Tuesday of 1st Sunday after Easter – Hebrews 2:1-8

Hebrews 2:1-8

Beginning in verse 5, the writer of Hebrews continues His theme of the glory of Christ.  He does so by quoting from Psalm 8, and in so doing, he provides us with a key hermeneutic tool to interpret the Psalms.  Who is the “man” of Psalm 8?  It seems, like so many of the Psalms, as if it’s talking about us.  Who are we, that God is mindful of us?  We are a little lower than the angels, and we were created to have dominion over the works of His hands.

But we gave these things up through our sin and attempt to overthrow God and His created order.  The “man” in Psalm is, therefore, Jesus Christ, the Perfect Man of the Psalms.  He is the one who has received, and is alone worthy of, all honor and glory.  But because we are united to Him, it’s also true that we receive honor and glory, and all things will be put under our feet: but only in Christ.  God the Father is mindful of man because He is mindful of His Son, and we are united to Christ by His suffering, death, and resurrection.

Ultimately, Psalm 8 is about us, but only as we live and reign in Christ.

Together with Hebrews 1, we have, therefore a picture not only of the glory of Christ but also of the glory that Christ shares with those who are united to Him in His suffering and glory, through faith in Him.

But what about verses 1-4?  How should we act, in light of these great truths?

The writer of Hebrews warns us to take what we have learned with the greatest seriousness: “Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest we drift away” (verse 1.)  In other words, PAY ATTENTION!

Once again, the writer of Hebrews compares angels to Christ.  In fact, this is again a good model of interpretation.  If something important is true even in the Old Testament, the covenant put into effect only through angels, then it is even more important and true in the New Covenant, which was put into effect through the Blood of Jesus Christ.  The point here is that if every transgression and disobedience received a just reward in the Old Covenant, in which the Word was spoken through angels, how much more so should we expect judgment if we have heard the Word spoken through God’s own Son, who is Himself the Word?

It’s not as if we can think to ourselves: “Since Jesus has already paid for my sins, and I’m already saved by Him, I have nothing to fear.  I can live how I want, because He has to forgive me and has already paid for my sins.  So it really doesn’t matter if I sin a few small sins or sin massively in major ways.”

Is this the mind of one who has been saved by Christ?  Is this the mind of Christ, who learned obedience by what He suffered and chose to perfectly obey, even to the point of the Cross?  Christ did, indeed, die for our sins.  But this is exactly why we should never go back to them!

We should be concerned that we earnestly heed the Truth in Jesus Christ and don’t drift away.   After all, it’s not just the teaching that we are in danger of drifting away from but Jesus Christ, the King of Glory Himself.  This is the real danger.

The Greek word that is used for drifting away was sometimes used to describe a boat which is allowed to drift away aimlessly and so miss the landing point.  It was used to describe water that leaks out of a leaky jar.  And it was used of a ring which slips off a finger.

Jesus Christ, who is Heaven and the Promised Land, is our landing point.  But what happens if we don’t pay attention to Him?  We gradually drift away.  I’ve seen this happen to a lot of Christians.  They wake up one day and wonder how in the world they got so far away from God.  It was because they drifted.  Drifting is not complete, conscious, rejection, but it has the same consequence if it is not remedied.

Drifting begins and continues by simply not paying attention to what is important.  The easiest way to end up far from God, assuming you were once close to Him, is simply to stop paying attention to Him and the ways He comes to you each day.  You don’t have to go to any great lengths.  You don’t have to read any atheistic philosophies.  All you have to do is stop paying attention or stop caring.

Just stop paying attention to the sin in your life, stop confessing it, stop actively repenting of it, and you’ll drift away.  Just stop reading God’s Word and meditating on it and applying it to your life, and you’ll drift away.  Just stop praying, acknowledging God to be the Lord, praising His holy Name, thanking Him for His extraordinary gifts, and asking Him for all you need, and you’ll be a world class drifter.  Just stop going to church or paying attention to the sermon or words of the liturgy if you do go, and you’ll drift just fine.  Pay no attention to the Son of Man with the burning face, and you’ll drift just fine.

When we don’t pay attention to the leaks in our spirit, we wake up one day to find that our jars, into which God has poured His treasure of Living Water, are dry.  When we spiritually allow the ring to drop off our finger, we lose a gift of infinite value.

We all know the tragic consequences when those who drive cars pay too much attention to the cell phone or fiddling with the radio or farding, instead of paying attention to the road and other cars. Yet we think nothing of drifting spiritually.  Of course, it’s easier to drift spiritually because the other cars and telephone poles and pedestrians that are very visible in driving are not so visible spiritually.

We all know the tragic consequences of drifting in relationships, especially in marriage relationships.  The real killer of marriages is not adultery: it’s the drifting between the husband and wife that has already taken place.  Divorce doesn’t happen in a day: it’s the end product of a relationship that has been allowed to drift.

If the devastation of divorce is caused by drifting in a human relationship, the devastation that results from drifting in our relationship with God is even greater.

So how can we stop ourselves from drifting?  The first step is to pay attention to the reminders that we may be drifting, which God sends to us in many ways.  Hebrews 2 is just one reminder, but there are many others in your life, if only you’ll pay attention.

The second step is understand what must be done to head back toward God, and the third step, of course, is to actually do whatever is necessary to turn back to God (which is known as repentance.)

Drifting by oneself is easy but is much more difficult when in the presence of those who are still in the Promised Land.  One of the best ways, therefore, to return from drifting or to prevent yourself from drifting, is to have regular spiritual fellowship with those who have not drifted.  And this requires a church, the Body of Christ.

Therefore, because we have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all and Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant: PAY ATTENTION.  And don’t drift.

Prayer:  Thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, for suffering and tasting death for me and giving me such a great salvation.  I confess that I have drifted from You more than I have intended or desired, and I ask that You forgive me and give me the wisdom and strength to actively return to You today.  Amen. 

Point for Meditation:  If you could do one thing today to return to God that would make the most difference, what would it be?  Knowing this, what are you prepared to do about it? 

Resolution:  I resolve to honestly assess my relationship with God today.  In what ways have I been drifting?  I further resolve to take one action to return back to God.  Confession of drifting is a good first step, but a practical action is important, too.

© 2013 Fr. Charles Erlandson