Your Citizenship

Doing what is right when you live in a country is only logical and ethically sound. Giving respect to the authorities in that country is simply obeying the laws of the land. In the scripture it directs us to live as visitors or strangers in this world. We are to be ambassadors of the Lord here on this earth. We are to obey the laws of the land and obey those that are set over us in the authority. The life that we live though must be different.  We must not live as though we are of this world but we are to live as citizens of the Kingdom of God. There are things that we must give up! The list could be extensive but it is summed up as the ‘lusts of the flesh’.  1 Peter 2:11-12 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul.  Keeping your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing which they slander you as evildoers, they may on account of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.[NASB] As you read further into the scripture in 1 Peter 2  you will notice the importance of submission to the rulers, giving honor to all men, loving the brotherhood, fearing God and honoring the king. What we must do as sojourners is to live as free men and not to use are freedom in Christ as a covering of evil but use it to serve God in all things. As we live and as we show forth the praises of the Lord those that see us will respond that we are the ones that do right. Being a representative for the Lord here on this earth is more that just attending church, it is bringing the flesh into submission to the Spirit. Paul wrote in Galatians 5:16 ‘But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.’ [NASB] He summed it up by writing this also Galatians 5:25 ‘If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.’ [NASB] Live as citizens of the Kingdom of God and your character will be honorable and your heart will be at peace.

Dennis

Remember prayer moves the Hand of God.