Today we continue on in our series on the Apostle’s Creed. We need to ensure our faith is built on the Rock - Jesus, the Word of God, otherwise we will be tossed by every wind of doctrine that sweeps across the Earth in these dangerous times we live in. By the time we’ve finished, you will know the Apostle’s Creed by heart. This week we look at the Communion of Saints. Feel free to join in...
1. I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
2. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
3. who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.
4. Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
5. He descended into Hell. On the third day he rose again from the dead.
6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. From there He will come to judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Spirit,
9. the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
10. the forgiveness of sins,
11. the resurrection of the body,
12. and life everlasting.
Amen
The first thing to notice that catholic has a little « c ». This is not the creed of the Catholic Church. The Apostle’s Creed belongs to all Christians. Catholic in fact means universal, which is to say all Christian’s everywhere, whether on Earth or in Heaven.
The Church is not just down here but in Heaven where it is far more glorious. More singing, greater worship, more prayer, more love for one another and for the Lord. This thought alone is enough to make us excited for coming to Church on a Sunday.
The second thing is that it is the communion of saints not the Communion of the Saints. The difference is subtle but indicates something more organic and continuously growing i.e. the Body of Christ rather than an event like our weekly Communion for example.
The third thing to know is that the Catholic Church believes the saints are made up of;
1. The Church Militant (Saints on Earth)
2. The Church Penitent (Saints in Purgatory)
3. The Church Triumphant (Saints in Heaven)
We reject Purgatory as heretical as that would mean that Jesus’s death was not sufficient to pay for our sins in full. It would also mean we would have to be punished for our sins after we die before entering Heaven which is works based, not the Gospel which is good news for sinners! Purgatory does not exist.
The communion of saints (communio sanctorum), when referred to persons, is the spiritual union of the members of the Christian Church Militant and Triumphant, living and the dead, but excluding the damned. They are all part of a single “mystical body", with Christ as the head, in which each member contributes to the good of all and shares in the welfare of all.
This week I broke my tooth and that’s gone forever - I won’t grow another one. When a Christian dies, they are not like an old broken tooth of no further use, they are alive in Christ and still functioning as part of the body just as we’re also connected to and still able to serve the Body down here. This might be a bit of a crude illustration but that is unlike a non-believer who is separated and thrown in the rubbish like my old broken tooth.
After my brother died, we went out for dinner with some old friends from the Youth Group and we recalled stories of when we were young. I told them it was strange, but I felt different, that I now had a real connection to Heaven as my brother is there. Not just like a place in a story you have read but more like another country he has moved to and I will go to see him. More than that though, there have been several times since when things happen in my life that seems like something Colin would have arranged. So, I do believe that people in Heaven can pray for us and help us down here.
However, the Bible does warn us about communicating with the dead and it’s not something we should be doing.
‘Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.
Leviticus 19:31
And when they say to you, “Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living?
Isaiah 8:19
The practices of Spiritualist Churches in communicating with the dead is strictly forbidden by Scripture and the practice of praying to the Saints by the Catholic Church is also crossing the line.
The official position of the Catholic Church is that you can ask a saint in Heaven to pray for you just as we ask someone to pray for us down here. But it’s too easy to cross the line and start praying to the saint instead of to Jesus. It’s too easy to believe, as many Catholics do, that saints in Heaven have more direct access to God than us down here but that actually contradicts Scripture.
Worse than that, it can open you up to familiar spirits which are against God. These are evil spirits that have knowledge of your dead family and will try to deceive you and lead you away from Jesus.
No saint can take Jesus’ place:
For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
1 Timothy 2:5
There is no one else who can mediate with God for us. Since Jesus is the only mediator, Mary and the saints cannot be mediators. Further, the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ Himself is interceding for us before the Father:
Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
Hebrews 7:25
With Jesus Himself interceding for us, why would we need Mary or the saints to intercede for us? Whom would God listen to more readily than His only begotten Son? Romans 8:26-27 says the Holy Spirit is also interceding for us.
Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
With the second and third Persons of the Trinity already interceding for us before the Father, why would we need to have Mary or the saints interceding for us?
After Halloween which belongs to the Devil, it is followed by All Saints Day on November 1st and All Souls Day on November 2nd.
The Christian celebration of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day stems from this belief that there is a powerful spiritual bond between those in heaven (the "Church triumphant"), and the living (the "Church militant"). In Catholic theology, the day commemorates all those who have attained the beatific vision in Heaven. In Methodist theology, All Saints Day revolves around "giving God solemn thanks for the lives and deaths of his saints", including those who are "famous or obscure". As such, individuals throughout the Church Universal are honoured, such as Paul the Apostle, Augustine of Hippo and John Wesley, in addition to individuals who have personally led one to faith in Jesus, such as one's grandmother or friend.
In France, La Toussaint which is derived from 2 words “Tous” meaning “all” and “Saint” meaning “Holy” or “Saint”. All Saints is a public holiday celebrating honour of all the saints of the church, whether they are known or unknown. It is also the day when people go and visit the graves of the departed already in Heaven. Not to be confused with the following day which is All Souls Day - the day to pray for all the church penitent souls in purgatory - a damnable heresy.
The concept of the communion of saints is linked with Paul's teaching, as in Romans 12:4–13 and 1 Corinthians 12:12–27, that in Christ Christians form a single body.
For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
Romans 12:4-13
PCC has not implemented a formal membership like other churches, however every believer here today has a gift from the Holy Spirit and a role to fulfil at PCC. To say that you don’t have a gift is to call God a liar.
So if you remember the parable of the talents, it is really super important that you don’t bury your gift for the sake of the Body and ultimately for your own good.
CORE VALUE
what’s most important to us
1. We emphasise the “Body of Christ” Ministry and Mission with Jesus Christ as the Head…..
1 Corinthians 12; Romans 12:4-8; Ephesians 4:11-16
2. …..each member exercising individual spiritual gift/s for the building of the Body and the Communication of the Gospel
Matthew 22:36-40; Matthew 28:18-20
CORE PURPOSES
what we want to achieve
1. every member exercising their gift/s within the church and in the mission field
2. every member encouraged and affirmed to utilise their gifts
3. every ministry / mission led by a called leader/s
4. every ministry / mission fulfilling our Core Value (or part of it)
If you are wondering how you can practically use your gift in the Church, it is our role as Elders to help guide you in that so please come and see us!
“What who me ? I’m not a Saint !” you might be thinking…
The New Testament word ἅγιος (hagios) translated into English as "saint" can refer to Christians, who, whatever their personal sanctity as individuals, are called holy because they are consecrated to God and Christ. This usage of the word "saints" is found some fifty times in the New Testament.
Understanding we are Saints now is something that is sometimes hard to get our head around. We don’t have to wait 50 years after we have died for the Pope to declare we have been beatified. We will experience the reality of being Saints now if we walk in the light because of the blood of Christ.
1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
It is impossible to be a saint on your own, you need the Church, you need the communion of saints to survive the Christian life. So you need to walk in the Light!
History from Wikipedia Communion of saints
The persons who are linked in this communion include those who have died and whom Hebrews 12:1 pictures as a cloud of witnesses encompassing Christians on earth. In the same chapter,
Hebrews 12:22-24 makes an amazing statement about Christians on earth;
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.
Do you ever think about that when you’re in church on a Sunday? Has Paul ever tuned in to our service…
We can’t talk about the communion of saints without mentioning the Book of Life. Every member of the Body of Christ has their name written in the Book of Life. That is the true Church Membership. Jesus said that having your name written in Heaven is really something to celebrate.
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”
Luke 10:19-20
There is no more important book than the Book of Life! Having your name recorded in there is priceless. That guarantees our safety on the Day of Judgement.
And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
Revelation 20:12
Just like if you try to enter New Zealand without having your name listed on Department of Immigration’s register, so will it be for everyone whose name is not written in the Book of Life. That is our passport into the glorious heavenly city
But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
Revelation 21:27
Tomorrow is the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen was a confessing Christian; therefore, we can know she has joined all the other Saints in Heaven today as we have communion with them and worship the Lord together. Tomorrow’s funeral will be a day of rejoicing in Heaven so we should not be too sad down here!
We’ll finish with Paul’s prayer in Ephesians
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:14-21
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