The Danger of Quietly Walking Away

by Cleve Stafford

Picture yourself out on the open water in a small boat. The waves are gentle, the wind mild, and the sun warm on your face. You close your eyes just for a moment to enjoy the peace. But when you open them again, you realize something chilling: you’ve drifted far from the shore. You never meant to move. You didn’t even notice it happening. And yet, here you are—farther than you ever planned to go. That’s the image that always comes to my mind when I read Hebrews 2:1: “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.”

It’s not a picture of someone rushing headlong into sin or rebellion. No, it’s more subtle than that. It’s about drifting unintentionally, quietly, almost peacefully away from the truth we once held so close. Remember, this passage is addressed to new unbelievers. It’s written for folks like us - people who’ve heard the gospel, believed it, and even suffered for it. People who know Jesus. However, the writer still says, “We must pay much closer attention.” Why? Because even Christians, maybe especially Christians, can drift.

Now listen to how he continues in Hebrews 2:2-3: “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?” It doesn’t say “reject” or “deny” or “mock” salvation. It says “neglect.” Neglect is a slow fade. It’s the quiet choice not to open your Bible one morning, then two, then a week. It’s the subtle shift from being excited about worship to showing up out of habit. It’s the drifting away from prayer, from the people of God, from the mission we once felt so passionate about. Not because we stopped believing, but because life got busy, and our faith got pushed to the side.

The writer of Hebrews is waving a bright red flag: Don’t let that happen. Don’t think you can neglect Jesus and escape the consequences. The message given by angels, the Old Testament law, carried serious consequences for disobedience. And now, the message we’ve received was not delivered through angels but through the Lord Himself. Hebrews 2:3-4 continues: “It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.”

This isn’t just another message in a long line of religious teachings. This is the message spoken by Jesus, confirmed by eyewitnesses, supported by miracles, and sealed with the Holy Spirit. When I think about that, I have to ask myself: Am I paying closer attention to what I’ve heard? Or am I just coasting along, assuming I’ll be fine? I think about friends who used to sit beside me in the pew. Brothers and sisters who once spoke with fire in their hearts about Jesus, but have since drifted away. They didn’t make a big announcement. They didn’t renounce their faith. They just... stopped coming. Stopped reading. Stopped caring. And now, I wonder if they even remember the joy they once had.

Could that happen to me? Could it happen to you? Of course, it could. That’s why we need to wake up, not in fear but in love. The kind of love that remembers what it felt like the first time we truly heard the gospel. The type of love that moves us to open the Word, pray sincerely, and show up to sing even when we don’t feel like it. Jesus hasn’t changed. The salvation He offers remains as great as ever. But the only way to stay close to Him is to pay attention - to keep our eyes fixed on the shore, to keep rowing toward Him, even when the waters seem calm. Because drifting may happen unnoticed at first...until you realize how far you’ve gone.