As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this. As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?” When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. “What are you going to do?” he asked. “This man is a Roman citizen.” The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” “Yes, I am,” he answered. Then the commander said, “I had to pay a lot of money for my citizenship.” “But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied. Those who were about to interrogate him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains. The commander wanted to find out exactly why Paul was being accused by the Jews. So the next day he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the members of the Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul and had him stand before them.
I love a good twist in the plot of an adventure novel. Some of the best twists I have read are as follows: 1) The Count of Monte Cristo, when he found the Sparta family treasure, 2) When Luke Skywalker realizes that Darth Vader is his father, and 3) When God decided to send Jesus to pay the price for the sins of a human race, by dying on a cross.
Here Paul has a twist in his earthly adventure. After he is beaten and at the time a riotous crowd is foaming at the mouth to take his life … he plays the Roman citizen card. What is so powerful about this card that he played? First, it required he be treated in a higher class than others as far as rights and the law. Second, the commander who was overseeing the proceedings had a personal connection. He had paid dearly to gain his citizenship. Paul’s citizenship was from birth.
In an interesting parallel, we as humans were born into sin, due to the original sins in the garden of Eden by Adam and Eve. But God bought our citizenship rights to be citizens of heaven, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And all we have to do is submit to his Lordship and follow him in life.
Foreigners and those conquered in war do not have rights typically in a country that are equal to citizens. What are the rights and benefits I have in my citizenship in heaven? “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:19-22)
In the United States, we currently have a constitution, laws, legal precedence, borders and protections, including our armed forces, that define our citizenship. Our citizenship in heaven is much different. It is not defined by man-made laws or rules, but by God himself. The main goal of this citizenship is to become a pure vessel for his Holy Spirit to dwell in and shine through.
Lord, I claim my heavenly citizenship today. When things happen in this world that are unjust or unfair, I need not worry. My God from on high is there by my side. He walks with me and is shaping me for greater things in heaven. He also helps me be a light and witness of his goodness and grace on earth.
No elections on this earth all ever change our citizenship n Heaven.
We have a King, live in a Kingdom and are sons and daughters of a living God for eternity.