September 19.
Favor To The Saints

Romans 1:7

To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: grace to you and peace from God our father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Beloved of God, called to be Saints. The Greek word for saint is hagios. We are not Christians; we are saints. It was our enemies who labeled us with the term Christian. They were really trying to pick at us when they called us Christians. When they saw people following Christ they pointed, “There go those Christians.” It was at Antioch we were first called Christians. It’s a nickname for the saints of God, but our real name is saints. It is disturbing when a believer says, “I’m not a saint.” Then what are you? You’re either a saint or you are an ain’t. You’re one or the other. The word saint comes from the word meaning holy. When you are a saint, you have characteristics that are holy. You still need some work done on you, but if you’re a saint your heart’s desire is to be holy.

Grace to you. Grace is God’s unmerited favor. In other words, I’m getting something I don’t deserve. There is a difference between mercy and grace. Mercy is when you don’t get what you do deserve, but grace is when you get what you don’t deserve. If a person shot a man and his sentence is thirty years behind bars, the judge can give him mercy and let him walk free. He deserved to go to prison but the judge let him go back to his family. But grace has to do with getting what you don’t deserve. I am a sinner and the wages of sin is death. But grace switches it on you and instead of giving you death, grace gives you life. And not only that, but grace gives you life more abundantly.

Peace. Peace is freedom from constant restlessness. It is an inner peace down on the inside. It is not a substance you drink out of a bottle, money you get out of a bank, or something you find on a street. Peace is a person and His name is Jesus. It is only because of Him we are saints.