There are biblical passages that only seem to have meaning if you know of things in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hebrews 11:39-40 is such a passage.
Verse 29 speaks of how the people had obtained a good report, but "received not the promise." The use of the word "promise" perhaps is just coincidence, but, just the same, it does fall in line with a term used by the LDS: "holy spirit of promise." The holy spirit of promise is the power by which ordinances (such as baptism and eternal marriage) are performed and sealed.
The next verse -- at least for those in this church -- clearly is a reference to such ordinance work, and work for the dead. To those outside this church, I cannot see that it would have any understandable meaning.
It says, " God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect." Those of us who are LDS believe we need to be sealed to our families, and thus sealed to the ancestors who came before us. Thus, they without us (and vice versa) cannot not be made perfect.
There is more to the gospel than just getting a testimony and having faith and joining the church after you hear a report of the church and what it is about. Through the ordinances, there is the promise of living with our families eternally.
Even so, these verses say that although a good report was received through their faith, the promise was yet to be received. But, God provided more (than just being a member of the church). We can be made perfect though others (the fathers can be made perfect by being sealed to the generations that come after them).
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