What is the meaning of Philippians 3:21?

who

Philippians 3:20 says, “our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ”.

• The pronoun “who” points directly to Jesus.

• Because He is Savior and Lord, everything that follows rests on His person—fully God, fully man (John 1:14; Colossians 2:9).

• His past resurrection proves His future promises (1 Corinthians 15:20).

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by the power that enables Him

• Jesus possesses unbounded divine power. He “upholds all things by His powerful word” (Hebrews 1:3).

• That same power raised Him from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20) and spoke creation into being (Colossians 1:16-17).

• Because His power is limitless, our hope is certain, not tentative (Romans 4:21).

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to subject all things to Himself

• Absolute authority belongs to Christ: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” (Matthew 28:18).

• God “put everything under His feet” (1 Corinthians 15:27; Hebrews 2:8).

• This subjection reaches its climax when every knee bows and every tongue confesses Jesus as Lord (Philippians 2:10-11; Revelation 19:16).

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will transform our lowly bodies

• Our present bodies are frail, aging, and marked by sin’s curse (Romans 8:20-23).

• At His return He will “raise the dead imperishable” and change the living in an instant (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).

• The transformation is total—mortality swallowed up by life (2 Corinthians 5:4).

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to be like His glorious body

• Jesus’ resurrection body is physical yet glorious—recognizable, touchable, able to eat, and no longer subject to death (Luke 24:39-43; John 20:27).

• We shall “bear the likeness of the heavenly man” (1 Corinthians 15:49) and “see Him as He is” because “we will be like Him” (1 John 3:2).

• This conformity fulfills God’s purpose to fashion us into Christ’s image forever (Romans 8:29).

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summary

Philippians 3:21 assures believers that the same omnipotent Christ who rules the universe will personally refashion our weak, decaying bodies into glorified bodies like His own. His unrivaled power guarantees the promise; His universal authority directs the plan; His victorious resurrection provides the pattern. Therefore, our future is secure, embodied, and glorious, anchored in the living Lord Jesus Christ.