"All these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised. "
Hebrews 11:39
UNFULFILLED PROMISES
Read It: Hebrews 11:13a, 39-40
Today's lesson packs a wallop. It shows us that people of faith anticipate receiving what God has promised whether they ever experience that fulfillment or not. We would say, "Wait a minute. How can you believe in a promise you never see fulfilled?" But that's exactly what verse 13 says. People like Enoch and Noah and Abraham did not live to see the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise, yet they still died believing it. In other words, to trust God is to bank on His Word even when there is nothing visible to demonstrate that what He says is going to come true. Trusting God means that when you are on your deathbed, and it still doesn't happen, you trust Him. That's living the life of faith. We get some help in the preposition translated "in" (v. 13). It's a different word than the one used in the preceding phrases, "by faith." The word here reads "through faith" or "according to faith." That is, these people lived in accordance with the faith rule. Faith was the ruling principle on which they built their lives.
So even though they went to their graves without seeing the full realization of the promises of God, they closed their eyes in death saying, "God still told the truth." They knew that fulfillment was coming, and they lived in the anticipation of it. That's what God is asking you and me to do today. He wants us to live before Him in such a way that we anticipate His promises even when every circumstance is going opposite to what those promises say. This is a revealing section. For instance, it kills the teachings of "prosperity theology," the concept of faith as a means of manipulating God to do what I want Him to do. The Bible tells me that some of His people live and die, and it doesn't happen, and yet they live and die in faith. If you're still anticipating something you are asking God to do in your life, don't try to manipulate Him or your circumstances. Let Him bring it about-and and be prepared to keep trusting Him if it doesn't happen. Think About It Faith is trusting God when He's not doing what I want and when He's not conforming at all to my desires.
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