Attention Competition

Hebrews 2:1-4
1Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. 2For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, 3how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, 4while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

“If the devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy.” I’m not certain who originally said this. The furthest back I could go was Corrie Ten Boom. But it is a true saying, for sure. We are a distracted people. The writer to the Hebrews knew full well that we are easily and often distracted. I have no idea what life might have been like in the first century AD, but I know full well that in 2018 we live in a world that is filled with distractions. Remaining focused on Christ is increasingly challenging. The main purpose of the next few verses is to ensure that the congregation does not forfeit its great gift of salvation by inattention to God’s Word.

The author uses a vivid picture to portray the consequence of inattention. He and his congregation are like a ship moored in a harbor with God’s Word as its anchor. If they do not pay close attention to his Word and hold firmly to it, they will be carried away from their port, like a ship that is “swept adrift” on invisible currents in a trackless ocean. Such a ship is at risk of shipwreck and loss. Yet no reason is given here for their inattention, whether it be from unbelief, boredom, or exhaustion.
Kleinig, J. W. ©2017). Hebrews. (C. P. Giese, Ed.) (pp. 102–103). Saint Louis, MO: CPH.

This writer wants to make certain his listeners don’t give their very salvation over to a lack of attention or divided loyalties. And I’ll just say it – it’s difficult. There are so many attractive and exciting things to drag us away from God. The Children of Israel had the same problem. And they could look up at any time and see the Pillar of Cloud by day and the Pillar of Fire by night – God in their presence. Yet they still looked to false gods and whined about God’s provision for them. We don’t have those pillars to look at, but we have smartphones, TV, demanding work, children, friends, social media, . . . the list is long. Each moment of the day is filled with something demanding our attention; and we give it.

These first few verses of chapter 2 come as a stern warning: don’t allow yourself to be dragged away by the unimportant clamoring of the world. All of that will fall into place if you keep your attention focused on the Lord. Instead of allowing yourself to be cast adrift in a noisy world, stay anchored to the Lord Jesus. It’s not easy. In fact, many days it seems almost impossible. But each day, we remember the suffering and death of Jesus Christ and everything else takes second place, just as it’s supposed to. Life is still lived and we give energy to what stands before us, be it a toddler or a boss, but we do all of it with Christ in the foreground. May God give us strength to do just that.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

יהוה שָׁמַר--Yahweh Shamar (God Watches)

Image
Psalm 121 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. There are numerous passages I cling to when stress takes over my life. I would be hard pressed to declare a favorite, but this psalm would come close. So this morning I listened to Psalm 121 about 20 times as I meditated through the verses. First, I want to point out that the word or idea of shamar appears in every verse expect 6. The NIV uses the word "watch" while the ESV uses "keep". The...
Read more

Excusez-moi

Image
2 Kings 23:31-37 31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-fiv...
Read more

Narrow Door

Image
Luke 13:22-30 22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them , 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at tabl...
Read more