Different Home; Different Hope - Philippians 3:20-4:1 Series

longing

noun

strong, persistent desire or craving, especially for something distant:

What do you long for? Most people just long for their current trial to be over. When you go somewhere, you expect some discomfort, but when you finish whatever it is you are doing, you want to be able to just come home and relax and be comfortable and at peace. For most people, this world is their home, and so what they long for is for this life to get comfortable. What are you longing for in your life? As Christians, our longings are different because we have a different home.

A Different Home

Review

We have been studying through the book of Philippians, and we left off last time in chapter 3 at verse 20. The passage started back in verse 17 where Paul said this:

Philippians 3:17 Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.

We should follow godly examples, and then the rest of the chapter is Paul telling us the reason why it is so important to follow godly examples. In the next two verses he describes what happens to people who don’t follow his example. He describes people who have become engrossed in this world, and as a result they live lives that are at odds with the purposes of the cross of Christ, and their end is eternal destruction. All of that can result from a wrong lifestyle, because very often your beliefs will follow your way of living.

So instead of that kind of lifestyle, imitate Paul’s lifestyle which is described starting in verse 20. Paul is still explaining why it’s so important to follow his example in the way we live. He draws a stark contrast between the way those people live, and the way we will live if we follow Paul’s example. The way we live is drastically different because we have a different home and a different hope. First, our home.

Heavenly Citizenship

Philippians 3:20 But our citizenship is in heaven.

Notice that is stated as a present fact, not something future. The present, current fact is that your home country is in heaven. The word translated citizenship is actually country – the place of your citizenship, or the government of your citizenship. And the point here isn’t that we are going to go there someday. The point here is that right now, your home country where your current citizenship resides is heaven, not this world. We have a different home. And we need to learn from godly examples how to get the hang of the Christian life because it’s crucial that our lifestyle be consistent with our citizenship. If you are a citizen of one country but you try to live as if you were a citizen of the country you are visiting, that’s not going to go well. You are going to focus on the wrong things, invest in the wrong things, value the wrong currency, root for the wrong teams, and, if the two countries go to war, you might end up fighting on the wrong side.

This is the second time Paul has brought up this idea of our citizenship. Remember back in chapter 1 when he said:

Philippians 1:27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves [lit. live as citizens] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.

That’s powerful language to use with the Philippian church because Philippi was a Roman colony, which means even though it wasn’t in Rome, the people who lived there were given the privileges of Roman citizenship. They were very proud of that. The tiny little town of Philippi was considered the leading city in all of Macedonia because of that Roman citizenship they had. And the people who lived there did not consider themselves Philippians or Macedonians. They considered themselves Romans, even though most of them had never set foot on Italian soil 800 miles away. So they knew all about having a citizenship from another place. And so Paul reminds them a second time, their citizenship is not in Macedonia, nor is it in Rome. It is in heaven. They are a colony of heaven. They are an outpost of the heavenly city, with all the full rights and privileges of heavenly citizenship.

The reason we need to really be on the lookout for godly examples to follow to get the hang of the Christian life is because that’s our identity. That’s our home. This living situation here, where we reside in the United States – that’s just a temporary living arrangement. You don’t invest yourself in a temporary situation. If you are on vacation, you don’t spend thousands of dollars renovating your hotel bathroom.

Imagine you had an accident that put you in a coma for a long time, and when you woke up you learned that while you were asleep you got transferred in your job to Hawaii and your family moved your home there. So you went to sleep as a Colorado resident, and woke up as an out-of-town visitor. Your home, your family, your job and all your possessions are all in Hawaii now, even though you have never been there.