January 17th - Hebrews 2:1

Hebrews 2:1 So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. We can be sure that this letter was written to Christians from a Jewish background and that it was written to a particular church. Later in the letter we learn that the believers had suffered for their faith soon after they came to faith in Christ, but now they had become complacent and lazy. The writer was anxious that they might drift away from the truth. The expression “drift away” is one that is well known in Greek literature – it is used to refer to a ring slipping off the finger, some food slipping down the wrong way or a ship carelessly slipping past a harbour because the person at the wheel wasn’t paying attention. The writer wants the congregation to realise that in just the same way it is possible to drift away in their faith In my experience when people stop attending church it is rarely because they have come to a conviction that Christianity is wrong. They have simply drifted away. Perhaps they were busy at work, the children had other activities on a Sunday morning, somebody in the family was ill or they moved home. There was no deliberate intention to reject the Christian faith. Merely a slow, gradual, but in the end irreversible, drifting away. The words of Hebrews are just as relevant today as they were 2,000 years ago. We all need to make sure that we are listening carefully to the truth, which happens most easily by each of us having good rhythms in our Christian life. Reading the Bible and praying every day, meeting with other Christians and joining together in worship are all valuable ways of ensuring that we don’t drift away. There are no laws about these things, but if we are to keep strong in faith, we need to look carefully at our personal rhythms to ensure that there is no possibility of us drifting away. Question What do you need to do to strengthen your personal rhythms of Bible reading, prayer, fellowship and worship? Prayer Lord God, help me to keep close to you every day so that there is no danger of me drifting away. Amen