This is not our home: living as citizens of Heaven

Lynette Orange reflects on belonging, sacrifice, and the call to live on mission.

As a missionary in the Philippines I have to carry with me an ID card that states ‘Alien Certificate of Registration’, in addition to reporting yearly to the Bureau of Immigration to reaffirm my existence in a place that is not my home. This card is a constant reminder that I am a foreigner living in a strange land.

Although, in fairness, it’s not just the card but also the noises, the smells, the traffic, the language, the food and many more things that remind me that I am not ‘home’.

Yet, home is a rather difficult concept at times. The longer I live away from the UK, the more the UK becomes less and less familiar. It’s a strange paradox that while I am in the Philippines I long for fish and chips and yet, when I am in the UK, I long for Pansit (a Filipino noodle dish).

The truth is, no matter where I am, there remains a longing for somewhere else. And that is true for all of us – this is not our home! We are all aliens.

Citizens

The Bible tells us that we are ‘strangers’ or ‘foreigners’; that our citizenship is not linked to our birthplace or even to this earth, but that we are citizens of heaven.

The moment we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour we experienced a spiritual rebirth and “our citizenship is in heaven and from it we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ,” (Philippians 3:20).

As I try to adapt to the Filipino culture around me, I have a tiny grasp of what it means to give up my rights. The right of being easily understood, the right of being independent (at times), the right to my own traditions and customs. It helps me to identify, in an incredibly small way, with the humility Jesus exhibited when he chose to leave the culture of heaven – where he sat at the right hand of the Father, and was exalted and worshipped – to come to earth and take on human form.

Jesus was the true missionary with the ultimate mission – to save the whole world by dying on the cross.

Anointed

Jesus’s mission was simple (Luke 4:18-19):

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”

This Easter, I am in awe of Jesus, the ultimate missionary. And I’m reminded afresh of his immense sacrifice – choosing to leave heaven to come to earth and sacrifice himself for the world.

When you step out of your culture, your comfort zone and your own environment, it can be extremely uncomfortable and very humbling. You may get a lot of things wrong – I know I did and still do. But the message of the cross is so important.

Jesus came to proclaim the good news to the poor, freedom for the captives and sight for the blind. Now, I’m sure you’ll agree – that is something worth getting a little bit uncomfortable for!

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.