Why Citizenship is Necessary in Earthly Kingdoms
Earthy kings must have a way to distinguish between those who will be loyal to their earthly kingdom. This is necessary, among other reasons, so the earthly ruler can know to whom he can delegate power. The most common earthly means of making this determination is by citizenship. The requirement of citizenship identifies a body of people who can be identified to act in the interest of the earthly kingdom both with regard to its advance and defense.
How Earthly Kingdoms Identify Citizens
The most common tests for citizenship are birth and an oath. It was true in first century when Jesus was teaching about the kingdom and it is true today. If you are born in the United States you are automatically a citizen. If you weren’t born in the United States you can still become a citizen by confessing your loyalty by means of an oath. Initially, both may seem arbitrary, but they are actually good tests.
Birth has traditionally been a basis for citizenship because it rests on the assumption that those who are dependent on the land of a kingdom for their survival have an interest in protecting that kingdom. Oaths are an indication of what is in a person’s heart. Sure they can be faked, but until governments learn to read minds oaths are the next best thing.
How the Kingdom of God Identifies its Citizens
Interestingly, one becomes a citizen of the kingdom of God by both a birth and an oath. First, one must be born again. John 3:5 (“Unless one is born of water and Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”). Second, one must give an oath. Romans 10:9 (“…for if you confess with you mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved…”).
Just as in earthly kingdoms, birth and oath are an indicia of loyalty to the kingdom of God, and that demonstrated loyalty paves the way for King Jesus to share his rule with his citizens by delegating authority to them.
We Can Trust the Analogy of Earthly Citizenship
The similarity between earthly citizenship and Kingdom citizenship is no coincidence. Jesus chose to explain his administration for reconciling the earth to Himself in terms of a metaphor, and the metaphor is that of a kingdom. Jesus could have called his administration a “team” or a “family,” but He didn’t. I think we can be safe in assuming Jesus chose the metaphor of a kingdom because it was the earthly example that best explained His rule and administration. And with regard to the concept of citizenship, the metaphor holds. We know it holds because it is backed up by scripture. GS