January 14, 2024
10 “for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own.
16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.”
Hebrews 11:10-16 (NASB1995)
The Idea:
Your ‘unshakeableness’ will ultimately come from how you see this life, and then choose to live in it.
The Perspective of faith teaches you to...
I. See yourself as an eternal being
Hebrews 11:10 - “he was looking for a city whose architect is God”
Hebrews 11:13 - “they confessed that they were exiles on the earth”
Hebrews 11:14 - “they were seeking a country of their own”
Hebrews 11:16 - “they desired a better country, that is a heavenly one”
"If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should never know it was dark. Dark would be without meaning."
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
“He has set eternity in our hearts.”
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NASB1995)
II. How To Grow In It
“But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them”
Hebrews 11:16 (NASB1995)
“Creatures are NOT born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water … If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity
1 “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.”
Colossians 3:1-4 (NASB1995)
Eternal thinking that completely changes your here-and-now:
1. I am eternal. I will live forever. And this life is preparation for the next.
2. What I do today, tomorrow, and everyday counts for an eternity
3. When I suffer, as a believer in Christ, the suffering will convert to glory in eternity
4. Jesus said that I should invest my wealth into eternal things – and will never wear out, it will never run out
5. I will be transformed fully into a replica of Jesus
6. No eye has seen no mind has conceived what God has planned for you
“That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”
1 Corinthians 2:9 (NLT)
III. How Your Faith Affects God
“Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God.”
Hebrews 11:16 (NASB1995)
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