For many people today, 'faith' is a personal means to tangible benefit. They say, 'Trust the Lord and your prayers will be answered'; or 'Believe God for God things and they will come to you'. But that is not the whole story of faith. Without qualification, those statements can be profoundly misleading, disappointing and faith-sapping . Of course, God does hear and answer prayer, and He does not withhold the best from those who trust in Him (Romans 8:32). But He has the right to define what is best, and to time His answers according to His cosmic purposes, not our earthly timetables.

The 'heroes of faith' we have encountered so far in this chapter, Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, all died without experiencing the unveiling of God's promises. As v13 says,'They did not receive the things promised'. So, was their faith invalid? Did God fail them? No! He asked them to travel through this life believing that He would do what He said and He used their faith to bless countless millions right up to this day through the Lord Jesus Christ.

2000 years after Abraham, Jesus said, 'Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.' He was looking for what God was going to do: although he did not see it, he trusted that God would do something awesomely wonderful. We also enter into the promised blessing to Abraham. Galatians 3:14 says, 'He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.'

Faith is not primarily about getting what we want or even receiving what we need. Faith is the confidence which God gives to His people that He knows what He is doing (Hebrews 11:1, 6) and that He 'is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.' (Ephesians 3:20) He puts His power into us to desire and take action so that He achieves His purposes, not just for us and our families, but for the world until Jesus comes again and His kingdom for eternity. That is why all the apostles, and people of faith through the ages, have been willing to suffer for the sake of Christ and the extension of His kingdom. Even today, more believers are being persecuted for their faith than at any other time in history. They may never see good things coming to them, but they see Jesus calling them to keep serving Him until they see Him (Acts 7:54-58; Hebrews 12:2-3). Whatever the Lord asks of you is never wasted. Trust Him that He knows what He is doing and keep on doing what He commands. His eternal approval matters more than all the material benefits this life can offer.