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“Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.”
Philippians 3:17-4:1
Stand firm! This is a familiar phrase we encounter in the New Testament. To be exact, it is repeated nine times in the epistles and twice in Philippians alone. Those who study Scripture diligently point out that the phrase “stand firm” tends to be found in the epistles that were written later. Perhaps there is good reason for this.
Epistles that were written later assumes a context where believers had to live as Christians for an extended period of time, perhaps 30 years or more. The initial excitement of coming to Christ would have worn off. In its place might be the daily trudge and hustle of life. Furthermore, the keen anticipation of Christ’s second coming might also be fading into a distant reality, one that they begin to doubt altogether.
Such a situation may not be too far away from what Christians living in Philippi were experiencing. Paul writes in 3:18 that many “walk as enemies of the cross of Christ”. To be sure, Paul was not referring to non-believers but believers who have given up their faith. In fact, Paul identifies why they have given up. He continues in 3:19 that “their god is their belly…. with minds set on earthly things.”
Is it not true that we are often tempted to compromise on our faith because our minds are set on earthly things – money, relationships, power, etc? Is it not true that this compromise is often fuelled by our desire to maximise our consumption and happiness in this life? Do we not all know Christians that have walked away from Jesus Christ because of these things?
Paul goes on to identity the central issue in 3:20 – that such people have lost sight of their citizenship in heaven! Losing sight of our heavenly citizenship is no small matter. Losing sight of it often means that we begin to lose our way. Or to put it simply, we begin to wander away. We begin to prioritise our temporary earthly life at the expense of our eternal heavenly life.
Rather, our life on earth should be likened to living in a foreign country for a couple of years. We have to set our roots down and live. Yet, we know that that country is not home. Likewise, our stay on earth is not permanent. We are but pilgrims, sojourners, and resident aliens making our way to our true home in heaven with God.
Thus, we begin to understand Paul’s exhortation in this text. The natural gravitation pull of this world is to drag us away from Christ. Christians must therefore keep Christ and the promises of heaven every before us. We must constantly remind ourselves that this is not our home. We are heaven-bound in Christ. Therefore, we can and must stand firm!
The Most Rev Dr Titus Chung
Archbishop of the Province of South East Asia
