January 7’s devotional.
Some questions refuse to leave us alone. They linger. They search. They expose. Andre described encountering one such question when he said, “I was reading my Bible… and as I read my Bible, I read these words, ‘How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?’” That question does not ask for information. It demands reckoning. Hebrews 2:3 confronts every reader with unavoidable clarity. “How will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” Scripture assumes judgment is real. It assumes escape is impossible apart from God’s provided rescue. Neglect, not rejection alone, places a soul in danger.
The writer grounds this question in history. Hebrews 2:2 reminds us, “For if the message spoken through angels was legally binding and every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment…” The Old Testament bears witness to God’s unwavering justice. Rebellion met judgment. Disobedience met consequence. From the wilderness generation to the exile, God consistently acted in holiness. He did not overlook sin. He did not lower His standard. Judgment fell unless repentance followed. Grace never erased justice. It fulfilled it through sacrifice.
Andre pressed this truth with sobering force. Reflecting on the Old Testament, he said, “Every single one of them got punished unless they repented of their sin.” That history dismantles presumption. God does not change. The same God who judged rebellion then remains holy now. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” To assume grace excuses unrepentant sin is to misunderstand grace entirely. Grace rescues from sin. It never gives permission to remain in it.
Scripture intensifies the warning. Hebrews 10:26–27 declares, “For if we deliberately go on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment.” Neglect hardens the heart. Presumption dulls the conscience. A low view of sin always flows from a low view of God. The question, how shall we escape, shatters complacency. It restores weight. It calls us to tremble again before the holiness of God and the costliness of salvation.
Father in heaven, restore in us a high view of who You are and a holy hatred of sin. Deliver us from careless presumption and soft repentance. Teach us to tremble at Your Word and cling to Your grace. Keep us from neglecting so great a salvation. Grant us repentance that leads to life, faith that perseveres, and hearts that honour You in holiness, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.