Walking as Citizens of Heaven

Knowing where you are from and where you are going lays out for each of us a path for traveling. Simplistically if you are going on a road trip, you know your starting destination, such as your home, and the place you are going, such as the beach. How you get there is the journey. It used to be that you could send away to AAA and get a detailed book of maps and stops so that proper planning of your trip could occur. With google maps now all you need is your smart phone. But will you make the trip in one day or will you stop and try foods, monuments, or points of interest along the way. In traveling where you are going is critical, but how you get to that destination is also important.

What about career goals, or self improvement aspirations. Each of us knows where we want to be, and many of us know how to get to that goal, but why is it that so few of us accomplish what we desire? Is it a lack of prayer, or a lack of planning, or some unforeseen road block?

Philippians 3:17–4:1 ESV

17 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. 1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

Philippians

Where We Belong...

Paul’s main reason for all that He has said about pressing on toward the goal, and considering his greatest earthly achievements as loss is found in verse 20, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 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.”

To put this all in context, Paul uses the word citizenship that was a familiar term. You see Rome had its citizenship, and being a citizen of the Roman Empire meant something. And Philippi being the a prestigious Roman town meant the people of Philippi meant something. And in the Roman empire Caesar Augustus was acclaimed as the “Savior of the World” because he had restored order and peace. Paul is setting up for us a contrast between Jesus and heaven verse Rome and Caesar.

What Paul is doing by stating where our citizenship lies and who our savior is explicitly speaking of Jesus in language which echoes and subverts what citizens of Philippi would have said to describe Caesar. More important than being a Roman citizen and the peace of the land, is being a citizen of heaven.

It I were to rewrite this verse for our understanding it might sound something like this, “But our Citizenship is in heaven and from it we await our president, governor, mayor, police chief, and General the Lord Jesus, the Rescuer.

Paul is contrasting in a heavy way the difference between those who are members of heaven verse those who are citizen’s of this earth alone. Faith in Christ means that our allegiance, our preferences, everything is forfeited so that we might gain Christ.

Those who are opposed to the cross trust what is seen over what is unseen. Those opposed to the cross want to be glorified by others rather than Jesus lifted high. Those who are opposed to the cross look for functional saviors that will solve their problems, satisfy their appetites, and rescue them from trouble.

The power of Jesus verses the power of any other functional savior is laughable at best. Caesar Augustus did great things in the eyes of his countryman. He brought peace, expanded the kingdom, and brought prosperity to the land. His Kingdom was great and his power was vast. But was his power large enough to subject all things to himself. Was the whole of the world under his control? Or better yet did he fix all that was ailing his citizenship? You may have been granted rights and privileges, which were nice. You may have gotten respect for being a Romans Citizen.

But the scriptures make clear that Jesus will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body. The word lowly is the word humiliation or humble. Jesus will take our humble bodies our lowly bodies and make them glorious like his body is. Can you imagine sin no longer having its affect on your body? No pain, no aging, no suffering…A body not distracted by passions and desires. No more will we desire to worship our stomachs, our own glory and our own fleeting pleasures.

The power that makes this all possible is ours. We have the Holy Spirit, but we have sin present still. So we look to heaven, we look to our savior and we live like those future realities are our present reality.

Therefore Paul says, stand firm in the Lord. This is a command to all of us. We are to maintain our position, be steadfast, hold our ground.

First, in context, standing firm means, we stand firm as citizens of heaven, as exiles together we focus on our true Savior Jesus.

Second, we stand firm to our commitment to the cross in face of any and all opposition.

Third, we stand firm being united as one.

How do we accomplish this?

First, We imitate and follow faithful Christians. Second, we acknowledge who the enemies of the cross are and identify their foolishness.

Following Faithful Examples

Paul urges the church to imitate him. Paul in chapter 3 of Philippians has emphasized his loss of privilege and position for the sake of Christ. Imitating Paul does not lead to defending one’s position and asserting one’s own power, but having the attitude of Christ of making ourselves nothing. Paul followed the way of the cross. Taking up the cross daily and following Jesus. Paul goes on to say walk which depicts a personal relationship with God and living in obedience to the commands of God.

Paul is very clear in this text our citizenship being in heaven means we choose the cross, the Christ centered life, but in reality not everyone will choose humility over pride, sacrifice over self indulgence. Many will choose to worship themselves making them enemies of the cross.

Knowing the Enemies of the Cross

Paul for the first and only time mentions crying when talking about enemies of the cross. He is not happy to have these enemies. He does not look forward to the end they are facing. Paul does not name them either, he is not looking to shame them. And in all honesty Paul does not say they have a theological issue. They may believe in the cross, but they have an ethical divergence from the way of the cross. Say it another way, they could honor Jesus with their lips, but their hearts are far from him.

In this context enemies of the cross are those who seek to avoid suffering that might come their way as the result of their convictions about Christ. Paul is broken hearted over these people.

There are four characteristics Paul gives for these enemies of the cross: their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and the glory in their shame, having their minds set on earthly things.

First, their end, teleos, is destruction. They think they have arrived, and already “perfect.” In refusing to suffer with Christ they have instead chosen to be separated from Christ and his salvation.

Second, their god is their belly. Literally the word is stomach meaning the organ of nourishment, but metaphorically it speaks of the center of life, the personal feelings and desires that these enemies of the cross give into.

Third, they worship their appetites. They glory in their shame. They exalt in doing what is against the gospel. This doesn’t have to be the basest of acts such as explicit sexual behavior. it could be something as simple as taking comfort in food over God, or withholding giving financially to God and then being proud of it.

Finally, their minds are set on earthly things.

The reason we should follow faithful examples is to be unified in mind, actions, attitudes, and desires. We must live out our heavenly citizenship. We must reject earthly passions.

Enemies Forgiven

The truth is we all at times are enemies of the cross. We worship our desires, seeking to satisfy them over the ones God has for us. We glory in things that God does not glory in. We follow examples of people who are not citizens of heaven.

That is why we have each other, and that is why we have the cross.

We need accountability.

We need the gospel