STRANGERS IN FAMILIAR PLACES

Hebrews 11:13b (NIV)
And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.

            A number of years ago I returned to Wheaton College for my class reunion. On that occasion, I was able to take my family with me. I had a great time showing my children all of the places that I had frequented when I was in college. We visited the biology department, where I had spent hundreds of hours. We walked the halls of Blanchard Hall, the iconic centerpiece of the college. I sawed them the classroom where I had taken a history course. I showed them the stairway that led up to the rifle range, tucked away in among the rafters of the attic of the building. I showed them the plaques on the wall of all of the Wheaton students who had gone on to become world missionaries. We found our way to Edman Chapel, where I was again taken aback by the overwhelming size and grandeur of the place. Finally we went to Trabor dorm, where I had lived three out of my four years on campus. We were able to enter the main lobby, but access to the floors was barred by a new security system. At that moment I was struck with the realization that I no longer belonged there. I was a stranger in a very familiar place.

            The Bible tells us that spiritually we are strangers in familiar places. We are born into this world as a part of it. As we grow and develop, we become comfortable with our surroundings. They become very familiar. They are the normal setting for our life. We feel very much at home. But, when Jesus comes into our lives, all of that changes.

            2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” When we invite Christ to take control of our lives, a transformation happens. We pass from being a part of a world dominated by sin and enter into a world motivated by Christ. Everything changes. We begin to view our world differently. The places and things that were so appealing to us begin to lose their allure. We begin to feel less at home in this world.

            Several years ago, a friend of mine, from Mainland China, traveled home for a visit. He had become a Christian while studying in America. I talked with him about the changes he would experience. He assured me that nothing had changed and all would be well. When he returned to Minnesota, I asked him how his trip went. “Everything has changed,” he replied. His friends had married and settled into jobs. The things that they wanted to do for fun, while he was visiting, made him uncomfortable. In short, that was not his home any more. “I feel more at home in Minnesota than I do in China,” he concluded.

            The longer we walk with Jesus, the less we should feel at home in the world. We have become strangers in familiar places. In Hebrews 11, the writer talks about the great people of faith. In verse 13 he states that they were aliens and strangers on earth.

            There is an old gospel song that we used to sing quite often when I was growing up. The first line of the songs states, “This world is not my home. I’m just passing through.” In a simple way, that song has captured the reality of every Christian. This world is not home. We are on our way to our real home with Christ in heaven.

            But, there is a problem. It is possible for us to feel too comfortable here and to forget that this is not our home. When that happens, we set start to set up residence and settle in. I have worked with many international students over the years. Many of them came from countries that do n lot enjoy the standard of living that we enjoy here in America. The longer these students stay in America, the less they want to go home. Some of them try to set up residence here, forgetting that they are aliens and strangers in a foreign land. That is the way it can be for us as well.

             In 2 Peter 2, Peter challenges us to not lose sight of our true home. “But you are a chosen people, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.” “Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” (2 peter 2:9, 11-12 NIV)

            Whenever I travel to other countries, I always stand out as an American. I cannot help it. People can just tell. Can people tell that we are citizens of God’s kingdom? The old song had it right. This world is not my home. Although I can adjust to my surroundings, and ever feel comfortable in them, I don’t belong here. And neither do you.