An Anchor of the Soul

          I do not suppose there is any greater pain than to watch a friend or family member turn away from the Lord.  Unfortunately, I have felt this pain often in my life.  Some of my closest friends and closest family members have made the decision to turn away from God. Far too often we see Christians decide they no longer want to serve God.  Sometimes they are weaker Christians and we are not real surprised and sometimes they are leaders who we never would have imagined would apostatize. All sorts of people turn away from God and we are left to ask, why? Why have they decided that the Lord, they once made the master of their life, is no longer important? Why have they turned their back on the God who loves them? Why have they, as the Hebrew writer said, crucified for themselves again the Son of God? As we ask these questions I am afraid that our answer is not always accurate. We usually answer it in this way: "they have lost their fear of hell." However, I believe the more correct answer is that they have lost their hope of heaven. The Hebrew writer described hope as "an anchor of the soul" (Hebrews 6:19). As an anchor on a boat keeps us from drifting into dangerous and unknown waters, so the anchor of the soul keeps us from drifting into dangerous and unknown places.  Hope keeps us in the church where we are safe and secure. If we loose this hope then we will drift until we are no longer in the church.  It does not matter how big the boat is that floats on the water, if it does not have an anchor it will drift. A boat could be the size of a blow up raft or the size of the Titanic. They equally need an anchor to keep them from drifting.  Too many times we assume that just because someone has been a long time member, a preacher, a deacon, or an elder that they cannot drift.  This is not true. All Christians should constantly reflect on the hope that has been promised. All Christians should be constantly looking forward to "an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven..." (I Peter 1:4). It is this promise that keeps the Christian going.  It is this promise that gives us hope. It is this promise that anchors our soul. 

 

 

--Garrett Bookout