The Citizenship in Heaven
Philippians 3:1-21

I hope and pray that all of you are enjoying the retreat so far.
I think it is necessary for us to be away from the busy-ness of this world and just reflect.
It is a busy world out there.
I heard one statistic that says that the Koreans logged 2nd longest working hours in the world.
But they also logged 3rd longest playing hours in the world.
They live busy lives.
And I wonder if we are any different.
Koreans and other Asians are known to work hard.
For better or for worse, we are labeled “model-minority,” at least in part because of our work ethics.
Many of you (or your parents) have worked long hours to have decent lives here.
Do you know how many shirts you have to iron and press to afford the homes you live in?
Koreans work hard.
And there is a lot to learn and admire about that.

But at the same time, we need to stop, pause, and think about why we are doing all this.
Why do we work so hard?
What are you investing in?
And retreats like this afford us to do that.
I think some of you might be wondering why the schedule is so relaxed.
Some of us feel uncomfortable when we don’t have tasks to do before us.
If you feel uncomfortable, good!
I think you need it.
Use this time to relax and reflect on what God is trying to teach you.

They say you need to stop and smell the coffee or flower or whatever it maybe.
And as Christians, we need to stop and really listen to God.
Think about why you are doing the things you are doing.

One of the most helpful illustrations I’ve seen/heard was this one by Francis Chan.
Long rope – only this short section is our lives here on earth.
We have this entire rope to invest for, but yet we are so concerned with this little section that represents our lives here on earth.
What would be a better investment?

This leads nicely into our text today.
(Read Philippians 3)
Our text today is about our Citizenship in Heaven.

But before we go on, I want to touch up the last portion of chapter 2 that we did not get to cover.
Last part of chapter 2 is about Paul sending Timothy and Epaphroditus to the Philippian Church.
The reason Paul is sending these two is that he wants to know about the wellbeing of the Philippian Church.
He is writing to the church, because he has heard some of the things going on at the church and also because he wants to thank the church for the gifts they had sent for missions.
But he wants to know more about the condition of the church.

We are not going to go over every single detail, but here is what we need to know about these two brothers in Christ that Paul is sending to Philippian Church.
They are faithful servants and faithful partners of the ministry.

Timothy was like a son to Paul.
Timothy served with Paul for a long time.
And Paul says Timothy has proven his worth.
Epaphroditus was a messenger to Paul from Philippian Church.
He too is a faithful servant.
But he was ill at one point, to the point of death.
And God had mercy on him, and Paul desires to send him back because the Philippian Church was concerned for him.
These two were faithful servants that reflected the light of Christ.
They cared about others more than themselves.
They imitated Christ.
And when someone imitates Christ like these two brothers, they can lead others to Christ.

One illustration.
This is a story of Rodger Nishioka, who was a professor at Columbia Theological Seminary.
He became a Christian because someone reflected Christ and the true joy that comes through Christ.
A member of his father’s church was playing in a volleyball tournament and he died of heart attack during the game.
At the funeral, his wife went up and said that he would have appreciated it if they can all sing the song her husband liked.
“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. Our God reigns. Our God reigns.”
Your husband is dead and you can claim that our God reigns?
That is someone worth believing.
Timothy reflected the joy of Christ.
Epaphroditus reflected the joy of Christ.
Can you reflect the joy and light of Christ?

Coming back to chapter 3, Paul says rejoice!
Paul says that because our citizenship is in heaven.
That’s the life we need to invest for.
My brother lived in Amsterdam for couple of years.
But when he got there, he did not buy a car or a house, etc.
Because he knew he was moving back.
His citizenship is in USA.

If our citizenship is in heaven, shouldn’t we invest more in heaven than here on earth, where we are here for only a short period of time?
We ought to invest in heaven.
How do we do that?

Paul teaches us that to strive for heaven, we need to want it more than anything else in this world.
Even the things that were once considered good, we need to be able to give it up.
He talks about the things that he used to put his confidence in.
vv. 4-11
All the things that made him a good Jew, he considers them rubbish – which means dung.
All the things this world wishes and strives for, it’s nothing but a poop to Paul.

What are some of those things we put confidence in?
And what are some of those things we strive for?
Korean parents would love their children to be doctors and lawyers.
We all want to live comfortable lives – in the suburbs, driving luxury cars, with 2.5 well mannered kids.
But if God tells us to give it up, can we give it up?
Can we really, for sake of knowing Christ and being found in him, give up all those things?

I hope and pray that we will be able to seek after Christ and hope to be found in him.

Paul says he is forgetting everything behind and is pressing on forward.
vv. 13-14
The eternal life, our citizenship in heaven is something that Christ took hold of for us.
For Christ to take hold of it, he also took hold of the cross.
His life and death and resurrection is what secures our citizenship in heaven.