LIFE IS A STRUGGLE

Philippians 1:27-30
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.

Live as Citizens of Heaven

27 Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News. 28 Don’t be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself. 29 For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. 30 We are in this struggle together. You have seen my struggle in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of it.


I don’t have to tell you that life is a struggle. We are living in perilous times and the struggles we face, while not all the same, are common to all mankind. A worldwide economic crisis … unemployment and foreclosure figures rising daily … communities devastated by crime and drugs … school campuses under lockdown … the constant threat of terrorism. I think we can agree that life is a struggle.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that in the midst of these struggles, believers are to live differently from the world. This world, with it’s struggles, is not our real home. We are “…citizens of heaven…” and we must live on this earth that way.

In the midst of all of life’s struggles, our main struggle must be for the faith. In all things … in all circumstances … keep your main thing the main thing. The main thing is the Good News of Jesus Christ. You have it … share it!