LIVING AS A CITIZEN OF HEAVEN (11 OF 16)
by Jim Perdue
Scripture: Philippians 3:17-21
This content is part of a series.
Living as a Citizen of Heaven (11 of 16)
Series: Philippians
Jim Perdue
Philippians 3:17-21
Intro/Attention
Warren Wiersbe titled this section of Scripture in his commentary like this: ''Living in the Future Tense.'' I liked that title so much that I almost stole it! But, I'll let him keep it for now.
The book of Philippians has several important themes. There are themes of joy, generosity, gratitude and blessing. And of course, chapter 2:5-11 is famous for its masterful depiction of the humbled and exalted Christ. But one theme that you might not know of is the theme of citizenship.
This text teaches us what it means to be a citizen of heaven. That's right, as followers of Jesus Christ, we don't belong here on this earth, we are citizens of heaven. We belong to another country.
*What does that mean? Well, a citizen has his name on record in his country of origin. At my birth, I was issued a social security number. This registers me as a citizen of the United States of America. The citizens of Philippi were privileged to be Roman citizens away from Rome. When a baby was born in Philippi, it was important that its name be registered on the legal records. The Bible tells us that when a lost sinner trusts Christ and becomes a citizen of heaven, his name is written in ''the Book of Life'' (Phil. 4:3). Your name is written down in heaven (Luke 10:20) and it stands written forever. (The Greek verb ''written'' in Luke 10:20 is in the perfect tense: ''it is once-for-all written and stands written.'')
A citizen will also speak a certain language. If you are born a citizen of the USA, you grow up speaking the language. If you become a citizen of the USA, you learn the language before you're sworn in. As citizens of heaven, we will speak differently than others. The citizens of heaven understand spiritual things and enjoy discussing them and sharing them with one another. READ Ephesians 4:29
A citizen also is required to follow a certain law. We ar ...
Series: Philippians
Jim Perdue
Philippians 3:17-21
Intro/Attention
Warren Wiersbe titled this section of Scripture in his commentary like this: ''Living in the Future Tense.'' I liked that title so much that I almost stole it! But, I'll let him keep it for now.
The book of Philippians has several important themes. There are themes of joy, generosity, gratitude and blessing. And of course, chapter 2:5-11 is famous for its masterful depiction of the humbled and exalted Christ. But one theme that you might not know of is the theme of citizenship.
This text teaches us what it means to be a citizen of heaven. That's right, as followers of Jesus Christ, we don't belong here on this earth, we are citizens of heaven. We belong to another country.
*What does that mean? Well, a citizen has his name on record in his country of origin. At my birth, I was issued a social security number. This registers me as a citizen of the United States of America. The citizens of Philippi were privileged to be Roman citizens away from Rome. When a baby was born in Philippi, it was important that its name be registered on the legal records. The Bible tells us that when a lost sinner trusts Christ and becomes a citizen of heaven, his name is written in ''the Book of Life'' (Phil. 4:3). Your name is written down in heaven (Luke 10:20) and it stands written forever. (The Greek verb ''written'' in Luke 10:20 is in the perfect tense: ''it is once-for-all written and stands written.'')
A citizen will also speak a certain language. If you are born a citizen of the USA, you grow up speaking the language. If you become a citizen of the USA, you learn the language before you're sworn in. As citizens of heaven, we will speak differently than others. The citizens of heaven understand spiritual things and enjoy discussing them and sharing them with one another. READ Ephesians 4:29
A citizen also is required to follow a certain law. We ar ...
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