The Danger of Falling Away ...

Image result for it is impossible to return to repentance

 Hebrews 6:4-6 

 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age 6 and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

 This passage raises one of the most difficult questions of any bible passage.  The question is whether this person described in this passage was ever truly a Christian or not.  If they were a Christian and fell away and could not be brought back to repentance, the assumption would be one could lose their faith and their salvation.  To get around this possibility some have said that this person was never really a Christian in the first place.  If they were never a Christian then it might be plausible that they could never be brought to repentance.

 To interpret this difficult question we need to remember the context of this letter written to the Hebrews  It was meant to encourage the Hebrew Christians who were being tempted to fall back into the rituals of their Jewish faith. 

 "The message to these Christians who felt like giving up was clear: if you don’t continue on with Jesus, don’t suppose you will find salvation by just going on with the ideas and experience that Christianity and Judaism share. If you aren’t saved in Jesus, you aren’t saved at all. There is no salvation in a safe “common ground” that is not distinctively Christian." - Guzik

 I think what the writer is doing is warning the Jewish Christians.  He is warning them of how dangerous it is go back to trusting anything other than Jesus.  Once we have become a Christian to go back to any other means of salvation is to fall away from the faith.  The writer says in a sense it is like crucifying Jesus all over again.  To think one can find a better way to salvation than what Jesus did for us on the cross is to diminish the great gift of grace Jesus offered to us.  It is as if to say, "Thanks Jesus but I have found a better way!"  

 Whether or not the writer is intending to say someone can lose their salvation is not entirely clear. Other passages indicate once was is truly saved they are always saved.  But what this passage does clearly teach is that those who are saved need to grow in their faith and move to maturity in their faith bearing fruit that is a blessing to all who receive it.  Going back to one's old ways and trusting in things other than Christ will never lead to God purpose in their lives.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 22 - Paul Sees the Light

Image
6  “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.   7  I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me,  ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’  8  “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.  “  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,  whom you are persecuting,’  he replied.   9  My companions saw the light,  but they did not understand the voice  of him who was speaking to me.  10  “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked. “  ‘Get up,’  the Lord said,  ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. This is the famous story of the apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.  Paul was going there to persecute Jewish Christians and throw them into prison and he meets Jesus is a spectacular way.  Not only is he blinded by a briliant light, but he hears the Lord's voice audibly.  And the Lord asks him, "Lord, Lord why are you persecuting me!"  Paul thought he was serving the Lord, but he was persecuting him b
Read more

Hebrews 6 - Have You Graduated From Elementary School of Faith Yet?

Click Here to Read or Listen to Hebrews 6 6 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so. The author once again picks up with the theme of moving on to Christian maturity.  He teaches them to move on from the "elementary" teachings about Christ. What does he mean by that?  He gives clues by citing repentance, faith, cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, and teaching on the judgment and resurrection from the dead. We might call these the basics of the Christian faith. If you read through the Apostle's Creed, which our church confesses in our 8am service, it contains many of these core doctrines.  Click here to see the Apostle's Creed Written Around “When we consider the
Read more

2 Timothy 4 - Fight the Good Fight! Finish the Race!

Click Here to Read or Listen to 2 Timothy 4 4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. Paul gives a closing charge to Timothy. First of all, he is to preach the word. God's Word speaks to all situations and seasons. The Word of God will sometimes correct us. Our lives can get of out alignment with God's will as outlined in
Read more