Secure in the arms of a God who will never let you go.
OCTOBER 14, 2024
Steve Brown:
Secure in the arms of a God who will never let you go. Let’s talk, on Key Life.
Matthew Porter:
Being adopted into the family of God is not about doing more or trying harder. It’s about being welcomed by God because of His radical grace, free from the penalties of sin and never alone in your suffering. That grace is what Key Life is all about.
Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. Hope you guys had a great week-end, and I hope that your pastor’s sermon was as good as my pastor’s sermon. If you have your Bible out, let’s turn to Philippians 1:27 through 30. This is a part of our multi month study in the Book of Philippians. And we’re going to talk this week, and next week probably too, about what it means to be a citizen of the kingdom of God. What it means to be a citizen and to serve under a king that nobody will ever elect. There won’t be an election or a primary, it’s been settled. And that nobody will ever depose. And I don’t know about you, but in our political milieu, that is kind of comforting thought. At any rate, we’re looking at citizenship. Let me read that text to you. I read it to you last week, and it doesn’t sound like citizenship, but if you were listening on Thursday, the pedagogical material, that’s for teaching, that I gave you, which I discovered by doing the research on it, is absolutely mind blowing when you understand what Paul is talking about. But this is the text, I’ll read it, then we’ll pray and we’ll get down. This is Philippians 1:27 through 30.
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, then whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved, and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him since you’re going through the same struggle you saw I had and now hear that I still have.
Now, one of the things that you don’t automatically see from that text, and I spent almost a whole program on Thursday talking about it, and showing you that Paul is talking about citizenship. When these words were written, that we’re studying, it was written in a prison in Rome. And not only that, Paul was in Rome because he was a citizen of Rome, and he used his citizenship to appeal to Caesar, which was the privilege only a citizen of Rome had. As he went through his imprisonment in Rome, he had an opportunity to see the great city. The disciplined legions, the pride, civic pride, and when he wrote his friends in Philippi, he used an analogy of citizenship to describe what a Christian ought to do. Now, he had done that before in Ephesians 2:19.
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household.
In Philippians 3:20, and we’ll get to that later.
But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus.
It’s interesting to note that he uses a verb in the 27th verse. And it is an unusual verb that Paul uses. It’s translated in the King James Version as conversation. In the NIV, it’s conduct yourself. Translated in the ESV, let your manner of life be worthy. Now, there are two Greek words that Paul could have used here. And one he normally uses, and it means literally to walk about. But here he uses a word, which means literally a citizen. So, if you were to translate this 27th verse literally, it would read, discharge your duty as a citizen of the gospel. And so, in this text that we’re studying, he’s talking about citizenship, and it’s citizenship in the city of God. And what he says about it is really important for us to consider. And so, let’s do that. First you ought to note the security of citizenship, Philippians 1:29.
For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ to believe in him.
John 1:12 says.
To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become the children of God.
You can make that citizens of God’s kingdom. You know, almost everything either of us have, of any importance, we got as a gift. I’ve talked to many, many executives, and at every position, there is always the statement, I have been incredibly fortunate. If you’re a person born in the U.S., you became a citizen, not because of anything you did, but because of where you were born. You have a full stomach because you were not born in a third world country where there’s no food. You are free because you were not born in China or Russia or Iran. And I could go on and on. What does that mean? It means that before you were ever born, you were called to him and he knew your name. And he loved you before he hung the stars and hollowed out the valleys and made the mountains. You were his, and he will never let you go. I’ve probably told you the story about Helen Keller. As you know, she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t hear, and she couldn’t see. But somehow, they managed to get through to her by writing on the palm of her hand. And when finally that language got established, they called Phillips Brooks, who was then the rector of Trinity Church in downtown Boston. And if you go to Trinity Church to this day, you’ll see a statue of Phillips Brooks. Well, I haven’t been there in a while, I guess it’s still there, of Phillips Brooks with Jesus standing behind him. But at any rate, he was a man of God, and they called Phillips Brooks to come to Helen Keller’s home and to explain to her the gospel while somebody wrote what he was saying on the palm of her hand. Those who were there said they sat knee to knee as he began to talk about Jesus. And the more he talked, the more animated she became. The more he talked, the more the tears came. And those who were there said that Helen Keller jumped up from her chair and said in that croaky voice, I knew him! I knew him, I just didn’t know his name. That’s true. I ask people sometimes who are Christians, when you came to Christ, was it brand new, or was it like coming to a place that was yours, and you knew it was yours your whole life. And almost always a Christian who knows the Bible say, Well, I was new. I was a new creation. Behold, all things are new. And then they stop and say, But you know, it really wasn’t new. I just didn’t know his name, but I was his. Now, I’m not going to get into the issues of election and freedom. You’re both. And both are important, and both are taught in the Bible, and that’s called an antimony. And I’m not going to spend a lot of time talking about it, but God is totally sovereign over every molecule of your life and mine, but you are responsible and you’re free too. How does that happen? I don’t know. It just is. And the Bible, if you were Jewish, you wouldn’t have any problem with it. If you’re Greek, you’re into systems and that doesn’t fit, but both are true. And that means if you were a citizen, you were chosen to be a citizen. It was given to you as a gift. You didn’t earn it, and you can never lose it. And that means, that means that citizenship is something that is forever. He knows your name. He calls you to himself. He loved you deeply. And he will never let you go. You think about that. Amen.
Matthew Porter:
I knew him. I just didn’t know his name. Now, that is some powerful stuff. Thank you Steve. That was Steve Brown picking up our exploration of the Book of Philippians. And getting into the subject of our heavenly citizenship. So much more to dig into tomorrow, so hope you will join us for that. Well, if you’ve watched any TV or films or spent time on the internet, you’ve come across it. This worldview that says it doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you believe something and you’re sincere about it and you’re tolerant of others who don’t believe what you believe. Well, Steve addressed this crisis in a timely message called A Matter of Truth. And if you’ll call us at 1-800-KEY-LIFE, we’ll send you that message on CD for free. Again, that’s 1-800-539-5433. You can also e-mail [email protected] to ask for that CD. Or to mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses. Just ask for your free copy of the CD called a matter of truth. And finally, if you’re blessed by the work of Key Life, would you help share that blessing through your financial support? Giving is easy. You can charge a gift on your credit card or include a gift in your envelope. Or you can now give safely and securely through text. Just pick up your phone and text Key Life to 28950. And as always, if you can’t give right now or, maybe you’re just not called to do that, all good. But if you think about it, please do pray for us, would you? Always needed. Always appreciated. Key Life is a member of ECFA in the States and CCCC in Canada. And as always, we are a listener supported production of Key Life Network.