Sinner vs Saint
Who Do You Think You Are?
- Secular – self-image, self-esteem
- Christian – identity – 1. who God is, 2. who you are, 3. who others are
- One thing that changes everything
- When you know who you are you know what to do
I am ________________?
- Position – in family, in company, in community
- Performance – in school, at work, in life
- Possessions – “conspicuous consumption”; or “competitive consumption”
Things explain you. God defines you.
=Satan in Garden “become like God”
Non-Christian Sinner
Romans 3:9-10 all…are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one…”
Romans 3:23 all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
- Wrath – 20 words nearly 600X
- Over 300X Bible refers to “sinners”
- Total/Pervasive Depravity (Rom. 3:9-17) – all of a person is infected & affected by sin
- Utter Depravity – 1. Conscience (Rom. 2); Death (Rom. 50; Law (Rom. 13)
Saint in Christ
Romans 1:6-7 you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ…loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ
Romans 3:24 in Christ Jesus
Romans 3:26 in Jesus
Saint
Catholic
I thought like Superheroes – Chastity Man
First Catholic saints honored martyrs
Father James Martin summarizes sainthood in the Catholic Church:
1. Be a Catholic 2. Die 3. local devotion grows up around your memory 4. Your life is investigated
5. Local bishop sends your case to Vatican 6. Pray for a miracle 7. Vatican investigates miraculous cure
8. Vatican declares you, “Blessed” 9. Pray for another miracle 10. You’re a saint!
Can be venerated – holiday, patron saint schools & churches
Bible
- Over 300X Bible refers to “sinners”
- Only 3X does Bible “possibly refer to XN as “sinners”
- Over 200X Bible XN saints/holy/righteous
Sin may explain some of your activity but does not define your entire identity in Christ.
You will sin some of the time but you are a saint all of the time in Christ.
Sin is some of what you do but not the totality of who you are in Christ.
There is a difference between having sin and being sin in Christ.
Because you have a new identity as saint you can have a new victory over sin in Christ.
As a sinners you have a past but as a saint you have a future in Christ.
Like adoption – Father chooses, new identity, new family, works from not for relationship
Group Questions
1. Do you primarily see God as angry judger or helpful Father?
2. Do you primarily see yourself as a sinner or a saint?
3. In your closest relationships are you more prone to point out sin or promote saint?
4. How can we pray for you?