PERFECTING OF the SAINTS

1. Who are Saints?: Epistles of Peter and Paul are not written to Bishops, Pastors, not even to any Christian leaders but to the Saints of the churches. (Rom. 1:7; 1Cor. 1:12; Eph. 1:1; Phil. 1:1; Col. 1:2,26; Philemon. 1:7)

2. The Psalmist says; Saints are those “who have made a covenant with God with a sacrifice” - i.e. they offer  lost souls as sweet smelling sacrifice. (Ps.50:5; 51:17)

3. Saint (In Greek hagios means “consecrated, set apart for a special purpose”). Whilst the disciples are learners (mathetes in Greek), the saints are rooted and grounded in love and have the big picture. (Eph. 3:17,18)

4. The word Christian comes only 3 times in the NT but  “saints” comes 61 times; 13 times in the Revelation. Saints are members of the household of God and inheritors of the Kingdom. (Eph. 1:18; 2:19; Acts 26:18)

5. Disciples are to be found only in the gospels and the Book of Acts, but not in the Epistles. They had matured into Saints, including women saints like Phoebe and Junia. Paul declared himself to be "less than the least of all saints." (Eph. 3:8; Rom. 16:1,2;7;15; Rev. 2:7,11,26)

6. Yeshua is King of Saints and His church is communion of saints. Saints obey his Command to go the extra mile to gather fruit. (1Cor.14:33; Rom. 15:24; Rev. 14:12; 15:3)

7. It is the prayers of the saints that reach the golden altar in front of the Throne of God. The golden bowls that the twenty four Elders hold in the presence of God are full of prayers of the saints. (Rev 5:8; 8:1-6)

8. Saints are special because even the Spirit of God makes intercession for the saints, according to the will of God.  (Rom. 8:27; Eph. 6:18; Rev. 5:8)

9. Paul defines ministry as offering sanctified Gentiles as spiritual sacrifice. The function of the fivefold gifted equippers is perfecting the saints for ministry among the lost. The indicators of successful ministry are fruitfulness and unity in the church. (Rom. 15:16; Eph. 4:11-13)

10. The mystery which had been hidden for ages has now been revealed to the saints. The mystery is that Christ in you is the hope of glory of the Gentiles. The saints are to teach every man in all wisdom and present  them perfect in Christ. (Col. 1:26-28; Eph. 3:4-6)

11. In the end times it is the saints who will bear the brunt of the attack by the Devil and the angry nations. The woman with the purple clothes will be drunk with blood of the saints. Thousands of saints will be martyred. The process has already begun. (Rev. 13:7; 16:6; 17:6)

12. Yeshua will return with tens of thousands of saints. Saints are the cloud of witnesses surrounding us, helping us to run with perseverance, the course marked out for us. (Jude 1:3,14; Heb.12:1; 1Thess. 3:13; 2Thess. 1:10)

13. Yeshua will send His angels, to gather His elect from the four winds. The Ancient of Days will pass judgment in favor of His saints and they shall possess the kingdom for an eternity; “Know it not that saints will judge the world... and the angels.” (Dan.7:18,27; 1Cor. 6:2,3)

14. The Bride: The saints from all nations, tongues and tribe will stand before God as the Bride of Christ. (Rev. 7:9,10)