In Ephesians 1:1, the Apostle Paul writes to “the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus.” This passage taches us that those in Christ are “saints” and “faithful.” When we understand these terms more completely, they will help us appreciate the value of being in Christ.
First, we learn that Christians are a possessed people. The word, “saint,” is from a Greek word that means, “holy, consecrated, set apart.” It expresses our relationship to the world (called out), but it also expresses our relationship to God (set apart to His purpose). Therefore, there should be an obvious contrast between the children of God and those who walk in darkness (Eph. 5:8-14). We are saints “in the midst of a crooked and perverse” society (Phil. 2:15). We are not friends of the world, nor do we love “the things in the world” (Jas. 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17), rather we are “a holy nation [saints], His own special people,” who are zealous for good works (1 Pet. 2:9; Tit. 2:14). Here, “special,” literally means “a possessed people; a people who belong to God.”
Second, we learn that Christians are an obedient people– “the faithful.” To be “faithful” means that we are those that have received the gospel by exercising “obedient belief.” As a result, we are dependable, reliable, and trustworthy when it comes to fulfilling the obligations as the children of God. To be a “once-in-a-blue-moon” Christian that rarely walks through the doors of the building is not being a faithful Christian, nor can we be classified as a “saint” in any sense of the word.
Brethren, we are the children of God who are “called out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Pet. 2:9). We are then children who believe in and trust in God by realizing He will provide and bless us, but we must be a people whom He can trust. We must be people who are the instruments that He uses to take the gospel to the lost, feed those who are genuinely hungry, tend to those who are genuinely needy, and be an encouragement to the fellow-saints. Truly, God highly values His own special people, and we dare not take that for granted by unfaithfulness.