THE DANGER OF SPIRITUAL NEGLIGENCE—Hebrews 2:1-4
1938 WA legislative election/Republican ‘Boston Curtis’—New man on ticket—Elected by 51 votes/Actually a mule/Placed in running by Democrats to prove how negligent voters are.
Country in danger if Mules in office.
We are warned of the dangers of spiritual negligence.
Spiritual carelessness/neglect is devastating.
Why is spiritual negligence devastating?
4 Dangers of Spiritual Negligence
The 1st Danger of spiritual negligence is
A DISSOCIATING DRIFT(:1)
—Explanation:(:1)Separating/Detaching
:1—“For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.”
“Closer attention/Earnest heed”—
“Drift away/Let them slip”—pararruew—To glide by; Lit. ‘to flow from’.
—Argumentation:
Isa. 59:1-2— “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short That it cannot save; Neither is His ear so dull That it cannot hear. But your iniquities have made a separation between you & your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.”
Deut 4:9—“Only give heed to yourself & keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, & lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life; but make them known to your sons & your grandsons.”
—Illustration:
1997/Hilton Head Beach/Matthew/Gone!/Looked everywhere/Panic/Lost focus/Drifted with natural current/Lost-Separated-Detached-Dissociated/DISSOCIATING DRIFT
T-shirt— ‘Go Against the Flow!’
—Application:
?Your negligence netted a DISSOCIATING DRIFT?...Eternal Damnation & Temporal Misery!
?You endangered due to Spiritual Negligence?
The 2nd Danger of spiritual negligence is
A JUST REWARD(:2)
—Explanation:(:2)Recompence/Just desserts/Appropriate
:2—“For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, & every transgression & disobedience received a just recompense...”
“The word spoken through angels”—
Ps. 68:17—“The chariots of God are myriads, thousands upon thousands; The Lord is among them as at Sinai, in holiness.”
Deut. 33:2—“And he said, “The LORD came from Sinai, And dawned on them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, And He came from the midst of ten thousand holy ones; At His right hand there was flashing lightning for them.”
Acts 7:38, 53—“This is the one[Moses] who was in the congregation in the wilderness together with the angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, & who was with our fathers; & he received living oracles to pass on to you.”....“you who received the law as ordained by angels, & yet did not keep it.””
“Unalterable”—bebaioV—Stable, fast, firm.
“Every transgression”—Cross the line; Going beyond the established limit.
Every “Disobedience”—‘failing to hear, or hearing carelessly & inattentively’—Refusal to obey or follow direct orders.
“Just Recompense”—misqapodosia—Payment of wages due; Natural(expected/anticipated) consequence— Properly due or merited; Consistent with what is morally right; righteous. .
Justice— Receiving the requirements of what is just.
Made bed—Now sleep in it!
If we make our spiritual bed we must lie in it!
—Argumentation:
2Cor. 9:6— “he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; & he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.”
Num. 14:29— “your corpses shall fall in this wilderness, even all your numbered men, according to your complete number from twenty years old & upward, who have grumbled against Me.”
General, natural thought that everything will work out for the best in the end, regardless of our decisions. If this were not true then why wouldn’t more come to Christ?
Gal. 5:13— “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”
—Illustration:
Mid-summer/Buy perishables—ice cream-meat/Go visiting with groceries in back/Spoiled & melted/JUST REWARD
Landlord/Apts./Cut corners/Exterminating contract not renewed/Roaches take over/Tenants move out/Owner forced to lower rent/JUST REWARD
—Application:
?Your negligence netted JUST REWARD?...Eternal Damnation & Temporal Misery!
?You endangered due to Spiritual Negligence?
The 3rd Danger of spiritual negligence is
CERTAIN BONDAGE (:3)
—Explanation:(:3)Gate is Barred/Locked
:3—“...how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?”
?Can we escape the grip of hell? Yes!...But only thru the grip of God’s grace thru our faith!
Mat. 16:18— “And I also say to you that you are Peter, & upon this rock I will build My church; & the gates of Hades shall not overpower it.”
—Argumentation:
SALVATION Lost:
Jn. 3:18— “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”
*God never sentences anyone to hell......we do it ourselves thru negligence!
CHRISTLIKENESS Lost:
2Tim. 3:1-7—READ—“men will be lovers of self...holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power...”
—Illustration:
TV show—‘Family Matters’—Steve Urkel/Steve & Carl in Fallout shelter with janitor/Steve moves box(propping door open) to use as a seat/Door closes/Sealed/Can’t Escape/CERTAIN BONDAGE from negligence.
Person on parole/Expected to maintain contact with parole officer at all times & possess no weapons/Neglect ensures CERTAIN BONDAGE
Crab trap-net/Neglect the cage-net they crawl into-over/Scent of food makes them oblivious to danger/CERTAIN BONDAGE
—Application:
?Your negligence netted a CERTAIN BONDAGE?...Eternal Damnation & Temporal Misery!
?You endangered due to Spiritual Negligence?
The 4th Danger of spiritual negligence is
LACK OF CONFIRMATION(:3b-4)
—Explanation:(:3b-4)
:3b—“After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard,
“Confirmed to us”—
“Us”—Apostles?
—Confirmation is all that is needed to share it with others!
“By those who heard it”—
:4—“God also bearing witness with them, both by signs & wonders & by various miracles & by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.”
“By Signs”—shmeion—Distinguishing marks
“Wonders”—teraV—A miracle of prophetic significance.
“Various miracles”—dunamiV—Strength, power, ability
“Gifts”—merismoV—A division, partition or separation.
Ultimately, thru neglect, the Word spoken is not attributed to the Lord in His fullness!
—Must we go back to Pentecost? No! Is it intended for us today or is the testimony of Scripture & the saints enough for us today?
Lk. 16:27-31—READ— "But he[Abraham] said to him, ’If they do not listen to Moses & the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’”
—Argumentation:
1Cor. 1:21-23— “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs, & Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, & to Gentiles foolishness...”
Heb. 4:2—“For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.”
—Illustration:
Gale ?—Wake Cross Roads Prospect— ‘I’m waiting for something bad to happen, then I’ll accept Christ’/LACK OF CONFIRMATION
Grady County Tennis Court/Ordered Domino’s Pizza to be delivered at courts/Unusual—Woman hesitated/LACK OF CONFIRMATION—potentially lost sale
Revisionist history—Rewriting history according to our current cultural understanding/LACK OF CONFIRMATION
—Application:
?Your negligence netted a LACK OF CONFIRMATION?...Eternal Damnation & Temporal Misery!
?You endangered due to Spiritual Negligence?
—CONCLUSION—
Visualization:
1938 election/Won by Boston Curtis—a Mule!
Action:
4 dangers of spiritual negligence are a...
DISSOCIATING DRIFT
JUST RECOMPENSE
CERTAIN BONDAGE
LACK OF CONFIRMATION
?Have we been negligent with spiritual things?
?Are you ‘just not a spiritual person’?
?We must nurture the spiritual aspect of ourselves because we aren’t whole until we do!
Are you being negligent today?
Presented 08/17/03pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Raod
Whigham, GA 39897
