Live as Citizens of Heaven
Only, live as citizens in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, contending with one mind for the faith of the gospel and not being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them of their destruction but of your salvation, and that from God. For to you it has been graciously given on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer from him, having the same struggle that you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
Paul now turns from his own situation and focuses on how the Philippians should live. “Only” — no matter what happens, the only, most important thing is that they, and we, should live as citizens of heaven and not of the world. We are called to live our lives in ways worthy of our Lord. We do so by standing firm in spiritual unity, contending together for the gospel, and being fearless in the face of opposition. We rejoice because to believe in and suffer for Christ are blessings from God.
1. Live as Citizens of Heaven
Remember the context of Philippi. This was a Roman colony and the citizens were very proud of their Roman citizenship. There was immense pressure on the Philippians to live and fulfill their duties as Roman citizens. This included the worship of Augustus as a god, as lord, and pledging your allegiance to Ceasar. So, playing on this pride and pressure, Paul uses a different Greek word that says, live as citizens, and in this case, live as citizens of heaven.
Because of Jesus Christ we are now citizens of heaven. “But our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil 3:20) and in 2:14 Paul calls us to live as children of God. We must live according to what we already are in Christ, kingdom citizens. We must live lives worthy of the gospel of Christ, that is live according to the teachings and example of Jesus Christ. These are the constitution of his kingdom and as kingdom citizens we must live according to the constitution of the kingdom of heaven. When we live as kingdom citizens in this world, “Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life” (Phil 2:15).
2. Stand Firm in the One Spirit and in one spirit
How do we live as citizens of heaven? By standing firm in the One Holy Spirit and in one spirit. We stand firm because we are all filled and empowered by the one Holy Spirit of God. In the one Spirit we are united as the body of Christ. Because we all have the same Holy Spirit in us we are one in spirit. We have the same mind, attitude, and thinking about the gospel. We have the same purpose, the same mission, the same vision, that is, the advancement of the gospel, the coming of God’s kingdom, and his glory. We may not agree on everything but we will not be distracted by personal views, pet peeves, worldly views, and ways of thinking. We will not allow these to divide us. We will not allow these to distract us from our calling. Filled by the Holy Spirit and submitting to the One Spirit, He enables us to be one in spirit. We will remain one in purpose, united in our mission as God’s people to see his kingdom come and his will be done.
3. Contend for the Faith Together as a Team
And in the One Holy Spirit and in one spirit we contend together, side by side, with one soul, one mind, for the faith of the gospel, the gospel of Christ. Not for our personal agendas, doctrines, theologies, church, or denomination, but for the faith in Jesus Christ that comes from the preaching of the gospel. We contend for his kingdom and his glory. We are united in our souls, hearts, and minds. Just as we love God with our whole being we contend for the gospel with our whole being, body and soul, spirit and mind, with all our heart and strength.
We contend with one soul side by side. In this mission there are no lone rangers. We are all part of the body of Christ. We need each other. Together as one body we are able to grow so much more and do so much more.
Perhaps I can illustrate this with a sports team. You have different players, with different roles, functions, skills, and abilities. They have different viewpoints and don’t agree on everything. But when they come together to play a game, they stand firm in one spirit. They share the same purpose to win the game. And so they play together, strive together side by side with one heart and one mind. They play wholeheartedly giving their utmost best.
4. Be Fearless in the Face of Opposition
We are involved in a cosmic battle. We stand firm when we are fearless and not frightened or intimidated by those who oppose us. The Philippians’ allegiance to Jesus Christ as Lord, and not Caesar, challenged the political establishment and bordered on treason. The Christians were a political, social, and cultural embarrassment. They were considered to be “un-Roman” and enemies to the public order because they claimed that their citizenship was in heaven. This led to persecution from the very beginning. Look at what they accused Paul and Silas of during their first visit, Acts 16:19-22 — “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” We read in Paul’s letters that widespread persecution persisted throughout Macedonia.
From the first century until today, there have been many people, organizations, leaders, and governments who were determined to destroy the Christian faith. Even in today’s post-Christian America, the forces of skepticism, cynicism, unbelief, and evil within our culture are powerful. People with different worldviews, beliefs, values, political viewpoints, and ideologies are imposing their beliefs on us, forcing us to think like them.
It’s easy for Christians to feel intimidated. Living as kingdom citizens in this world is costly and demanding. We live by the belief that Jesus is the true Lord of this world. Most of the world doesn’t believe this. So, we are out of step with the people, the culture, and society around us. This results in misunderstanding, hostility, opposition, and persecution.
Who or what is opposing you, making you afraid, intimidating you? When we face persecution, suffering, and possible death we experience fear. But we will not allow this fear to intimidate and overwhelm us so that we give up on living steadfastly as kingdom citizens. Paul tells us — Don’t panic. Keep your head. Stand firm. Be courageous. You are a citizen of heaven. You are a child of God and He is in control.
When we live as kingdom citizens, we stand firm in spiritual unity, contend together for the gospel, and are fearless in the face of opposition, then all of this is a sign that we are saved and will enter the kingdom. And for those who oppose and persecute us this is a sign of their destruction. They may not know it, recognize it, or believe it but this is the truth of the gospel. This is a sign of their eternal destruction and judgment by God.
“All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.” (2 Thess 1:5-10)
This is from God. Our salvation is from God. He himself enables us to live as kingdom citizens. He empowers us to stand firm, contend for the gospel, and be fearless. The world and our enemies may harm us physically. Jesus said they can kill the body but not the soul. God’s mission, his story, is moving on, unstoppable, to our final salvation and the final victory. Our opponents are fighting a losing battle.
5. Believe in and Suffer for the Lord
Paul continues to explain why our standing firm in persecution and adversity is God’s proof, his sign of our salvation. God gave us two gifts of grace on behalf of Christ, to believe in Christ and to suffer for him. He graciously gave us the gift of believing in Christ, and because we believed in his name, he gave us the right to become children of God (John 1:12,13). Our faith is the evidence that God saved us by his amazing grace.
He also graciously gave us the gift to suffer for Christ. This is the gift we don’t like to hear about. We are called to suffer like him and for him. “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mk 8:34). If our salvation has been secured by the suffering of our Lord on our behalf, then we should demonstrate our discipleship in our own suffering on his behalf. This is a blessing and a privilege.
Suffering and persecution are signs that we are saved and that we are living as kingdom citizens. “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also” (John 15:18-20).
“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name” (1 Pet 4:12-16).
We have not suffered nearly as much for Christ as our brothers and sisters have in other parts of the world. The last 175 years have seen more Christian martyrs than the previous 1800 combined. But if the current trends continue opposition to the gospel and persecution will increase in America. Are we ready and willing to suffer for our Lord or are we fearful? Are we trying to avoid it by any means possible? Or do we see it as a blessing and privilege?
“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Mt 5:10-12).
And when we are persecuted and suffer will we rejoice like the apostles in Acts (5:41) because we have been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for his Name.