The Only Real Sadness in Life is Not to Be a Saint

Meditations for Ragamuffins 

February 1, 2024

The Only Real Sadness in Life is Not to Be a Saint

The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world;

the world is peripheral to the church.

Ephesians 1:22 (MSG)

Far too often the followers of Christ shrink back at the notion that they are a saint. Even though Protestants don’t agree with the Roman Catholic tradition of bestowing the title, Saint, on only a chosen few, nevertheless, they tend to think that it is rare indeed when a Christian can be referred to as a saint. Against this backdrop is the stunning theological truth that to be a Christian is to have been sanctified by the blood of Jesus. You can’t be a Christian without first being sanctified; you can’t be a Christian unless you are a saint. Hence, it is precious to God when His saints die because the last obstacle to His children being fully present with Him has been removed: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15 KJV).

Perhaps it was this theological truth that led the French poet, Leon Bloy, to write, “The only real sadness in life is not to be a saint.” Bloy’s words are doubled-edged. First, there is the sadness for those who never embrace for themselves the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Secondly, there is the sadness of those who, although they have tasted the grace of God, never allow God’s grace to fully transform them. These sad ones look at Saint Paul’s remarkable description of being in the fullness of God as the romantic musings of a mystic that never can be the experience of the masses: “Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him” (2 Corinthians 3:18 MSG).

 My Takeaway: How can we take steps to change our mindset; how can we more fully embrace our truest identity as the saints of God? One way is to begin to fully embrace the words of Saint Paul to his friends in Ephesus: “The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church” (Ephesians 1:22 MSG). When you begin to see yourself living at the center of God’s will for your life, your view of yourself and your environment will change. 

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2024 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.