FOREIGNERS
• We belong to another
• Our
• That’s what makes us
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, —Philippians 3:20 (NIV)
• Exodus 6:4; 22:21; 23:9, Leviticus 19:34; Deuteronomy 10:19.
• Ephesians 2:19; Hebrews 11:13; 1 Peter 2:11.
Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. —1 Peter 1:17 (NIV)
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” —John 15:18-19 (NIV)
• The call of Jesus is not to be counter-cultural. The call of Jesus is to
• Following in the way of Jesus is what runs
• The fact we are citizens of heaven is what makes us
• “Exiles …
• We don’t get a choice about whether to be “in the world,” but we do get to choose, “how we will
15 Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. 16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. —1 John 2:15-16 (NLT)
• John doesn’t tell us to
• He tells us not to
24 A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. 25 Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. 26 But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. —Luke 22:24-26 (NIV)
• Jesus says worldly power and authority manifests as power
• The kind of authority Jesus demonstrated and that he encourages his followers to exercise, is power
3 “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
4 God blesses those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 God blesses those who are humble,
for they will inherit the whole earth.
6 God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,
for they will be satisfied.
7 God blesses those who are merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
for they will see God.
9 God blesses those who work for peace,
for they will be called the children of God.
10 God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. —Matthew 5:3-10 (NLT)