Hebrews 2:1 We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
There are many exhortations and commands in the Book of Hebrews. These often come after either a scripture quotation or a theological statement. The key word that often shows this is “therefore.” This chapter opens with one of these exhortations. The author wants his readers to “pay the most careful attention.” This is based on ch. 1. Since the readers know the supremacy of Jesus, the Son of God, then must listen carefully to what the author will say about Jesus. The readers have heard about Jesus. What happens over time, however, is that people’s commitment can grow weak over time. Our attention is diverted and given to other things. Jesus becomes secondary in our lives because other things have taken center stage. There are many day to day things that become high priorities, such as fixing a meal, doing our jobs, getting kids ready for school, and many other things. We have to do these things. But if we are not careful, they will take all of our energy and we have none left for God. One good option is to develop holy habits and to make sure our energies are prioritized. The danger of allowing our focus to shift is that we may drift away from our faith. Those who fall or fail usually do not set out to do that. It happens little by little, often without people realizing it until it is too late and they have to suffer some type of consequence. We must remain vigilant with our faith and commitment. In our weak times, we need each other to hold each other up in encouragement. That will be a topic of this book later on in ch. 10.
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