Drifting

Today, we live in a mobile society. We can easily say that we are a generation of drifters. People today move to new locations for various reasons. Jobs change; we reach a different level of education or skills that create a need to move on to a new location. It may be just a move from one house to another, as a family grows, new spaces are needed.

 Back, many years ago – about 1934 – Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers recorded a song that dealt with drifting. “Drifting Along with the Tumbling Tumbleweed”.

So, we drift – from one place to another. Wherever the wind might take us.

There is another kind of drifting we will look at today. It is the drifting that the writer of the letter to the Hebrews – chapter 2, verses 1-4 READ

This drifting happens when we move away from the truth of Scripture to engage in various situations to satisfy our own desires.

Even Christians sometimes drift away from moral purity, marital commitment, personal or ministerial integrity, and away from the truths of God’s Word.

People rewrite the Biblical standards to suit, or to fit, their own thinking or their own desires.

As Christians we have some “watchwords” to guide us in our walk with Christ.

Those watchwords are these: “Thus saith the Lord”  

Sady, those watchwords are often replaced with “I’ve got a better idea”; or “if it feels good, do it!”

When those words or thoughts come to light, we are beginning to fulfill what the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 4:1-5.

It is obvious - by what Paul writes there - that what he warns about is happening in our day and time.

What is happening? Drifting is happening. Drifting from the Truth of Scripture.

Drifting from moral purity and personal integrity, and Biblical fidelity – that is, being faithful to God’s Word.

But, you know, that is not something new to our time and age. It was happening back in the time Paul was writing – and witnessing it happening then – in the first century.

The problem of drifting was so severe then that he was compelled to address the issue with a warning.

Hebrews 2:1-4 – as we just read - is a warning – not to people of the world – but to Christians.

This is a transition from what we see in Hebrews --- “For this reason” --- pay attention to what the writer has previously said.

In Hebrews chapter one, the writer says the Christ is superior to the prophets and the angels, and that angels perform a ministry to believers – and that they are sent out to render service for those who will inherit salvation– which means the experience of being born again and how a Christian is expected to live.

Because of our position in Christ (2:1) we must pay close attention to what we have heard – or we will tend to drift away.

We have been gifted with an inheritance and that gift must be taken seriously. And, I assume, because the Hebrews writer must have known that we needed help with that, he provides guidelines to help us handle that gift properly.

Hebrews 2:1 – we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard. If we don’t, what happens? We begin to drift away.

It is not that we have not been exposed to the truth. It is often because we don’t take God seriously.

So many people today, I believe, crave something that is new and sensational and fresh to keep them on track.

But the truth of the matter there is God’s mercies are new every morning! But many people don’t see the value of the old and fail to apply it to their lives. And they fail to take hold of what is new and fresh every morning in the Word of God.

So, they drift – rolling along like the tumbleweed with nothing to hold on to.

The word “drift” has the idea of gliding or passing by – like being caught in the current of a river and being unable to grab hold of an anchor on the shore.

The Hebrews writer refers back to the Law of Moses, and the Law that prescribed consequences for disobedience. And he compares it to those who neglect their salvation in Jesus Christ.

Under the Law every transgression and every disobedience received a consequence. The consequence for those who neglect their salvation through the new covenant will be even greater than the consequences prescribed under the Law.

Hebrews 2:3 is a statement of God’s plan of salvation-life and the consequences coming to those who neglect that salvation.  READ Hebrews 2:3

His plan is this:

It was spoken through our Lord.

it was confirmed by the Apostles.

and God ratified and attested to this truth with accompanying miracles, signs, wonders, various miracle, and gifts of the Holy Spirit – and how was this done? 

According to His own will (verse 4).

So, on that basis – we have no reason to question whether or not we have God’s truth about salvation.

The question for us is this ---- Are we neglecting the truth, or are we embracing it?

This passage – Hebrews 2:1-4 can be summarized into our language of today like this:

1.    When we absorb what we have heard, we know it is better than seeking something more appealing.

2.    If we are to overcome the danger of drifting, we will need to apply discipline in our lives and our attention to God’s provision for our lives.

Here are some ways we will know suffering when we drift:

1.    We rely on our own instincts – rather than the truth of Scripture

2.    We value the opinion of other humans more than we value God’s truth

3.    We settle for what is comfortable for us, rather than what may be painful for a time, but is the right way to go.

The only means of a lasting satisfaction in our lives is still and only – obeying God’s deliverance plan.

When we neglect God’s plan for our deliverance, we are led down a path to consequences that can – and most likely will – be inescapable consequences.

It is easy for us to drift away from moral purity; from marital commitment; from personal integrity, or from Biblical truth.

We tend, sometimes, to buy into the trends of our times. We begin to pursue what is the easy way – the most comfortable way for us to live --- rather that what is God’s way.

If you are drifting --- read the warning signs. Bring your life back to the place of relying on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.