I let time get away from me (again) and just realized that I forgot to schedule this week’s devotional posts! Here ya go …

Do you know which documents are acceptable as proof of citizenship in the U.S.? Birth certificate, passport or naturalization certificate are the commonly accepted items. Other government-issued forms of photo identification, such as driver’s license, military ID, etc., are useful to demonstrate that you are who you say you are, but they do not validate your citizenship.

We may have photo IDs to prove where we go to school or work, certificates to show that we’re married, framed diplomas to display our college degrees and notarized papers to explain legal matters … but none of those documents prove our citizenship.

In his letter to the Philippians (chapter 3), the apostle Paul gave a litany of his qualifications as a religious leader in order to drive home the point that none of it matters – not the accolades, not the bragging rights, not the pedigree. He went so far as to call his credentials “garbage” (verse 8) compared to the joy of knowing Christ. Paul, formerly known as Saul, was an unabashed weirdo; in fact, he embraced his peculiar testimony so that God would receive the utmost glory.

The thought of Paul’s former life as an “enemy of the cross” brought him to tears (verse 18) as he pleaded with the Philippians to focus their sights heavenward. Our worldly credentials pale in comparison to heavenly glory! Paul describes our true citizenship as being in heaven (verse 20) – will we embrace it?

Originally posted August 14, 2011