DRIFTING PAST ROSS SMITH
ALL REFERENCES FROM AMPLIFIED VERSION UNLESS NOTED.
Hebrews 2:1 SINCE ALL this is true, we ought to pay much closer attention than ever to the truths that we have heard, lest in any way we DRIFT PAST [them] and slip away.
Hebrews 2:3 (A) How shall we escape [appropriate retribution] if we neglect and refuse to pay attention to such a great salvation [as is now offered to us, letting it DRIFT PAST us forever.
Drifting does not require any energy, it relies on the momentum of the environment. It means, to go with the flow. This may be intentional, due to ambivalence as to the destination, or it may be by neglect, not having ensured that the motive power source has been kept in good order and we are facing the right direction, or it may be circumstantial, such as being incarcerated by illness or some judicial process where we lose interest in the things that transpire roundabout.
“DRIFTING” “to move slowly particularly as a result of outside forces with no control over direction”(Cambridge Dictionary)
We are either drifting with regard to our salvation because of neglect, or we are growing because of deliberate effort and attention. But nobody grows by accident.
There is a word used in Hebrews 6:6, the word is “deviate”, which means to depart from an established course or usual and accepted standards”. The Latin “DEVIATE” means “turned out of the way”.
Hebrews 6:6 If they then DEVIATE from the faith and TURN AWAY from their allegiance–[it is impossible] to bring them back to repentance, for (because, while, as long as) they nail upon the cross the Son of God afresh [as far as they are concerned] and are holding [Him] up to contempt and shame and public disgrace.
When we are drifting there is no settled course and consequently, we can “deviate” according to the currents or winds that prevail in our circumstances and attitudes and the destination becomes obscure.
Deuteronomy 32:4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are law and justice. A God of faithfulness without breach or deviation, just and right is He.
This verse says, God is without deviation and infers it is a lack of faithfulness if we waver in our commitment. For those who unintentionally digressed from that constructed path: Matthew 7:14 But the gate is narrow (contracted by pressure) and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life.
There are automatic alerts sent from above : –
Isaiah 30:21 And your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way; walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left.
But some have disabled their alarm systems: –
1 Timothy 4:2 Through the hypocrisy and pretensions of liars whose consciences are seared (cauterized)
And under these conditions we “deviate”: –
Proverbs 19:2 Desire without knowledge is not good, and to be overhasty is to sin and miss the mark.)
Hebrews 2:1 & 3 nominates that there are TWO DIFFERENT STATES OF DRIFTING
- lest in any way WE DRIFT PAST [THEM] and slip away
- letting IT DRIFT PAST US
Notice it is WE & THEM together with IT & US!!!!
‘DRIFTING’ is the thing to be afraid of. We must be careful to watch because strong currents of the world will drift us away from God’s promises unless we are alert to the hidden reefs of the stream of life in which we are engaged.
The “currents” of life and the world are things we must contend with as they are the vehicles by which Father grants us those experiences we are to learn by, and as we recognise God in the circumstance, we will adjust the tiller so that we gain the maximum advantage of that current for His glory. That recognition is more than simple acknowledgement, we are required to be “WHOLLY JOYFUL” (James 1:2)
But “DRIFTING” also occurs in another sense, that is, that we do not recognise the opportunities and privileges that Father offers us.
Philippians 3:13-14 I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, (V14) I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.
In Hebrews 2:1 in Amplified version, where it says “we ought to pay much closer attention” it is literally saying, “IT IS EXCEEDINGLY NECESSARY that we give heed to what we have heard.” It is not just an option that we can apply if we are especially pious and spiritual or have a crisis in front of us or if we need to prepare some lesson. This is a word to all Christians: it is “exceedingly necessary to give heed” to Jesus as the Word of God, otherwise, we could miss it!!!
“DRIFTING” is the other end of the scale from “PATIENT ENDURANCE”, and this is not for just for a singular event, notice that Hebrews 2:1 says, “TRUTHS” (plural) we have heard, in case we “drift by “THEM” (plural).
It is important that we understand that the “drifting” is on our part because the Word of God is secure.
Psalm 119:89 Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven [stands firm as the heavens].
Matthew 24:35 Sky and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
“Drifters” and “daydreamers”, find their thoughts are rarely centred on the project in hand as they roam the prairies and wasteland of worthless thoughts, only ever creating fantasies to provide an escape from the reality and demands of the day. The Bible is scathing in assessing this sort of behaviour.
Jude 1:8 Nevertheless in like manner, these DREAMERS also corrupt the body, scorn and reject authority and government, and revile and libel and scoff at [heavenly] glories (the glorious ones).
Equally as worthless are those described in Zephaniah who having spent the day” drifting and daydreaming” and now it intrudes and penetrates into their evening watch. So, the truth of God’s Word suffers our “drift past”, with the devastating consequence that our “great salvation” has also slipped by whilst we engaged in our reverie and an abstracted state of absorption
Zephaniah 1:5 And those who worship the starry host of the heavens upon their housetops and those who [pretend to] worship the Lord and swear by and to Him and yet swear by and to [the heathen god Molech or] Malcam [their idol king],
There is, thankfully, a remedy, and Hebrews 2:1 will rescue us if we are intelligent enough to implement the recommendation which says “we ought to pay much closer attention than ever to the truths that we have heard”.
One of the first things that get neglected when we are drifting is our attention to the Word of God. So many other things become important and our interest or concentration is left wanting, and so the “drifting” takes us further into the midstream of the currents of the world and before we know it, we are lost and in foreign territory.
This is not to say that there won’t be plenty of company there, for often we are incited to “drift” by our associates, friends, and frequently by the overtures of our very family, and that is where a major deviation from the Word of God occurs.
Hebrews 2:3 warns us again: – “HOW SHALL WE ESCAPE [APPROPRIATE RETRIBUTION] IF WE NEGLECT AND REFUSE TO PAY ATTENTION”?
LETTING IT DRIFT PAST US is the other part of the equation. This suggests that we have left the mainstream of the river of God and are marooned in the backwaters and stagnant pools that accumulate in out the way places along the low places where there is no refreshing of the waters.
The river continues to flow, but in our neglect or ambivalence, or blatant disregard we have “stalled” and the directions of God’s Word bypass us, we let them “drift past us” and the only movement we feel are the ups and downs created by the tidal wash of the river and tend to resent the intrusion to our conscience as to our sorry state.
Much is made by environmentalists as to the “INTEGRITY OF THE WATERS”, things like the volume, the clarity, the discharge of runoff, sediment load, river slope, plant life, animal life, a science known as “geomorphology”. The key word, however, is “INTEGRITY”, a term frequently employed in scripture and we would do well to explore our integrity and how we contribute to the waters of life.
Our integrity includes very common traits, but for clarity let me put them into everyday terms, not necessarily in order of importance but of equal importance. Things such as consistent bible study and fellowship, Christian love, communications, relations, dress code and personal appearance, attention to detail, faithfulness, punctuality, reliability, moral principles, uprightness, respect, charity, ethics, probity, honesty. No doubt there are myriad other attributes you can nominate, but also, we must ACTIVATE!!!!
“Drifting is devoid of purpose, intention, direction, commitment, dedication, it exists and thrives in an environment of ambivalence, deference, procrastination and neglect. Do we qualify in any way?
There are several areas that can be contributors to our “DRIFTING”, and because some areas are obligations, we need to ensure we are applying scriptural principles to life’s demands.
An Out-of-Control Schedule.
Ephesians 5:16 REDEEMING THE TIME, because the days are evil.
One of Satan’s greatest weapons against our generation seems to be his ability to make good people busier than ever before. We so often sacrifice the best things in life by spending time doing things that are just “pretty good.”
If we desire to walk closely with God, we will necessarily have to begin by taking a close look at our calendar. It is likely that we are currently doing too much, affecting our relationship with God. So, review your schedule and see if you are extending yourself beyond what is prudent, pertinent, proper or profitable.
Discouragement
2 Corinthians 4:15-16 FOR ALL [THESE] THINGS ARE [TAKING PLACE] FOR YOUR SAKE, so that the more grace (divine favour and spiritual blessing) extends to more and more people and multiplies through the many, the more thanksgiving may increase [and redound] to the glory of God. THEREFORE, WE DO NOT BECOME DISCOURAGED (UTTERLY SPIRITLESS, EXHAUSTED, AND WEARIED OUT THROUGH FEAR). Though our outer man is [progressively] decaying and wasting away, yet OUR INNER SELF IS BEING [PROGRESSIVELY] RENEWED DAY AFTER DAY.
When the trials of life cause a person to become discouraged, they often begin focusing on those problems and take their eyes off the Lord. When Peter walked on the water, he was doing OK until he took his eyes off Jesus and began looking at the waves beneath him and the clouds above him. It is important to realise that when life’s circumstances grow difficult and trials become intense, that is the time to turn TO the Lord and not “DRIFT” FROM Him.
THE REMEDY
Hebrews 4:11 LET US THEREFORE BE ZEALOUS AND EXERT OURSELVES AND STRIVE DILIGENTLY TO ENTER THAT REST [of God, to know and experience it for ourselves], that no one may fall or perish by the same kind of unbelief and disobedience [into which those in the wilderness fell].
SELAH
Ross Smith 