Turn to Hebrews chapter 2. We're going to look at verses 1 through 4 today. So let's pray. Dear Father, I pray, God, would you lead us into your word. Would you guide us, God, please? We need your guidance. We pray that the Holy Spirit would fill us, that your word would go forth with power, that we'd have understanding and obedience, I pray. In Jesus' name, Amen. Let's read Hebrews chapter 2 verses 1 through 4. Therefore, we have to give them more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard them? God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with diverse miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will." I first want to look at this in a general sense, and then I want to look at it in a specific sense, verse by verse. But there's a tragic thing that happens to many professing Christians. They slip away. It talks about that slipping away here in verse 1. It talks about slipping away. And the slipping away happens, as we see, by forgetting what we have learned. And the slipping away can also be something that happens over a long period of time. Many people that are apostate say they believe and then forsake the faith. They weren't like that at one time. At one time, they were seemingly on fire for God and seemingly following Jesus. But this slipping away happened, this forgetting of the things that they had learned. So the writer of Hebrews here is warning us that we ought to take the more earnest heed. We ought to heed the things that we hear and not allow them to slip away. So as we look in these verses, we find our first warning amongst many warnings in the book of the Hebrews. And as we started in our introductory sermon in Hebrews about six weeks ago, we see that almost one quarter of this book is committed to warnings. We also mentioned in that sermon that there's more warnings in the book of Hebrews than any other book in the New Testament. These warnings come up almost every chapter. You're going to see warnings and some whole chapters are given to warnings. I think there's two or three chapters in the book of Hebrews where there are no warnings, but most chapters, the other chapters all have warnings in them. And like I said, some whole chapters are given to warnings in the book of Hebrews. And I believe the reason that is, is the writers of the Hebrews sees this strong propensity for these Christian Jews to go back to the pharisaical system and to the sacrificial system. Because they were still sacrificing at this time. It was before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. So they actually went back and they were still sacrificing, still doing the sacrifices. And it's the reason the writer of the Hebrews is showing over and over again how Jesus Christ is greater than the old system. and how the new covenant is better than the old. You see that because the writer is so concerned with these Jewish Christians, these professing Christians and these true Christians. He's so concerned about them going back to the old ways. And you see that over and over again. You see that in Galatia. You see it as Peter writes his epistle. You see that these Jews keep going back. They say, we're Christians, we believe, and then they go back to the old system. And the writer is warning them to not allow that to happen. So I think that's the first reason you have so many warnings in the book of Hebrews. because that was so common amongst the Hebrew churches. And then number two, I believe because of the responsibility of those who have received much. Those who have received much. And we'll come back to that at the end of the second verse. But in Luke, you don't have to turn there necessarily, but in Luke chapter 12, Jesus actually says this, Let me just read it to you real quick in 47 and 48. And that servant which knew his Lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But to him that knew not and did not commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required. And to whom men have committed much, of him they shall ask more." So here's the principle, and I want you to listen to this, especially us who have heard the truth many, many times. We are greatly responsible. We are greatly responsible. Everyone who hears the truth is more responsible. There will be greater, listen to me, there will be greater degrees of punishment in hell, and there will be greater degrees of reward in heaven. Those who have heard the truth and rejected it will suffer greater degrees of punishment. There's no doubt about that. That is all through the Bible. And in Romans chapter 3 verse 1 where it says that the oracles of God were committed to the Israelites, you see in Romans chapter 1 he says that they're more responsible to the Jew first and also to the Greek. He says in Romans 1.16. And then also when he speaks about judgment in Romans 2, he says to the Jew first. When he says to the Jew first, he's talking about to those who have heard the oracles of God, to those who have the oracles of God, to those who have the scripture, there's a higher responsibility. There's a higher responsibility. The man in another country who has never heard the gospel. It does not have the same degree of responsibility to those who have heard the gospel. Does that mean that that man who's never heard the gospel won't be judged according to his sin? No, it doesn't. He will be judged according to his sin, and he will be condemned if he does not trust in Jesus Christ. But it doesn't seem like the degree of punishment will be the same to him as it will be to someone who rejects the gospel, who has heard the gospel, and has rejected it. So, I believe that's also why the writer of the Hebrews is stressing this, these warnings, because these people who he's writing to, they have been given the oracles of God, they know the oracles of God, and they are highly responsible. So let's, as we look at that, that's basically our general look I want to take, and now I want to get more specific into these verses. And if you look in verse 1, we see the beginning of this verse, it says, therefore, You see that word, therefore? And we see at the beginning of actually chapter three, it says wherefore. And these two words can be interchangeable. These words simply bring us from one principle to another. Or we could say, because of the preceding statement, therefore, what proceeds is true. It's like building a case. And you see these two words a lot in the New Testament, therefore and wherefore. Because it's like building a case. You're saying, because of what I just said, therefore, this is true. Now, that brings us to another point though. The gravity, follow me on this, the gravity of the therefores are measured by the shift in argument or in thought. In other words, if you look at the therefore in Hebrews 1.9, It says, Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity, therefore God, even thy God, has anointed thee with oil of gladness above thy fellows. You see that therefore, it doesn't affect the argument outside of the verse itself. You can see that because the Lord Jesus loves righteousness and hates iniquity. The Father has therefore anointed him above any other. That, therefore, doesn't affect any statement or thought outside of the verse itself. But this, therefore, in Hebrews 2.1 is different, because there is a major shift of thought between Hebrews 1.14 and 2.1. The writer is obviously not saying that we ought to give the more earnest heed in verse 2.1 because of the verse before it. He's not saying we have to give them more earnest heed because the angels are made ministers to the saints, which is what it says in 1.14. But we see a major shift in thought in 2.1. Therefore, the therefore in chapter 2.1 is based on everything that has been said up to that point. And I believe this therefore is very significant. I believe this, therefore, trickles chapter one over the whole rest of the book. That's why I'm bringing this up. You might say this is an insignificant point that I'm making, but I think that it is very important because it shows how the writer is thinking. He's not just randomly making statements, but he's building a case. And in the first chapter, he has laid the foundation And it's why we spent a little more time in that chapter than we probably will in the other chapters. But he keeps referring back to the foundation of the supremacy of Jesus Christ over all things. And because of the eternal, almighty nature of Jesus Christ, and being the God-man, the prophet, the priest, and the king, because of that foundation, It brings us to these three sections in chapter two. So you see that that that's why I'm saying that therefore is so important, because it's bringing all of chapter one into chapter two. He's saying, therefore, it's changing the whole argument. And I want to split this chapter into three parts that will do Lord willing in three consecutive weeks. The first part is The part we'll go over today, which is 1 through 4. The warning not to let these things slip will be the first part. The second part is verses 5 through 10, which is how does this affect the Lord Jesus? We could say the condescension of Jesus Christ. You'll see that in verses 5-10. It talks about how does what was talked about in chapter 1 affect the Lord Jesus? And then number 3, the third section is in verses 11-18. How does what was talked about in chapter 1 affect the lifting up of God's people? Or how does it affect God's people? Which will be the three sections we'll look at. But today, let's go back to verse 1. Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed Therefore, or because these things in chapter one are spoken to us by his son, we have received this gospel through the apostles from the Lord Jesus and to consider his majesty and his position and his nature. We ought to give the more earnest heed. The more earnest heed in the Greek is one word. That more earnest heed that we see is what? Four English words. is one Greek word, and it means more super abundantly, or exceedingly more frequent, or much more. This is a very strong word, meaning that we ought to continually and deliberately give ourselves to the things that we learned in chapter one. He's saying, therefore, since you've learned this in chapter one, therefore, deliberately and continually give yourself to what you learned in chapter one. And in chapter one we saw the continual explanation and proof of what? Of the nature, the position, and the work of Jesus Christ. We've seen it almost to the point of redundancy. He keeps saying it in chapter 1, that Jesus Christ is the creator, that he's God, that he spoke all things into existence, that all things are for his purpose, that he'll fold them up and he'll create the new. He is forever and infinite and almighty. We cannot forget these things. It's almost like the writer is hesitating to move on. Because these verses 1-4 almost don't fit. into the argument, but the reason he puts him there is because he's almost, he's taken a step back, he's almost hesitating, because he just went through such incredible material in chapter one that he doesn't want to move on. He's hesitating, saying, don't forget what you heard, don't forget what you learned. He almost doesn't want to move on because he doesn't want us to forget what we learned in chapter one. And he's warning us that if we do forget or fail to implement what has been said in Chapter 1, then none of this other stuff matters. He's saying, look, if you forget what I taught you in Chapter 1, forget about Chapter 2, 3, 4, 5, and all the way down the line. He's saying, I want you to give the more earnest heed to what you have learned. And actually, the Strong's Dictionary defines this word, to give the more earnest heed, They add another aspect to it, it says, to apply oneself to. The fact that Jesus Christ is Lord of all, God Almighty, and the mediator, God-man, having all the attributes of God, is not just a doctrine that we adhere to, but as those who have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit, these things affect every aspect of our lives. We are to deliberately and continually give ourselves over to the fact of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Really, if we can sum up what he's saying here in verse 1, because he's saying, therefore, don't forget what you've learned, we are to deliberately and continually give ourselves over to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Because if you don't, if you don't, what happens? That brings us to the next statement. What does it say? Lest at any time we should let them slip. Do you see that? At the end of verse 1 it says, Lest at any time we should let them slip. It's interesting. He says we ought to give more earnest heed. Then he says we ought to, lest we slip. He's talking to himself. He's saying the word we. He's talking to believers. And he's talking to professing believers. So this whole idea, I think today, now some of us I think we may go too far the other way. I think we have to be careful both sides of this and we'll get into this, but this whole idea today that somehow I'm saved so I don't have to give the more earnest heed is simply a lie. And the writer of this epistle is coming against that. It's the very thing he's standing against. For me to say, well, I'm saved. I don't really have to give heed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in my life. I'm saved, you know. I'm okay. That very thought is appalling to the apostles and how they wrote in these epistles. And I think the opposite, though, too, that trying to somehow not have assurance. I think some people don't have assurance and they need to have it. And we're going to get into that in a minute. But the minute you think that you don't have to continually and deliberately give yourself to the nature and work of Jesus Christ is the moment you start to slip away. He also uses the phrase at any time. Do you see that? It says at any time. It means at a moment's notice. We can never say Oh, you know, I had sweet fellowship, or I had a good time yesterday. I mean, we can say that as a testimony, like Brian gave a testimony today, which is a great testimony. And we were talking the other night about what the Lord's been doing in our life. But we must be careful not to rely on that. We need fresh manna every day. We need it today. We need that fellowship today with Christ. You know what I mean? Lest we would slip into this way of thinking that because I had this great fellowship with the Lord yesterday, somehow it's going to go over into today, and it doesn't work that way. At any moment you can slip. It's interesting that he uses that word at any time. So it's moment by moment that we walk with Christ. One Greek scholar says that a good word picture for this word slip is to drift away to flow by, the picture of being swept along past the shore anchorage which is within reach. Some people think that these two words, give the more earnest heed and slip away, are nautical terms. In other words, the give the more earnest heed is like the ship being docked and tied to the dock, and slipping away is like drifting away. It's being taken away by the current. drifting away, and I just think that drifting away can happen so easy to us. If any of us, if we're honest with ourselves, I know that drifting away can happen so easy. I just think being occupied with the Lord Jesus is not optional, because we can so quickly be swept away by the pleasures of this world, by the cares of this world. by sin, by temptation, by the world, by so many things that can sweep us away. We must give the more earnest heed to these things, lest we be swept away. There's a current. So as you step out that door, you're stepping into a current. There's a current. It's the world system. It's the devil. It's your flesh. And that current will sweep you away. And that's why we're encouraged to give the more earnest heed. And I'm here this morning to warn you, take heed, be occupied and in submission to Christ, lest you be swept away. Sin and temptations and cares and pleasures are too much we cannot overcome unless we are firmly anchored to Christ. And to drive this point home even further, we have the next three verses, and these three verses can simply be broken down into two parts. The first part being verse 2, and the second part being verses 3 and 4. What you see here is a contrast between the lesser and the greater. If the lesser is true, then how much more true is the greater? It's a common way to argue. Actually, if you read the book of Proverbs, you see this way of argument oftentimes. What the writer of Hebrews is doing is saying, if verse 2 is true, which is the lesser, which is what? For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received the just recompense of reward. So he's saying that's the lesser. How much more true is the greater? The salvation that the Lord has spoken, that the apostles confirmed, and that the Holy Spirit has manifested. Like I said, this is a common and logical way to argue. It points to the obvious. If I say I can do one thing that's greater, then obviously I could do the lesser. If I can run ten miles, then obviously I can run five miles. If the lesser is true, then the greater is true. And these two things being contrasted are, number one, it is the word spoken by angels versus the word spoken by the Lord. So you have the lesser, which is the word spoken by angels. He's saying if the word spoken by angels is true, then how much more true is the word that's spoken by the Lord? And then number two, the second thing he's contrasting is the consequence of disobedience and transgression before the dispensation of Jesus Christ versus the consequences afterwards. These are the two points that he's contrasting. Number one, if the word spoken by angels is true, then how much more true is the Lord's word? And number two, if there was so much punishment and recompense for sin in the old age, how much is there today when we have so much more light? So let's go to verse two and look at this. For if the word spoken by angels was dead fast, Now in Acts chapter 7 verse 53 it says that the law was received by the disposition of angels. The law was received by the disposition of angels. In Galatians, if you go to Galatians chapter 3, maybe we can turn there, make sure everybody's awake. Galatians chapter 3. Verse 19 says, Wherefore, then serveth the law, it was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to him whom the promise was made. And it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. In Deuteronomy chapter 33, 1 and 2, we see that angels had some hand in the giving of the law. We're not sure exactly how that works. There's different theories on that. But we know that angels definitely had some kind of they transmitted somehow the law to Moses. And you see that in Deuteronomy. You see that here in Galatians. You see it in the book of Acts. But you see angels. I think this is referring to other things, too. I mean, angels are all through the Bible speaking. You see angels speaking to Mary, you see angels speaking to Joseph, angels speaking to Balaam, angels speaking to... you see angels speaking to the Bible all the time. And what angels say always comes to pass. And the word of angels are steadfast. And every... go back to Hebrews chapter 1, In every transgression, disobedience received a just recompense of reward. We can see God's judgment against his people as they continue to rebel. It's why it's so important for us to read through the whole Bible. We need to read through the whole Bible. We can't just read the parts that we want to read. But if you read through the whole Bible, you see exactly what he's talking about. And you see the rebellion of Korah, and the whole earth opens up and swallows 14,000 people in one day. And then right after that, there's a plague with 250,000 people dying. You see that God's not playing games. Adam and Eve sin, and they're thrown out of the garden. That's it. One time. They're out. You know, and you see over and over again, you see the children of Israel going into captivity. You see God, the prophets continually warning and warning and warning. And you see that it's so severe. The recompense of sin, the punishment of sin is so severe. It almost gets strange where Isaiah walks around three years naked to show the children of Israel how they look before God. And you see things like Jeremiah bearing these garments and then wearing them, showing them how disgusting their sin is. I mean, it's so bad. It's like we can't even picture it. We don't realize how bad sin is. We don't realize the depths of the punishment of it. If you read through the Old Testament, you can start to see that. It's so severe. And we just can't see it, but we have to understand it through the Scriptures. There's a just recompense of reward for transgression and disobedience. And God is not playing games. And some people would say, oh, we're in the Grace Age. We don't have to worry about that. Well, turn to Luke chapter 13, if you would. Some people would say, well, we're in the grace age, you know, we don't have to worry about God punishing sin anymore. But we can't forget, because, you know what, in a sense, listen to me, in a sense that's true, but only in a superficial sense. In other words, we don't see the earth opening up and swallowing 14,000 people, necessarily, and that a direct consequence of God's judgment upon his people, like we read in the Old Testament, like we read when the children of Israel sin. So we could say, well, God's not really doing that anymore, but we can look around us, look at the disasters, look at the wars, look at the diseases that are all around us. And all of that stuff is an effect of sin. So even though it may not be a direct, like you can't see it as clear as you saw in the Old Testament, we still see it today all around us. I mean, look at all the wars and sickness and disease and sin. And Jesus says here in Luke 13, there was a president that told him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. Jesus answered and said to them, suppose ye, these Galileans, were sinners above all? The Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, nay, but except you repent, you shall likewise perish. Or those eighteen upon whom the tower of Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, nay, but except you repent, you shall all likewise perish." And there it is, you know, God, it's not a game. Sin is not a game. There's a punishment coming. And there's a punishment even here now on earth today that we can see. And how much more though, that's what we're going to get into. Seeing the fulfillment of the words of angels and seeing the punishment of God's sin in the Old Testament, that's being compared to how much more if we neglect such a greater salvation. So, if anything though, God is more angry with sin today than he was then. Because if they didn't escape God's judgment who were in partial ignorance, how shall we escape to whom the full revelation has been given? You know, it brings us back to those verses in Luke that we read at the beginning. If they didn't escape the judgment in the Old Testament, and they had a partial revelation, they didn't have the full revelation of Scripture, they didn't have the full revelation of Jesus Christ, as we do, if they didn't escape it, that's what he's saying. If they didn't escape the judgment of God, then what makes us think that we can escape the judgment of God somehow without Jesus Christ? And to whom much is given is much required. How shall we escape who have heard the gospel over and over again? How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? How much more will God the Father be angry towards those who have rejected His Son? He gave His Son, the most precious thing He has, to this world in order that it might be saved. How much more is God going to be angry at those who reject that and won't accept it? That's the point he's making. If God was angry and the earth opened up and swallowed 14,000 people in one day, right? How much more today is God going to be angry towards those who reject his Son? It's the most precious thing in the world. If you gave the most dear thing to your heart, to somebody in order to make them right, and they rejected it, how would you feel? You'd be greatly angry. And God, how much more is that condemnation towards those who know and reject? I believe the Holy Spirit here is pleading with us to see this great salvation. This is a great salvation. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. Not just part of our sin, like we talked about earlier. This one who died was no ordinary man. This was God. This was the very creator of the universe. Can't you see that this salvation is great? This salvation is great. It's a great salvation. But if it's neglected, this is what we're being warned. If it's neglected, There is a greater punishment for those who neglect salvation today than for those who neglected it then. Because God has given us the revelation of His Son, He's given us the revelation of His Word. And we see that God has revealed it to us in three ways. If you go back to Hebrews, we're going to close Looking at verse 4, and it shows how God has revealed it to us in three ways. Actually start in verse 3, in the middle of the verse, because we went through how shall we escape if we neglect the greatest salvation, which at first began to be spoken by the Lord. There's the first one, spoken by the Lord. This salvation or this gospel was spoken by the Lord. It was confirmed unto us by them that heard him. So it was spoken by the Lord, it was confirmed by the apostles, God also bearing them witness with signs and wonders and with diverse miracles, gifts of the Holy Spirit. So it was spoken by the Lord, it was confirmed by the apostles, and it was manifested by the Holy Spirit. It was spoken by the Lord. It's like those verses we read during the song. service in John 11. John 11, 26, whosoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Matthew 11, 28, come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. John 8, 32, the truth shall make you free. Over and over again our Lord Jesus left us with many promises. They were not just empty words. because he proved it by laying down his life and by raising it up again, just as he said he would. We can have great hope today because of these very words of the Lord himself, the Almighty One. Certainly, if he said it, it is true. If angels said it and it came to pass, if angels said things and they came to pass, how much more ought we to believe when the Lord spoke it? And he says, I will give you eternal life to those who believe. In John 11, 26, like we read, it was confirmed. It was spoken by the Lord. It was confirmed by the apostles. It was confirmed by them that heard him. The Lord Jesus left us with his apostles who were filled with the Holy Spirit and bend down the holy scriptures. These men suffered much beyond what we can even describe in order that we today could have their testimony about the Lord Jesus. And also in order that we might follow in their example and lose our own lives in order that future generations might have the same testimony. And that's the pattern we see through church history over and over again. We see that pattern. that the Lord spoke it, and like we read in John 16, the Lord said, they'll throw you out of the synagogue, they'll persecute you, and they'll do all manner of these evil things to you, and remember when it happens to you, that I told you it was going to happen to you. And that's very important for us, so that when it does happen to us, we won't try to escape it, but we'll say, oh yeah, the Lord told us this was going to happen. He told us this was going to happen. That's what he told the apostles. And that's the way we should live also. We live knowing that we must suffer much. We must suffer much in this time. But there's a great... It's like the woman, the man in John 16. It's like the woman giving birth. She's in great travail. And that's like us on the earth. We're in great travail. We go through much suffering. But once she gives birth, she forgets about the pain. The pain is no longer even thought about. And that's like us. On this earth we go through much suffering, much travail. We must go through it as Christians and as those who carry on the truth of God's Word. Those who carry it on, what a great privilege. But we must go through much suffering. But when we see Christ, and we're with Him, all that suffering will be forgot about. We won't even remember it. It won't even be in our minds. We'll be like, what suffering? That was nothing! Look what we got! But that's how the apostles lived. This was handed down to them, and now it's handed down to us. The first promise made to Paul was, I must show him what great things he must suffer for my namesake. Praise the Lord that we can be rejected and suffer for his name like the apostles did. It was spoken by Jesus and it was confirmed by the apostles and then we have the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. This gospel and this ministry of the Lord Jesus and his apostles was confirmed by miracles and gifts. No one in recorded history has ever done the miracles done in that, I would personally say it was only about a 20-year period, maybe 30-year period at the most, that was done. And the number of miracles done by the Lord in His three-year ministry alone is incalculable. 2125, what does he say? It says, and there are also many other things which Jesus did to which if they should be written, every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. So God confirmed the Lord Jesus' ministry and the apostles' ministry, how? By gifts of the Holy Spirit, by healing, by tongues, by miracles, by all manner of miracles. And we see that, that this gospel and this ministry of the apostles and of the Lord Jesus was confirmed with the miracles of the Holy Spirit and the coming of the Holy Spirit. And praise the Lord we have that Holy Spirit today. Although I don't believe we have him in the same manifestation that the Lord had him because the Lord and the apostles had a unique ministry. But Matthew Henry says in reference to this phrase, It was the will of God. You see at the end it says it was the will of God. At the end of verse 4, we're going to close there, that we should have a sure footing for our faith and a strong foundation for our hope in receiving the gospel. As at the giving forth of the law there were signs and wonders by which God testified of the authority and excellency of it. So he witnessed to the gospel by a more greater miracles as to be more excellent and abiding dispensation. So we can have such great hope today in this salvation that has been confirmed and revealed to us in so many ways. It is a great salvation that brings so many eternal blessings that can't even be measured, they're so great. We can only, the blessings that we have as Christians, we can only, I don't know if you understand this, but we can only taste them like a little bit. We just like get little nibbles, like just little glimpses. We're seeing through a glass darkly. And it's almost, I hate to use this word because it's so wrongly used today, but in a sense it's almost mystical. You can't, you can only taste it. You can only taste it, but when you taste it, you know that, wow, when you get the full effect of it, when you meet Christ, it's going to be so great and so much greater. And that's what we look for. So let's adhere to the Holy Spirit's earnest appeal to us not to allow the things that we have heard to slip away, but on the contrary, to exalt Jesus Christ in our lives. by first knowing who he is and meditating on those realities through memorizing and meditating on the scriptures. That's why, if you haven't noticed, many of our scripture verses that we've been memorizing over the past months, Colossians 1, 16, 17, Hebrews 1, 1-3, Hebrews 1, 10-12, and I think others too, they all speak about the deity of Christ and meditating on Christ and who he is, on the Lord Jesus and who he is. Oh, and if we meditate on it, they won't slip away. They won't slip away. And if you have great confidence, look to Christ. Or if you have great doubt today, look to Christ. It's the answer for all of us. For if you feel very strong today and are able to trust the Lord in great measures, be cautious that you don't become proud and you don't hope in your ability to believe instead of the Lord Jesus Himself. So this warning goes to both sides. This warning says, do you feel great amounts of the ability to trust the Lord? Praise the Lord. Trust Him more. Look to Him more. Cling to Him. And have confidence in Him. Don't put confidence in your own ability. Put your confidence in Him. And if you lack today, if you lack and have doubt, I think that could be a great offense. It could be a great offense because if we lack, are we saying that what Christ has done is not great enough? Are we saying that our sin is greater than what He has done? And I think we don't look at it oftentimes that way, because when we live in condemnation to one degree or another, we kind of pity ourselves, I think. And maybe in a sense that's good, because we need to mourn over our sin. I'm not saying we shouldn't mourn over our sin, but I think we should mourn over our sin. But at the same time, we have to be careful that we're not exalting our sin over this work of Christ. Certainly the work of Christ is greater, in our sin and we can have great confidence in knowing what Christ has done for us, has paid for our sin and has dealt with it once and for all and we can look to Christ and be delivered and not live in that condemnation. So as we continue on, let's not let these things slip or let them drift away. So as we continue in this book of Hebrews, We're going to continue on to things, but what we learned in chapter one cannot slip away. And what did we learn in chapter one? We learned about the deity of Jesus Christ. We learned about the God-man Jesus Christ. We learned about his offices. We learned about how he has spoken to us by who he is in the first part of the chapter. And we cannot let these things slip as we move on. in this book of Hebrews. Because it's the very foundation of this book. It's the very foundation of all things in the Bible. And you'll find that often in the epistles. The first chapter of most epistles is the most important because it's laying the foundation. And we ought not to let these things slip. But I think most importantly here in these verses, this is a strong warning. How shall you escape if you neglect such a great salvation. It's a rhetorical question. There's no way you'll escape. There's no way you can escape if you neglect such a great salvation. For it has been provided for us in a great way, and we are responsible to trust Christ and to look at Him today and to be knowing Him for He has done all things for us and He is a great Savior today. So let's pray. Dear Father, I pray God that You would work these things in our heart. God, please that we would not allow them to slip away. The great truths that we learned in the first chapter of this book of the deity of Christ, of the God-man, Jesus Christ, of all these things that we've learned, God, I pray that we would not forget them. Oh, Lord, that we would never forget them, that these things would be in our minds continually, that all things are created for your purpose, God. This is not about my life and how my life can get better and how I can live prosperous on this earth. Oh, Lord, please help us to understand this is not about us. All things are created for your purpose and for your glory and for your honor, God. And even though we may have to suffer for a time, all this suffering does not compare to the glory that will be revealed in us. And I pray, Lord, work these things in our heart for your purposes in our life, I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.