Hebrews chapter 6 verse 4 through 12, but we're jumping in in the middle of a paragraph if you
look in the Bible, but in the middle of the author's train of thought. So I want to step
back to 6.1 and start reading at verse 1 so we can catch a little bit of the bigger picture
of what is going on in this passage. So Hebrews chapter 6, I'll be reading verses 1 through 12.
The author writes this, he says,
in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift,
and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the Word of God and the
powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away to restore them again to repentance,
since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.
For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it and produces a crop useful to those for
whose sake it is cultivated receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles,
it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned. Though we speak in this way,
yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things, things that belong to salvation.
For God is not unjust, so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name
in serving the saints as you still do. And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness,
to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish,
but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Several years ago, I was meeting with the former pastor of this church, Josh Moody.
For many years, Pastor Josh invested a lot of time in meeting with me regularly, in mentoring me,
praying for me, and gradually giving me opportunities to serve and teach in this church.
And one day we were talking, and he said to me,
one of the hardest things about preaching is that you want to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
In fact, many passages of scripture seem designed to do just that.
But the problem is, when you preach a message of comfort for those who are afflicted,
the people who are comfortable in their complacency hear it and feel justified in their complacency.
And then when you preach a message of warning to the complacent,
the people who are afflicted hear it and feel even more discouraged and afflicted by the warning.
He said it's hard to get the message across to the people who really need to hear it.
Now this morning's passage contains both a warning to awaken the complacent,
as well as a comfort to strengthen believers who are afflicted.
And this passage is not easy to understand and apply rightly.
Throughout church history, it has often been misunderstood.
And we too are prone to misunderstand some parts of it.
Nevertheless, the Holy Spirit saw fit to inspire the author of Hebrews to write these words,
not only for the original hearers, but also for our benefit.
So as we prepare to dive into this sometimes difficult passage, let's pray together.
Almighty God, we pray that you would open our hearts and our minds by the power of your Holy Spirit,
that as we look into this passage, into the warning, as well as the comfort,
that we may hear clearly what you have spoken,
and that we may apply it to our hearts and our lives, as you desire.
For your glory, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
So before we jump into this passage, let me set the broader context just a little bit.
Last week, Pastor Nick preached on chapter 5, verse 11, through chapter 6, verse 3.
And this is sort of the beginning of the section that he's in.
Now the writer begins, if you look up in chapter 5, verse 11,
he begins by addressing a problem in the community that he's writing to.
He says, you have become dull of hearing.
And that word dull could mean lazy or sluggish or complacent.
And so he urges them in chapter 6, verse 1,
And then in verse 4 through 12, the author gives two reasons why we should go on toward maturity
and not remain complacent and stagnant.
He gives a word of warning in verse 4 through 8,
and then a word of comfort in verse 9 through 12.
And then at the end of the passage, chapter 6, verse 12,
he reminds us of the purpose of everything he said.
He said, all this I've said so that you may not be sluggish.
That's actually the same word that he translated dull,
that was translated dull back in chapter 5, verse 11.
So at the beginning and the end of the passage, he's addressing the same issue.
He's saying this is so that you may not be sluggish or complacent,
but through faith and patience inherit the promises of God.
So that's sort of the big picture of our passage today.
There's a warning to the complacent,
and there's a comforting word for God's people.
And it's all part of an exhortation not to be complacent,
but to press on toward maturity in Christ.
Now this passage is primarily directed toward people
who have already identified themselves as Christians.
But if you're here today, if you're not a Christian,
if you're spiritually exploring or searching,
I hope this passage will be helpful to you as well.
In particular, this passage may give you insight into the nature of the Christian life,
both the challenges that Christians face,
as well as the comforts that Christians hold on to.
But even more than that, I hope you'll see in this passage
the character of the God that Christians believe in.
So first, let's look at the warning in chapter verses 4 through 8.
Now, this is not the first warning passage in the book of Hebrews.
If you were here for our last fall, when we started the book of Hebrews,
we looked at a warning in chapter 2, as well as in chapter 3.
In chapter 2, he says, chapter 2, verse 1 through 4,
he says, we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard,
to the message of Christ,
so that we do not drift away from it.
And the image is of a boat without an anchor,
drifting slowly down the stream,
and eventually ending up far away from its original destination.
Chapters 3 and 4, he gives another warning.
And there he says,
take care, brothers and sisters,
lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart,
leading you to fall away from the living God.
But exhort one another every day,
so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
So there are the images of a heart
that gradually grows hardened in its resistance towards God.
And there he gives the example of the people of Israel,
who had been rescued from slavery in Egypt
and brought out into the wilderness.
And they heard God's word,
they saw God's power,
but over and over they did not trust God.
They did not believe in Him,
they did not obey Him.
And as a result,
many of them did not enter the promised land.
And as we'll see,
some of these themes from these two prior warnings
come up again in this passage.
So as we look at this warning
in verse 4 through 8 of chapter 6,
we might first ask,
well, what does this warning mean?
Well, the clearest thing it means
is that spiritually speaking,
there is what we might call
a point of no return.
In other words,
if you drift far enough downstream in the boat,
eventually you will come
to a point of no return,
where the current will take you over
the spiritual equivalent of Niagara Falls.
And the result will be
certain and unavoidable destruction,
without any hope
of being rescued or restored.
Now this is a terrifying warning,
but it's the very clear teaching
of this passage.
Verses 4 through 6 are one long sentence,
but the main clause says,
it is impossible,
in the case of certain people,
to restore them to repentance.
He doesn't just say it's difficult
or unlikely or unusual,
he says impossible.
Now this is not the only passage
in Scripture that teaches such a thing.
In Mark chapter 3,
Jesus himself says,
all kinds of sins
will be forgiven,
the children of man,
and whatever blasphemies they utter.
But whoever blasphemes
against the Holy Spirit
never has forgiveness,
but is guilty of an eternal sin.
In other words,
there is a point of no return,
spiritually speaking.
Now over the years,
different people have come to me,
and they've said to me,
I'm worried that I have crossed this line.
I'm worried that,
according to this passage,
there's no more hope for me,
and I'm forever lost.
What do I do?
Now if there is a point of no return,
it's a good question to ask.
Who exactly is this verse talking about?
How can you know
if you've crossed that line?
Well, in order to answer that question,
we need to look carefully
at how Hebrews describes these people.
In verse 4 through 6,
and he describes them in two ways.
First, he describes them
as people who have experienced
rich blessings
in the context of a community
of believers.
Now very much like
the Israelite community
who as a group
had experienced God's deliverance
from slavery in Egypt.
And in fact,
the terms he used here
would have reminded his hearers
of Israel's experience
in the wilderness.
So he says,
they've been enlightened.
Well, the people of Israel
had seen God's glory
descending on Mount Sinai
in fire and smoke.
They were led through the wilderness
by the pillar of cloud by day
and the pillar of fire by night.
He says,
they had tasted the heavenly gift.
The people of Israel
had tasted the manna from heaven,
bread from heaven
that God had provided for them.
It says,
they shared in the Holy Spirit.
Well, Moses
and the 70 elders of Israel
were filled with the Spirit
and their Spirit-led leadership
benefited the whole community.
He says,
they not only heard God's word,
but they saw evidence
of God's power
parting the Red Sea,
providing water from the rock,
defeating their enemies.
And in a similar way,
this passage is describing people
who have experienced
rich blessings
in the context of a community
of believers.
So from their outward appearance,
from a human perspective,
these people would appear
to be Christians.
Right?
They've been baptized.
They've received the Lord's Supper.
They've had powerful
spiritual experiences.
They've enjoyed
some of the benefits
of being involved
in the Christian community.
They've not only heard
the word of God
from reliable messengers,
they've seen evidence
right in front of their eyes
of its truth and power
and goodness.
But then he says in verse 6,
they have fallen away.
And the emphasis here
is on the contrast
between God's generosity
and kindness
toward these people
and their utterly ungrateful response.
In other words,
God has exposed these people
to numerous spiritual blessings,
most especially the message
that God loved the world
so much that he sent his son,
Jesus Christ,
who willingly came into the world
and willingly died on the cross
as a sacrifice for sinners.
But after having publicly
embraced this message
and identified with
the Christian community,
their response is to crucify
the Son of God once again.
In other words,
to publicly and definitively
reject him.
And in their public rejection
of Jesus,
to scorn him before the world.
Verses 7 and 8
present the same contrast.
There are two kinds of land.
Both kinds of land
are watered by the rain
and cultivated
by the goodness of God.
But the land in verse 8
bears only thorns and thistles.
No good fruit.
And in the end,
he says,
it is only fit for burning.
In Jesus' parable of the sower,
which we heard earlier,
the seed of God's word
is sown everywhere
on all four kinds of soil.
On the hard ground,
on the rocky ground,
on the thorny ground,
as well as on the good soil.
And so in all these examples,
God is shown to be
not only righteous and just
in his judgment,
but generous
and loving
and kind
far more than any of us deserve.
But despite God's generosity
and his kindness
and his love,
it says that these people
have fallen away.
Now when this passage
talks about falling away,
it's not talking about
a temporary relapse,
but an ongoing
and permanent condition.
John Calvin said this,
he said,
the writer is not talking here
about theft
or lying
or even murder
or drunkenness
or adultery.
He is referring to
a complete falling away
from the gospel
in which the sinner
has offended God
not in one respect only,
but has utterly
renounced his grace.
Now in the Bible,
there are several examples
of believers
in both the Old and New Testament
who fall into
serious and damaging
patterns of sin,
sometimes even
for extended periods of time.
But eventually,
the Holy Spirit
convicts them of sin.
They're never totally satisfied
in their patterns of sin.
And eventually,
they turn back to God
and they repent
and they ask for forgiveness.
And you know,
the New Testament says
it's not,
it doesn't just say
forgiveness is possible
if we repent.
It says forgiveness
is promised
to all
who repent.
To repent
simply means
to turn
to Jesus.
If we confess
our sins,
God is faithful
and just
to forgive our sins
and purify us
from all unrighteousness
because Jesus Christ
is the atoning
sacrifice
for sin.
And His blood
covers anyone
and everyone
who turns to Him.
And the writer of Hebrews
is in full agreement
with this promise.
Notice what he says here.
He does not say
it is impossible
for some people
to be forgiven
even if they repent.
What he says is
it is impossible
for them to be brought
to repentance.
In other words,
they never turn
back.
They fall away
and they never turn back.
And Jesus says
a very similar thing
in that passage
about the blasphemy
against the Holy Spirit.
He says it is an eternal sin.
In other words,
it is a permanent
and unchanging
and ongoing state
of willfully refusing
Jesus Christ
who is God's only provision
for forgiveness.
So if you are concerned,
if you have read passages
like this
and you have wondered,
have I passed this point?
If you have been driven
to despair
by that thought,
if you are concerned
that you have done
something so bad
that God cannot
or will not forgive you,
your concern itself
and your desire
to be in right relationship
with God
is clear evidence
that you have not
done so.
The author of Hebrews
did not give this warning
because he thought
that the people
had already passed
this point of no return.
If he thought
they had already passed
the point of no return,
the warning would be useless.
You don't warn somebody
when they've already
fallen off a cliff
and died.
You warn someone
so they don't fall
off the cliff.
It's like the rumble strip
on the highway.
It's not the most pleasant
noise to hear,
but it saves you
from going over the edge
inadvertently
or without realizing it.
Now the reason
why the author
gives this warning
is because he saw
that many of the people
were beginning
to drift away,
to drift down the stream.
They'd become dull,
sluggish,
complacent.
And so he warns them
spiritual complacency
is dangerous.
Drifting toward
the point of no return
begins
often as a gradual process.
Jesus describes
the seed
sown among thorns
as seed that begins
to grow
but is choked out
by the cares
and riches
and pleasures
of this world.
Think of a plant
in the middle
of a field
that is gradually
overtaken by weeds
and thorn bushes
and vines
that gradually
entangle it
and suck the life
out of it.
It doesn't happen
all at once,
but it's a gradual process,
but it ends
in suffocation.
And similarly,
he's warning them
because the path
to the point
of no return
begins
with lots
of small decisions.
Whether it's deciding
that life
is just too busy
so it's not worth
the time to pray
or read the Bible
anymore
or deciding
that it's not worth
coming to church
because you're
just too tired
or deciding
to distance yourself
from other Christians
because you don't
want them to challenge
you and hold you
to a higher standard
or deciding
to tell little lies
out of a desire
to please
other people
or indulging
in hidden
sinful patterns
because they bring
immediate comfort
in a stressful time.
The warning is
when these patterns
continue
unchallenged,
unchanged,
over time,
your heart
becomes increasingly
entangled
in the cares
and riches
and pleasures
of the world
and increasingly
numb
and hardened
toward the reality
of God
and Jesus Christ
and the Holy Spirit.
And so the author
of Hebrews is
throwing a bucket
of ice-cold water
on us
and he's saying
wake up!
Don't be caught
in complacency.
Don't live
a sluggish
Christian life.
Don't continue
along
this dangerous path.
So that's the warning.
But thankfully
the writer of Hebrews
not only gives a warning
because I think
if that's all he gave
we might be startled
but we might not
quite know where
to go next.
He also gives us
a word of comfort
to encourage us
to press on
in verse 9
through 12.
Now in verse 9
his tone shifts
from stern warning
to tender
brotherly affection.
He says
though we speak
in this way
with stern warnings
yet in your case
beloved
we feel sure
of better
things.
Things
that belong
to salvation.
Notice how
the pronouns
shift in this passage.
Verses 1
through 3
he says
therefore let us
go on to maturity.
First person plural.
This we will do
if God permits.
Verse 4
through 8
however
he uses the third person.
He doesn't say
you
he says
in the case
of those
them
they
so he's warning
them
but he's not
putting them
in that category
of people
who have
done that.
But then in verse 9
through 12
he goes back
to the first
and second person
he says
in your case
we feel sure
of better
things.
Now you might ask
why does he
feel sure
of better things?
How can I
feel sure
of better things
for me?
Well in verse 10
he goes on to give
two reasons
for his confidence.
So first
he says
that he is confident
because of
their track record
of work
and love.
Or if we use
the metaphor
of verse 7
he's confident
because of
the good fruit
that he has
already observed
in their lives.
Now later on
in the book
in chapter 10
verse 32
and 34
and chapter 13
verse 1 and 2
he elaborates
on the good fruit
that he's observed
in their lives.
He says
they've endured
a hard struggle
sometimes being
publicly exposed
to reproach
and affliction
because of their
faith in Jesus
sometimes standing
alongside other
Christians who were
mistreated
and imprisoned.
In other words
they faced
suffering
and opposition
things that would
have could have
tempted them
to give up
or turn away
but they didn't
give up
and in fact
in their trials
they held on
to the promises
of Christ.
Chapter 10
verse 34
says
they joyfully
accepted
the loss
of worldly
possessions
and status
because they knew
that they had
a better
and lasting
possession
in Jesus Christ.
now the point
of this
is that
suffering
and trials
will either
drive you
away from
God
into things
like bitterness
and despair
and anger
and anxiety
or they will
drive you
to God
and the Psalms
invite us
to bring
our bitterness
and despair
and anger
and anxiety
to God.
you know
it's very
common
to feel
all of those
emotions
but the question
is will we
hold on
to those
things
deep inside
ourselves
where they'll
gradually eat
away at us
and then poison
our relationships
with others
or will we
bring those
things to
God
honestly
and seek
our refuge
and our help
in him.
you see
when we
suffer
and take
refuge
in Jesus
and bring
all of the
stuff
that we
feel to
him
he begins
to work
in us
things like
humility
and trust
and compassion
and so he
turns
suffering
and evil
into things
that can be
a means
for our
spiritual
growth
and maturity
and Jesus
has been
there
Jesus
himself
has suffered
he knows
what it's
like
to go
through
hard
trials
and opposition
and he
has come
so that we
might never
suffer
alone
but that
all our
sufferings
might be
with him
by our
side
so if
you've
been through
trials
if you can
look back
at your
life
if you've
been through
trials that
could have
pushed you
away from
God
but you're
still here
you still
believe in
Christ
you still
pray
be encouraged
that's a
good sign
now the
second thing
he points
to is not
only their
their work
and their
endurance
through trials
but their
love for
one another
again suffering
and trials
can either
cause us to
distance ourselves
from other
people
or to come
closer together
and stand
together in
the midst
of them
and instead
of distancing
themselves
from each
other
the Hebrews
loved and
served one
another with
warm affection
it says in
chapter 6
verse 10
you have
shown love
for God
in serving
the saints
as you
still do
in other
words they
had served
not only the
Christians in
their own
church but
the saints
more broadly
speaking
Christians
perhaps
throughout
the world
or in
other
churches
chapter 13
verse 1
and 2
tells us
they opened
their homes
to each
other
they loved
each other
like brothers
and sisters
in the family
of God
they even
welcomed
strangers
and foreigners
because they
knew that
God and
Jesus Christ
had welcomed
them
and God
had opened
his home
to them
and so they
opened their
homes
to others
it says
they cared
for those
in prison
had compassion
on them
because they
knew that
Jesus Christ
had paid a
high price
to set them
free
from their
bondage
and so they
cared for
those
who were in
bondage
themselves
and he
says you've
continued to
do these
things
brothers and
sisters
may we be
a church
that is
characterized
by loving
service
to one
another
and in
many ways
we already
are but let
me urge you
let us
continue to
do so
more and
more
we live in
a culture
that's
it seems
like
everybody's
busy
right
hardly anybody
how are you
doing
I mean my
natural response
is saying
things have
been pretty
busy lately
we live in
a high
stress
high achievement
culture
that places
a high value
on individual
freedom
and autonomy
and privacy
but the gospel
tells us that
Jesus Christ
willingly laid
aside
his freedoms
and became
a servant
to love
us
on the night
that he was
betrayed
he knelt down
and he washed
his disciples
feet
and then he
said as
I have loved
you
you also
are to love
one another
and by this
all people
will know
that you are
really my
disciples if you
have love
for one
another
and so the
author of
Hebrews
could say
I see
your acts
of loving
service
to God's
people
your love
for God
is shown
in your
love
for others
and that's
one of the
fruits of
the Holy
Spirit
it's another
sign that you
have really
experienced
salvation
from God
because you
see true
salvation
is not a
temporary
experience
that doesn't
last
that's not
real salvation
at all
true salvation
is an eternal
reality begun
continued
and completed
by the grace
of God
and that's
actually the
second reason
why we can
have assurance
why we can
have confidence
not only because
of good fruit
that we see
in one another's
lives
and that we can
encourage each
other as we see
that good fruit
but ultimately
because of the
character
of God
the ultimate
foundation of
our assurance
as Christians
is the character
of God himself
and the writer
of Hebrews
says this
in verse 10
he says
God is not
unjust
so as to
overlook
your work
and your love
that you have
shown for his
name
you see
God is the
source
of all
the good fruit
we produce
that's why
the apostle
Paul calls it
the fruit
of
the Holy Spirit
not just the
fruit of
our good
efforts
but the fruit
of the Holy
Spirit's work
in our life
and in the
gospel of John
Jesus says
I am the vine
and you are
the branches
whoever abides
in me
and I in him
he will bear
much fruit
apart from me
you can do
nothing
and he continues
he says
you did not
choose me
but I chose
you
and appointed
you to go
and bear
good fruit
that will
last
you see
God promises
that he will
not overlook
the good fruit
that he himself
has produced
in our lives
verse 7
says land
that produces
a crop
useful
to those
for whose sake
it is cultivated
receives a blessing
from God
Jesus himself
promised blessings
to his disciples
both now
and in the future
read through the
Sermon on the Mount
it's full of them
the Beatitudes
blessed are you
when people
revile you
and persecute you
and utter all kinds
of evil against you
falsely
on my account
in that case
he says
rejoice and be glad
for great is your
reward in heaven
or in Mark
chapter 10
he said to his
disciples
he said
whatever I call
you to sacrifice
and leave behind
for my sake
and the sake
of the gospel
you'll receive
many times
more
and in the age
to come
eternal life
because God
is not unjust
when he makes
a promise
he will keep it
he is faithful
when he produces
good fruit
in our lives
he will sustain it
and he will reward
it in the end
because he
has done it
and so he goes
on
in verse 11
he says
we desire
for each
one of you
to show
the same
earnestness
to have
the full
assurance
of hope
until the
end
so that you
may not
be sluggish
but imitators
of those
who through
faith and
patience
inherit
the promises
of God
you see
the purpose
of both
the warning
and the
comfort
is to
protect us
from becoming
complacent
and you know
there's no joy
in spiritual
complacency
it's not even
fun while it
lasts
but he's
spurring us
on to
persevere
in earnest
love
verse 10
in assured
hope
verse 11
and in
patient faith
as he says
in verse 12
love
hope
and faith
in Jesus
you see
the purpose
of the
comforting word
is not to
comfort us
in our
complacency
but to
spur us
on
to earnest
love
for one
another
and the
purpose
of the
warning
is not
to make
us
despair
and it's
not to
make us
endlessly
anxiously
introspective
either
but to
spur us
on to
persevere
in looking
to Jesus
with our
faith and
hope fixed
firmly
on him
you know
if you're
hiking in
the mountains
and the
trail passes
by some
steep cliffs
it is good
to be aware
of the
danger
but you
will make
no progress
by just
peeking over
the edge
of the cliff
and imagining
how horrible
it would be
to fall off
you will just
make yourself
dizzy
and unnecessarily
scared
and in the
same way
if you
are endlessly
anxiously
introspective
about your
spiritual state
you will not
make much
spiritual
progress
the encouragement
here
is to be
aware
and take
the warning
seriously
but to keep
going up
the trail
to follow
in the
footsteps
of those
who have
persevered
in faith
all the way
to the end
and inherited
the promises
of God
and most
especially
to fix
our eyes
on our
Lord and
Savior
Jesus Christ
because Jesus
is the
pioneer
of faith
in other
words
he's the
one
who's
blazed
the trail
for us
and he's
the perfecter
of faith
he's the
beginning
and he's
the end
he stands
waiting to
receive us
at the end
and he
watches over
our every
step
along the
way
let us
pray
Lord Jesus
where we
have
become
complacent
we pray
that you
would stir
us up
to an
active
faith
hope
and love
in you
and where
we have
become
discouraged
or even
despairing
would you
comfort
and strengthen
us
with your
words
of assurance
and hope
we pray
that we
would live
a life
of earnest
love
of patient
faith
and of
assured
hope
in our
Lord and
Savior
Jesus Christ
we pray
in his
name
amen