“Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” - 1 Peter 2:11-12 (NIV)

Of all the important documents I have, the most important most of my life, has been a passport. Every time I would enter another country, the passport identified my home country as the United States of America. Depending on where you go these days, it can be an advantage or a disadvantage. There are places like Beirut, Lebanon where it would get scrutinized page by page before being stamped to let me in. Other places, it is a cursory glance. That passport, however, gives one certain protections afforded by our citizenship, and it is a valuable document.

There is another reality for a believer. We have a passport from our country of birth or immigration, but we have another passport that is more important than our national passport. It is a passport that identifies us as a follower of Jesus and a citizen of heaven. This is why Peter calls us aliens and strangers in the world. You see, once we accept Jesus, our true citizenship is no longer our country, but heaven, and our authority is no longer ourselves, but God.

Because we are now aliens and strangers in the world, and our primary identity is the family of Jesus, we are to “abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 

We are to live now by the values of Heaven, rather than the values of our world. The sinful desires that drove us in the past should not drive us anymore. In fact, we should live such good lives among the pagans - those who don’t follow Jesus - that even though they may accuse us of doing wrong, that they will see our good deeds, and when Christ returns, will acknowledge that we were different and transformed.

Citizenship is a big thing. My wife Cleo, who is from the Philippines, is in the process of becoming a US citizen. When that day arrives, it will be a day of celebration for her. But being a citizen of Heaven is far more important, and that citizenship will last forever. Because Heaven is our final home, we want to live as a citizen of heaven, so much so, that the watching world will look at us and say, “there is something different about them.” Remember, you have two passports today and the most important identifies you as a follower of Jesus and a citizen of Heaven.

PRAYER

Father, I thank You that You have made me a citizen of Heaven and a member of Your family. Remind me daily that You desire that I live a transformed life that reflects my true citizenship. Not the temporary citizenship of my country, but the permanent citizenship of my forever home and wonderful Savior. Amen.