“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;” (Hebrews 2:3 KJV).
The Biblical book of Hebrews features several cautionary messages that appear at various points within this epistle. These warnings draw our attention to the consequences that are sure to follow certain negative behaviors. Hebrews 2:3 represents another example in that series.
This portion of Scripture describes an underlying attitude of negligence towards the message of salvation that “…came first through the words of the Lord himself” (Phillips). A person who engages in this type of spiritual neglect will undoubtedly face serious consequences. The author of Hebrews highlights those repercussions in a rhetorical fashion by asking, “How shall we escape…” The answer is unspoken, but unmistakable: “we can’t.”
There are several ways in which we might neglect the great salvation referenced here. For instance, we might take a self-oriented approach to eternal life that says, “I will earn my way into God’s favor through my works.” On the other hand, a Biblically-oriented view of salvation is one that says, “I am made acceptable to God through faith in Christ alone.“ These approaches are mutually exclusive, for those who accept Christ must abandon their attempt to get right with God by their own efforts.
Another example involves a decision to ignore, reject, or disregard a relationship with Christ in favor of other pursuits. We can illustrate this idea with a quote from the Biblical book of Proverbs: “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death” (Proverbs 16:25 NLT). As Jesus also told us in John 3:36, “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Finally, a person who knows what is right but habitually fails to act upon that knowledge may fit this category as well. Since we are accountable to act upon what we know, we would do well to consider the words of James 4:17: “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it” (NLT). Galatians 6:7 offers a similar reminder…
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked [He will not allow Himself to be ridiculed, nor treated with contempt nor allow His precepts to be scornfully set aside]; for whatever a man sows, this and this only is what he will reap” (AMP).