Some time ago, my husband Iván and I moved to Waco, Texas, to embark on a new journey of study and preparation. We believe the Lord brought us here. At the same time, we know this is not a permanent stop. We have settled, we’ve adjusted, we’ve even found community here. And yet… something inside knows that home is somewhere else. Have you ever felt that way? You reside somewhere but you’re not really home. In a similar way, Paul hints at the fact that, as believers, our home is elsewhere. We reside here on earth, but we are citizens of heaven. We are immersed in the culture and language of this world, but our citizenship and our allegiance is in heaven.
In Philippians 3, Paul wants to set up a contrast between two groups of people. The first group is not the group you want to be in, those who are “enemies of the cross” (v.18). Now, you would think he would label the second group as “friends of the cross” or something like that. But no. Instead, after describing what the “enemies of the cross” are like, Paul says: “But WE are citizens of heaven” (v.20a). Another version says, “but our commonwealth is in heaven.”
Why would he use that language? Well, the word Paul uses here — commonwealth — was often used to refer to a colony of foreigners or relocated veterans. These were typically soldiers who had served the Roman empire and when they retired they were honored with all the rights of Roman citizenship. They were also given land to use and pass on to their heirs. Philippi was one such colony.[^1]
In 1998, when I was in college, I had the opportunity to study abroad at a school in Jonquière, a small town in Québec, Canada. For one month, my American classmates and I were fully immersed in French-Canadian culture and language. We were citizens of one country residing for a short time in another. The Philippians were proud to identify as Roman citizens; they fully understood the value of their status; this made them loyal to Rome and to Philippi.[^2]
So perhaps what Paul wants to do by using the word commonwealth is to emphasize not the identity but the allegiance of the “enemies of the cross;” to highlight where their loyalties lied as Roman citizens. And he is contrasting this with those of us who are citizens of heaven. Peter calls us ‘foreigners and exiles.’ The writer of Hebrews calls us ‘foreigners and strangers.’ Those of us who, while living here on earth, have allegiances elsewhere.
Now the “enemies of the cross” have a loyalty problem; their loyalties are bound here in this life. Paul says they have their minds “set on earthly things” (v.19d). “Their god is their belly” (v.19a), which means they are devoted to self-indulgence. They live only to please themselves—their appetites, their desires, and their emotions. Not only that, “their glory is in their shame” (v.19c). Their self-gratification has led them to not only do things that are shameful, but to also boast about them, to glory in them. It is reminiscent of the people Paul describes in Romans chapter 1, who not only practice all kinds of evil things but “Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.**”
These are the “enemies of the cross.” … those who profess to be Christians, yet their lives show that their allegiance is not with heaven but with the world. They are loyal not to Jesus but to themselves. We can see this play out in our own lives today, in big and small ways. Every time we choose to not tell the whole truth, or we choose to not report the entire amount on our taxes. Every time we gossip about someone under the guise of “getting something off our chest.”
Every time we choose to click on that link that we know will take us to a site we shouldn’t be on. Or every time we give in to the marketing ploys of a culture that urges us to buy more and buy now, spending money on things we do not need rather than helping to alleviate the needs of others.
Now let’s be clear: none of us set out for this to happen—we didn’t wake up one morning and simply decide: “Today, I will be an enemy of the cross.” According to Stephen Fowl, these “enemies of the cross” were people who would have identified themselves as believers.[^3] Here is the problem: they claimed to be Christians but they did not demonstrate with their lives that they were citizens of heaven. They lived in a way contrary to the pattern set forth by Jesus.
Those who have their citizenship in heaven, however, live differently. To know what Paul says about the citizens of heaven, we have to go back a bit. Throughout the letter to the Philippians, Paul has been talking about what being a citizen of heaven looks like. He has been highlighting a specific mindset—a way of feeling, and thinking, and acting in the world. He begins with the greatest example—that of Jesus and how he humbled himself. He follows it with examples from the life of Timothy and Epaphroditus, and even his own life. The pattern we are to follow is that of a life “worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27). It is a life patterned after Jesus, where we do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility we value others above ourselves (2:3).
I don’t know about you but I know this isn’t always the way I live my life. There have been times when God has confronted me with this specific verse. When I have had a difficult time with someone. I think “I can’t stand her!” I say “Why does he have to act like that?!” “Why can’t they just do things this way,” which really is saying my way. And the Lord places this verse in my mind and in my heart and gently says: “Do you value them above yourself? Or are you just looking out for what you want? Live a life worthy of the gospel of Christ.” And I have to confess it breaks me… I know that I am not acting right. In fact, my loyalties have been compromised. In that moment, I act like an enemy of the cross.
- ‘Enemies of the cross’ look to their own interests.
‘Citizens of heaven’ look to the interests of others (2:2).
‘Enemies of the cross’ pursue their own ambitions and plans.
‘Citizens of heaven’ follow God (2:8); they care more about following God’s plans than their plans.
‘Enemies of the cross’ love to brag about their accomplishments, their awards, their achievements.
‘Citizens of heaven’ believe that everything is worthless, weightless compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ (3:10).
The season of Lent is one of reflection; it is an opportunity to look at our lives and ask some important questions. How do you live? Where do your loyalties lie? Do you identify first and foremost with the kingdoms of this earth? Are you always seeking to get ahead, doing everything you can to acquire more or achieve more or be more comfortable HERE in this life… on this earth? Or is your allegiance first and foremost to Jesus and his way of life? Are you genuinely concerned with the welfare of others, like Timothy? Are you willing to risk your life for the work of Christ, like Epaphroditus? Like Paul, is your greatest desire to know Christ? To know the power of his resurrection and participate in his sufferings? To become like him in his death, and so, somehow, attain to the resurrection from the dead (3:10-11)?
If you are struggling with allegiance confusion, perhaps today the Spirit of God is calling you to repentance. Repentance is for all of us—believers and nonbelievers alike. Any time we find ourselves setting our minds on earthly things, it is time to repent—it’s time to turn away from those things, ask forgiveness, and set our minds once again on Jesus. So as we prepare to remember the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and celebrate his resurrection, ask God to help you live as a citizen of heaven, even as you reside here on earth.
Through faith in Jesus, we become part of a new commonwealth. We are citizens of heaven. And that is where our allegiance lies. Paul says that the end for the ‘enemies of the cross’ is destruction (v.19a). But for those whose citizenship is in heaven there is a different end. For those of us who “eagerly await a savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ… will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own” (v.21 NLT). The good news of the gospel is that something better, something glorious awaits! There is a holy city, where the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with us, and we will be his people, and God himself will be with us as our God (Rev. 21:3). In this place all things are made new, there will be no more tears, no more death, no more mourning, nor crying, nor pain (Rev. 21:4). This is the inheritance for those of us who are children of God, who are citizens of heaven. This doesn’t mean we live passively waiting for ‘some day,’ when we can go and live in heaven where we belong, no.
As Roman citizens, the Philippians were not waiting for the day they could go live in Rome. Instead, they enjoyed all the rights and fulfilled all the responsibilities of being a citizen of Rome, even while living in Philippi. As citizens of heaven, we “eagerly await a Savior” (3:20) whose power “enables him to bring everything under his control” (3:21). This is good news! This is where we find the power to place our allegiances with Christ over against the kingdoms of this world. This is how we “stand firm in the Lord” (4:1). While we live here on earth, we enjoy all the rights, and fulfill all the responsibilities, of being a citizen of heaven.
Iván and I recently spent two weeks in Florida. By the end of the first week, we were looking forward to being home. We had fun; we spent time with family, relaxed, ate from our favorite Chinese place… but we longed to be in the quiet of our apartment and sleep in our own bed. When it was finally time to leave, we were eager to drive the 17 hours it took to get home! As citizens of heaven, our hearts long for our heavenly home; we look forward to the day when our lowly bodies will be transformed and we will be with God forever. In the meantime, we eagerly await the coming of our Savior. We reside here on earth but we live as citizens of heaven.
[^1]: William Arndt et al., “Πολίτευμα,” In A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, edited by Frederick William Danker, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2000, p.845.
[^2]: The Navigators, Philippians: Find Peace and Contentment in Perilous Times, LifeChange, Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2013, p.42.
[^3]: Stephen E. Fowl, Philippians (Two Horizons New Testament Commentary), Edited by Joel B. Green and Max Turner, Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005.