Heavenly citizenship for those doing the Father's will_1

 When the eternal kingdom comes, the most valuable thing is the citizenship of heaven. Even though tens of thousands of people give us their American citizenship cards, we will never exchange our heavenly citizenship for theirs. We are envied by all the spiritual beings in the universe. God tells us how to acquire the citizenship of heaven.

 Mt 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'"

 Nobody can enter the kingdom of heaven without the citizenship of heaven. Then, who can acquire the heavenly citizenship? Only those who do the will of the heavenly Father can acquire it. The Bible clearly shows us the way to obtain the citizenship of heaven and also the reason to be rejected.

 Those who have American citizenship can travel freely in and out of the country; none of them are refused entrance to it. How about those who try to enter the country without its citizenship? Immigration officers inspect them, asking why they visit the country and how long they will stay there. After passing through the inspection, they are admitted into America.
 We can find the same situation in Matthew 7:21-23. Only those who do the Father's will are admitted into heaven. For God grants the citizenship of heaven only to them. Without the heavenly citizenship, no one can enter the kingdom of heaven.

 Even a nation's citizenship in this earth is given through the admission of the country. In order to acquire American citizenship, immigrants must pass through an examination. Who is the first president of the United States?' or When did the Civil War break out?' Examiners ask such questions about the outline history of America, and the people should answer in English. Only after passing through the examination, they can obtain American citizenship.
 In the same way, to acquire the citizenship of heaven we must gain God's approval. Only those who do the will of the Father can enter the kingdom of heaven, because He has granted them the heavenly citizenship.

 Jn 8:45-47 "... He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God."

 He who belongs to God is to hear what God says. God clearly commands us to keep the Sabbath, but some insist on keeping Sunday. God commands us to celebrate the Passover, nevertheless some insist on celebrating Christmas. This is an expression of their strong will not to hear what God says. God sternly says that such people do not belong to Him: "The reason you do not hear what I say is that you do not belong to Me." What a dreadful word! Through this word, God shows us the way to distinguish between those who can acquire the heavenly citizenship and those who can't.

 Heavenly citizenship is given to the people of Zion, the city of God's appointed feasts

Now, we need to find out where God our King reigns in order to know where we are now, examining the requirements we must meet in order to qualify for heavenly citizenship.

 Isa 33:20-22 Look upon Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved ... There the LORD will be our Mighty One. ... the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; it is he who will save us.

 Here, us' mean those celebrating God's feasts in Zion. God is called their King; He is the King of Zion, the city of His appointed feasts. We, the people of Zion, celebrate the feasts. So it is clear that we have a heavenly citizenship.

 Isa 51:15-16 "For I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves roar-the LORD Almighty is his name. I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand-I who set the heavens in place, who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, You are my people.'"

 The people who dwell in Zion are the ones who have obtained the heavenly citizenship, though they live in this sinful world now. We must feel proud that we have acquired the heavenly citizenship even though we are cast down to a small planet called earth.