“Glorious Bodies Await Us!”

“Glorious Bodies Await Us!”(Phi.3:20-4:1).
“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love…that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!”
In his book, “The City Of God,” St. Augustine of Hippo, the great African Bishop, scholar, theologian, and philosopher, distinguished between the city of God and the earthly city. The city of God is formed by the love of God, and the earthly city is formed by the love of self.
Augustine’s two cities illustration to differentiate between church and state made a contribution in formulating the doctrine of two kingdoms. The book was written against the background of the sack of Rome by the Visigoths.
Some argued that Rome fell because they abandoned their traditional gods to embrace Christianity; implying that Christianity was the cause of the fall of Rome.
Augustine argued that the political prowess of any earthly kingdom is at best temporary. The kingdom of God alone prevails through time into timelessness.
The opening words of today’s text may have been one of Augustines’ scriptural inspiration. “But our citizenship is in heaven.” Surely, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are in this world, but they do not belong to/in the world. We are immigrants in the earthly kingdom. We are pilgrims without a permanent home here.
The Cambridge dictionary defines citizenship as “the state of being a member of a particular country and having rights because of it…”
“A citizen is a participatory member of a political community. Citizenship is gained by meeting the legal requirements of a national, state, or local government. A nation grants certain rights and privileges to its citizens. In return, citizens are expected to obey their country’s laws and defend it against its enemies.”
What does this mean for us whose citizenship is in heaven? Citizens of the earth live as enemies of Christ, and so their destiny is destruction. Their God is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.
Unlike them, we should empty ourselves of self-love and embrace the love of God; considering everything a loss in comparison to the greatness of knowing our Lord Jesus Christ.
As pilgrim people journeying to the land of our citizenship, we should keep pressing on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us onward in Christ Jesus.
My friend, all through the week, we have dwelled on the glory of God and the glory of the son. If we stand firm in the Lord, then in his second coming, he will transform our lowly bodies so that we will be like his glorious body.
Given that we are temporary citizens of the earthly kingdom through biological nationality, we should not lose sight of the requirements that prepare us for our citizenship in heaven: Love of God expressed through actionable love of others!”
Weekend prayer: Holy Spirit, inspire us daily to live by the rules of our citizenship. Amen!
Have a blessed weekend! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.
14/02/2025.