150111 Strangers on Earth

Philippians 3:17-4:1 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. ¹⁸ For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. ²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. ^4:1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

Without a doubt the Philippian church held a warm place in Paul’s heart. Without being able to ask the question of Paul I cannot be sure that the Philippians were his favorite people but I suspect it is true from reading his letter to them. We come to a place in this letter where he expresses his concern for the Philippians. He had been among them long enough for them to know how he lived his life. He encourages them to imitate him and avoid his opponents that were coming into the church. Obviously, Satan will not leave the church alone at any time in history. He sends people whose focus is on earthly things rather than heavenly things into the church. These are people who are very comfortable in the world and very dangerous to the spiritual life of the real believers.

Part of Paul’s reminder to the church in Philippi was the true citizenship of the people of God.

We need to remember that we are strangers here. Turn with me to John 15:18-19. And listen to the words of Jesus concerning our citizenship. “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Jesus came to his own creation and the people who occupied it rejected him. (John 1:11) Once a person comes to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ things begin to change. Beginning at that moment things that we once were comfortable with begin to bother us. People who were once friendly now begin to turn away from us. We have a new spiritual family and a new way of living. Our minds are no longer set on earthly things. We have new loyalties to go with our new life. No matter how deeply we are involved in the things of this world we are definitely strangers here.

Like the old song says, “This world is not my home I'm just a passing through/ My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue/ The angels beckon me from heaven's open door/ And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.
Oh Lord, you know I have no friend like you/ If heaven's not my home then Lord what will I do?/ The angels beckon me from heaven's open door/ And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.”

Yes, we are strangers here because…

We are citizens of heaven. Turn with me to Ephesians 2:18-22. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. ¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, ²¹ in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. ²² In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

When we were comfortable in the things of the world we were strangers to grace and aliens with regards to the kingdom of heaven. We were isolated from the love of God found in Christ Jesus. We were strangers and aliens with regard to the spiritual areas related to God our Father.

Now we have new loyalties and new relationships. We are now fellow citizens with the saints. We have become a dwelling place, spiritually, for God and are being built together into a permanent place for God on this earth. Together we are God’s temple on earth. At the same time…

We are already attached to heaven. Turn back a little ways in your Bible to Ephesians 2:1-7. And you were dead in the trespasses and sins ² in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— ³ among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. ⁴ But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— ⁶ and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ⁷ so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

In our natural condition we lived as subjects of the prince of the power of the air. Indeed, we were dead spiritually and we lived lives that demonstrated our allegiance. We were bound to the ways of the world because that’s where our citizenship was. Now we have come to the place, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, where our allegiance has changed. We were once dead in trespasses and sins and now we are alive in Christ Jesus.

When we came to faith in Jesus Christ we died spiritually to the life we once lived. We were buried with Jesus. When Jesus was raised from the dead, we were raised up with Him, He demonstrated His power over life. We, having been once dead in sin, are now dead to sin and alive to God.

There is an amazing truth in this passage of Scripture. The power that the Father used to raise Jesus from the dead is the same power that raises us from spiritual death and makes us alive together with Christ. Not only are we made alive spiritually while living on this earth we are also currently seated in heaven in Christ Jesus. So far as God is concerned we are already in heaven and that can never be taken away from us if we have placed our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only does God see us as if we are already in heaven but in reality…

Our citizenship is there. Turn with me to Hebrews 12:22-24. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, ²³ and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴ and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

The writer of Hebrews, who may have been the apostle Paul, wants us to see that the new covenant gives us a new relationship. We have not come to Sinai where we tremble in fear but instead we have come to Mount Zion and the city of the living God. Take note that the passage says, “we have come”, not, “we will come”. We already have come to the place of our citizenship, heaven itself! Our citizenship gives us a relationship to innumerable angels, the Assembly of God’s people, God himself, and to Jesus our mediator! Jesus promised us, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” (John 14:3) There is no greater promise in Scripture than this. Remember, Paul added, “we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:8-9) Having come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, heaven is our home and our citizenship is there.

We do not enter into this because of our good works. We are only able to enter in because of the blood of Jesus Christ that covers our sin and frees us from bondage. With our new citizenship comes a new protection from an all-powerful kingdom. We no longer have to live in our own strength. Not only are we properly citizens of heaven we have an expectation that…

Our Lord will come from there. Let’s look at the words of the angels found in Acts 1:10-11. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, ¹¹ and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Jesus has just given His great commission to the disciples to go into all the world and preach the gospel. We are to be His witnesses in all the world. We are to live in anticipation of His return. I believe the two angels were a little bit surprised that the disciples of Jesus were standing there staring into heaven after Jesus had gone. It would seem that they were accustomed to quick obedience.

Just as Jesus ascended into heaven we are promised that He will return. In fact many things will happen in preparation for His return. Jesus said that the gospel would be preached to all the world before the end would come. We are in the process now of getting the gospel to every language group on earth. In the meantime…

All creation anticipates His coming. Turn with me to Romans 8:18-25. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. ²³ And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

When God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden the world was a pleasant place! This side of heaven we will never know what that world was like. After Adam sinned not only did mankind fall but the whole world joined in that fall. God told Adam that because of his sin the ground was cursed. Thorns and thistles came into being and mankind had to struggle with a hostile environment just to live.

From that time forward the creation itself has been waiting for the restoration. Currently the entire creation is in bondage to corruption. All of the so-called natural disasters are simply the groanings of our world over sin. The whole world has suffered from the time sin’s curse came in the world until now. That struggle will continue until Christ comes again. Indeed, the whole creation looks forward to the time that Jesus will return and establish the kingdom of God on earth. We do not know exactly what that will be like but we do know that…

When He comes we will be like Him. Turn with me to the back of your Bibles and listen while I read 1 John 3:1-3. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. ³ And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

What a magnificent love it is that God has for us! While we were still sinners Christ gave His life. Jesus did not die for the good and the godly because without him there are no good, godly people. Jesus gave his life for the ungodly (Romans 5:6) which group includes all. He did this because all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Without Jesus’ death on the cross we would have no hope in this world or the world to come because the wages of sin is death but praise God! The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

When He comes back to the earth we will know Him because we will be like him. Now this is not something we work up in our own strength because all our righteousness is like filthy rags at a dress-up party! In our own strength and ability we have nothing to offer God. Instead He comes to meet all our needs spiritually and physically. Without Him we would have no hope in this world or the world to come. In fact, without Jesus Christ we would not be able to begin to live the Christian life. We would fail again and again in our attempts to be like Him.

Back in Philippians 3:21 we are promised that the Lord Jesus Christ will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body. He will do that through the power of the resurrection. That is the power that has enabled Him to bring everything under His control. Because of Him…

We can stand firm. Turn with me to Philippians 1:27-28. Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸ and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.

Only because of Christ can we stand firm. Paul had written to the Ephesians admonishing them to be strong in the Lord by putting on the whole armor of God. (Ephesians 6:10 ff) Notice that they are not to stand in their own strength, nor are we, because in our own strength we will always fail. Our life should always be lived in such a way that we show that we are worthy of the gospel of Christ. “In the Lord” is the only way we can stand! We are not be able to stand in religion nor in philosophy only in Christ.

We should be influenced by the knowledge that Jesus is coming again! We may go to be with Him through the grave or through the air. Because of these things that we have learned we should be encouraged to stand firm. In our human nature, our flesh, we would never have the ability to stand firm. But in Christ we have everything we need. Most importantly there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. Once we have felt God’s drawing us to Him, and have come to believe in Him, we have ETERNAL LIFE! We can be confident that He who began a good work in us will bring it to completion. He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it. Our trust is in Him and we rest on His promises. Have you put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? You have no promise of tomorrow! Let today be your day of salvation by responding to the call of Jesus Christ.

All scripture quotes are from: The Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.