Citizens of Heaven
In this Article we shall look at something that has Eternal Value; and that is Citizenship. How do you get Citizenship in another country and what is it like. Well most of us are of British heritage or a descendant, or somewhat connected to Mother England, and as such we in NZ are still under British Rule and the Queen is still “Our Queen,” so then we will look at their system, and develop it from there.
To get “British Citizenship” you really need to be born in England. With an EU Passport, there are still some avenues; any other paths are extremely long and very difficult, if not impossible. For our discussion we will assume that you have passed all the perquisite tests and hurdles and have your letter of “Acceptance.” Now you must go through the Ceremony, comply with the last requirements and then you will receive your “Citizenship Certificate.” Congratulations, you are now at the same standard as if you had been born in that country, you now belong, you are one of them with all the rights and protections as a Born Citizen.
The key portion of the Ceremony is when the prospective Citizens will swear or affirm an oath of allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and say a pledge of loyalty to the United Kingdom, and then you get to sing your new “National Anthem,” you are welcomed by a “Dignitary” as a brand new Citizen, and then you receive your Certificate of Citizenship, you now belong. The “Oath and Pledge” go like this; “I (name), swear by Almighty God that, on becoming a British citizen, I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Her Heirs and Successors, according to law.”
You then need to recite the pledge: “I will give my loyalty to the United Kingdom and respect its rights and freedoms. I will uphold its democratic values. I will observe its laws faithfully and fulfil my duties and obligations as a British citizen.” This is all very interesting until you dig deeper into Scripture, and this is what we find.
You and I were all born on “Planet Earth,” and as such were born into enemy territory that is hostile and warring against God and his Government, yet we desire to be in Harmony with God, and to be living in his Domain, and under his rules, his “Kingdom.” The problem is that we have no access to Heaven, and even if we got to Heaven’s door, they would simply just lock it securely, to keep you outside, as you are an enemy of God. Even if you did get inside, who is going to give you “Citizenship? Can you be trusted to live in harmony with Heaven’s systems, rules and Government?
If you look at the Jewish “Seven Feasts of Messiah,” there is an interesting pair of Feasts that cover a span of “Two Days” but are often referred to as one long day. These are “Shimini Atzeret” and “Simchat Torah” and this is where it gets very interesting, but this subject is too broad to cover here so we will pick the high points. We have firstly in the Autumn the “Feast of Trumpets” for 40 days; the first 30 days are a bit rough for Planet Earth, the last 10 days are, well we do get through that ferocious storm. That leads us immediately to Yom Kippur (Great Day of Atonement) when your eternal destiny is forever fixed by your sinful or sinlessness {Rev 22:11-12}. Next we have five days which was the Barley harvest, drafting sheep-goats, removing the Tares from the Wheat etc.(Silence in Heaven for ½ an hour Rev 8:1 is approx one earth week) so now we reach the start of “The Feast of Tabernacles” to commemorate the Exodus. This is the leaving of Egypt (land of Sin) and moving home to Heaven (Israel*Promised-Land*Paradise). And it is interesting to note this feast takes 7-days; but also it takes 7-days to get married and 7-days to journey to Heaven.
Upon arrival in Heaven we have the “Marriage Supper of the Lamb,” {Rev 19:9} where the Universe gets to have a look at the Bride of Christ, and to celebrate her arrival, which is Christ’s Redeemed Church made up of his Faithful Believers. Now in the Ancient Near East, just like all other Governments, a new King or Ruler; needs a whole new Cabinet. Each member of the Kingdom, was then to appear before the new Monarch, and was then appointed their role and responsibility. Sometimes you kept your old job and position, sometimes promotion and occasionally in essence banishment or a huge demotion.
This is in essence what we have at “Shimini Atzeret” and “Simchat Torah” is all about, committing to following the Torah (Old Testament back then, Bible to us) or as Matt 4:4 says, every word of Jesus Christ. The Whole of Israel re-committed and re-dedicated themselves to whole hearted obedience and dedication to follow and to obey God.
Now you can clearly see that a Citizenship Ceremony and this long double day, are in essence covering the same subject matter, committing to the Country and its new Ruler; Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords {Rev 19:16}. To take the British one, we would all commit to something like this; “I (name), swear by Almighty God that, on becoming a citizen of Heaven, I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Jesus, God’s only Son, according to his law.”
Then you Pledge: “I will give my loyalty to the Kingdom of Heaven and respect its rights and freedoms. I will uphold its democratic values. I will observe its laws faithfully and fulfil my duties and obligations as a Heavenly citizen.”
Question; If we plan to live by “Heavens Rules” for all Eternity, why not get a head start and live your Heaven life here on Earth and get a head start and enjoy a little bit of heaven here on Earth?
