COLONY OF HEAVEN

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…" (Philippians 3:20)

I am an American citizen and very grateful to be one. There is very little in India, outside of the cherished relationships I have with many of the Indian people, which makes me want to live here. India is not my home. It is a beautiful country in many ways. It is a country far richer in tradition and history than America. I am ever learning about India that I might not be perceived as being disrespectful toward the culture. Sometimes that is not easy for my Western mindset to understand, much less accept, the differences in cultures. I am aware that the reverse is true for my dear friend Benson when he visits America. Though neither of us has a desire to live in each other's respective land, we do respect each other's culture as far as our conscience will permit

I am quite confident the one thing we (Benson and I) share in common, above our preferences for our native cultures, is the desire to live in our respective cultures only as sojourners because our longing some day is to be in Heaven. Thus, we both long to have a firm grasp on the pilgrim concept taught in the Bible – namely, that this world is not our home – whether we are Indian or American. For we are first and foremost Christians, which means we are members of the family of God that is made up of every nation, tribe, peoples and languages, who will one day bask in the culture of God's presence without a longing to be elsewhere. This is what we both strive to reflect in our lives and preaching because we are guided by Heaven's ways revealed in the Scriptures. Thus, whether in India or America or anywhere else in the world, all those who make up God's family are a colony of heaven on earth regardless of the differences in their respective cultures and languages. Regardless of where Christians live on this earth, they can live faithfully to God letting their lights shine through the Scriptures knowing their true citizenship is in Heaven.