Foreigners Do Not Live Their Lives Like Citizens

 “But our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20 NKJV).

A couple of weeks ago, we attended the wedding ceremony of a very good friend. Both groom and bride were foreigners but today, I am not writing about them since I don’t have much to write about them except of that beautiful event. But while we were returning from that lovely ceremony, a conversation ensued among us – four persons in all. Except of the lady driving the car who is a citizen of this very country, the rest of us were foreigners.

We spoke about so many things that time and space would not allow me to share, but as the chat went on, one of the guys said to me. “I don’t see you often, you seem always to be indoor, you are hardly seen at outdoor (funfair) meetings” (Paraphrased). Then I responded “Foreigners don’t live like citizens”. 

And rightly so any foreigner who is conscious of themselves do not live their lives like citizens do. Usually people travel to other countries for reasons which include; to look for greener pastures, for tourism and conferences, to visit, to study, for businesses, among several others. While some foreigners are able to secure permanent residency of the countries they travel to, majority of them remain temporal residents and sometimes some even become illegal immigrants. But since most foreigners are time bound, they cannot and must not live like they have nowhere to go.

Please I am writing to the church, thus the body of believers and anyone who will later become part of the people of the WAY. The Bible teachers that believers are citizens of Heaven and therefore foreigners on earth. Here, there is no dual citizenship. You either belong to Heaven or belong to the world. You either belong to the Kingdom of Light or the Kingdom of darkness. You cannot belong to the two kingdoms at the same time. It is not possible! But the choice is yours.

Some persons do not believe in Heaven at all whereas some others also don’t believe in a future Heaven, the latter argue that we are already in Heaven. While I do not intend to write about the existence of Heaven at this time, - if the Lord gives us grace and life, I will consider it at a later time - I would like to bring to your knowledge two scripture verses that expressly tell us of a future Heaven. 

First, in his 1^st letter to the churches scattered all over Asia, Apostle Peter categorically mentioned that, to all believers, God has prepared an incorruptible and undefiled inheritance and this inheritance, God has reserved in HEAVEN.

1 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV)

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you".

Again, in his second epistle to the church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul emphatically stated that when our physical bodies are destroyed, God has prepared another ‘body’, an eternal tent to 'house' our spirit man and this house is in HEAVEN.

2 Corinthians 5:1 (NIV)

"For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in Heaven, not built by human hands".

As we already know, man is a spirit who has a soul and lives in a body. So when we die, our bodies die but our spirit man lives on and God will clothe us in another ‘heavenly body’ which abides forever.

From the foregoing scripture verses, it can be established that all believers here on earth have inheritance from God and this inheritance is preserved in Heaven. Also, so long as we abide in this earthly body, we are not yet in heaven; for we must put away this corruptible body and take on the incorruptible body which is eternal.

Therefore, we establish that there is future heaven. If God allows, we shall take Heaven as a topic and treat it. And that is why believers are strangers or foreigners here on earth.

Beloved, our Lord Jesus Himself said, we are not of this world (See John 17:16). Though we live in this world, we are not of this world. We belong to Heaven which is the City (Country) of God our Father.

Our Citizenship is in Heaven. We have a heavenly city, the New Jerusalem. There we have eternal rights and privileges. There we have fellowship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (see 1 John 1:3).

Dear one, we therefore cannot live as the people of this world do. We cannot be friends with this world. As it is written ‘friendship with this world is enmity with God’ (See James 4:4).

What must we do then? Let us put aside every weight and sin that so entangles us and be conscious even as pilgrims on the journey to our eternal city, our eternal home, even to Heaven (See Hebrews 12:1-2). Let’s not be so much enthused and engulfed about worldly affairs. In all that we do here on earth, let’s keep in mind that we are foreigners, we are going to heaven and we must not give in to any distraction.

The devil is unrelenting in his agenda to stop you and I from going to Heaven but the good news is that when we resist the devil, he will flee from us (James 4:7).  

Dearly loved, I do not want you to miss Heaven. I desire we go to heaven together, therefore, let’s be guided and let’s be heavenly conscious.

Let’s go to Heaven!

MARANATHA, Our Lord, Come!!

God bless you!!!

Picture credit: http://dreamicus.com/journey.html#photo_4