Daily Devotional | Don’t Drift Away

I live near one of the Great Lakes, so I sometimes float on the lake in an inner tube in the summer. I prefer to stay in one location, but I’ve noticed how easy it is to drift. If I don’t pay attention, the wind or the waves will carry me far away from my starting point.

Something similar had happened in the spiritual lives of those to whom the letter of Hebrews was written. In verse 1, the author warns of their need to “pay the most careful attention.” Their immediate problem was not one of ignorance so much as it was a kind of spiritual amnesia. They had been taught correctly but had begun to drift away from the things they had first heard.

In particular, they had begun to move away from the message of salvation through Jesus Christ (v. 3). The emphasis on Christ’s superiority to the angels offers a clue about how this happened. They had not rejected the message outright but seemed to have become distracted from it by an inordinate interest in angels (v. 5). As their interest in angels increased, their focus on the significance of Christ and His sacrifice decreased.

They forgot how the gospel had first been announced to them by those who heard Christ’s teaching and the way God had attested to the validity of their message by the working of the Holy Spirit. Eventually, their interest in secondary spiritual matters overshadowed the fundamental truths they had once embraced. Jesus and His work took a back seat and was in danger of being replaced entirely by their fascination with angels. The remedy for this? Pay careful attention to what you have already heard. Do not drift away from it or let it slip from your thinking. Ignoring the truth can cause us to reject the truth.

Go Deeper

Have you ever drifted away from the truth of salvation and God’s Word? How did this happen? How do we prevent it?

Pray with Us: Our hearts ache for those who have drifted away from You, God! Bring the prodigals back, we ask. Help us to pay careful attention to Your words, lean on Jesus, and never forget our first love (Rev. 2:4).

BY Dr. John Koessler

John Koessler is Professor Emeritus of Applied Theology and Church Ministries at Moody Bible Institute. John authors the “Practical Theology” column for Today in the Word of which he is also a contributing writer and theological editor. An award-winning author, John’s newest title is When God is Silent: Let the Bible Teach You to Pray (Kirkdale). Prior to joining the Moody faculty, he served as a pastor of Valley Chapel in Green Valley, Illinois, for nine years. He and his wife, Jane, now enjoy living in a lakeside town in Michigan.