Sermon Synopsis
Drawing from Philippians 3, this message explores what it means to be citizens of heaven through three perspectives: the gain of knowing Christ, the goal of pursuing Christ, and the glory of seeing Christ. Paul teaches that heavenly citizenship is received through faith in Christ, treasured above all earthly gains, and expressed through a focused life of discipleship and pilgrimage. Believers are called to press forward with undivided hearts, refusing to be trapped by the past while pursuing Christ as their supreme goal. The sermon concludes with the hope-filled expectation that one day Christ will return and fully transform His people into His likeness.
Please note: This transcript is provided as close to verbatim record of the sermon.
We the Citizens of Heaven
Good morning, everyone.
Can I request you to stand for a few moments? We are going to recite something together. Not everybody can say, “We are the citizens of Singapore,” but every believer in Christ can say this.
I want you to say it so that at least you will remember the title of the message, even if you forget everything else.
Ready?
“We the citizens of heaven.”
Please be seated.
If that sounds familiar, it is because it resembles the opening line of our national pledge. I did not choose this title because of National Day. Rather, it comes from a sermon seed that the Lord placed on my heart from my daily readings. The first sermon seed I recorded this year was Philippians 3:20 with the title, “We the Citizens of Heaven.”
Those of us who grew up in local schools will remember reciting the National Pledge during school assemblies. It reminds us of both the privileges and responsibilities of citizenship.
The New Testament speaks of our citizenship in heaven in one key place—Philippians 3:20. Let us turn there and consider what it means to be citizens of heaven.
I want to consider three aspects of heavenly citizenship:
Philippians 3:7–11
“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ…”
Paul repeatedly uses the language of accounting—gain, loss, profit, value. He is describing the incalculable gain of knowing Christ.
This section deals with what is involved in becoming a citizen of heaven.
The Philippians were very familiar with the concept of Roman citizenship. Philippi was a Roman colony. Many veterans of the Roman army were granted Roman citizenship after their service. Though Philippi was located in Greece, everything about the city reminded its inhabitants that they belonged to Rome and lived under the rule of a different master.
In much the same way, the church is a colony of heaven on earth. Believers are to demonstrate what citizens of heaven look like while living here below.
A citizen of heaven is simply a Christian. Christ is now in heaven. Our eternal home is in heaven. Therefore, we are citizens of heaven.
But there is only one way to heaven—through faith in Jesus Christ.
We are not being narrow-minded when we say that. Jesus alone came from heaven as the Son of God so that He might become the Son of Man upon earth.
In John 3, Jesus said:
“No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man.”
The Lord Jesus came from heaven, lived among us, died, rose again, and returned to heaven. He went there as the Firstborn from the dead and as our Forerunner, preparing a place for us.
Paul refers to Him in 1 Corinthians 15 as the heavenly Man.
Citizenship is normally acquired by birth. Likewise, heavenly citizenship comes through a new birth.
Jesus told Nicodemus:
“Unless one is born again,”
or literally,
“born from above,”
he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Gaining Christ
Paul says:
“I count all things loss… that I may gain Christ.”
For Paul, to trust Christ was to gain Christ.
In reality, it was not Paul who found Christ. Christ found him.
Paul was not seeking Jesus. He was persecuting Christians. But the risen Lord apprehended him on the Damascus Road. In an instant, he went from chasing Christians to chasing Christ.
He found himself in Christ rather than against Christ.
That phrase, “in Christ,” is one of the most powerful expressions in the New Testament. God sees Christ in place of the sinner. That is justification.
Paul describes a glorious exchange:
Faith may be remembered by the acrostic:
F.A.I.T.H. — Forsaking All, I Take Him.
The Only Passport to Heaven
Recently, Singapore’s passport was ranked the most powerful passport in the world based on visa-free access.
But no earthly passport can grant access to heaven.
The only passport that gains entry there is the one purchased by the precious blood of Christ.
When Paul discovered this treasure, this pearl of great price, he regarded everything else as rubbish in comparison.
The illustration that comes to mind is the Japanese “banana notes” issued during the Japanese Occupation. The day Japan surrendered, those notes became worthless. They could be discarded as rubbish.
That is how Paul viewed all his former achievements.
By contrast, his greatest gain was the surpassing worth of knowing Christ.
This is eternal life.
Jesus said in John 17:3:
“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”
Eternal life is not primarily about endless duration. It is about personal relationship.
Paul’s greatest treasure was knowing Christ.
Not merely knowing facts about Him, but knowing Him experientially.
As we know Him more deeply, we experience the power of His death and resurrection in daily life.
Jim Elliot’s Testimony
When I think about gain and loss, I think of Jim Elliot.
Six years before he was martyred at age twenty-eight, he wrote in his journal:
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”
But an even less-known statement preceded those famous words:
“One of the greatest blessings of heaven is the appreciation of heaven on earth.”
That is what we are considering today.
To know Christ is surpassing gain.
To live is Christ.
To die is gain.
Summary
We the citizens of heaven count all things loss for the incomparable gain of knowing Christ in the power of His cross and resurrection.
Philippians 3:12–14
“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on…”
Knowing Christ gives us heavenly citizenship.
But what do we do while we remain on earth?
We pursue Christ.
Peter describes believers as:
“sojourners and pilgrims.”
We are travelers—but more than travelers, we are pilgrims.
We are on a journey to God’s house.
Meanwhile, we reside in temporary housing.
As the old chorus says:
“This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through.”
We are people of the Way and people on the way.
Jesus said:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
The early Christians were repeatedly called followers of “the Way.”
We belong to the Way, and we are on the way.
Resident Aliens
American immigration terminology is interesting.
Those who are not citizens are called aliens. Permanent residents are called resident aliens.
In a sense, that is exactly what Christians are.
We are citizens of heaven temporarily residing on earth.
We are not settlers.
We are sojourners.
We have not arrived.
Paul says:
“Not that I have already attained.”
The Christian life is marked by the phrase:
“Not yet.”
We have not yet been perfected.
We have not yet arrived.
But one day we shall.
Press On
Paul says:
“I press on.”
To press on is to pursue God’s purpose.
Not merely our own ambitions.
Before Christ seized us, we lived for ourselves.
Now we live for Him.
I remember long-distance runs during officer cadet training. Our company commander would run up and down shouting:
“Press on! Press on!”
That is the idea here.
Keep going.
Do not quit.
Do not slacken.
Run flat out for the finish line.
One Thing
Paul says:
“One thing I do.”
Literally, the words “I do” are not there in Greek.
Simply:
“One thing.”
Nothing significant is achieved without singular focus.
A divided heart dissipates energy.
Psalm 86 says:
“Unite my heart to fear Your name.”
Or as another translation puts it:
“Give me an undivided heart.”
Multitasking is often a modern myth.
Much activity may produce mediocre accomplishment.
When we scatter our attention everywhere, we often accomplish very little.
The goal is to make our lives count.
Psalm 27:4 says:
“One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek…”
There is a connection between one thing I desire and one thing I do.
Desire without action becomes dreamy.
Action without desire becomes dreary.
But when desire and action unite, life becomes wonderfully simplified.
Everything we do takes its reference point from one overriding purpose.
Forgetting What Lies Behind
Paul continues:
“Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.”
You cannot look forward and backward at the same time.
God gave us eyes facing forward.
When driving, you glance at the rear-view mirror occasionally, but no one drives while staring into it constantly.
Likewise, we cannot move forward while living in the past.
Forgetting does not mean erasing memory.
It means refusing to let the past paralyze the present.
Forget grudges.
Forget griefs.
Forget failures.
And sometimes, forget successes as well.
David Livingstone once returned to Britain and was asked:
“What are you going to do now?”
His answer was:
“I am ready to go anywhere, provided it is forward.”
What a wonderful perspective.
Remember Lot’s Wife
Jesus gave a solemn warning:
“Remember Lot’s wife.”
The point is simple.
Do not keep looking back.
Look up.
Lift up your heads.
Your redemption draws near.
Our journey should be attended by urgency.
Recent wildfires remind us how quickly people may need to leave everything behind.
There is no time for lengthy preparation.
We are not tourists taking in the sights.
We are more like evacuees waiting to depart.
We are called to be the salt of the earth—not pillars of salt.
The Goal
Paul says:
“I press toward the goal.”
The Greek word for goal refers to a mark or target.
It is related to the idea behind our English word “scope.”
Think of a sniper’s scope.
One shot.
One target.
Intense concentration.
A clear objective.
The Christian’s overarching goal is Christ Himself.
As the hymn says:
“My goal is God Himself.”
Pursuing Christ means growing into Christlikeness until Christ is formed in us.
Knowing Christ is the gain.
Pursuing Christ is the goal.
William Borden
Another powerful example is William Borden.
He inherited a great fortune and studied at Yale University.
As a student he gathered fellow believers for prayer and Bible study.
The movement spread dramatically throughout the university.
In her biography of him, Mrs. Howard Taylor summarized his life with three memorable phrases:
No reserve.
No retreat.
No regrets.
His life was marked by singular pursuit of Christ.
Summary
We the citizens of heaven press on to pursue Christ and His high calling as the overarching goal and point of reference for everything we do.
III. The Glory of Seeing Christ
Philippians 3:20–21
“For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…”
We now arrive at Paul’s conclusion.
Notice carefully what the text says.
It does not say we are waiting for heaven.
It says we are waiting from heaven.
Already, spiritually, we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places.
From that position we eagerly await the final realization of what God has promised.
The Lord Jesus will come again.
He will bring His citizens home.
The question is not whether we have a place in heaven.
That place has already been secured.
The question is simply when we shall arrive.
It is not anxious uncertainty.
It is joyful anticipation.
Like a traveler whose seat has already been confirmed, we eagerly await departure.
We live in the tension of the “already” and the “not yet.”
Our heavenly perspective should determine our earthly priorities.
Therefore, let us wait with great expectation for that coming day when mortality shall put on immortality and corruption shall put on incorruption.
Conclusion and Prayer
We the citizens of heaven watch and wait expectantly for the glory of that coming day when we, whom God foreknew and predestined, will be finally and fully conformed to the image of His Son.
Let us pray.
Our Father, grant us day by day to see You more clearly, to follow You more dearly, and to love You more deeply.
We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.