"Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them
that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with
all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ
our Lord, both theirs and ours" (I Corinthians 1:2).

This salutation to those "called saints" at Corinth
(the words "to be" are not in the original) makes it clear that
all who "in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ
our Lord" are the saints of God. The word "saint" means
"one who is sanctified" or "set apart," having been called to
serve the Lord.

That service is varied, and many striking figures of
speech are used in the Bible to describe it. In the first place,
the saints are "witnesses unto me" (Acts 1:8) and,
therefore, "ambassadors for Christ" (II Corinthians 5:20). The
words and deeds of believers are to serve as an actual Bible
to those who may not read God's Word. "Forasmuch as ye
are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the
living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the
heart" (II Corinthians 3:3).

Christ applied the figure of candlesticks to the
churches addressed in Revelation, with Himself in the midst
(Revelation 1:12-13). Similarly, we are enjoined to "shine
as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of
life" (Philippians 2:15-16). This light is not merely the light
of a godly life, but the light of God's revealed truth, for
we constitute "the church of the living God, the pillar
and ground of the truth" (I Timothy 3:15).

In relation to Christ, we constitute "the body of
Christ, and members in particular" (I Corinthians 12:27) and
have been presented "as a chaste virgin to Christ" (II
Corinthians 11:2). One day we shall reign with Him as "kings and
priests unto God" (Revelation 1:6). HMM