Sunday, May 5, 2013 pm
ARE WE DRIFTING?
Hebrews 2:1
Tonight for a few moments I want to talk about
the subject of drifting.
a.
Defined – “to flow past,
to glide by.” (Thayer)
L&N (31.69), “a figurative extension of meaning , ‘to flow
alongside”
When we think of drifting we think of a ship that has lost its mooring
and is gradually flowing away from its original point.
Or someone sleeping on a raft in the ocean.
The gentle waves lull him to sleep but when he wakes up he is
lost.
b.
Spiritual danger - Used
only in our text L&N goes on to describe its meaning, “to gradually give
up one’s belief in the truth.”
The warning of the Hebrew letter was for these brethren to pay attention
to that which they had learned, lest they gradually drift away from
where they were at.
i.
It is a danger for Christians. After a while,
we might reach a point where we are satisfied where we are at, so we
take our ease and let down the guard.
In time we are lulled into a sense of security and suddenly we
are drifting further and further away from God.
ii.
It is a danger in churches – they become satisfied where they are at.
There is peace and contentment.
They are able to pay their bills.
Their assemblies are comfortable.
Out of fear of stirring things up or change, they simply drift
along and become complacent.
The problems are many: 1) In time they begin to diminish as members die
or move away; 2) They let their guard down so that error can slip in; 3)
They begin to not care about things that ought to be important.
Rev. 3:17 describes the church at Laodicea which the Lord said was
lukewarm. They had drifted.
The church at Ephesus (Rev. 2:4) had lost its first love and WAS
drifting.
c.
Observations about
drifting
i.
IT requires no effort – drifting means you release whatever is keep you in place
and you let the current take you where it will.
You just “sit back and enjoy the ride.”
If you want to drift spiritually, simply DO NOTHING!
ii.
Often, you are not aware of it. Herein lays the
real danger of drifting! We
really don’t intend to drift.
We THINK we are alright which is why we relax a little.
iii.
It is usually a gradual process. Error and
apostasy very rarely happen overnight.
2 Pet. 2:1 speaks of false prophets and teachers, “who will secretly bring in destructive heresies…”
iv.
It can be avoided with effort – In our text, Heb. 2:1-3 we continue to read, “For
if the word spoken through angels proved
steadfast, and every
transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we
escape if we neglect so great
a salvation…?” Drifting
is a product of NEGLECT!
That tells us it is something that can be avoided!
v.
It can lead to disaster – our text speaks of the “reward” of disobedience and then
warns us that we will NOT escape if we neglect our salvation.
It can cause you to wander from the truth (James 5:19) so that you need
someone to care enough to turn you back (or else you will be lost).
Jesus said, “No one having put his
hand to the plow and looking back
is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)
2 Pet. 2:20-21 speaks of one
being worse off than before he obeyed the gospel, because he is again
entangled in the world.
Finally, Heb. 10:26-31 speaks of the worse punishment that awaits those
who have rejected the truth.
They have “trampled the Son of God
underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified
a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace…”
d.
And thus we can see the
dangers of drifting. They
are real and we must be aware of them.
Having established what drifting is and noted some of its dangers, let
us briefly discuss some of the signs of drifting along.
a.
2 Corinthians 13:5 tells
us, “Examine yourselves as to
whether you are in the faith.
Test yourselves. Do
you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? – unless indeed
you are disqualified.”
From time to time we need to step back and take a look at our lives from
God’s perspective (in His word).
An honest evaluation can help us detect whether or not we
problems that we need to address, or if we are drifting along.
Consider the following:
b.
Time spent in study and
prayer is diminishing and seems less important. We know that Bible study is
important. 2 Tim. 3:16-17
speaks of how the word of God can make us complete.
2 Pet. 1:6 in describing the process of growth to perfection, we
are to add to our faith, virtue and then knowledge.
Similarly, prayer is a daily responsibility of Christians.
Much of what God’s word says about prayer is dealing with it
privately – Matt. 6:6-7. 1
Thess. 5:17 says, “Pray without
ceasing.” Paul
continually requested the prayers of his brethren on his behalf.
c.
An increased desire for the pursuits of this life
– in our materialistic society, it is very easy to be caught up in
things and pleasure. We must
continually be reminded (both publicly and privately), “Do
not love the world or the things in the world.
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world -
the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life
– is not of the Father but is of the world.” (1 John 2:15-16)
As we mature (a little) in the faith, we may think that we can handle a
little more of this world’s good.
And perhaps that is true, BUT the danger is always there to make
THINGS our primary pursuit.
Jesus in the parable of the Sower spoke of the thorny ground in which, “they
have heard, go out and are chocked with cares, riches and pleasures of
life, and bring no fruit to maturity.” (Luke 8:14)
IF you look at your life and see that the world has a greater influence
than it used to, perhaps you have been drifting.
d.
Your brethren are less
important to you than they used to be – compared to when you first obeyed the gospel, are you closer now to
your worldly friends or your brothers and sisters in Christ?
We are called upon to care for one another over the world.
Rom. 12:10 tells us to be kindly affectionate toward one another.
1 Pet. 2:17 says, “love the
brotherhood.”
The church of the 1st century had brethren on a daily basis
associating with one another.
Do you participate in the activities of your brethren?
Do you promote and provide such activities?
If you find your preferences being with your worldly friends you might
be drifting.
e.
Your interest in the
souls of others is weakened
– one of the most challenging responsibilities we have as Christians is
our need to seek out the lost.
I am convinced it is something we all know we need to do and we
have a desire to share the gospel.
But in these troubling times, it is not an easy thing to get
started with. But we need to see the lost conditions of the souls around
us – 2 Cor. 5:10-11 tells us we must ALL appear before the judgment seat
of Christ. Paul said, “Knowing
therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.”
In Acts 8:4 after persecutions arose in Jerusalem, they went
everywhere preaching the word.
How much effort are we putting into seeking lost souls?
Usually when one first obeys the gospel, they are excited and
zealous. They tell others
about it! But in time, as
they are humbled by their experiences, the fire dies down.
If that happens, we might be drifting.
f.
Are you “in a rut”?
Is worship boring to you?
Are you just not as excited about serving God as you used to be?
Do you find that spiritually you have defaulted to simply
maintaining your present status?
If so, you may simply be drifting along.
If
we find that we are drifting, what can we do about it?
For the remainder of our time, let us notice some things we can
do.
a.
AS we have already
noted, drifting can be avoided.
“Give the more earnest heed” to prevent it.
Realize that if you are drifting, you need to REPENT!
Take steps to stop the drifting.
b.
Keep rowing – 2 Pet. 1:5 in describing the attributes that will lead to
proper spiritual growth we are told, “giving
all diligence, add to your faith…”
Vs. 10, “Therefore,
brethren, be even MORE DILIGENT to make your call and election sure…”
Continually remind yourself that you can’t quit.
Heb. 10:38 says, “Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has
no pleasure in Him.”
That is saying, DON’T QUIT!
2 Cor. 4:16, Paul said, “Therefore
we do not lose heart…”
Gal. 6:9, “And let us not grow
weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not
lose heart.”
Friends, the reward comes AFTER this life if we don’t quit!
(cf. 1 Cor. 9:27)
c.
Watch for
undercurrents
– often, the most dangerous currents in a body of moving water are the
ones you cannot see. If we
are not watching, before we know it the ship is well off course.
The same is true spiritually.
There are things, often the LITTLE things, which we don’t pay
attention to and before long we are drifting away from God.
1 Pet. 5:8 tells us to be sober and vigilant, because Satan seeks to
devour us.
1 Thess. 5:6-8 speaks of not sleeping, but watching and being sober.
Watch for the things that will discourage you or cause you to let down
your guard. Watch for the
temptations that will allure you away (James 1:12-15).
Watch for complacency – 1 Cor. 10:12.
d.
Prepare to move upstream (against the current)
– the problem with drifting is that it is usually the direction where
the crowd is headed. You are
going DOWN stream.
Spiritually, that means you are flowing WITH the world and its ways.
Christians need to not just stop the drifting, but they must also
paddle (work at it) against the current.
You have to FIGHT! 1
Pet. 5:9, says of the devil, “Resist
him, steadfast in the faith,…”
James 4:7 says, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
Realize that the current currents are often headed toward hell fire –
popularity, modernism, humanism, worldliness.
In the religious world the popular things are gaining the crowds
– entertainment, social activities and a positive, “relevant” message –
but they are NOT the path that leads to God.
They are the wide way that leads to destruction.
PADDLE against them!
e.
Put your anchor where it belongs!
– Hebrews 6:18-19, “this hope
we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which
enters the Presence behind the veil…”
The writer was talking about our anchor being at the foot of
God’s throne.
Ephesians 3:14-19 finds Paul bowing the knee before the Father so that
we may be “rooted and grounded in
love…”
That means that HE is the one governing what we do and where we go.
IF our anchor is in heaven, it will keep us from drifting!
As Ephesians 4:14-15 says, “that
we should no longer be tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind
of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of
deceitful plotting, but speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all
things into Him who is the head – Christ – from whom the whole body,
joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the
effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of
the body for the edifying of itself in love.”