Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57
~18 min read
TRANSCRIPT
I greet you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our text for today's message is taken from Philippians 3:20-21. In the preceding verses, we are commanded to follow godly examples and not ungodly examples. The reason is very obvious why we must not follow ungodly examples, because their ultimate destination is destruction. They live their lives to satisfy their sinful appetites. They take glory in their own shame and they only mind earthly things, not spiritual things. They only mind earthly things because they are unbelievers. They belong to this world.
The believers are different. They do not belong to this world; they belong to Heaven. And since they belong to Heaven, they have a different perspective, different desires, different longings. And as citizens of Heaven, ultimately, they would live in the eternal home in a glorified body. This is what we want to learn from today's passage, dear friends. Our affections, our desires, our values in life will reveal to us whether we are heavenly or earthly minded – this is the title of our message.
I. A Different Home
If we are heavenly minded, firstly, it is because we understand that we have a different home. Let us begin with the first part of verse 20, "For our conversation is in heaven". The word conversation here means citizenship. As believers, we belong to Christ's Kingdom which is not of this world; it is in Heaven. Our names are recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life in Heaven. Our fellow saints who have gone before us, their souls are with God in Heaven. Our inheritance is in Heaven. Our rewards and our treasures are in Heaven. Although we are still living in this world, our true citizenship is in Heaven.
When you are a citizen of a particular country, you are identified with that country. You pledge your allegiance to that country. You are expected to set your affections, your priorities, your desires, your investments in that country. Let's say you are a citizen of Australia and you try to live as if you are a citizen of another country that you are visiting for a short holiday. That is most foolish, right? Because you will be focusing on the wrong thing. You will be investing in the wrong thing. You will value the wrong currency. And if the two countries go to war, you'll be on the wrong side. That is what happens to many professing believers. They are preoccupied with the things of this world. They are concerned about worldly affairs, worldly issues. They adopt worldly attitudes and set worldly goals. They forget that as citizens of Heaven, they must live as citizens of heaven, and yet they live as citizens of this temporal world. How sad!
If we really understand that our citizenship is in Heaven, then it must affect the way we live our lives. We will invest our time, our efforts, our resources, our money on spiritual things, not on the things of this world. As one Pastor rightly said, "If you are on a vacation, will you spend thousands and thousands of dollars renovating the hotel bathroom?" Most certainly not. If Heaven is our home, then our values will have to shift, and it will shift to spiritual things. We will focus on our spiritual goals, our spiritual growth. We will focus on the advancement of the gospel and the saving of souls. We will look to the success of the church. We want the church to flourish spiritually. We will focus on the edification of the Saints. We will look to all these things.
If our rights are violated, it doesn't matter. If we are offended, it doesn't matter. If our dreams and aspirations are not fulfilled, it doesn't matter. Why? Because we are just pilgrims on this Earth. This world is not our home. We are just passing through. We understand why it is so hard to be a Christian in this world, because being heavenly minded is the exact opposite of being earthly minded.
Our colleagues at work, our friends in school, they do not understand our decisions and behaviours. They do not understand our commitments and our values because we have a different set of rules. We live our lives according to the Bible. We live our lives as citizens of Heaven. Ask yourself this question: are you living as a citizen of Heaven or does your life only reflect that of the world? Are you heavenly minded or are you earthly minded?
II. A Different Hope
Our second point is “a different hope”. Look at the second part of verse 20, "from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ". This is a reference to the Second Coming of Christ. Remember when the disciples watched Jesus as He ascended into Heaven, the angels said, "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who is taken from you into Heaven, in the same way He will come again from Heaven. Why are you gazing up into heaven? He will come again." (Acts 1:11) Jesus himself promised, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (John 14:2-3).
Until Jesus returns, we are eagerly and patiently waiting—that is the idea. A person's hope is the thing that keeps him motivated and moving forward in life. The unbelievers place their hopes in the things of this world. They live for the weekend, they live for the next salary, or for the next vacation, or for the retirement plans to be fulfilled. Our hope is different. Our hope is in the return of Christ.
Some years ago, I had a friend who seemed perfectly healthy. And one day he went to the doctor because he had a headache and the doctor said to him, "You have a tumour in your brain the size of an egg.” And he was told he had only a few months to live. It was amazing to see how all his priorities change overnight. It was amazing to see how his attitude toward all his possessions change overnight. He had a whole new perspective on everything—the way he talks, the way he thinks, the way he behaves. Everything he did was focused on one thing and one thing only: preparing to meet his Lord.
Dear friends, three times in the last chapter of the last book of the Bible, Revelation, Jesus said, "Behold, I come quickly." Christ's return is imminent. Imminent means it can happen at any moment. Do you believe that? If we really believe that, then how can we not prepare ourselves to meet our Saviour? Are we ready to meet our Saviour? Do we desire to hear our Saviour say to us, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of the Lord"? If we know that Jesus is coming soon, this conviction ought to motivate us to live in righteousness, not in sin.
Perhaps we are contemplating some sins. Maybe we are planning to lie on our income tax return, or we want to cheat in a business deal, or we want to engage in an immoral relationship or activity, then we are reminded of this truth: my Lord is coming soon. How can I be living in sin in view of His soon return? How can I face my Lord when He comes for me? He must cause us to live in righteousness, not in sin.
If we know that Jesus is coming soon, this conviction ought to affect our understanding of suffering. In the early days of the Christian Church, the believers were persecuted because of their faith. In the face of sorrow, persecutions, death, and martyrdom, they clung onto this blessed hope that Jesus Christ is coming soon, and they comforted one another with this hope. So as the believers entered the arena to face the lions or looked up to their executioners, they truly believed in their hearts that Jesus Christ would come soon—even before the ferocious lions rushed in, even before the axe fell onto their necks, they believed Jesus would come for them.
You know, that blessed hope of Christ's return gave them tremendous strength to face all the horrendous trials and tribulations. We do not know what lies ahead of us. None of us know what is in the future. There may be troubles, afflictions, sicknesses, and even death lurking just around the corner. Are you afraid? What can you do? Well, you can pray and cry out, "Lord Jesus, you promise that you will come quickly. Come quickly and take us home." Even if the Lord would tarry in His return, He will give us the strength to press on.
If we know that Jesus is coming soon, this conviction ought to alter our understanding of the world events today. We face calamity after calamity. We just had the COVID-19 pandemic. It is not over yet. And now we witness the war between Russia and Ukraine, and a few weeks ago between Israel and Gaza. And then there is also the potential war between the superpowers. But Jesus has already warned us of all these world events.
He said there will be calamities, there will be troubles, there will be no peace, and then you will see the world events getting more and more serious, more and more intense, and then He will come. All these world events are pointing to the imminent return of Jesus Christ.
Dear friends, if we really believe that Jesus is coming soon, how can it not affect the way we live our lives? How can we still be complacent? How can we still be earthly minded and not heavenly minded? God forbids! When Jesus returns, what will happen to us? This brings us to our third and final point: “a different body”.
III. A Different Body
So we have a different home, a different hope, and also a different body. Verse 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.”
When Jesus returns, He shall totally transform the bodies of the believers, just like His glorious body. Remember when Jesus was risen from the dead, the disciples were frightened and they hid themselves in a room. All of a sudden, Jesus appeared in the midst of them. That was a glorified body. And then He was able to eat, drink, and walk alongside the disciples. This glorified body that God will give to us is fit for Heaven, and with the same power, Jesus will rule this world for 10,000 years in the Millennial Kingdom, whereby He will subdue all things.
If you have your Bibles, maybe you can turn with me to 1 Corinthians 15:50-57, which was our responsive reading. Let me read for you verse 50, "Now this I say, Brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption." Flesh and blood simply refers to our body. The Kingdom of God is sometimes used interchangeably with the Kingdom of Heaven, and here it is a reference to Heaven, the eternal state.
When we think about our heavenly state, when we think about going to Heaven, we must realise this: that our physical bodies cannot inherit Heaven. None of us, the way we are right now, is able to enter into Heaven. Why? Because this physical body is strictly built for this physical world. It is not built for Heaven. We cannot be living in Heaven in this physical body because it has been tainted with sin. Something has to change. There has to be a transformation before we are able to enter and dwell in Heaven.
Paul explains, "neither doth corruption inherit incorruption." Corruption is that which is subjected to the process of ageing, something that will decay, something that will ultimately die. Incorruption is the opposite: something that is not subjected to the process of ageing, it will not decay, and it will never perish. Here, what it means is that you and I are corruptible, you and I are perishable. So how can we inherit something like Heaven which is Incorruptible, imperishable? It is impossible.
Look at verse 53, "For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality." The word corruption is synonymous to the word “mortal”. Mortal means liable to die; immortality means not liable to die. We are not going to live forever. All of us know that this physical body is mortal, it will not last. Those people who are younger are not very appreciative of this word “mortal”. Why? Because being young and strong, they tend to have this mentality or attitude that they can live forever.
Those of us who are much older, we appreciate this word “mortal”. Perhaps you may be 70 years old and now it dawns on you that if you were to live till the age of 80, it means you only have 10 years more. That is mortality. Your body is corrupted, your body is perishable, and it is liable to die. With this corrupted and mortal body, you say, "I want to go to Heaven." No, you cannot.
Why? Remember, this physical body is strictly built for this physical world. It is not built for Heaven; something has to change, there has to be a transformation. Allow me to give you an illustration. If there's an upcoming election in Australia and you are very keen and excited about the election and you want to vote at the election but you are only 17 years old and the eligible age to vote is 18, can you vote? No, you cannot. But you say, "I want to vote." You cannot vote the way you are right now. Something has to change. You have to reach the legal age of 18 before you are able to vote.
We all understand that in a similar fashion, if we want to go to Heaven, we cannot go the way we are right now. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. Something has to change, something has to be transformed, and that is our body. But the good news is that as believers, all of us will be changed, all of us will be transformed, and we will enter and dwell in Heaven forever and ever. What a blessed promise!
The Apostle Paul went on to explain how and when it is going to take place. Verse 51, "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed". The word “mystery” is not like the crime story that some of us love to read, those story books. A New Testament mystery always points to something that was hidden or unknown in the past but now is revealed, something that was obscure in the Old Testament but now it has been revealed in the New Testament. In other words, Paul was saying, "Let me make something clear to you which may not be clear to you before. Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep."
The word “sleep” in this context is a reference to dying, to passing away. For the believers, death is likened unto a sleep. When you and I die, if we are true believers, our souls go to be with God, our bodies will be buried in the graves, sleeping as it were. The resurrection is the time when our bodies will be raised from the graves to be united with our souls in a glorified body. That is the change, that is the transformation we are looking forward to.
But notice, Paul says we shall not all die, but we shall all be changed. Who are these people who shall not die but shall be changed or transformed into a glorified body? These are the people who are alive when Jesus returns. You see, Christians who pass away before Jesus returns, their souls are with God, their bodies are buried in the graves, sleeping as it will. But when Jesus returns, their bodies will be raised to be united with their souls in a glorified body. That is the Resurrection.
But there will be some people who will be alive when Christ returns. These people will be raptured to meet the Lord in the clouds. Their bodies will also be changed, transformed into a glorified body. And that is the Rapture. So dear friends, if we are True Believers, whether by the Resurrection or by the Rapture, we will be changed, we will be transformed into glorified bodies. That is a blessed promise.
Some of us may ask how quick does it take for the resurrection or the Rapture to take place? 1 hour, two hours? Look at verse 52: "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." “In a moment”, the word “moment” is from where we get the English word "atom," the smallest particle which means that in the smallest possible amount of time, we will be transformed.
And Paul went on to emphasise how quick this transformation will take place: "in the twinkling of an eye”. Have you ever wondered how quick it is to blink your eye? Scientists have said that it takes one-fifteenth of a second to blink an eye. What a marvellous way to describe the Resurrection, the Rapture, the transformation of our glorified bodies - all happen in the twinkling of an eye. And then we shall be with the Lord Jesus Christ forever and ever.
Verse 54: "So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory." In other words, the Resurrection and the Rapture, when they take place, we shall see the fulfilment of this saying. Where is this saying? In Isaiah 25:8, the Bible says, "He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it."
God said so, and it will come to pass. To “swallow up” means to “finish it”. Sometimes we tell our children to finish their food or drink. We say, "Drink it all up," or "Swallow it up." We want them not to finish half of the food or three-fourths of the drink, we want them to finish it completely. Death will be completely destroyed, completely swallowed up, completely finished. That is what it means. Verse 55, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" Indeed, death has been the greatest enemy of every human being who has ever lived on the face of this Earth.
Think about this, this great enemy has brought so much anguish, so much pain, so much separation, so many tears, so much loss. How many children have been crying, "Why must my mommy and daddy die?" How many parents have been crying, "Why must my child be taken away from me?" When a person has a terminal illness and he dies, why do people say he lost the fight, he lost the battle against cancer, or whatever? When a person has an accident and he dies, why do people say he lost his life? Because it seems that death has the victory.
Now Paul turns the table and it was as if he was mocking at the enemy. "Come on, death, you have been our greatest enemy all our lives. Well, where are you now? Where is your victory now? Oh, death, where is thy sting?" When we think of a sting, we think of a bee, right? What gives a bee the power over us is its ability to sting us, the poison that is in the sting. What happens when the bee loses the sting? What happens when the poison has been removed? The bee no longer has this power over us.
Our Lord Jesus, He took the sting of death on the cross of Calvary, and because of that, death has lost its sting on us. "Oh, grave, where is thy victory?" What gives death the power over us is its ability to put us into the grave. But death has the victory only when it is able to put us into the grave forever. But death cannot do that because our Lord Jesus was risen from the dead on the third day, and with His resurrection, the grave no longer has any victory over us; death, our last enemy, has been defeated. That is why our Lord Jesus says in John 11:25, "I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”. So, death has no more sting, the grave has no more victory over us.
"The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law." Why is death so horrendous? Why do people hate death so much? Why does death, or how does death come about? It all started with sin. Remember, Adam and Eve were supposed to live forever in the Garden of Eden. But because of sin, there was death, and the strength of sin, which means the power of sin, is the law. What does it mean? What is the definition of sin? How do you define sin? 1 John 3:4 says, "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." You see, our God is a holy God, and He says, "This is My law, this is My commandment, you must keep them." So, when you and I disobey Him, when we break His law, when we violate His law, when we transgress His law, that is sin. That is what "the strength of sin is the law" means.
Dear friends, as believers, have our sins been forgiven? Yes, by the precious blood of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Have we been saved from eternal damnation? Yes. Have we been delivered from slavery to sin and Satan? Yes. Have we been transported out of darkness and into God's marvellous light? Yes. But as long as we are still alive and we still have breath in our lungs, we are living in this mortal body, and we will still face our last enemy, death. One day we will die, our bodies will be buried in the graves. But the grave no longer has any victory over us because our Lord Jesus will come, and when He comes in the clouds, our bodies will be raised from the graves to be united with our souls, which are already with Him, in a glorified body. All this is only possible because of one person and one person only, and that is Jesus Christ.
So, as believers, we will say like the Apostle Paul in verse 57, "But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." Dear friends, if there's anyone here this morning who is still an unbeliever, lingering outside in the kingdom of spiritual darkness, outside the Kingdom of God, there's no salvation. Only Jesus alone can save, because only Jesus alone died on the cross and only His precious blood can wash away our sins. If you reject Him, you reject the only way to salvation. Then death will still have its sting on you, and the grave will still have the victory over you, because for all eternity you'll be sent to the Lake of Fire. A million upon a million years, you will still be tormenting in the Lake of Fire.
Today is the day of salvation. Do not harden your heart. Turn to Jesus. "Lord, I cannot save myself. There's nothing I can ever do to save myself. No one in this world, no saints in past or present or future, can ever save me. Only Jesus Christ alone can save me. Save me, Lord. Lord Jesus, and come into my heart. Be my Lord, be my Saviour." For those of us who are believers, we who profess to believe in Jesus Christ, it is a supernatural work. If it is a supernatural work, then there must be a radical change in our lives.
Today, we have a different home, we know that in our hearts because we are citizens of heaven. Today, we have a different hope. We don't place our hope in the things of this world that will perish. We place our hope on the soon coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we have a different body. Whether it be by the Rapture or by the resurrection, we will have a glorified body. And only this glorified body will be able to dwell in the presence of God forever and ever.
One life to live, dear friends. When you focus on the wrong things, when you reject the only Person who can save you, you will end up in the wrong place. And I pray that all of us who profess we believe God, we must be heavenly minded, not earthly minded. One day we will all dwell in the presence of God in our glorified bodies. We will sing our last hymn, "When we all get to heaven." Do you believe that you will get to Heaven? Not because of you or me, because of one Person and one Person only, Jesus Christ. Let us turn to our final hymn, "When we all get to heaven."
THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANSThe Church at PhilippiThe Church at PhilippiPhilippians 1:1-2
The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)Philippians 1:3-5
Elements of True JoyElements of True JoyPhilippians 1:3-6
The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)Philippians 1:6
What are the Things Most Important to Us?What are the Things Most Important to Us?Philippians 1:7-8
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Message 5: Praying for the ChurchMessage 5: Praying for the ChurchPhilippians 1:9-11
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Are All Things Really Working For Good?Are All Things Really Working For Good?Philippians 1:12-14
In Times of AdversityIn Times of AdversityPhilippians 1:12-18
Trouble in the ChurchTrouble in the ChurchPhilippians 1:15-18
For to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainFor to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainPhilippians 1:19-26
To Live is ChristTo Live is ChristPhilippians 1:19-26
Living Worthy of the GospelLiving Worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
Live your life worthy of the GospelLive your life worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)Philippians 2:1-2
Let's Have FellowshipLet's Have FellowshipPhilippians 2:1-4
Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Philippians 2:3-4
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-8
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-11
What Is Christmas?What Is Christmas?Philippians 2:6-11
The Greatest NameThe Greatest NamePhilippians 2:9-11
Living a Sanctified LifeLiving a Sanctified LifePhilippians 2:12-13
Work Out Your Own SalvationWork Out Your Own SalvationPhilippians 2:12-18
Moving Forward Not BackwardMoving Forward Not BackwardPhilippians 2:13-14
Stop Murmuring and ComplainingStop Murmuring and ComplainingPhilippians 2:14-16
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulPhilippians 2:17-18
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyPhilippians 2:19-24
The Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentThe Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentPhilippians 3:1-2
True Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthTrue Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthPhilippians 3:3, John 4:4-30
Nothing to Boast OfNothing to Boast OfPhilippians 3:3-6
What Is Gain To Me Is LossWhat Is Gain To Me Is LossPhilippians 3:7-9
The Power of Christ's ResurrectionThe Power of Christ's ResurrectionPhilippians 3:10-11
What are Your Spiritual Goals?What are Your Spiritual Goals?Philippians 3:10-11
Pressing Toward The MarkPressing Toward The MarkPhilippians 3:12-14
Pressing Toward the MarkPressing Toward the MarkPhilippians 3:13-14
Morning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouMorning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouPhilippians 3:13-14
How to Know the Will of GodHow to Know the Will of GodPhilippians 3:15
Who Are You Following?Who Are You Following?Philippians 3:16-19
Heavenly Or Earthly MindedHeavenly Or Earthly MindedPhilippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57
How Do You Stand Fast?How Do You Stand Fast?Philippians 4:1
How to Maintain Christian UnityHow to Maintain Christian UnityPhilippians 4:2-3
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Philippians 4:4-7
The Cure for AnxietyThe Cure for AnxietyPhilippians 4:6-7
Message 6: Praying for the TroubledMessage 6: Praying for the TroubledPhilippians 4:6-7
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Philippians 4:8-9
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Philippians 4:10-12
How To Be An Overcoming ChristianHow To Be An Overcoming ChristianPhilippians 4:13
Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Philippians 4:13-19
My God Shall Supply All Your NeedsMy God Shall Supply All Your NeedsPhilippians 4:19
Living By Grace and For God's GloryLiving By Grace and For God's GloryPhilippians 4:20-23
