Good Citizens
A sermon by Brent J.
Eelman
March 4, 2007
Abington
Presbyterian Church
Philippians 3:17-4:1
17Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me,
and observe those who live according to the example you have in us.
18For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have
often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. 19Their
end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame;
their minds are set on earthly things. 20But our
citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ. 21He will transform the body of our
humiliation so that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power
that also enables him to make all things subject to himself.
41Therefore, my
brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in
the Lord in this way, my beloved.*
A
while ago I was going through the things that my mother had saved
from my childhood. Among those things were some of my old report
cards. It was fun reading the different comments that the teachers
wrote about me many years ago. There were the usual comments about
the efforts that I was making and the areas where I was doing well.
There were the prophetic comments like: “Brent should keep his
desk neater.” One or two teachers wrote about not paying
attention and admiring the class troublemaker for all the wrong
reasons. The report card read: “Brent admires John Simmons for
all of his (John’s) bad traits.”
In addition to the grades for the usual elementary subjects, Reading, Math, Writing, Spelling, and Science, there was also a grade for a category called “citizenship." I can’t remember any classes or discussions that we had on citizenship, but judging by the comments, citizenship referred to a host of different behaviors like following the rules, active participation, manners, the way that other students were treated, general attitude about things, and respect for teachers and other authority. I am not sure that we evaluate students these days on citizenship, but I have fantasized about how we might evaluate adults regarding their citizenship. What are the hallmarks of good citizenship and how would you rate? We would list things like voting, paying taxes, obeying the laws (even when no one is watching). Citizenship should also include the respect with which we accord the state and its institutions. It would reflect some duties that obligate us. Citizenship would also include virtues like loyalty, sacrifice, patriotism. If we were still graded on our citizenship, how would we fare? But the real question for us in the church is: If we are citizens of heaven, what would our report card say?
The apostle Paul used the language of citizenship to describe a Christian’s identity: “our citizenship is in heaven.” This is peculiar language for religion. It is the language of politics and the state. The language is even more pointed when we realize that this letter was addressed to the church in Philippi. The city of Philippi was located in Greece, but it was a very important Roman City. It was in Philippi that Caesar Augustus and Mark Antony defeated Brutus and Cassius, thus consolidating their power and assuring Rome a period of peace and stability. The citizens of Philippi, though part of the Greek peninsula, took a lot of pride in their Roman citizenship.
Roman
Citizenship afforded a host of benefits. It assured a level of due
process which was uncommon in the ancient world. Citizenship also
required certain behaviors. One requirement was the allegiance to
the Emperor. The Caesar was held up as a deity, and for the citizens
of Philippi, it was their city that witnessed the rise of Augustus to
power. So when Paul wrote… “We are citizens of heaven”,
he had the attention of the people of Philippi. But after he had
their attention, what did he mean?
We
should not be surprised by the political language that Paul used to
describe a spiritual reality. Jesus preached about the “Kingdom
of God.” The term, “Lord” was used as a term of
respect for those in political authority. Jesus was crucified as
“King of the Jews.” Even the term “covenant”
had its origins in the political language of the ancient world. A
covenant was a type of treaty that was made between a more powerful
vassal and a weaker ruler or king. That treaty or covenant was used
to explain the way that God related to human beings. “Citizens
of Heaven”, might have surprised the people of Philippi, but it
is consistent with much of the language of the Hebrew Bible and the
Gospels. The language of citizenship and politics was the norm for
the biblical writers. What are the requirements of citizenship in
heaven?
First is identity. When we travel in other countries, people will identify us as Americans. We carry a passport. At times it can be an issue, but most of the time it is something that we don’t deny and are often proud of. The way we act, the values that we have, the language that we use reveal who we are in terms of our citizenship. Here is the question: would others know that we are “citizens of heaven” by the way that we act, the values that we have, and the way that we speak? Is there an identifier? A lot of people wear crosses around their necks as jewelry, and it is an appropriate symbol of identification. But do the lives of those who are wearing those crosses show the same spirit of love and sacrifice that those crosses represent? As the hymn goes: Will they know we are Christians by our love? By our sacrifice? By our actions? By our words?
Second is loyalty and commitment. I have often commented sarcastically that our age has traded commitment for consumerism, even in the area of faith. We buy cars and homes…and we shop for religion in the same way. A citizen is not a person who is on a shopping trip for another country. A citizen of heaven is loyal and committed…. And that commitment is at the core of one’s being. Jesus often used hyperbole to emphasize how important and primary this commitment is. He told his followers that family does not come first… God does. All other commitments and loyalties are relativized by our loyalty to the Kingdom of heaven.
Third the Christian citizen sees life as a journey: a spiritual journey. The early Christians thought of themselves as “sojourners”. The book of Hebrews declares, “We have no earthly home, but seek the city which is yet to come.” Our pilgrim ancestors of this country saw their lives in terms of a spiritual journey… hence the world pilgrim. We journey through this life, just as we journey through countries, cities and other areas. Journeys are just that. In truth we are on our way home to that place where our citizenship is.
When
we get home there will be a great meal: a banquet. That is the way
that Christ described it, and it ties directly to our celebration of
the Lord’s Supper today. We often eat the cuisine of other
nations: Chinese, German, Italian, French, Mexican, Indian and Thai.
The Lord ’s Supper is our native food. The meal that we are
about to participate in, simple bread and wine, is the food of our
homeland. It is a foretaste of the food we will partake in the great
meal, when at last we are home…. Citizens of heaven, may we
never forget where we belong, and may we never lose our way home.
Amen.
*The New Revised Standard Version Bible, (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers) 1989.
Abington Presbyterian Church, Abington, Pennsylvania, www.apcusa.org