Joy — Philippians 3 – Thursday
TODAY’S VERSE
Philippians 3:20
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…” (ESV)
Are there any movies you feel compelled to watch no matter when they’re on? This recently happened to me when I was scrolling through one of our streaming apps and came across Captain America: Civil War. If you haven’t seen it, here’s a brief overview:
Steve Rogers (Captain America) is spearheading the newly formed team of Avengers as they defend and protect humanity. Despite their efforts, the Avengers are under a microscope due to the collateral damage accumulated during their missions. As a result, a proposition is made for the team to have some type of oversight to improve accountability.
Unfortunately, this causes a rift and two teams are formed. One is led by Steve who is against any oversight, and the other is led by Tony Stark (Iron Man) who is for accountability. Although this is the primary tension driving the plot, the secondary tension between Steve and Tony is arguably just as tense.
Steve’s best friend (Bucky) is being used as a pawn by the enemy (Hydra). There’s a scene that gives insight on how contentious their relationship has grown when Steve refers to Bucky as his friend, and Tony responds with these painful words: “So was I.” This exchange underscores the movie as a whole: Our actions reflect our allegiance.
What we see unfolding between these two on a personal level is also true for us on a spiritual level. Throughout the pages of the Bible, we see a war being waged between the Kingdom of Darkness and the Kingdom of Light. And this battle begins in the minds and hearts of every single person. In other words, the battle is for our allegiance.
Paul alludes to this in Philippians 3:17-21. As followers of Jesus, we’re called to be holy, different, or set apart from this world because we know Who (Jesus) and where (Heaven) our allegiance lies. Maybe you’ve heard it said, “We’re to be in the world, but not of the world” which sounds somewhat similar to Jesus’ words (John 15:19, John 17:14-16). I’ve also heard it said, “We’re boats in the water, not boats full of water.”
The bottom line is this: We live with eternity in mind. C.S. Lewis said it best: “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next…It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.” (Mere Christianity)
Translation: Our allegiance is to Heaven, so our actions are for Heaven (Philippians 1:27-28). Ultimately, our actions will reveal if we’re Team Jesus or not. There's no “fair-weather fan” Team Jesus. There’s no “house divided” Team Jesus. There’s no “lukewarm” Team Jesus. Just Team Jesus and only Jesus. So here’s the question we have to wrestle with: If someone were to look at your life, where would they conclude your allegiance lies?
APPLICATION
Write Philippians 3:20 on a sticky note. Place the note somewhere you’ll see it (e.g. mirror, nightstand, vehicle, work station, etc.) as a daily reminder of where your true allegiance lies.
PRAYER
“God, this world is often competing with my allegiance to You. But according to Colossians 3, we are to seek things above and set our minds on things above, not things on earth. Saturate my mind and my heart with eternity this week so that my actions reflect my allegiance to You and Your Kingdom. Amen.”