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 the earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own...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.
I feel like I've had trouble communicating the coolness of this passage to people. I read it and kind of get a, "yeah...and" response. But I love to think of people who had that kind of faith. That trusted the promises of God even when they never received them. I love to think of a person who believes, and lives like, they don't belong here. Like they are only passing through. I want to be this sort of person; who enjoys life here, but knows that he was created for more and is headed for a transcendent eternal life elsewhere.
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It's super-powerful.