In every part of the world, citizenship is a critical part of a person’s identity and a precondition for accessing opportunities and essential services. It confers special rights and privileges, such as the right to vote and fully participate in public life.

 The different ways in which citizenship can be acquired include birth, descent, or naturalization. Citizenship by birth is an automatic right granted by virtue of being born in a particular place. Descent refers to where a person acquires citizenship through a parent or grandparent and naturalization is attained through marriage or the discretion of a government.

Oftentimes, God uses practical life experiences to elaborate on His relationship with us and the nature of the salvation that He freely gives us through His son, Jesus. In his letter to the church in Ephesus, the Apostle Paul reveals the central place of citizenship in our Christian identity, revealing in Ephesians 2:12, that “at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”

It takes connecting other biblical texts to explain the nature of the citizenship that we have in Christ. The encounter between Nicodemus and Jesus establishes that as Christians, we acquire our citizenship through a new birth. In John 3:3, the Lord explains that “no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.” This birth is of the spirit (John 3: 5-6) and awards us spiritual citizenship. Whereas physical citizenship provides temporary earthly privileges, spiritual citizenship is of eternal value. In this new arrangement, we derive our new birth from the Father Himself, who reveals in 2 Chronicles 7:14 that we are called by His Name! What a privilege!

In the physical world, evidence of citizenship may be a passport or driver’s license, which can expire and therefore must be renewed periodically. As Christians, our evidence of citizenship is the spirit of sonship through which we call Abba Father (Romans 8:15). While this spirit of sonship does not expire, it is always critical that we renew our faith through continuous spiritual replenishment — reading and studying His word, connecting with others who help to strengthen our spiritual lives, and seeking opportunities to do good. Jesus summed up the purpose of being part of His Kingdom as follows: “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” (Matthew 25:35, NIV).