“For the saints of God are folk just like me, and I mean to be one too.”

All Saints- All Saints- All Saints

So who are the Saints of God anyway?  I’m sure you can rattle off a few familiar names of saints.  There is of course St. Peter, keeper of the pearly gates of Heaven and devoted disciple of Jesus Christ who didn’t always get it the 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd time but in the end came to know and enjoy God’s blessings perhaps more so than anyone.

Then there is St. Paul who opened the door to the blessings of God to extend beyond 1^st century Jerusalem and Judaism for that matter, OUT TO EVERY HUMAN SOUL North, South, East, and West who approaches God in faith + hope for themselves their kids and for the world.  Oh Yes, saints like Peter and Paul we are well known.

But if you study your Bible a little more closely you’ll soon discover that the earliest Christians saw the opportunity for sainthood far more broadly.  They saw sainthood as conferred on every soul at the moment of their baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Just like Holy Communion, the true presence of the living power of God is near.  In fact the every single soul has the door to blessing, the gate to grace unlocked for them at the time of their baptism.

And this means that on this All Saints Sunday at St. Matthew’s Church, when we find ourselves expending our all time (over our 142 year history) record for baptisms by 3 more little ones this morning- THIS MEANS THAT 3 BABIES AND YOU have the door to blessing and eternal life unlocked + propped open for you + for them to enter the sacred realm, the kingdom of God now in part + one day in fullness of joy.

Have you ever seen the classic painting of Jesus praying at the garden gate, at the garden door?  It is a pretty common image that comes around especially during Lent each year.  The next time you see that painting devote a moment of close attention to the door itself.  If you look at it carefully you will notice that there is no door knob, no handle on the door.  Was this an oversight of the artist?  Friend, Master artists do not lapse into oversight on the canvass. (Just ask painter Steve Pascucci, my friend and artist and proud grandfather of 2 of today’s candidates for Holy Baptism).  The missing doorknob on Jesus’ door was no accident or oversight.  And why?  Because the handle is on the other side of the entrance to the Garden, it’s on your side and my side of the door friends.  And you and I need knock on that door and reach for that knob and open that gate and take that next step into that place of God’s power and grace where you can stand or kneel, rejoice or weep tears of joy in the company of your Savior and all the Saints who have the light of the world in their generation.

This All Saints Sunday you have crossed a threshold – we are here in the company not just of one another but of all the saints.  Their power and faith and hope are now part of us and we are linked to them.

And what knits us together is God’s Holy Spirit at work – affirming God’s keen care for you and interest in you. It’s about how when you approach Christ you approach the One who sees the real you, regardless of how dinged up you may be, or blind or arrogant or distant you might seem, today you are seen in the light of the Saints, which means God see the real you, the beautiful you, the  creative and valuable  and irreplaceable you.  Yes open the door to the Spirit that sharpens our compassion for the poor and the meek and for those who mourn,”For They Shall Be Comforted.”   YES, WE CAN NOW STAND with those striving to be more pure in heart and more merciful,”For they shall see God and they shall obtain mercy.”   And friend in these times of increasing violence when it seems more people are hurting other people  and damaging creation,  we can let God’s spirit give us the inner strength to more mercy –full , AND AS JESUS HIMSELF SAID, to be called children of God,  no matter what our friends are up to, or the what the world is doing, or even no matter what is going on in our own family half the time, we need to let the Holy Spirit help us become more and more people of compassion, peace and inner strength – for as the Man said, “Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”.

So in the name of Jesus who preached this Good news at the sermon on the Mount, Jesus who was and is the center of the soul of the saints of God – In the name of the same Jesus who IS close by for you in the morning and at the midnight hour too to meet you whenever you open the gate to the company of saints, I INVITE YOU NOW TO TAKE A MINUTE TO REMEMBER THE PEOPLE IN YOUR LIFE WHO SEE YOU LIKE HE DOES….. Recall the ones who were there for you in times of confusion or pain.   Remember the ones who inspired you and encouraged you and saw the good in you.   Envision the ones who tried to comfort you, who challenged you to try a little harder, who didn’t judge you/stood by you/won’t quit on you/ the ones who gave you a glimpse of the scope of the love of God.  They are the saints too – they are the saints too.  God’s handkerchiefs, flirting for our affection.  For them and for souls like them be thankful this day. For they have helped to lead you to the door of grace.  Now let us open the door of our heart and take the next step of faith and trust in the one who loves us and gave himself for us, an offering and sacrifice for all.

Finally, good teachers have a saying which they share and I believe is true:  “I hear and I forget”…. “I do and I understand’’     - Let’s put it to practice friends, compassion and mercy and peace.  Let’s put it to practice now and in this important week ahead.  That we may understand what it is to stand in the company of all the Saints in light.  – For the saints of God are folk just like me, and I mean to be one too.  How about you?   Amen