1 Nephi 14

In the summer of 2013, our stake will again hold a handcart trek for the youth of the stake. As I was contemplating a theme for this event, my mind kept going to the initial words of a great LDS hymn - "Come, Come Ye Saints". I felt the very meaning of the word "saint" was seemed to stand out.

As I continued my reading of the great vision of Nephi, Nephi helps define the meaning of saint. He begins by teaching -

"...there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 14:10)

Some may immediately think of the many Christian and non-Christian churches of the world, but I believe it is more the organization administered by the Lamb and the other, by the devil. And as Nephi looked, he -

"...beheld the whore of all the earth, and she sat upon many waters; and she had dominion over all the earth, among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 14:11)

I believe "waters" in this case is symbolic much like Nephi said that the -
"...fountain of filthy water which thy father saw; yea, even the river of which he spake; and the depths thereof are the depths of hell." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 12:16)

Water is a fluid and symbolically seeps in and through all things. But Nephi then beholds in our day -

"...the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few, because of the wickedness and abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters; nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God, were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 14:12)

The saints of God are therefore, by Nephi's definition, the church of the Lamb. And Nephi -

"...beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory." (Book of Mormon | 1 Nephi 14:14)

In my mind then, saints are those that have taken upon themselves covenants - they are covenant people. Covenants is that as previously blogged about is that which was taken out of Jewish record by the Church of the Devil. It is covenants that make one a saint and qualifies one if they keep such covenants, to armed in righteousness and power, and the glory of God which means celestial glory and exaltation.