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This World Is Not My Home – Viral Believer
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This World Is Not My Home

Strangers In A Strange Land

This morning I shared with my congregation that we need to remember that this world is not our home. I want to share with you what I shared with them. So often in our lives, we get distracted by the cares of this world and trying to live out our lives. So I started by reminding them how the Bible describes heaven in the book of Revelations in chapter 21.

aerial photograph of clouds

Revelation 21

The New Jerusalem

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.[a] 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

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This World Is Not Our Home; Heaven Is.

This is not our home. Our lives are short, but it seems so long when we go through the motions of life in this world with all its distractions and disappointments. We must remember that as soon as we die, there will be no more pain or tears, just eternal peace!

This world is not our home because we are citizens of another land.

When we gave our lives to Jesus, He brought us from this world into a heavenly inheritance. Although the earth is still home, for now, it has become only temporary. We’re no longer citizens of this world and its woes; instead of living in righteousness as heirs with Christ!

Philippians 3:17-21

17 Dear brothers and sisters, pattern your lives after mine, and learn from those who follow our example. 18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. 20 But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. 21 He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.

Since we are citizens of heaven, then our purpose here is to be ambassadors.

There are three types of people in a country that are not citizens of that country. There are illegal aliens, there are those that are either tourists or some visitors with a visa, and there are ambassadors. We are ambassadors for Christ. We are not here illegally, and we are not here to be tourists or business partners; we are here to represent the King of our country.

2 Corinthians 5:18-21

We Are God’s Ambassadors

18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin,[a] so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Our purpose as Christians is to reconcile people into a good relationship with God. To do this, we must go out and find those not in that good relationship so they can be reconciled through Jesus.

When we understand that we are no longer citizens of this world and have a purpose assigned to us by our King, then the things that might distract us in this world lose their power. If you realize that your home is not here on earth, things like being accepted, gathering wealth, and obtaining power lose their appeal because they are only temporary.

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Jesus Himself modeled the fact that this world is not our home!

Jesus had the opportunity to follow the dictates of this world when He was being questioned by Pilate. He could have gotten out of being crucified; however, Jesus understood that there are principles that are more important than saving His skin and building an earthly kingdom.

John 18:33-36

33 Then Pilate went back into his headquarters and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the king of the Jews?” he asked him.

34 Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?”

35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate retorted. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?”

36 Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.”

When you made Jesus the king of your life, then you became part of that kingdom that is not of this world. So I want to ask you some questions that may prick your heart and make you think a little bit. It is not because I think you are a bad person, but I hope that as people read this post, they will consider and change their perspective and start walking as people who know that this world is not my home.

  1. Take a look at the way you spend your time. What are you doing in your free time? Is it being spent as that ambassador for Christ, or is it spent on things of this world?
  2. Take a look at your finances. What are you doing with your discretionary spending? I am not talking about just giving to the church or some evangelist or ministry, but are you using it to plead with people to be reconciled with God?
  3. Take a look at whether or not you want to be accepted by this world and gain earthly power. Are you willing to lovingly stand up for your beliefs and convictions and the principles of your country of citizenship or are you going native in this world?

If you think about it. What do you want? Do you want this world to be your home or heaven to be your home?

When you look at it compared to the description I shared with you at the beginning of this blog post, what country do you want your citizenship to be in? What kind of citizenship are you looking for? Do we live in a world worth living in, or will it only make us feel unfulfilled and unsatisfied with our life?

this world is not my home

I know this world isn’t my home because everything here has changed so much. Does this world have all that much to offer? If you are like me, this world is not my home.

Blessings!

Pastor Duke

Pastor Duke Taber
Pastor Duke Taber

Pastor Duke Taber

All articles have been written or reviewed by Pastor Duke Taber.
Pastor Duke Taber is an alumnus of Life Pacific University and Multnomah Biblical Seminary.
He has been in pastoral ministry since 1988.
Today he is the owner and managing editor of 3 successful Christian websites that support missionaries around the world.
He is currently starting a brand new church in Mesquite NV called Mesquite Worship Center, a Non-Denominational Spirit Filled Christian church in Mesquite Nevada.