The Endurance of the Saints

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Our Confession approves honors to the saints. For here a threefold honor is to be approved. The first is thanksgiving. For we ought to give thanks to God because He has shown examples of mercy; because He has shown that He wishes to save men; because He has given teachers or other gifts to the Church. And these gifts, as they are the greatest, should be amplified, and the saints themselves should be praised, who have faithfully used these gifts, just as Christ praises faithful business-men, (Matt. 25:21, 23). The second service is the strengthening of our faith; when we see the denial forgiven Peter, we also are encouraged to believe the more that grace truly superabounds over sin, (Rom. 5:20). The third honor is the imitation, first, of faith, then of the other virtues, which every one should imitate according to his calling.

Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Art. XXI:4-6

On this day, we honor the memory of the blessed saints who have gone before us in the faith. So, it is only fitting that we should consider in what manner we ought to remember them.

Firstly, we give thanks for the lives of the martyrs and confessors, because through them the light of the Gospel has shined through the ages. By their witness, we learn that God desires to save all mankind, even all evil people. For we do not venerate the saints because of their exceptional holiness, but because of their witness to the transforming power of the grace of God. A great many of those we call saints led less-than-holy lives, but were called by the Gospel through the work of the Spirit, and were regenerated into faithful witnesses and confessors of the faith once delivered. We give thanks when we hear of these transformations, because it gives us hope that God can and will deliver sinful people like us, since He has done so before.

Secondly, we honor the memory of the saints because through them we are built up in faith by the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins. As the Apology mentions, St. Peter, though he had vowed otherwise, denied the Lord three times and forsook the Rock upon which he was founded. Yet, upon his confession of sins, our Lord absolved Him, and St. Peter became a powerful confessor and martyr, and upon his confession of faith is the Church built. If Peter could fall so radically, and yet be restored and reconciled to our Lord, how great is the hope for all those whom the Lord loves!

Thirdly, we honor the memory of the saints because they give us bountiful examples of how to live in faith. Though imperfectly, those who have gone before us show us the road that leads to eternal life through their lives of faithfulness and service to the Lord. Whether it is the courage to stand firm before executioners, like Perpetua and Felicitas; whether it is the tenacity to hold firm to the apostolic doctrine, like Athanasius; whether it is the grace to live a life of service to the neighbor, like Mother Teresa; the blessed saints furnish us with examples and instruction to live according to our callings as Christians.

Therefore, give thanks to God for all the saints who have gone before us, whether famous or forgotten in the eyes of the world!

But what does it mean to be a saint? Do you have to be as brave as the martyrs in the Colosseum, or as selfless as Mother Teresa? No, you become a saint by dying.

Consider the description of the saints Jesus gives in Matthew: poor in spirit, mourning, meek, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, persecuted for righteousness, reviled and persecuted and slandered. Nowhere in there does it say famous, extraordinary, theologically perfect, doer of spectacular works.

The saints are those who keep the commandments. St. John describes the path to sainthood in this way, “Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus” (Revelation 14:12). The saints are those who keep the commandments and anchor their faith in Jesus.

Of course, St. John, in his visions, saw the multitude of saints arrayed around the throne of heaven. Those saints had been washed in the blood of the Lamb and are made perfect already. However, you here on earth have not yet attained to that perfection. There are still spots and stains on your robe. The old sinful creature within is constantly trying to munch holes through that white garment.

The old evil foe does not want you to anchor your faith in Jesus, nor keep the commandments. He does not want you to imitate the saints of old. He keeps the Church on earth militant, forcing you to stand guard, to labor and toil, to bleed and die. Yes, he will take your life. But the trick is on him, for death cannot swallow life. You, having been buried with Christ into His death, also rise with Him in newness of life.

That does not mean that the road is easy. Make no mistake: you fight against the powers of sin, death, and the devil. You struggle against the cosmic powers of darkness in the heavenly realms, as St. Paul says. You must heed the call issued by St. John to stand firm in faith.

However, you would often rather not. Life is hard, and the Christian life is even harder than most. Who wants to be subjected to persecution, slander, and hatred? It is easy to fight back against those who strike out at you. It is easy to become angry because the road is hard and the way is long. No one else is poor, meek, humble, mourning, merciful. Simply lay down the sword and take the cup of the emperor. Simply put down the Bible and embrace the message of co-existence. Simply give up all that offensive talk about righteousness and holiness and the Law of God, and talk about the little bit of goodness that makes everyone neat in his/her/their own way.

Repent. “Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord.” Blessed are the saints who have fought the fight of faith, and now rest from their labors. Blessed are the baptized, who have died the death to sin and who now live in Christ. Blessed are those who are in Christ. Blessed be Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who once was slain but now is raised, who sits on the throne!

For the battle has been won. The old evil foe cannot harm the saints, because they are covered in Christ. They are blessed because they have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. They have drowned in the font and been raised up again. They have drunk the cup of the Lord's own Blood, and have feasted upon His holy Body. The cross of Christ marks them as the redeemed, beloved, and sanctified.

The saints have not made themselves holy by their faith, their lives, or their deaths. The saints of God are one in every place, because they are in Christ. You are in Christ, because He has marked you as His own, because He has washed you with the water and the Spirit, because He has fed you with His own Body and Blood, and has filled you with Himself in Spirit and in truth. Blessed are you, because your sins are forgiven.

“Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from now on... Blessed indeed, that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.” The saints who labored in faith while here on earth now rest from their labors. We rejoice for them, that they enjoy this eternal rest. Meanwhile, we pine for that day when we will join the multitude of the heavenly hosts. In the meantime, give thanks that heaven comes to earth and you receive a foretaste of the feast to come in the Holy Supper. Join with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven in the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom. Receive under bread and wine Him whom the hosts adore face-to-face. Give thanks to God for the blessed memory of those who have departed in faith, and pray for the grace to imitate their lives of faith.

No, your loved ones who have gone before in the faith are not watching you from above. No, they are not with you in spirit. No, they are not leading you in your life. But they are not gone. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad that they are counted worthy to receive the crown of life and to stand before the throne of God in heaven. There, they see the face of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. There, they join their voices to the throng, “crying out with a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'” Indeed, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, now and always!

Oh, what glory, far exceeding

All that eye has yet perceived!

Holiest hearts for ages pleading

Never that full joy conceived.

God had promised,

Christ prepares it;

There on high our welcome waits.

Ev'ry humble spirit shares it,

Christ has passed the eternal gates (LSB 671:2).

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.