Negligence

 

Negligence is like a cancer eating away at Christian faith today.

"Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it." --Proverbs 8:33

Have you ever had a thought that "escapes" you; something that you can’t recall? Have you ever said or heard someone else say, "Oh, it slips my mind, right now"? I know I’ve heard my mother use that expression a time or two before. And as you know, as we advance in years, it seems that more and more things seem to "escape us" when we try to call them to mind. This is what Hebrews, chapter two, verse one is talking about.

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

Hebrews 2:1 (ESV)

The Greek word translated as drift in English, is pararrhueo [par·ar·hroo·eh·o]. The AV translates it once as "let slip". According to Strong’s Concordance, it means "to glide by: lest we be carried by or pass by." Or "lest these things which we heard - that show us how to obtain salvation - slip away from us."

For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?

Hebrews 2:2-3a (ESV)

When you hear the word neglect, what comes to mind? What does the word neglect mean to you?

The Greek word ameleo [am·el·eh·o] - translated as neglect in English - means "to be careless of." The AV translates it as "neglect" twice, to "make light of" once, as "regard not" once, and to "be negligent" once. Of those, I would say that many people today "make light of" this "great salvation," simply because they do not realize their need of salvation and/or how great the salvation being offered really is - for it is a free gift from God, who is not only our Creator, but is also our spiritual Father.

My sons, do not now be negligent, for the Lord has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him and to be his ministers and make offerings to him.”

2 Chronicles 29:11

Perhaps if (or when) we realize just how great the retribution will be for our negligence, we will also come to realize just how great God’s salvation through faith in His Son, truly is!

Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, "He is out of his mind." --Mark 3:20-21 (ESV)

On this section of scripture, J.R. Miller comments:

They could account for His unconquerable zeal only by concluding that He was insane. We hear much of the same kind of talk in modern days when some devoted follower of Christ utterly forgets self in love for his Master. People say, "He must be insane!" They think every man is crazy whose religion kindles into any sort of unusual fervor, or who grows more earnest than the average Christian in work for the Master. That is a good sort of insanity. It is a sad pity that it is so rare. If there were more of it there would not be so many unsaved souls dying under the very shadow of our churches; it would not be so hard to get missionaries and money to send the gospel to the dark continents; there would not be so many empty pews in our churches; so many long pauses in our prayer-meetings; so few to teach in our Sunday schools. It would be a glorious thing if all Christians were beside themselves as the Master was, or as Paul was. It is a far worse insanity which in this world never gives a thought to any other world; which, moving continually among lost men, never pities them, nor thinks of their lost condition, nor puts forth any effort to save them. It is easier to keep a cool head and a colder heart and to give ourselves no concern about perishing souls; but we are our brothers' keepers, and no malfeasance in duty can be worse than that which pays no heed to their eternal salvation.

How sad but true is this observation of the "common" Christian today. Negligence is the common denominator.

Negligence of humility toward others – be they of "our flock" or not – but most especially if not!

Negligence in seeking to be Christ-like in ALL we say, think and do.

We are negligent in our prayers as we pray for our needs to be advanced, rather than that of advancing the kingdom of God.

We are negligent in our own community when we fail to love our neighbor as our self and fail to meet one another’s needs with grace and love.

We neglect to be salt and light when we focus our attention on the ills of society and instead of humble living by example, we forget that we too were once sinners and so we sign petitions and attend rallies condemning others for the immoral way they live and/or conduct business.

We are negligent at work and in public when we treat others with contempt for their actions instead of forgiving them and praying for them.

We are negligent toward our own "walk of faith" when we spend more time, energy and money on our own "pursuits of pleasure" than we do seeking to meet the needs of the poor and impoverished.

We are negligent when, in view of God’s mercy, we fail to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—as our spiritual act of worship.

And we are most negligent when we deny that such is - in all actuality - the true nature of our heart.

There really is nothing more I can say. You know the truth as well as I do, and the truth has been spoken plainly and more powerfully than I ever could. Therefore I will simply quote a few bits from some NT letters that addresses each of those points brought forward above.

Called to Be Holy Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake, who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for "All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever." And this word is the good news that was preached to you. 1 Peter 1:13-25 (ESV)

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you fail to meet the test! I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test. But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for. For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down. 2 Corinthians 13:5-10 (ESV)

And we exhort you, brethren, admonish the idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all. Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit, do not despise prophesying, but test everything; hold fast what is good, abstain from every form of evil. May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. I adjure you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. 1 Thessalonians 5:14-28 (RSV)