Such A Great Salvation

What this episode covers

In his book, The Shallows, Nicholas Carr writes about how the internet is changing our ability to think. “Neuroscientists and psychologists have discovered that, even as adults, our brains are very plastic. They’re very malleable, they adapt at the cellular level to whatever we happen to be doing. And so the more time we spend surfing, and skimming, and scanning … the more adept we become at that mode of thinking.” Wisdom is associated with deep concentration. Scholarly intellectuals, or any knowledge worker, requires significant periods of the day that are devoted to thinking, reading, and processing information. They must learn to overcome the seduction of our distracted age. That’s also true of Christians in general. We are called to meditate upon the Word of God (Ps 1:2), to think about things that honor the Lord (Phil 4:8), and to be transformed by the renewal of our minds (Rom 12:2). His argument wraps up the case he has made in the first chapter. Opening with “therefore” ensures that we don’t miss this connection. Christ is superior to angels, so “we must pay much closer attention” to the message we have heard about him. That’s how the author of Hebrews states his argument in Hebrews 2:1. He begins by stating it positively, but he goes on to put it negatively as well. This is the first of five major warning passages in Hebrews. He is concerned that some of his readers will “drift away” from the message they heard. Professing Christians will not escape God’s judgment if they neglect the gospel by their indifference. The word “neglect” (Heb 1:3) is basically the opposite of “pay attention”. They can expect God’s judgment if they lose interest in “such a great salvation.” That’s how I would state it negatively, but we can also make the same point positively. Those who keep their focus on the gospel will never be in danger of drifting away from it. Read Hebrews 2:1-4. A Message that is Worthy of Our Attention (1-3a) The problem was not so much that these believers were actively rebelling against the gospel, but they were losing their focus. They were in danger of neglecting the gospel due to their indifference. They were “drifting away” or literally allowing themselves to “flow by” or float along in the general direction of the culture. Instead of standing firm, they were sliding along with the crowd. Drifting takes no effort at all. It’s like laying on your surf board in the ocean. If you don’t pay attention, before long you’re a mile further down the beach. You have to continually take note of where you are and swim against the current in order to remain in the same general area. The author of Hebrews is encouraging his readers to pay better attention to the message of salvation that they have heard. They will drift away from the gospel if they lose their focus. Throughout the rest of this chapter, the author will continue to support his case, that Christ is superior to the angels. Here however, his concern shifts to the content of the message. What is the message that was declared by angels? This is a reference to the law given at Sinai (Deut 33:2; cf Ps 68:17). This belief was emphasized by rabbinic teaching (Jubilees, Philo, and Josephus). It was also something Stephen mentioned the sermon that got him killed (Acts 7:53) and Paul taught it to the Galatians (Gal 3:19). The author devotes the rest of this section supporting the need to pay closer attention. If Jesus is superior to the angels, and if what the angels declared was completely reliable, and if every disobedience to the law received a just punishment, then we must take the message of the Gospel all the more seriously. It is an argument from the lesser to the greater. If the message of the law declared by inferior angels proved to be reliable, how much more reliable is the message of salvation declared by the superior Lord? Likewise, if every transgression was punished under the inferior old covenant, how much more wi

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