"Saints" is a literal translation of holy ones.
It refers to Christian believers (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 2 Corinthians 1:1; Ephesians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:2) emphasizing that Christians have been set apart or consecrated to God. The term does not refer to a group within the church but to the whole church.
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.