Paul begins this chapter with warnings about the dangerous condition of the last days. “Beware of (predatory) dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the (Jewish) concision.” “To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe” – and it is important. Under these circumstances “my brethren, make sure that your joy and rejoicing is in the Lord” – not in things on the earth, because we aren’t going to be here long. In verse 17 he exhorts, “Brethren, be followers together of me.” Then skipping over two verses of parenthesis he adds, “For our conversation is in heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ…”
No matter how bad this world might become, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. If the religious world becomes filled with innumerable heresies, don’t worry about their ultimate effects, because the Lord Jesus “is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” If you are stripped of your possessions and your freedom, take heart because your Saviour will bring release. And even if disease wracks your body – or physical torture rips off your skin and pulls your bones apart… Remember, Christ shall change our broken bodies “that they might be fashioned like unto His … body.” Christ died in flesh, “to present you (before God the Father) holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight” – Colossians 1:22. “When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory” – Colossians 3:4.
The Apostle tells us, “Our conversation is in heaven.” There were several English Bibles translated and published prior to the one authorized by King James of 1611. Going back to our lesson on Wednesday, other Bibles of that era also had the word “conversation.” William Tyndale’s 1526 New Testament has “conversation,” as does Coverdale’s 1535 Bible. And Brother Bartle told me that the 1560 Geneva Bible has “conversation.” But by the end of the 19th century our English vocabulary had changed enough that “citizenship” better expressed the original. “Our CITIZENSHIP is in heaven.” But again, as I said Wed. it is not “citizenship” in a political sense or in a piece of governmental paper. It is citizenship in a practical way; it is “living as a citizen of Heaven.” Or to put it another way – “conversation” refers to our manner of life.
But going on, “Our conversation is in heaven from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” Christ Jesus is coming back to earth again. Christians who have any understanding of the Word of God know that Christ is returning to this world. He doesn’t simply have plans to return; He is not hoping to come back; He IS coming again. There is a lot of division about the details and timing of that return, but they are subjects for a different day. What I would like you to see is simply what Paul declares: “Our conversation is in heaven from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
So our first question this morning has to be: “Are YOU looking for the Saviour.” The wording seems to indicate that Paul was looking for the Saviour – “WE LOOK for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” But the world and the wicked are NOT looking for the return of Christ. They either don’t believe what the Bible says, or they are afraid of what that will mean for them. The question is: Are YOU looking for Christ’s return from heaven?
Perhaps to properly answer, we need to consider what it is to “LOOK for the Saviour.” The Greek word is not common; but it is translated two ways: “to look” – and twice as often it is “to wait.” Romans 8 contains 3 of the 7 times this word is used, and together they suggest the weight of the word. And not surprisingly, they come in the same context as Philippians 3:20. Romans 8:22 – “We know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” “Because the creature (the creation) itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” “And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, WAITING (looking) for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” The few other scriptures all show us that “looking for the Saviour,” is not a periodic glance toward Heaven. It is not a point of doctrine or something we remember when a sermon touches the subject. It is more like an obsession. This “looking for the Saviour,” involves a deep seated yearning – a groaning within ourselves, even an earnest expectation of our adoption and transformation into a fashion like unto Christ’s glorious body. People who have Heavenly citizenship should live in a constant desire to see their Heavenly King.
And Paul suggests that our watching should involve three specific areas of interest.
First and foremost, we should be LOOKING for the SAVIOUR, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Here is an area where good Christians can get a little off kilter. For example, sometimes we can be in so much pain, or danger, or fear – that we become more interested in Christ’s Second Coming than we are ordinarily. But for what reason? We yearn for the Saviour that we might be delivered from whatever plagues fill our lives or thoughts. Even the best of us, thinking only of ourselves, we can forget that this is primarily about the Lord Jesus.
But – II Corinthians 5 – IS in the Bible; it is scripture, and therefore we know that it has it is place… Speaking of our fleshly bodies, “we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.” Again this relates to the last verse of Philippians 3, when the Lord shall “change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body…” Oh, that is going to be so good. Psalm 17:15 – “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be SATISFIED, when I awake, with thy likeness.”
But please notice that Philippians puts something before our transformation. “Our conversation is in heaven from whence also we look for the SAVIOUR, the Lord Jesus Christ.” The expectant Christian shouldn’t be looking for his salvation; he should be looking for his Saviour. This may sound like I’m splitting hairs, but I think it is important. Salvation is not primarily about you; it is about the Saviour and His glory – even if it is in saving you.
But I’m not forgetting, or ignoring, what the Lord’s return will ultimately mean for His people. In I Cor. 15:51 – “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 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. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” When that takes place, “then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”
While not forgetting Philippians 3:21 – verse 20 says, “we look for the SAVIOUR, the Lord Jesus Christ.” So here’s a tough question: would you forgo your transformation, provided you could see the Saviour? Would you sacrifice your own glorification, if the Lord Jesus was glorified in you? The question is perhaps out of place, because the two go together in their own way. But the point is: it is Christ Jesus who should be foremost in the heart of the Christian. “Even so come, Lord Jesus” – Revelation 22:20.
And by the way, please know that Jesus Christ is both our SAVIOUR and the LORD. Jesus of Nazareth – the man who died on Golgotha’s cross – is the Saviour of sinners. The Jesus, who was despised by the Jewish priests and persecuted by men like Saul of Tarsus, is the Lamb of God. “Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.” And furthermore, “this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is CHRIST” – Acts 17:3. He is “the LORD Jesus Christ.” He is “Jesus Christ the LORD.” He is “Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory” – James 2:1. Our Saviour is none else than the Son of God, the Second Person of the Trinity. And as such “he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” – Christ Jesus is God – Jehovah Elohim.
So, for what should we be watching? “We look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” But what about those poor souls who are looking only for salvation, but care little about Christ Jesus? And what about those who acknowledge Jesus, but don’t see Him as the Lord, or their Lord? Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, neither of those people are actually looking for His return, because they are not really citizens of Heaven; they are not Christ’s disciples. So again I ask, are you looking for the return of the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ?
Moving on, what does Paul say shall accompany the Lord’s return?
He “shall change our vile body, that I may be fashioned like unto his glorious body.” Once again I go back to I Corinthians 15, but to an earlier section, beginning in verse 41 – “There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.” Our natural bodies one day will be fashioned like unto Christ’s spiritual body.
And with that, our minds and imaginations might run in a dozen directions. What will be the characteristics of our spiritual bodies? How much like Jesus’ resurrected body? After Christ’s resurrection and before His ascension into heaven, He had a new kind of body. It still had some or all of the scars of His sacrifice; we may or may not have our scars. Jesus could eat fish with this disciples. Will we eat fish, or manna, or heavenly New York steaks? Christ’s new body could apparently walk through closed doors or at least make sudden appearances. There was a very real body that walked up behind the two on the Road to Emmaus, but they didn’t recognize that it was the Lord Jesus until He made that revelation. Will our eternal bodies be like Jesus’ pre-ascension body? I don’t know.
Again we have I Corinthians 15:51 – “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 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. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” When that takes place, “then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
Why does the Lord intend to change or transform us? Isn’t it because we are not fit to be in God’s presence in our current condition? We have disease-filled bodies because these bodies bear the curse of sin. AND – from where did the human body originate? Genesis 2:7 – “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Without doubt our first father was created by God, but the Lord formed his body from dust of the earth. And even though the saint of God has heavenly citizenship, his body is still of this world. Don’t we need some sort of “heavenly body” in order to be fit for heaven?
And this brings me to the word “vile” – He “shall change our vile body.” I didn’t do the research, but here may be another word which has evolved in the last four hundred years. Some of you may not particularly like your bodies; you may even think of it as vile or disgusting. That is not the meaning of Paul’s use of that word. The word means: “lowly body” or “humble body.”
Our bodies in whatever condition they are at this moment, are testimonies to God’s marvelous power. This is not the time to delve into the myriads of miraculous parts and systems keeping our bodies functioning. Nevertheless, the ability to hear, to see, to digest, to propagate, to think – are all due to the Creator. None of these or of the other dozens of organs and systems could have evolved into success.
How many of you have seen Mount Rushmore? I have been there at least a dozen times. Spectacular. But I saw a meme the other day with a picture of Mount Rushmore. Under it were the words, “The work of ten billion years of wind and rain erosion.” The four heads of Rushmore are infinitely inferior to what goes on inside your head for even a brief moment by the miraculous power of the Lord. And yet, that is not good enough because of the corruption of sin.
So when Christ returns, He “shall change our vile body, that I may be fashioned like unto his glorious body.”
And that will be through the power and authority He has – which will also express itself in subduing all things unto himself.
How much do you remember about the grammatical rules governing pronouns? To know to whom a personal pronoun refers, we go back to the last person mentioned in the context. Verse 21 ends with the personal pronoun “himself.” Prior to that, there are “who,” “his” and “he,” taking us back to the last words of verse 20 – “the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” Christ will change us into His glorious image, “according to the working – the energy – whereby HE is able even to subdue all things unto HIMSELF.”
There are foolish people who say they can’t see any declaration or even hint in the Bible that Jesus Christ is God. Truly, “the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” The deity of Christ is found throughout the New Testament and even somewhat in the Old. How is it possible that all things should be subdued or made subject to the Lord Jesus, if He isn’t deity? When John was beginning to describe his revelation in the last book of the Bible, he said of Christ Jesus – “Behold, he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him; and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, THE Almighty.”
The returning Lord Jesus Christ, of Philippians 3 is the first of all things and the last – the alpha and Omega. He was there at the beginning of Creation, because he is the eternal God and has always been. “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by him, and for him. And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” He permitted and purposed Lucifer’s fall and Adam’s sin, that He might receive the ultimate glory.
And in order to accomplish that ultimate glory, He will subdue all things unto himself. Name any enemy of Christ, and you’ll find the Lord victorious over them. “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever” – Revelation 20:10. “O death, where is thy sting? O grace where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God with giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” – I Corinthians 15. Peter tells us, “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction… And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you; whose judgment now of a long time lingerth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.” Death and disease will one day both be defeated. Satan and his heretic servants will experience the judgment of Christ. There is no enemy of Christ that will not be made subject unto Him.
Conclusion:
Doesn’t this fill your heart with love toward the Saviour? Doesn’t this encourage you to lift your eyes toward Heaven and toward the heavens from which He will soon return? Don’t these words strengthen your faith and resolve to follow and serve this mighty King and Victor?
You say that these words of Paul don’t move you at all? Then with Paul, “I tell you even weeping, that you are an enemy of the cross of Christ.” You obviously need a new heart; you need to be born again.
And for that – once again, I point you to the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Bow before Him, surrender in willing repentance to Him. Trust Christ Jesus to save you and draw you to Himself as a citizen of Heaven. The words of Philippians 3 mean little or nothing to you, because you are a citizen of Hell, not Heaven. “Ye must be born again.”