GOD HAS SPOKEN BY HIS SON
Meditations in Hebrews
Hebrews 6:4-8
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THERE is no doubt that these next verses present difficulties. The difficulty lies in the fact that verses 4-6 seem to suggest that it is possible to be saved and then eternally lose that salvation, and this is contrary to all the certainty in the the Gospel that the Bible presents to us. I don't believe that these verses suggest this if they are properly understood. The details may present difficulty but the general thrust of what the Apostle is saying here is clear and valid.
I have included verses 7 and 8 in this meditation because it is Paul's illustration of what he means in verses 4-6. If we look at verses 1-3 again we shall see that it reveals to us the problem which the Apostle was dealing with. The problem was the lack of progress in the spiritual lives of the Jewish Christians to whom he was writing. Outwardly they seemed to have believed, but the fact that they were not progressing in their spiritual lives cast grave doubts on their profession. The fact is that true faith in Christ, which unites us to Christ and raises us to new life, has to produce a change. Life can't be hidden, and so if there is not growth, then something is seriously wrong. The question the Apostle is raising is not one of whether a person who has been born again can become unborn, but rather whether the profession of faith in a life is the real thing or not, that is whether there is new birth, or whether the profession is an outward show of life which is not really there.
If we look at verses 7 and 8 now we shall see that this illustration is all about this. Rain falls on the land and the rain is for the nourishment of the crop. Now if the land brings forth a good crop then the land is good land and so receives God's blessing. However if the land just brings forth weeds, and the real crop sown does not grow or mature, then the land is worthless. It is a barren land without the life and richness of the land which is fertile. The point at issue is that if land is good it will bring forth a good harvest of crops. The rain falls on all land, and if the land is good it will cause the seed sown to grow. But if the rain falls on the land and the seed sown does not grow and produce a harvest, then the land is bad and has no life. So it is in the spiritual life. We believe unto salvation, but the reality of that faith, and the salvation received, is revealed by the life that follows. It is impossible for someone who is truly saved, and has received new life, not to grow and produce spiritual fruit. So if people who profess faith are standing still and producing no growth, then something is wrong, and the genuineness of the profession of faith needs to be looked into.
What is revealed in verses 4-6 is the disturbing reality that it is possible to enjoy a large measure of spiritual blessings without really having true spiritual life. This is illustrated for us in many ways throughout the Bible. For instance when Moses performed miracles before Pharaoh - casting his rod on the ground which became a snake, and placing his hand inside his clothing, which then came out covered in leprosy, etc. the magicians in Egypt were able to do exactly the same with their devilish arts. We find John in his first letter warning Christians to test the spirits to see whether they are of God (1John 4:1). This indicates and implies that it is possible to show gifts which the Holy Spirit gives to God's people, but they are not really from the Holy Spirit. Then Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 warns that it is possible to speak in tongues, and possible to have the gift of prophecy, and faith to move mountains, and it is possible to give very generously to charities and even accept martyrdom, and yet because there is no real love in the heart, there is no real life.
So Paul tells us in these verses of Hebrews that it is possible to know the Bible doctrines with the mind, and experience something of their blessing so that there is a delight in talking about them, etc; and it is possible to show manifestations of the Spirit in gifts, and have real joy in reading the Bible, and believe about heaven and hell, and so on, but yet these do not issue out of a changed life, and spiritual birth, but in human wisdom and affections. It is a tasting of the life, but no real experience and receiving of the life that comes from Christ through the Holy Spirit.
This is a very dangerous state to be in. We may deceive others into believing we are true Christians, and may even to be able to deceive ourselves, but we are still without real spiritual life, and this will mean that eventually the outward facade we show will fall away, and we will cease to follow the Christian way. The danger in this is that it is found that such people are greatly hardened to faith in Christ because it has all proved for them to be a sham, and so any idea that Christ is both God and Saviour is felt to be foolish. In this therefore there is an agreement with those who crucified Jesus, that Jesus was a fraud and deserved to die, and so they in heart and mind crucify Jesus afresh. They take sides with those who did crucify Jesus, and in doing this, because of there previous profession, bring doubt into others minds, and shame on Christ and the Gospel. They commit the great sin of bringing shame on the Gospel and the good name and veracity of Jesus.
The challenge in all this is to search our lives to see whether we are progressing and growing in our spiritual lives, and showing genuine love for Jesus, and that our lives are really being lived to his glory. We need to examine our motives in all we do and seek in the Christian life, in order to see if our motives are for the glory of Christ, or in some way for our own glory. We need to be sure we are bringing forth the true fruits of the Spirit such as love, joy, peace, etc. and not rely on the more spectacular gifts. True spiritual life will be shown in deep love for Jesus, and commitment to him as Lord and God, and in living our lives for him and the Gospel.