Illuminated: Hebrews 1-2Sýnishorn

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. - Hebrews 2:1 ESV

Greek Word Focus

περισσοτέρως/perissoterōs: greatly, exceeding, vehemently, super-abundant

Why It Matters

If you think about it, the process in which humans learn their first language is nothing short of miraculous. Experts have determined that the most effortless transition from communicating with cries and gestures to verbal language at less than two years old requires proximity to caring adults and detailed observation of their conversations. When babies pay perissoterōs attention to these adults, this is how the framework for their communication with others develops. But what does that look like? Babies certainly don’t stop playing to pay perissoterōs attention, but instead, they do so while playing. They don’t stop eating, crawling, or looking at books to pay perissoterōs attention to the spoken language; it’s woven through the fabric of everything they do. 

The writer of Hebrews insists that we too must be incredibly attentive to the gospel we have heard so that we don’t drift away from it. The word Hebrews uses means "super-abundant" attention, consistently being focused on what we have heard. We pay attention by being in proximity to the One to whom we are listening. However, like babies, we do so by paying careful attention amid the busyness of life instead of neglecting everything on its account. Living out the gospel’s implications in super-abundant attention doesn’t make us people who live in isolation, unproductive in their world. When we pay perissoterōs attention to the gospel throughout our typical day, it gives us the tools to communicate with the God who speaks and provides a platform to share truth in love with those He has placed in our lives.

Application

What will I do differently because of the person and work of Jesus?