“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” – Hebrews 11:13-16

Every human heart longs for a country where it finally belongs.

Scripture uses many metaphors to describe the Christian life. We are pilgrims and sojourners passing through this world. Yet this journey is also a race — one that must be run with endurance. As believers journey through this world, they face countless attractions and distractions. How, then, do we reach the finish line?

Thankfully, we have not been left to figure this out on our own. We have pilgrims who have gone before us — men and women who ran their race and finished well — to instruct and inspire us in ours.

Promises Not Received

Nowhere is this pilgrim spirit more clearly displayed than in Hebrews 11. The writer highlights two movements of faith that sustained them.

Faith to See

The author says these believers lived by faith until they died. “They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.”

Ordinarily, you’d expect the faith of a person to waver when they have not received what was promised, after waiting for so long. Not these saints.

“Faith, for them, was not validated by sight but anchored in the character of God.”

The first thing that happened to them was that through the eyes of faith, they saw what was promised. For some, it was the promise of Canaan, while for others it was the promise of the Messiah. They died without seeing the fulfilment of these promises, yet remained faithful to the end. Faith, for them, was not validated by sight but anchored in the character of God. If we will reach the finish line, we also require the faith that keeps on believing in the promise, no matter what happens.

Faith to Welcome

But faith did more than give them sight; it also shaped their response. They welcomed what was promised even though it was distant. They were content to live their lives on the strength of God’s promises because they judged him faithful who had made the promises. The promises sustained them on their pilgrimage, and that is no small thing. You must grasp this if you are to finish your race well.

“The promise of a prepared city calls for a prepared people.”

It’s like thirsting on a hot and humid day and being promised a cold glass of water. On the strength of that promise, you get through your working day even though you haven’t received the promised glass of water. You welcomed it from afar; you were sustained by the promise. Peter says, “he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires” (2 Peter 1:4).

Let his promises sustain you, too, as you hold on to him and his faithful word that must come to pass.

Aliens And Strangers

Their faith shaped not only what they believed about the future, but how they viewed the present. Another sustaining grace was how they saw themselves — as aliens and strangers on earth. They had human ancestry, yet they saw themselves as aliens. They had family and friends, yet they saw themselves as strangers on earth. They never felt at home in this world.

“We cannot set our hearts on a different destination and expect to arrive at theirs.”

What trappings of this world appeal to you? They have the power to entrap you and keep you earthly-minded and earthly-focused. Jesus called them “the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things.” They are not harmless; Jesus said they “choke the word, making it unfruitful” (Mark 4:19). The word will not bear fruit; your life will not either, because of these cares that become tares if you allow them.

In this life, we will need food to eat, clothes to wear, houses to live in and vehicles for transportation, but they must never become the preoccupation and driver of our lives. That is how to live as an alien and a stranger. That is the example of the saints of Hebrews 11.

A Country Of Their Own

But feeling like strangers was only half the story.

It is not enough to feel homeless on earth. Homelessness must be accompanied by homesickness.

They didn’t feel at home on earth because “they [were] looking for a country of their own.” They longed for a better country.

Some Israelites wanted to return to Egypt (Numbers 14:1-4), but the saints here had no thought of the country they had left. If they did, the writer says, “they would have had opportunity to return.” Backsliding comes from nostalgic thoughts of where one has left. The difference lay in what captured their imagination. Instead of wanting a return to past pleasures still on this earth, “they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one.” They didn’t think of the heavenly country now and then; they had a longing – a strong, persistent craving – for it.

“Homelessness on earth must be accompanied by homesickness for heaven.”

It’s noteworthy that the writer doesn’t leave us guessing which country they were longing for. In our day, many seek a better life by relocating to more prosperous nations. These saints were not interested in moving from a poor country to a rich one; the country they were longing for was “a heavenly one,” not a ‘first world’ country. How many people testify and give thanks in church when they get their visas approved to move to a new and better country, albeit an earthly one? This is not a criticism of relocations, but a contrast to what made those people different. Their highest joys and present motivations were the hope of a better, heavenly country. You and I must possess the same affections if we will end up where they did. We cannot set our hearts on a different destination and expect to arrive at theirs.

The One Desire

But what made this country “better”? What made it worth such longing?

What made heaven desirable was not its beauty, but its King.

Revelation 21 describes the immense beauty of the new Jerusalem, a city shining with the glory of God, brilliant like precious jewels, a place of absolute purity and bliss. That should whet our appetites for the place Jesus said he is going to prepare for us (John 14:3). Yet the true glory of that city is not its jewels, but its Presence.

The Psalmist takes us into the very heart of this longing — the true object of their desire:

You’re all I want in heaven!
    You’re all I want on earth! – Psalm 73:25 (MSG)

Whom have I in heaven [but You]?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. – Psalm 73:25 (AMP)

What made the heavenly country desirable for them was who they would meet – the Lord God. They didn’t set their minds on heaven because it promised an escape from earth’s troubles; they set their minds on heaven because they yearned for God. God was all they wanted in heaven — and nothing besides.

“What made heaven desirable was not its beauty, but its King.”

Nor did they reject earth merely because of its troubles. Even for earth, they said, “You’re all I want on earth!” Away with all earthly pleasures, “besides You, I desire nothing on earth.”

This was not an isolated sentiment. It shaped the apostles as well. It was this same heart disposition that Paul had when he said, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Dying would take him to be with the Lord whom he loved.

Even our Lord embodied this same single-hearted devotion. Jesus possessed this same resolve, which enabled Him to reject Satan’s offer of the whole world in exchange for worship (Matthew 4:8-10).

We must possess the same heart if we would navigate this earthly life successfully and reach the heavenly country.

Affections Set on High

If this was the heartbeat of the saints, it must become ours as well.

“You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God.” – Colossians 3:1

As you journey through this earthly life, buffeted by its attractions and distractions, the bible enjoins you to set your heart, your affections, on the things that are in heaven, where Jesus sits enthroned. There is no denying the existence of flashy things that seek to occupy your heart; you must die to them — and they to you (Galatians 6:14).

“They did not long for improved circumstances, but for God Himself.”

But dying to the world is not enough. The heart cannot remain empty; it must be occupied with thoughts of the things over which Christ presides. That’s the instruction and example on how to live as an alien and stranger and arrive home safely.

God’s Response

And heaven does not remain indifferent to such hearts. God is moved by this kind of devotion. The writer says, “Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”

Why “therefore”? The NLT uses the words, “That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God,” while the Amplified says, “For that reason God is not ashamed.” Because they longed for a heavenly country where God was all they wanted — and desired Him above all on earth — the Father is not ashamed to be called their God. He is delighted to be associated with such believers.

“Backsliding often begins with nostalgic imagination.”

First, he doesn’t shy away from this genre of believers; he is not ashamed to be called their God. Paul said, “if we endure, we will also reign with him” (2 Timothy 2:12). Then he goes on to give them what they have loved and yearned for: a city prepared for them where God is.

A Constant Prayer

The promise of a prepared city calls for a prepared people. Beloved, Jesus is preparing a city for you. Will you also prepare yourself for that city? Do away with other loves and love him with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength (Mark 12:30). Let no other love compete with that which you have for him; let no rival throne survive in your heart as you serve him alone. Let this be your constant prayer: “Lord, you are all I want — in heaven and on earth.” For those who long for Him above all else will one day dwell where He is — in the better country He has prepared.