Considering So Great A Salvation

Introduction

One of my favorite lines from hymnody is in the third verse of “Come Thou Fount”; it says, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; prone to leave my God I love. Here’s my heart, Lord, take and seal it; seal it for thy courts above.”

The world has wandered far from God, and we are blessed to be rescued by grace, but even as believers, we still wrestle with a flesh that wants to wander away from God.

We crave the things of the world

We seek soul satisfaction in created things

Our minds naturally wander away from the Gospel and get filled with other things (worries, wants, wishes, etc.)

This is shocking when you consider the magnitude of the truth that’s been entrusted to us. Think about everything that the author said in chapter one. He reminded us how God sent His Son, who is superior in every way, to purchase salvation for people as lowly as we are. This is the most astounding message known to man, which is why he correctly calls it “so great a salvation” in verse 3. Yet, we who believe in the Gospel and identify with it are tempted to be drawn away.

This is part of our human nature, to get distracted and neglect the things that are of the highest importance. God understands that, which is why He inspired the author of Hebrews to pen this verse:

Hebrews 2:1 “Therefore [in light of the glorious reality of who Christ is and what He’s done for us] we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.”

He’s telling us that we need to constantly keep our attention fixed on the Gospel, otherwise, we are living in danger of drifting from the truth that we’ve been given. I wonder if you have found this verse to be true in your walk with Christ. Do you find a desire in you to be faithful to Christ and yet this pull in the opposite direction? Do you find a love for Christ and, at the same time, a current that is trying to pull you out into the sea of the world?

Even the most mature believer needs a frequent reminder to reset his focus on the things that truly matter, and none of us here are an exception to that rule, especially at this time of the year when we have so many other good, but lesser things that pull at our attention.

In Hebrews 2, we find three powerful reasons why we should give the Gospel our full attention. I want to give those to you this morning and trust that you will be challenged to turn your eyes to the glory of the Gospel, not just today, but every day of your life.

It comes with a great warning

The first reason we need to give the Gospel our full attention is that it comes with a great warning. Notice what the author says in verses 2-4.

It was understood in Jewish tradition that angels were used to deliver much of the Old Testament to man.

When he’s talking about “the message” declared by angels, he’s talking about the Scriptures

He says that this message proved to be reliable

The things that were prophesied came true, and the punishments that were promised were truly given

Israel was taken into captivity, just as God said

Sodom and Gomorrah was leveled by God’s fiery judgement

God closed Noah in the ark and destroyed the world

The Bible is replete with examples of God promising judgement for sin and then following through on that judgement

People want to believe today that the God acts differently in the Old Testament than He does in the New Testament (Wrath vs. grace) but this is a horrible misunderstanding

God showed mercy in the Old Testament

God has shown judgement and promises much to come in the New Testament (Ananias and Sapphira; The tribulation)

The author says that if God was faithful to bring judgement in the Old Covenant, who did not have the clear message of Christ, how much greater will we stand in judgement if we neglect the great message of Christ

That word “neglect” is important here

It doesn’t mean to reject, and it doesn’t mean to doubt

It means to simply give no thought to something, or not see it as a concern

Imagine you received a call that someone had paid every loan you have, cancelled every debt, and promised to fund your bank account every day with more than enough funds to live on for the rest of your life

Imagine what an insult it would be if we shrugged our shoulders and said, that’s great, but I’ve got more important things to think about

That’s exactly what we do when we neglect the salvation that Jesus has purchased for us

I like how a friend of mine put it this week: it’s shocking that God is not more mad with us than He is

But He gives us grace to return from our wandering and seek after Him

Some people would be tempted to look for an excuse why they didn’t give it more attention, but the author leaves us no room for excuses

This message was given by Jesus Christ Himself, who is the clearest display of God’s love and grace

Then, countless reputable witnesses testified to His message (The New Testament is a trustworthy historical document)

Then, the Holy Spirit bore the message record by performing signs and wonders through God’s people

Even today, though the sign gifts are not common, we regularly hear testimonies and see firsthand the work of God in our lives

We have no good reason not to trust and be attentive to the message of Jesus Christ; and yet, we often do neglect it

I want you to consider the reality that God has warned of the consequences of this neglect; it will bear painful fruit in our lives, and for those outside of Christ, it will lead to ultimate destruction

But it doesn’t have to be this way

There is opportunity to turn our eyes back to Christ today and fall in love with Him over again

The whole reason Jesus died was to rescue us from the wrath of God, and today, you can be reconciled to Him and enjoy His glory rather than fear His wrath

It tells of a great Savior

It offers us great blessings

Conclusion