Hebrews 6

Hebrews 6
(http://bit.ly/5di80p)

Theme: Remain Confident in Christ

B) Ways
5) By pressing on to maturity (con't)

Chapter 6 gives a solemn warning of the believer's need to
press on to a mature understanding of Christ, so they may
remain confident in His promise of rest (i.e. deliverance from
the power of sin in daily life, and presence of sin in glory).
There seem to be several reasons to press on to maturity.

A) Because God chastens fruitless believers (1-8). "For in
the case of those who have once been enlightened...and have
fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to
repentance...ground that drinks the rain...but..yields thorns
and thistles...ends up being burned...(4-8 NAS). This passage
has at least four possible interpretations, most of which can
be eliminated by the context or clear references in other
passages of Scripture:

1) A believer will loose his salvation if He falls away from
His profession of faith. This view is impossible, because
Romans 8:30ff. indicates everyone who ever becomes saved in
the first place (justified), will also be glorified (future),
and that nothing in time or space is able to separate the
believer from this love of God.

2) This refers to people who made professions, but were never
actually saved. Although possible, much of the context of
Hebrews seems to indicate that believers are in view. The
description of those who have "once been enlightened and have
tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of
the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the
powers of the age to come" (4-5), seems to best fit a
believer.

3) This describes a hypothetical situation which could never
really happen. Support for this view comes from the KJV
translation _"If"_ they shall fall away". It is argued that
it is only impossible to renew someone to repentance "if" they
fall away, and that it is impossible for a true believer to
fall away, therefore the warning is only hypothetical.
However, the word "if" ("kai") almost always means
"and". Thus, the text more accurately describes "those who
have once been enlightened...and have fallen away" (NAS), as
if such cases could occur.

4) This describes people who are truly saved, but who deviate
from the truth to the extent that they become fruitless and
severely chastened by God. This view seems to best fit the
context and language.

Those "who have once been enlightened" elsewhere seems to
refer to those who are truly saved (cf. 10:32; 2 Cor. 4:3-6).
Those "who have tasted the heavenly gift", also uses language
similar to that of believers when they first trust Christ
(John 4:10; Rom. 6:23; James 1:17-18). These were people who
"have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit". Hebrews 1:9
uses this word ("partaker") to refer to companions of Christ,
and "holy brethren" in 3:1 and 14.

Also, national Israel has been used as the example of people
who are truly redeemed (from Egypt, which typifies the
believer being redeemed from the slave market of sin), but
who fail to enter the rest of the promised inheritance (land)
because they don't believe God will also deliver them from its
giants. God chastened them to the point of physical death as
they wandered aimlessly in the wilderness of sin for 40 years.
Even Moses, whom we know was saved (cf. Heb. 11; Mt. 17:3),
did not enter the promised inheritance "rest" during life on
earth, being chastened by God because of disobedience (Num.
27:12-14; Deut. 3:21-29; 34:4).

Also, the illustration of people as land which drinks up rain,
but bears only thorns and thistles and ends up burned (7-8),
evokes ideas of hell, but may actually picture a common
farming practice. If land became useless because of weeds,
the field was burned, the growth consumed, and the land became
useful again.

1 Tim. 1:19-20 apparently describes a situation where those
who had suffered "shipwreck" with regard to their faith, would
benefit from chastening. Hebrews 12:4-13 calls on the
believer to endure the chastening process of God, noting it is
first sorrowful, then yields the peaceful fruit of
righteousness. 1 Peter 1:7 explains that full enjoyment of
our inheritance "rest" waits us in heaven, that the various
trials we experience now test and prove our faith like "fire"
purifies gold, and that we actually experience the joy of the
future aspects of our salvation while still here on earth as
we hope for it's completion at the appearing of Christ (cf.
Rom. 6-8).

This passage seems best understood as warning believers to
remain confident in Christ so they don't become fruitless, and
severely chastened by God.

B) Because God remembers your good works (9-12). Sin and
unbelief do not accompany salvation in the sense that they are
fruit of God's saving work, yet the believer struggles against his
old sin nature till glory (Rom. 6-8; cf. 1 John 1:5-10). As an
encouragement, this passage reminds the readers that God is
just, and remembers their love and ministry to the saints--fruit
which does accompany God's saving work.

C) Because God's keeps His promises (13-20). First, God is
truth, and does not lie, therefore His promise of deliverance
from the power and presence of sin should assure us it will
come to pass on our behalf (Rom. 6 - 8). Second, the fact God
swore to fulfill this promise to Abraham, should assure us
that He who has begun a good work in us will perform it until
the day of Jesus Christ (Gen. 22:17ff.; Philipp. 1:6). God's
promise to Abraham's seed is fulfilled in the person of
Christ, and therefore extended to every child of God through
faith in Him (see Gal. 3:7-29). Since there is no one greater
than God, this oath to Himself should assure us.

D) Because Christ has entered the Holy of Holies. Since
Christ is our High Priest and has entered the presence of God
in the heavenly holy of holies on our behalf, and since God
promised to deliver believers from the power and presence of
sin through faith in Christ, our hope of such salvation is
anchored securely in the presence of God. Therefore, we should
remain confident in Christ by pressing on to maturity, in the
hope of deliverance from the power and presence of sin by our
Great High Priest.

--
Have you heard Christ died for our sins, and God raised Him
from the dead? Did you know God saves you from hell and
gives you eternal life through faith in this finished work alone,
not your merits (Jn. 3:16; 1 Cor. 15:1-3; Eph. 2:8-10; 2 Thess.
1:8-9)? This is so man cannot boast, and God alone gets the
glory (Eph. 2:8-9).
______________________________________________
www.faithguard.org
www.twitter.com/faithguard
www.facebook.com/faithguard
______________________________________________