A journey has a certain open-ended-ness to it. Those who set out on a journey usually have a certain destination in mind, yet there is also a level of uncertainty when it comes to getting there. Consequently, most of us are grateful for an “uneventful” trip—by which we mean nothing happened to prevent us from reaching our destination when we expected.
Yet no trip or journey is exactly the same every time we make it. There always remains before the traveler the potential of uncertainty. A traffic accident can change one’s journey. Road construction can change when one gets to where he or she is going. Personal illness can cause us to be a day or more behind what we had planned. Despite these and other potential challenges we usually decide the risk is worth it.
Life is a journey and faith is what we call the willingness to face the unknown. Faith is leaning into the future without knowing what lies ahead exactly. Faith is being certain about what we cannot see.
In Hebrews 11 we have a list of biblical notables who leaned into God’s future even though it was not always clear what the outcome would be. In each account there are two emphases: (1) by faith people acted “as if” God was in control; and (2) by faith they moved into an unseen future.
For example Abel, by faith, offered a better sacrifice than Cain. Abel’s goal was not to outdo Cain, but to please God, but the “unseen” result is that Abel’s example still speaks to us today. Or, take Noah. He built an ark without water to float his boat. Or, how about Abraham? He left his homeland for the unknown in search of God’s city. (Did he really know that he was looking for a city?) Or, what of Joseph? He spoke of the exodus as the Israelites were migrating to Egypt.
None of these actually found what they were looking for. The preacher of Hebrews asserts,
These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
Did they know they were waiting for us?
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