Greetings from Timor-Leste! 

You know, it is one thing to live by faith with an expectation to see visions fulfilled in our lifetime. But can we also die in faith, knowing that they may only come to pass way beyond us? 

Hebrews 11 is a well-known passage on faith. It defines faith and even lists out inspiring giants of faith who have gone before us.

But it ends on this bittersweet note in Hebrews 11:39-40: “And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.”

After all these giants of faith were commended by the Lord, you mean they did not even receive what was promised to them?

I don’t know about you, but this challenges me. How do I live by faith and then also die in faith, assured that His perfect plans are just beyond me? 

Lessons from Hebrews 

Two things hit me from Hebrews 11:1:

1. God’s promises are guaranteed

Hebrews 11:1 tells us that “faith is the confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”.  

Abraham had the faith to go all in. He left his home not knowing where he was going. And at a childless old age, he was promised descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. In his lifetime, he received his precious son, Isaac, but he didn’t receive in full what was promised.

Generations later, we now have the gift of hindsight. We see his descendants and God’s faithfulness to Abraham. 

His promises are guaranteed. 

Today, I believe God calls us to an all-in kind of discipleship, to a life that holds nothing back from Him. No hesitations, no buts. A life trusting God with impossible Kingdom visions that He places on our hearts because His promises are guaranteed. He invites us to an all-in kind of faith. How will we respond?

2. God’s plans will outlast us

Why didn’t these giants of faith receive what was promised? God had something better in mind. 

Just when it seems that Moses had seen it all – the mighty deliverance, the Passover, the parting of the Red Sea – God showed him something even better … the Promised Land!

And yet, Moses never set foot in it. The next generation did. 

They saw the mighty provision of God, and by faith, the walls of Jericho fell after the army had marched around them for seven days. God’s plan outlasted Moses. And guess what? Today, God still has something better in store for us. A plan that will outlast us; the accumulation of all of His work through every faith-filled generation, including you and I, and the many that will come after us.

Imagine the tapestry of faith-filled stories that Jesus sees of His Bride throughout time and history. That’s His perfect plan. One that can’t be completed by any one generation, but by thousands of generations. 

Will we walk together in obedience? Our success is not tied to outcomes that we can see, but to our obedience in faith.

God’s perfect plan isn’t meant to be completed by any one generation, but by thousands of generations. 

Building churches that are heartbeats

Last year, the Lord gave me a vision. 

I saw this drone shot of our village here in East Timor. And right in the middle of our village was our church that slowly transformed into a pulsating heart, with arteries flowing through the village like rivers in a desert. With every beat, life flowed through the village. And I felt the Lord say: “I want my church to be the heart of every community, not just a part of it.” 

And my heart leapt with excitement because that’s exactly it. And I pray this, too, for every church in Singapore and the nations – to be the life of each community, because that’s who our God is. 

If our churches close tomorrow, will our communities feel it? Will they yearn for His presence and His love that’s being shown through His Bride?

We are His chosen agent of world transformation beyond our pews!

So I responded to the Lord: God, if this is the vision that You’re calling me to invest in, to see every church being Your heart in their communities, it is beyond me. It will take several lifetimes. 

But I believe Your promises are guaranteed. Help me to go all in with the generations that You are calling. It’s not about me seeing its fruition, it’s about Your eternal Kingdom and the impossible Kingdom visions that You have placed on our hearts for the nations. Let’s go all in together. 

Lord, thank You that Your promises are guaranteed. Your plans will outlast us. Help us to live and die in faith, being Your faith-filled Church that goes all in into Kingdom visions that You have placed in us. 

Amen.

Reflect

1. Reflect on Hebrews 11:39-40. Consider the ministry or Kingdom work you are currently involved in. How is God speaking to you about that which He has promised to fulfil but you may not see in your lifetime? 

2. Is your church a vibrant heartbeat of its community? If not, how can you take steps to make it so?

3. Do you have a personal vision that God has called you to invest in? If not, how will you pray for one?

Pray

1. Pray for a Christ identity within individuals and the Church that is so rooted in His Truth, that collectively we reflect the unshakable plans of God to a world adrift in confusion. Pray that we live “without anxiety, but not without care; without panic, but not without urgency; without idols, but not without ordering our passions and concerns”. (DL Moody Center)

2. Pray to live unflinchingly in chaotic times, confident that God’s plans and promises are guaranteed. Ask Him to reveal the Kingdom role He has prepared for you “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14) and the courage to walk in it.

3. Pray for your eyes to be opened to the spiritual needs around you, whether in Singapore or beyond. Ask for His grace upon those who have not yet heard His Gospel call and His mercy upon those who have deviated from His desires. Pray for opportunities to speak God’s truth into their lives and for their hearts to be receptive. 

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