Today we will continue looking at the Apostles’ Creed: 

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

Today’s passage is always one of my favorites to think about.  The communion of saints.  What does that mean?  This is one the the concepts we think about the most when it comes to All Saints’ Day, a day we celebrate the first Sunday of November. In this service, we take time to remember those saints who have passed from this life into true life in the most recent year. 

See, as Christians, we truly believe that this life is not the end, in fact, it’s really just the beginning. I’ve often heard it put this way. We on the earth, we are part of the church militant.  In other words, we are part of the church that is still at work. A part of the church that is, through Jesus, defeating the power of evil in the world today.  We are still at battle against sin, death, and the grave, a battle that has been won, not by our power by but the death and resurrection of Jesus. 

Those who have passed on are part of the church triumphant.  In other words, they have received their reward and they are with the Lord. As Jesus told the thief on the cross, this day you’ll be with me in paradise.  They are their with the Lord. 

Hebrews 11 and 12 paints this picture perfectly for us. We see those saints who are with the Lord. And then we see this, we are surrounded by this mighty cloud of witness, so let’s keep running. 

What is this mighty cloud of witnesses who are watching us, praying for us, and supporting us? That communion of the saints.  Those who have gone before, but are there, watching, cheering, pulling for us.  

The church is made up of both parts. Those of us on the earth, working for the Lord, and those of us in eternity, triumphant in the Lord. This the communion of saints.  This is the completeness of the Body of Christ. 

They are part of us, even from afar.  They are not “with” us. But they are with us. For we are all connected through the church. We are all connected through Jesus. 

This is the beauty of the communion fo the saints! 

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