Devotion 9 – Persevering Faith (2) – An Eternity Mindset
Heb.11:8-16 – “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance…. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God… These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland… they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.”
Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, Rachel, Leah, and all their families, died without receiving the promises. In fact, no significant part of Canaan was held by Abraham’s descendants until Israel’s return under the leadership of Joshua after their captivity in Egypt.
What does it mean when the Scripture says that they, “having seen them afar off, were assured of them, embraced them…”? The word “embrace” can be literally translated as “hug” based on the original text. Though faith cannot be seen through the eyes of the flesh; they are nevertheless real. So, by faith, the patriarchs cut the ties that bound them to the present world in which they lived and gave themselves over to that which God said was to belong to them and their descendants in the generations to come.
Like our ancestors, we ought to hold loosely to the things of this fallen world and “hug” tightly the eternal Kingdom and willingly live as “strangers” and “pilgrims” in this present world that everyone else calls “home”.
Gal.6:14 – “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world”
Phil.3:8 – “Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ…”
If we want to walk as “strangers” and “pilgrims”, we must not let our heart be bound to this earth. Paul was crucified to the world and counted all things “loss” and “rubbish” for the promise of Christ. What he perceived produced his perspective. He believed God for the future and this made a profound difference in his worldview.
When we have an “eternal perspective”, it empowers us to make “temporal” decisions in the light of eternal realities and help us to be mindful to put “last things” (Eternity) first!
C. S. Lewis said it aptly in his book “Mere Christianity” and “The Joyful Christian”:
“If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought the most of the next…. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.”
“Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth 'thrown in': aim at Earth and you will get neither.”
In other words, those with a biblical eternal perspective do the most good in and for the temporal world. May we too be energised with an eternal mindset!
Phil.1:21-24 - “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labour; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless, to remain in the flesh is more needful for you”
Paul was saying that if he had the choice, he would choose to be put to death, because he so longed to be with Jesus, but, if he were spared and lived, he could bear more fruit for Christ and it was hard for him to choose between the two. True saving faith changes our desire and values - a new kind of life emerges and seeks a new satisfaction which is out of sync with the world. We will be so gripped by God that nothing short of heaven would satisfy.
Not Ashamed to be Called our God
What caused God to be unashamed to be called their God? And what must we do if we want God to be unashamed of being our God? Is it our success on this earth or some great exploit that we can be proud of, or our high moral achievement, etc, etc. The simple, stunning answer is this: to desire what He has prepared for us. The Bible says, “they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.”
The word “desire” in our text indicates “stretching ourselves out for or towards.” It is like a young child who stretches his arms out towards his parents when he wants to be carried. That is why the patriarchs were able to live as strangers and exiles – they were not looking to live forever in the land of Canaan. Instead, they longed for a better country and stretched out the “arms” of their minds and hearts to seek God, to know and obey Him, and to remain steadfast and persevering in faith.
Likewise, we should desire the heavenly city over the city of man. We are not to be obsessed with our standard of living on this earth. Learn to steward all our earthly possession mindfully. God has given us this world to care for and to enjoy, but we should not be too dominated, captivated or distracted by it to the extent we neglect eternity. If God has blessed us with wealth and possession, He has done so for us to use those things to glorify Him and to spread His Gospel. Faith desires God and the city God made for his people more than it desires what the world can give. Faith in God desires eternity over the temporal.
Did or did not Receive the Promised
Heb.11:13 – “These all died in faith, not having received the promises…”
Heb.6:15 – “And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise...”
Heb.11:17 – “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son…”
The above scripture seems to contradict each other. So, in what sense did the patriarchs receive as well as not receive the promises?
The patriarchs did not receive the total fulfilment of God’s promises in this life, they only received a taste of them. Abraham and Sarah received the promised son, but they died only with two heirs, Isaac and Jacob, and not the innumerable nations with “descendants like the stars of heavens and like the sand on the seashore” as promised in Genesis 12 and 22.
Many do not have the persevering faith because the substance of hope is not properly developed in us. When trials and tribulation come, we abort the substance of hope (the promises in the Scripture) easily, we compromise and choose the easy way out.
The book of Hebrews talks about a people of faith and hope. These patriarchs, these heroes who have gone before us, they are people of faith because they believed God and His promises. They are people of hope because they did not live for what they could see; but for what was to come. They did not mind that they were despised and downtrodden and forsaken in this world. They did not mind that they were strangers and pilgrims. They did not mind all that they had to go through because they did not live for the “there and then”. Their eternity mindset anchored their souls amid the storms of life on earth.