Philippians 3:20-21 "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: (21) Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself."
Paul has given us wonderful things to ponder in the previous chapters and
verses. He has addressed the manner in which our attitudes should
approach each day, no matter what our circumstances may be. "Let this mind
be in you." He has addressed what our goal in life should be as we go from
day to day. "That I may win Christ." He wrote concerning our manner
of living. We are to "shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the
word of life." We are to seek the Lord and surround ourselves with other
like minded individuals in order to avoid discouragement. We are to encourage
one another.
Today's verses tell us why we are to do those things. "For our
conversation is in heaven." A casual reading of that might cause us
to think we have to go around talking about heaven all the time. No, that is
not what Paul is saying. It's important to have a good Bible dictionary
when studying the Word of God. The word, conversation, in this passage means
"citizenship". By the shed blood of Jesus Christ and the work
of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, we are citizens of the heavenly kingdom. We
live in a dark sin-filled world, but this is not our home; therefore, we are to
shine. We are to be lights in the world in order to be all the things that Paul
has spoken about.
Sometimes we get discouraged because of all the things that we see going on
around us. It seems the world is getting worse and worse and that can be very
discouraging if that is all we focus upon. We must keep in mind that there is a
greater place reserved for us in heaven's glory. Though we are not to
just sit around waiting for Jesus to come for us, we have the promise that in
HIs time, He will come and change our bodies to be conformed to His glorious
body. He will change us from these bodies that are prone to sickness and
disease into glorious beings where we will be housed in heaven. In the
next chapter, we will see how we are able to keep a proper focus in life.