Aliens & Strangers

"Bendito o que vem em nome do Senhor" ( Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord) Luke 13:35b)Had a long conversation with two friends Sunday evening centering on the related themes of being aliens and strangers, and on our identity. I believe that our true identity is what God says that we are in Jesus Christ. For example, in Ephesians 5:1 believers in Christ are said to be "beloved children." The reality of being aliens and strangers on the earth is another part of that identity. The Holy Spirit, writing through Paul the apostle, says that our true citizenship is in heaven. (Philippians 3:20) While we may be citizens of the U.S. or Japan or Ghana in this life, that is a temporary reality. Those who have emigrated to another country, often with a different language and culture, often feel this sense of being alien and strange. After a period of years they may feel in between, no longer part of their former country but not at ease in the new. But all believers should have this sense in the spiritual realm. We no longer belong to the kingdom of this world; we are not yet living in the eternal realm. Hebrews 11:13-16 brings this out. "All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised, they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on the earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country- a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them." (NIV)
Peter applies this truth in 1 Peter 2:11. "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul."