Philippians 3:17-21
“Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. 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.”
What defines an enemy of the cross of Christ?
- their destiny is destruction
- their god is their stomach (I assume that means they are controlled by their earthly desires)
- their glory is in their shame
- their mind is on earthly things
When I take a look at this list, I understand it as a good description of our culture, and unfortunately, at times my life. Our culture and our world, while technologically advancing, does not seem to be advancing morally. We continue to hear of atrocities of humanity, of more destructive personal behaviors (I just read an article of 4 grade 5 students in a school in the states who engaged in sex in front of their classmates while the teacher was out of the room), and of a world that physically is groaning for redemption. We live in a world (at least western world) that champions satisfying personal desires, no matter what, as quickly as possible. We live in a world that glorifies the freedom to sin, whether it is open sexuality at any level, or the pursuit of materialistic wealth, or the celebration of pride and boasting amongst athletes and music artists (listen to any rap/hip hop album). There is no sense of thinking about an eternal future…at least not at the expense of temporal pleasure.
However, we are to be different
- our citizenship is in heaven
o this should lead to peace in the midst of turmoil. This should move us to store up treasure in heaven, not here on earth.
- we wait eagerly for our Savior
o we are to treasure Christ more than anything this world offers. We should be expectant, longing, focused. Do we eagerly look for Christ?
- we understand and I would suggest than trust, the power of Christ.
o While our world spins out of control, He is not
- we know that new bodies are coming
o we are not in despair over the physical failure of our bodies. We have new ones coming.
There needs to be a massive shift from the temporal to the eternal. Lord, this is not easy for me. On my strength, this is impossible. I pray for Your grace to move me Lord. Shift my focus for Your glory and my joy.
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