A saint is anyone who has been set apart (sanctified) by God through faith in Jesus Christ. The NT usage is striking in its democratic scope: Paul writes to "the saints who are in Ephesus" (Eph 1:1), "all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi" (Phil 1:1), and "called to be saints" in Rome (Rom 1:7). In every case, the recipients are ordinary, struggling believers — not a canonized elite. The Greek hagios means simply "set apart one." A saint is not someone who has achieved moral perfection but someone who has been claimed by God and is being progressively conformed to His image. The Corinthian church — fractious, sexually immoral, theologically confused — is still addressed as "saints" (1 Cor 1:2) because their status rests on God's call, not their performance. Sainthood is a gift received, not an achievement earned.
SAINT, n. [Latin sanctus, holy.] A person sanctified; a holy or godly person; one eminent for piety and virtue. In Scripture, all who receive the doctrines of the gospel and live as it directs are called saints (Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:2). Among Romanists, a person formally canonized or declared holy by the Pope, and enrolled in their list of saints. In common use, a person distinguished for piety. The saints of God are those who believe in Christ and live according to his precepts.
The word "saint" has been corrupted in two directions. Roman Catholic tradition reserved it for a select, canonized elite — requiring miracles, formal investigation, and papal declaration — contradicting the NT's application of the title to all believers. Secular culture uses "saint" sarcastically ("she's no saint") or sentimentally (describing humanitarian figures), emptying it of its theological content entirely. Evangelical culture often commits the inverse error — treating sainthood as impossible humility ("Who am I to call myself a saint?") — which is actually a subtle rejection of the identity God has declared over every justified believer. You are not called to become a saint; in Christ, you already are one. The call is to live accordingly.
• Romans 1:7 — "To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints."
• Ephesians 1:1 — "To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus."
• 1 Corinthians 1:2 — "To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints."
• Psalm 16:3 — "As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight."
• Revelation 19:8 — "The fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints."