THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS
TEXT: Hebrews 12:1-4
This week we will begin looking at some of the questions you asked to hear sermons
about. I received quite a few, so given the breaks we will take for special services and seasons, it
will probably be early next year before we finish with all of them. Since today is a communion
Sunday, I decided to begin with the first question that was submitted... "What is the Communion
of Saints?"
Communion of Saints is a phrase that you would be familiar with if you are used to
reciting the Apostle’s Creed. Along with a list of other things, we proclaim that we believe in the
"communion of saints," but the concept is never explained. It just sits there in a list and lets you
wonder what you have just professed. To head into this we need a couple of definitions. First,
"communion." The narrow sense of the word "communion" is as the technical term for the
sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.
What we want here, however, is the broader sense of the word in which a group of people
"commune" together. It’s a word that comes from the same root as the word "community," and
it implies being together...not just in body, but in heart. To be in communion with someone is to
be open to someone at a deep, heart level...which is why the sacrament of Holy Communion is
such a powerful agent for reconciliation and forgiveness. It is a time when God opens up to us
through Jesus’ broken body and shed blood and when we acknowledge that before God we are all
equal...one with each other because Jesus has allowed us to be one with Him.
The second word that needs understanding is "saints." If you come from a Roman
Catholic background, you are used to a whole list of people who have been formally named
"saints." That is not what we mean. "Saint," here, means the same thing that Paul meant when he
wrote his letters to the "saints" in this place and that. "Saint" in the Bible, simply means a
believer. Someone who is a professing Christian. The word "saint" means "holy one" in both
Greek and Hebrew, and to be "holy" merely means to be set apart. When we say, "Yes, I am a
Christian" we have set ourselves apart from the rest of the world. Not that we don’t interact or
take part in earthly activities, but that we do so in ways and with motivations that are different
from those who have not made such a profession.
So...the Communion of Saints...is talking about the way Christians commune with each
other...how we do and should interact with each other...how we should live out our unity in Jesus.
I think there are two great examples of what that looks like. Remember back a week or so ago to
the miners caught in the Pennsylvania coal mine. Probably they weren’t thinking, "Hey, if we tie
ourselves together, we’ll be a great illustration for the Communion of Saints," but it turned out
that way anyhow. Those nine men were determined that they would stick together no matter
what. Nobody who died would just float away into oblivion, and if one were found, all of them
would be found together.
That is exactly the kind of mutual support that we say we believe in when we say, "I
believe in the Communion of Saints." We who have set ourselves apart to live as Christians need
to be roped together, because what happens to one of us affects us all. We should be unwilling
that any one of us should just be able to float away into oblivion, and we all ought to be helping
each other travel along in the same direction. Think of what being tied together means. Nobody
really is on their own. Some might be stronger than others, some might need to be carried for a
bit...but you have to work it out so that everybody is at least trying to go in the same direction or
nobody is going to get anywhere.
That’s what Christian faith is supposed to be...no lone rangers. No competition.
Teamwork. Yes, it’s harder that way for the strong ones; but we are called to be shepherds for
the weak ones. Those miners felt emotionally stronger knowing that they were committed to each
other. Nobody was trying to survive at the expense of the othersûeach one was working for the
good of the whole. You don’t have to look very far these days to see what happens when people
never learn that lesson. Anyone of those coal miners could have taught WorldCom a lesson...or
Enron...or Tyco...or any of a host of others.
The Communion of Saints is an important concept because it is a way to keep the Body of
Christ strong, and the second illustration adds another dimension to it. In the passage that we
read from Hebrews, the author is talking about being surrounded by "so great a cloud of
witnesses." What he’s talking about is the preceding chapter, Hebrews 11, which is often called
the "faith chapter." There we have been presented with a whole litany of God’s faithful...Abel,
Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, and a bunch of others.
As we learn at the beginning of Hebrews 12, the whole purpose of reminding people of
those faithful folks of the past is to give strength to the faithful folks of the present. No one is
sure who wrote Hebrews, but it seems to be a sermon and the people to whom that sermon is
preached have been having a rough time. Persecutions have begun...but they haven’t quite gotten
to the point of martyrdom...they have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood. Still,
however, they have been thrown in prison, had their property taken from them, and been
persecuted in other ways because of their faith. That’s not easy to go through and it’s nearly
impossible to go through on your own.
They did have each other, but when you’re thrown in a dank prison cell by yourself, it’s
hard to draw strength from that. This preacher gives them some other tools, however. The
Communion of Saints doesn’t mean that we can draw strength just from those who are living. By
remembering the stories and the faithfulness of others, we can find the strength to be faithful
ourselves.
When we say, "I believe in the Communion of Saints," we are saying that we believe in the
power of the community of believers to strengthen our faith. It means we believe that together
we can make it...if we tie ourselves together we can get through most anything. We tie ourselves
to the saints of the past, to the saints of the present, and also, I believe, to the saints of the future.
It is our actions today that are available to tomorrow’s Christians for strength.
I think that knowledge, too, provides strength...because we tend to behave better when we
are being watched. If every word out of our mouths were taped, you can bet there would be a lot
of different conversations. If every action of ours was on video, you can bet that a lot of acts
would be cleaned up...unless, of course, you’re trying to make money on reality TV. Realizing
that our actions and words today have the power not only to help those around us now, but those
who will follow in the future can be a powerful incentive to the Christian heart.
We believe in the Communion of Saints. We believe that we are all tied together...that
what helps one helps all and what hurts one hurts all. We believe that even if you’re dead, you’re
not going to just float away into oblivion...you will still be tied to us, because that’s the way it’s
supposed to be with the saints of God. We’re in it together...one bread, one body, one Lord, one
faith, one baptism. Tied together...struggling to stay alive, struggling to keep morale high,
huddling together to share body heat, breathing the same air that comes down the same tube from
on high...where the real air is.
Do you believe in the Communion of Saints? Would anybody know it by watching you?
How could you strengthen the faith of this community that is tied up with you?
In the pews are some post-it notes. I invite you to use these to write the names of some of
the "cloud of witnesses" that are a help to your Christian walk. They might be people living or
dead, famous people or people nobody else has heard of...they should just be people who help in
some way to strengthen your faith. Take as many post-its as you need and pass the others along
the pew. When you have written all the names, get up and post the names up around the
sanctuary, so that we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses. You may also have someone else
post them up for you. Then return to your seats. During the meditation time, we will be singing
"Bind Us Together." We’ll sing it through as many times as we need.
