"These all died in faith." Heb 11:13 NKJV

LIVING BY THE FAITH RULE

The Bible says, "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them." People of faith anticipate what God promised, whether they ever experience its fulfillment or not. "How can I believe in a promise I don't see fulfilled?" you ask. People like Abraham didn't live to see the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise in their lives, yet they died believing it. Trusting God means banking on His Word, even when there's nothing visible to demonstrate that what He says is going to come true. Even when you're on your deathbed and it still hasn't happened, you still trust Him. That's living by faith.

The words "in faith" in this Scripture are different from the words used in all the verses that read "by faith." The words "in faith" actually mean "according to faith." These people lived by "the faith rule." Faith was the ruling principle in their lives! So even if they went to their graves without seeing God's promises fulfilled, they exited saying, "God still told the truth." They knew that the fulfillment was coming, and they lived in anticipation of it. That's what God is asking of you today.

He wants you to live before Him in such a way that you anticipate His promises, even when every circumstance seems opposite to what those promises say. It also means you don't manipulate the circumstance to "help God out" as Sarah did when she produced Ishmael. It means trusting God to do it His way, in His time, and for His glory.