is not for a few who meet some sort of artificial standard.  Sainthood is the right—the responsibility of all redeemed Christians.  We are all called to sainthood—that is, we are all called to be set apart for God’s use.  We may have begun life as sinners, but it is our privilege—our responsibility—to end it as saints.