The First Warning
HEBREWS 2:1-4
IT IS INTERESTING TO ME in studying the first two chapters of Hebrews that even though the superiority of Jesus is clearly demonstrated, the Son of God is not primarily presented here at the beginning of the epistle/sermon – nor, for that matter, anywhere in Scripture – as an object to be adored. Now, it is, of course, all right to adore Him – “O Come Let Us Adore Him,” and one day, “every knee will bow and every tongue will confess” – but He is not really presented in Scripture so much as One to be adored as He is presented as a person to be trusted for salvation and to be obeyed in the living out of the Christian life. In other words, Jesus is not so much presented as God as He is as Lord. May we keep that in mind as we consider this week what many commentators have termed, “The 5 Major Warnings of the Book of Hebrews.”
LET ME SAY, IT IS NEITHER THE AUTHOR’S PURPOSE NOR MINE to discourage through the giving of these warnings. Rather, the purpose of warnings in the Bible, and the purpose of this message, is to give us needed instruction in the living of our Christian lives. Just as a loving parent will warn his or her child out of love and concern, so God warns His children through His Word the Bible. When you warn your child or grandchild or great-grandchild not to play in the street or play with fire, you are not being cruel or uncaring; you are being loving and protective. God’s warnings in Hebrews are loving and protective. God wants us to live victorious lives, so He warns us not to do certain things in order to help us live the most useful and satisfying lives possible. Another word for “warning” would be “exhortation” or “command.”
THE ORIGINAL READERS OF HEBREWS EVIDENTLY HAD FAILED TO GROW in their walk with God. They seemed to have become weary in pursuing the Christian goal of Christlikeness (2 Cor 3:18). They didn’t seem to be making progress. While we do not know for certain much about these readers (the writer neither names himself nor identifies those to whom he is writing), many, including this student of Scripture, believe that the majority of these readers were Jews who had come to faith in Christ and had become Christians. It is likely that these believers were centered in Rome where Judaism and not Christianity was well established and officially tolerated. Therefore, there could have been a constant temptation to reject and deny the distinctives of the Christian faith and begin to lapse back into Judaism. We today live in a culture that could be seen as similar. All we hear from the media is how intolerant and fanatic true Christianity really is, and how sensible and tolerant New Age religions are. Certainly, there is that constant temptation for some to just say, “Why be different? What really is the big difference between Christianity and all that rest? Why not just go along to get along?”
LISTEN TO THESE WORDS OF THE COMMENTATOR LANE: “The temptation of the congregation in Hebrews was to disregard the seriousness of Christian commitment, with the result that some were drifting off course. Their interest in the Christian message had significantly slackened. Although the source of distraction is not specified at this point, the positive role assigned to angels and the appeal to normative character of the Mosaic law in v. 2 tend to suggest that the Christians addressed continued to maintain emotional and intellectual ties with the Jewish community. They needed to appreciate the solemn import of the message of salvation that they had received and to firm up their response to it.” – William L. Lane, World Biblical Commentary
ANCIENT BELIEVERS WERE CERTAINLY NOT THE ONLY ONES WHO WERE BEING PULLED AWAY FROM THEIR FAITH BY THE CULTURE IN WHICH THEY LIVED. So, there is a personal, immediate relevance to our blog this week. Maybe even some of us today, if we were truly honest, would say, “Yeah, I would admit I’ve drifted somewhat from where I was in Christ.” The warnings in the book of Hebrews are meant for all Christians in all cultures at all times.
ONE MORE WORD BEFORE I BEGIN: “The 5 Major Warnings in Hebrews” is a popular title for a sermon. Almost every preacher has preached a similar sermon. While all seem to agree there are five major warnings, different pastors and commentators seem to differ in the exact location of these warnings, citing slightly different passages to illustrate these warnings. What I want to say is that I SEE THE ENTIRE BOOK OF HEBREWS AS A WARNING, A WARNING NOT TO LAPSE BACK TO THE OLD COVENANT FROM WHICH THEY CAME, AND AN EXHORTATION TO GO ON TO MATURITY IN THE NEW COVENANT, WHICH WAS INAUGURATED BY JESUS AT THE CROSS. When I study Hebrews, I see more than five warnings. So, these five major warnings I will be presenting here in this writing should be seen, I believe, in the light of the overall tone of warning that is evident in the whole book…
THE 1ST WARNING is found in chapter two, verse 1-4. And it is in this section, which chronologically follows last week’s message, that we will spend most of our time this morning…
THE 1ST WARNING IS A WARNING NOT TO DRIFT AND NEGLECT SO GREAT A SALVATION AS WE POSSESS…
NET Hebrews 2:1 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
CHAPTER 2 VERSE ONE INTRODUCES US TO THE MAJOR PROBLEM, in my opinion, that the writer of Hebrews is addressing in his epistle. “The splendor of their faith was fading, and they were losing their fervor. The currents of their society were sweeping them away from Christ. Their problem was religious laxity.” – Broadman Bible Commentary
IN PREPARATION TO TEACH AND PREACH from the book of Hebrews years ago, I did a survey of the 13 chapters. A survey on a seminary level includes several different exercises intended to intimately familiarize you with the book. Mainly, it has to do with reading and rereading the text. Anyone can do that, of course. You don’t have to be a seminary student to do a survey, at least the reading part. As I read and analyzed the book of Hebrews – I am still doing this – I was immediately and permanently struck by the verse we just read. I see Hebrews 2:1 as not only a key verse in the process of understanding the author’s message, but perhaps the key verse in the entire book. While I reserve the right to change my mind as I progress in my study, I presently see v. 1 as giving us the reason the author is writing this letter or treatise; in other words, the purpose of the book. I believe v. 1 tells us why we have the book of Hebrews. As discussed in a previous blog in this current series, every book of the Bible has a specific purpose for being written. Again, for emphasis, I believe Hebrews was written to warn Jewish Christians against slippage in their faith and in their walk with God. Hebrews was written as a warning and as an exhortation, an exhortation or command to go on in the Christian life to maturity in Christ. Because God has spoken through Christ, and because Christ is so far superior to the prophets, the angels, the priests, everything and anything, we need to pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from that revelation.
“SO THAT WE DO NOT DRIFT AWAY. The KJV reads, “lest at any time we should let them slip.” The Greek word here is interesting. It is used in ancient literature for the snow falling from a soldier’s body, of a ring slipping from the finger. BDAG, the universally recognized finest Greek Lexicon, says the word carries the imagery of flowing water (“flow by”), drifting way, being washed away. Vincent says the idea is in sharp contrast to “giving earnest heed.” Drifting is a mark of death; giving heed points to life. “The log drifts with the tide, but the ship cuts through the waves, because someone is giving earnest heed.”
“BACKSLIDING” IS A FAMILIAR WORD TO MOST CHRISTIANS. It means just what the word clearly suggests: to slide backwards, to slide backwards away from the truth of God and one’s commitment to it. “Backslidden” and derivative terms are found 17 times in the Bible. But I wonder if you knew that the word is never used in the New Testament. “Backsliding” or “backslidden” is not a Christian word. Yet this verse about drifting can be said to mean “backslide. The writer of Hebrews is telling Christians to pay close attention to what God has revealed in Christ, lest we backslide.”
THE HEBREW CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY IN HEBREWS HAD GROWN LAX in their commitment to Christ and were neglecting the Christian message. God in His Word in the book of Hebrews warns them of the seriousness of this lapse. May we today take this very warning seriously and be certain we are truly saved and not drifting away from Christ.
THE 1ST WARNING MUST BE READ IN CONTEXT, in order to get the full effect…
NET Hebrews 2:1-4 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard (the truth as revealed by God through Christ – TR), so that we do not drift away. For if the message spoken through angels proved to be so firm that every violation or disobedience received its just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was first communicated through the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him, while God confirmed their witness with signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
PAY CLOSER ATTENTION TO THE TRUTH OF GOD; DO NOT DRIFT AWAY FROM IT; DO NOT NEGLECT THIS GREAT SALVATION.
THIS DOES NOT MEAN IT IS POSSIBLE TO LOSE YOUR SALVATION. If you are truly saved, you are saved forever. If faith is sincere, it is forever secure. Key word: “truly.” If you have received the gospel and your profession in the Christ is genuine, you are saved, in spite of any drifting. Certainly, I think, it is possible for the Christian to drift. Otherwise the writer of Hebrews would not have written what he did. If a boat drifts away from the dock, it goes adrift. it is not fulfilling its purpose. But it is still a boat. If you leave your house and neglect its maintenance, what happens? It eventually deteriorates. But it is still a house. Once truly saved, always saved.
“THE TEMPTATION WAS TO DISREGARD THE SERIOUSNESS OF CHRISTIAN COMMITMENT, with the result that some were in danger of “drifting off course.” Their interest in the Christian message had significantly slackened. Although the source of distraction is not specified at this point, the positive role assigned to angels and the appeal to the normative character of the Mosaic law in v. 2 tend to suggest that the Christians addressed continue to maintain emotional and intellectual ties with the Jewish community. They needed to appreciate the solemn import of the message of salvation that they had received and to firm up their response to it.” – Lane
TO ME, THIS IS THE BOOK OF HEBREWS. This brief paragraph appears to me to encapsulate the entire book. The Hebrew Christians were drifting from where they were saved to be. The writer to the Hebrews was passionately writing to them to warn them of the folly of this state of affairs and any attempt they were making at rationalization.
– Professor Thomas A. Rohm
