Today the audience for Hebrews is the whole world. Back in the day, it was a group of Jewish believers thinking about abandoning Jesus and going back to their old ways, their old religion, Judaism.
The preacher of Hebrews unloads both barrels telling
them that Jesus is the very best thing that ever happened to them, to the
world, and if they fall away, it’ll be the very worst thing ever.
He was just getting warmed up, talking about Jesus being
the Great High Priest after the order of... Melchizedek.
Not Aaron, (Moses’ brother) not the priestly line of Levites,
but the mysterious awesomeness of Melchizedek. Which there’s much more to talk
about...
But he took a detour because, “you have become dull
of hearing.” His words.
So, rather than feasting on meat, he poured some milk and
rolled off six elementary principles of Christ.
Then, he said
something that has had people discussing, debating, disagreeing over, for the
past 2,000 years.
These next few verses are some of the most hotly
contested in all the Bible. They’ve separated friends, divided Churches.
Yet, all he basically said is, Lord willing we’ll move
on to maturity, but that’s impossible if those who know better,
refuse to be better.
Before we dive into our Scripture let’s do a little
exercise.
Sunday, we examined the profile of the antichrist in
Daniel 8. Today let’s briefly consider the profile of a Christian.
For starters a Christian must come to a place of
repentance. They must be enlightened that they are sinners in
need of a Savior.
Once that happens, they turn from sin to Christ and
they taste the heavenly gift of salvation.
That’s just the beginning, as they grow, they become partakers
of the Holy Spirit, His fruits, His gifts, His Powerful Presence. All
the while they feast and taste the good Word of God which brings
heaven to earth, so they actually taste the powers of the age to come, allowing
them to walk faithfully, enduring everything, for the joy set before them.
1) Enlightened.
2) Tasted the heavenly gift,
3) Partakers of the Holy Spirit
4) Taste the good Word of God
5) Taste the powers of the age to come
Okay, that was fun. But what’s it got to do with our
study in Hebrews?
Well, let’s dive in and see.
Hebrews 6:4-6
For it is impossible for those who were
once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift,
and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and
have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if
they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify
again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.
Why’d that sound so familiar?
Why are those words so explosive?
Let’s look at a few of the ways they are interpreted.
Hypocritical
Some say the text is talking about folks who are not
real Christians. They go through the motions, go to Church, carry a Bible,
speak Christian-eez, but inside their hearts they’re not real, not sincere. So,
they claim, they don’t really fall away because they were never
Christians in the first place. They only
“taste” but don’t swallow; they just take a sip of Christianity then
spit it out.
QUESTION: To those who say those things, do you
believe Jesus did not experience death on the cross? Well, Hebrews
2:9, says, Jesus tasted death for everyone.
Make
no mistake, Jesus fully, completely, totally tasted, an agonizing
death, so you could taste Life abundantly.
Hypothetical
This school of thought says, 6 "if
they fall away,” means that the warning is hypothetical. It
was just an example that could never really happen. IF it were
possible for Christians to fall away, then, if they did, it would be
impossible to renew them to repentance.
When interpreting Scripture, context is king. This is
too serious a warning to nullify it by saying it’s just hypothetical. The point
would be pointless. A waste of words. God never wastes words.
Plus, the idea is based on the word "IF".
If they fall away, as if to
say, “If it were possible for them to fall away, they could not be restored to
repentance.”
However, the word "IF” (or anything like it) is
NOT in the original text at all. The original word is, kai, meaning, and
then.
Now, let’s look at one more school of thought that
undoubtedly irritates the first two.
Apostasy.
True believers, Christians, who fall away.
Let’s look at our text again.
Were once enlightened.
Enlightened:
Greek: Phótizó, meaning, illuminate, bring to light, make clear.
The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible and context
is king so, let’s see how the Bible uses that word, phótizó.
A beautiful prayer to faithful, loving saints, in Ephesians
1:15-18.
Therefore
I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love
for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making
mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened;
that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the
glory of His inheritance in the saints.
A reminder of their genuine Salvation in Hebrews
10:32.
But recall
the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you
endured a great struggle with sufferings.
The word enlightened is used in context with loving,
faithful, saints who’ve endured great suffering. It is never used in a
hypocritical or hypothetical sense.
Let’s continue dissecting our text.
Tasted the heavenly gift.
Salvation.
Eph. 2:8-9. For by grace you have been saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not
of works, lest anyone should boast.
Partakers of the Holy Spirit.
Indwelling and empowering of the Holy Spirit.
The natural, or, I should say Supernatural progression of a true, born-again, Spirit filled saint of God.
Enlightened to repentance.
Acceptance of the heavenly gift of Salvation.
Reception of the Holy Spirit.
Indwelling upon Salvation. John 14:17, 20:22.
Empowering upon baptism in the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:4-8.
Tasted the good word of God.
Matthew 4:4, Man
shall not live by bread alone, but every Word that proceeds from the
mouth of God.
Tasted the powers of the age to come.
They tasted the heavenly gift of Salvation, partook
of the Holy Spirit, tasted the good Word of God, all of which
creates the terrific taste of heaven on earth, a powerful foretaste of the
powers of the age to come.
Okay, by now we should be convinced that those who,
were enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, partook of the Holy Spirit, tasted
the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, were definitely
Christians, not just hypocrites or hypotheticals.
But just in case.
There’s more.
Look at verse 6 again.
Hebrews 6:6
if they fall away, to renew them again to
repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and
put Him to an open shame.
1) If
they fall away. (Greek: παραπίπτω; Parapíptō).
Parapíptō:
para:
beside, near, from, in the presence of, with, by.
piptó:
To fall, to descend, to perish, to fail.
Parapíptō: to fall away after
being close-beside; to defect (abandon). Referring
to a close follower of Christ who becomes a defector.
Hebrews has been warning us of the danger of apostasy all
along.
Hebrews 2:1 take heed lest you drift away. 2:3, How
shall you escape if you neglect so great a Salvation? Heb. 3-4, Harden not your
heart, lest you depart from Living God and never enter His rest.
The warning alarm sounds loud and long in Hebrews 10:26-31
as it relates this falling away to those who trample the Son of God
underfoot; saying there is nothing left for them except to experience judgement
and fiery indignation.
Parapíptō.
They were so close but chose to fall away. So near, but
then willingly walked away, defecting, rejecting, Jesus Christ as Savior and
Lord.
By doing so, they return to those who crucified Christ,
they condone what they did and nullify the cross by trying to obtain Salvation
some other way.
Which is impossible.
Jesus is the only Way, Truth, Life.
Galatians 5:4, You have become estranged
from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; (or
any way other than Jesus Christ) you have fallen from grace.
In Hebrews 6:6, “fall away” is another name for
terminal apostasy.
The warning is clear and echoes to this day.
I pray that dissecting the Word, word by word, like
we’ve done has made the meaning clear.
The Lord longs for us to understand the perfect
marriage between His Sovereignty and our responsibility.
God is love. Any
relationship built on love, has free will built in, or it is not
love at all.
The same free will we have to respond to His love, is
the same free will we have to leave, forsake, fall away, from His love.
But we have confidence that you are better than that.
Hebrews 6:9. Which is where we pick up our study next week.
Until then, let’s pray.
Lord Jesus, we pray we will not be those
who drift, depart, fall away, but those who cling tight, hold fast, follow
hard, endure with the perseverance of those of whom the world is not worthy,
those saints who inherit the Promise. Of those who can say, “I’ve fought a good
fight, finished my race.” Of those who will hear You say, “Well done.”
Of those who love You, forever and ever.
Amen.
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Again to Repentance, Hebrews 6:4-6
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Them Again to Repentance, Hebrews 6:4-6
This was feed for you to read. Now it’s Seed for you
to sow.
Thank you for sharing.
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