-- Philippians 3:17-21
Proposition: A child of God is to be alert and looking for the Savior’s return in a world that does not have time to hear His voice and be prepared for His coming.
Objective: My purpose is to challenge people to look for the Savior’s return and be prepared for His coming.
INTRODUCTION:
When it’s time to take a long car trip with small children, the question they ask over and over is, "How much longer?" Children are not mature enough to realize that patience is the prerequisite for pleasure. In fact, given the choice, they might prefer not to "go to Grandma’s house" if it means sitting in the car all day. But once they get there, they realize the wait was worth it. Some Christians have a childlike attitude when it comes to traveling to heaven: "How much longer? I’m tired of waiting for Jesus’ return." Time is a problem for us, not for God. For Him, a thousand years is no different from a day (2 Peter 3:8). Rather, God will send Christ to call His church home at the perfect time.
What are you looking for? This is as severe a condemnation as you can find of those who profess to be Christians. They claim to be Christian, yet they contradict their profession by their lives. Their God is their belly—that’s an awful thing! This means that they are led by their appetites. Some professing Christians have an appetite for money. Some are looking for riches & what that can bring. They will do most anything for the almighty dollar. Others are looking for a good time with alcohol and others with drugs. Others have such an appetite for sex that it becomes actually their god. They live for self and self only, and they actually glory in this. Nothing will keep our minds spiritual more than looking for the coming of Christ. “Watch out for the worldly crowd!” Paul is weeping over the professed Christians whose lives were bearing the fruit of worldly-mindedness. The Cross defeated the world & the flesh; the Cross speaks of sacrifice & suffering, yet these people live for the world & seek only to please themselves.
Barclay writes, Here was a picture the Philippians could understand. Philippi was a Roman colony. Here & there at strategic military centres the Romans set down their colonies. In such places the citizens were mostly soldiers who had served their time—21 years—& who had been rewarded with full citizenship. The great charac-teristic of these colonies was that, wherever they were, they remained fragments of Rome. Roman dress was worn; Roman magistrates governed; the Latin tongue was spoken; Roman justice was administered; Roman morals were observed. Even in the ends of the earth they remained unshakably Roman. Paul says to the Philippians, “Just as the Roman colonists never forget that they belonged to Rome, you must never forget that you are citizens of heaven; & your conduct must match your citizenship.”
I. WITH A COMPASSION THAT IS TENDER (vvs. 17-19) “Join in following my example”— And note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern. This refers to any others who were living the same kind of life as Paul.
1. Example to follow (v. 17)“follow…my example”-- Now Paul turns to exhortation, first by encouraging the Philippians to be followers, or imitators of himself. It is a tribute to his exemplary life that he could ever write such words. We often hear the expression in jest, “Do as I say, not as I do.” Not so the apostle! He could hold up his own life as a model of wholehearted devotion to Christ and to His cause.
Illus: There was a lawyer who was not saved. He had a boy about 10 or 11 years old. One morning snow had fallen on the ground. It was his habit as walked from his home to the main street down the street to his office, to stop in at a tavern for his morning drink. On this morning as he walked with his law book under his arm as he making tracks in the snow, he heard a sound behind him and looked behind him to see his son reaching as far as his little legs would let him and stepping and stepping and stepping. He turned and said, “Son, what are you doing?” The little boy said, “Oh, nothing, just stepping in Daddy’s tracks.” He sent the boy back into their house; but he was unable to send away from his mind and soul the words of his little boy. When he got down the street to turn into the tavern, he remembered what his son had said. He went to his office and sitting down opened his law book and read on every page, “Stepping in Daddy’s tracks,” “Stepping in Daddy’s tracks.” That man became conscious of the responsibilities that he had on him in his life before his child and became a great Christian lawyer. He didn’t have to go to the tavern and he determined to be a positive Christian influence on his son.
Stepping In Daddy’s Tracks
I was plodding through the new snow Making my way to the street;
Hearing my son call, "Daddy," I turned around to seek
The reason he was following me. He soberly answered back,
"Don’t step so far, Daddy, Cause I’m stepping in your tracks."
I tried to console myself That this could never be;
But the truth flashed home again, "My son is following me."
2. Enemies to flee (v.18) “They are the enemies of the cross of
Christ”—The disguise they wear as they are called enemies. Who were these "enemies of the cross of Christ"? Some regard them as the Judaizers of 3:2, whose emphasis on legalism undermined the effect of the Cross. Others view them as libertines who went to the opposite extreme from the Judaizers and threw off all restraints. This is as severe a condemnation as you can find of those who profess to be Christians. They claim to be Christian, yet they contradict their profession by their lives. Their God is their belly—that’s an awful thing! This means that they are led by their appetites. Some professing Christians have an appetite for money. They will do most anything for the almighty dollar. Others have such an appetite for sex that it becomes actually their god. Others covet—that is the cause of much of the strife and vainglory. The basic cause of it is that they have their hearts and minds on earthly things. They live for self and self only, and they actually glory in this.
3. Earthliness to forsake (v. 19) “who set their mind on
earthly things”—We see the doom they face for “their end of destruction.” There is the deity they serve for “whose god is their belly.” There is the disgrace they have for they “set their mind on earthly things.” Therefore, our minds should be on that which originates in heaven rather than on that which originates on earth. Note the disposition they display, "They set their minds on earthly things." In the case of the Judaizers, they’re into the earthly ceremonies, rituals, and stuff that is nothing more than earthly symbol. In the case of the libertines, "They love the world and enmity with God is the result of friendship with the world," says James. "And if you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you," says John. They are what Paul Rees calls "thing minded."
Illus: Tennis star Boris Becker was at the very top of the tennis world—
yet he was on the brink of suicide. He said, “I had won Wimbledon twice before, once as the youngest player. I was rich. I had all the material possessions I needed . It’s the old song of movie stars and pop stars who commit suicide. They have everything, and yet they are so unhappy. I had no inner peace. I was a puppet on a string.” Becker is not the only one to feel that sense of emptiness. The echoes of a hollow life pervade our culture. One doesn’t have to read many contemporary biographies to find the same frustration and disappointment. Jack Higgens, author of such successful novels and The Eagle Has Landed, was asked what he would like to have known as a boy. His answer: “That when you get to the top, there’s nothing there.”
Illus: A little boy, when his mother was out, got a chair and climbed up to a shelf in the closet to see if there was anything nice. He saw a small white paper parcel. He opened it. It was filled with white powder. The boy tasted it and found it sweet; he took more and then put it up again. His mother came back. The boy soon fell ill, and complained to his mother. She asked what he had eaten. He told her he had “tasted some of that sweet sugar in the closet.” “Oh, my boy, it is poison; it will kill you!” she exclaimed. The doctor was sent for, and the boy’s life was saved. But that boy never forgot that what is sweet may be poison. So with sin. Something we like much may be wrong; but if it is wrong it is sin—it is death.
II. With A CITIZENSHIP THAT IS TRUST-WORTHY (v. 19) “Our citizenship is in heaven”-- The apostle now contrasts the heavenly-minded attitude of the true believer. Earthly things must at best be secondary. We dwell on earth but are citizens of heaven.
1. An enduring experience “Our citizenship is in heaven”-- At the time the Epistle was written, Philippi was a colony of Rome (Acts 16:12). The Philippians were citizens of Rome, enjoying its protection and privileges. But they were also citizens of their local government. Against this backdrop, the apostle reminds the believers that their citizenship is in heaven. Indeed, believers should be obedient to the government in all matters not expressly forbidden by the Lord. The Philippians owed allegiance to the local magistrates, and also to the Emperor in Rome. So believers have responsibilities to earthly governments, but their first loyalty is to the Lord in heaven.
--Our names are on heaven’s record (Rev. 20:15)
--We speak heaven’s language (1 John 4:5-6)
--We obey heaven’s laws.
--We are to be loyal to heaven’s cause
Illus: As believers in the Lord Jesus, we are citizens of heaven. Many years ago, a man visited his longtime friend, a British military officer stationed in an African jungle. One day when the friend entered the officer’s hut, he was startled to see him dressed in formal attire and seated at a table beautifully set with silverware and fine china. The visitor, thinking his friend might have lost his mind, asked why he was all dressed up and seated at a table so sumptuously arrayed out in the middle of nowhere. The officer explained, "Once a week I follow this routine to remind myself of who I am—a British citizen. I want to maintain the customs of my real home and live according to the codes of British conduct, no matter how those around me live. I want to avoid substituting a foreign culture for that of my homeland." We need to live in such a way that others will see that we are different.
2. An eager expectation “We also eagerly wait”— Not
only are we citizens of heaven, but we also eagerly wait for the Savior from heaven! Eagerly wait for is strong language (in the original) to express the earnest expectation of something believed to be imminent. The second coming reminds us of several things, (1). there will be a day of accounting . . .we must not conclude that anyone is "getting away with" anything; (2). there is to be an urgency in our witness and in our personal pursuit of holiness. (3). we must never look at world events and think that things are "out of control." The Lord’s hands are still on the controls of time.
Illus: When Dr. Horatius Bonar (served in the Free Church of Scot¬land as pastor of the Chal¬mers Me¬mor¬i¬al church in Edinburgh & was called “the prince of Scottish hymn writers) would retire at night, he would draw aside the curtains and look up and say, “Perhaps tonight, Lord?” In the morning he would raise the blinds and while looking out, “Perhaps today, Lord?”
3. An enriching example “for the Savior, the Lord
Jesus Christ”— "We wait for (so the same Greek is translated, Rom_8:19) the Lord Jesus as a (that is, in the capacity of a) Savior" (Heb. 9:28). That He is "the Lord," now exalted above every name, assures our expectation (Phil. 2:9-11). Our High Priest is gone up into the Holy of Holies not made with hands, there to atone for us; and as the Israelites stood outside the tabernacle, expecting Aaron’s return (compare Luke 1:21), so must we look unto the heavens expecting Christ thence.
Illus: In World War II when General Douglas MacArthur withdrew
from the Philippines - after Pearl Harbor and before the surrender of Corregidor - he waded waist deep out into the Pacific and dramatically exclaimed to- the onlooking Filipinos, "I will return!" For long months and years these words of General MacArthur echoed in the ears of the people of the Philippine Islands while they waited under cruel enemy occupation. Millions of people hung on these three words as the only ray of light in the darkness of tyranny and oppression. They were words of hope, they were words of promised deliverance for people around the world. MacArthur did return, he returned with a vengeance. Not stopping at Manila, he went on to Tokyo to receive the surrender of the proud nation of Japan on the deck of the Battleship Missouri. Although he was, after all, a frail human being, he kept his promise. He did return.
III. With A CHANGE THAT IS TRANSFORMING (v. 21) “who will transform our lowly body"-- When the Lord Jesus comes from heaven, He will change these bodies of ours. There is nothing vile or evil about the human body in itself.
1. An effective purpose “who will transform”—This body of our humiliation cramps, confines and limits us. When the Lord Jesus comes from heaven, He will change these bodies of ours. There is nothing vile or evil about the human body in itself. The evil lies in the wrong uses to which it is put. But it is a lowly body, a body of humiliation. It limits and cramps us! The Lord will transform it into a body of glory. It will no longer be subject to decay or death, to the limitations of time or of natural barriers. It will be a real body, yet perfectly suited to conditions in heaven. It will be like the resurrection body of the Lord Jesus.
2. An excellent progress “that it may be conformed to His glorious body”—Conformed means that the body of our state of humiliation will be made suitable to associate with the body of Christ’s glory (1 Cor. 15:54.). We shall receive a spiritual body fit for glory.
3. An eternal power “according to the working by
which He is able”—A sufficient resource—The power at work in life is the guarantee of Christ’s ability to bring all under His subjection, such as, disease, death & decay. The transformation of our bodies will be accomplished by the same divine power which the Lord will later use to subdue all things to Himself. “This is ... our God forever and ever: He will be our guide even to death” (Psa. 48:14).
Illus: In Fiji Islands, there is a custom of calling to dead. A person
would climb a high tree or cliff and mention the name of the friends as one cried out, “Come back! Come back!” One day Christ will come and call us to Himself.
CONCLUSION: In closing, let us remember to:
1. There is a sure return. This will become a reality and each one should be prepared for His return.
2. There is a splendid redemption. The looking for the Savior’s return makes today even more important.
3. There is a sufficient resource. An American citizen living in a foreign country has only to go the embassy of the US to get help—even so in the spiritual realm. We have the resources of Heaven at our disposal.
4. There is something to look forward to—His return. As citizens
of Heaven then: we should spend time thinking about Heaven; we should be looking forward to it; we should live our lives mindful that we represent another land.
Illus: John was a poor servant-boy to a rich doctor in London, England. John’s master loved the Lord Jesus and often had church meetings in the large living room of his home. At one of these meetings the doctor talked about the coming again of the Lord Jesus to take to Heaven all those who believe in Him. Everyone else, he said, would be left behind. After the meeting was over, the doctor said, "Well, John, I just want to tell you that if Jesus comes before I die, I shall no longer want the things I have now. He will take me away with Him and then you may have my house and all my money." Such an offer took John by surprise. He could only stammer his thanks. That night he lay awake wondering why his master had offered him all that wealth. Suddenly he thought, "Why should I want a house and furniture, a car, horses, and money after the Lord comes? How terrible it would be to be left behind, even if all my master’s belongings were mine!" Soon he could bear the thought no longer. He slipped out of bed, ran quickly down the hall to the room where his master slept and knocked on the door. "Why, John," asked the doctor, "what’s the matter? What do you want?" "Please sir," answered John, "I don’t want your house after the Lord comes, or your car, or horses, or money." "Well, John, what do you want?" "Oh sir, I want to be ready when the Lord comes, to go with Him to Heaven." Right there in the doctor’s bedroom John put his trust in the Lord Jesus. Right there John was saved. Right there John was ready for the Lord’s coming.
He is coming! I shall know Him,
Jesus, my beloved Lord!
Changed forever to His likeness -
Oh, what joy this will afford! – Dimmock
Prepared by: Gerald R. Steffy
6206 N. Hamilton Rd., Peoria, IL 61614
E-Mail: grsteffy@yahoo.com to receive
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