HEBREWS 6:1-8 AND 10:26-27 BOTH TEACH THAT BELIEVERS CAN LOSE THEIR SALVATION?

IT SEEMS THAT HEBREWS 6:1-8 AND 10:26-27 BOTH TEACH THAT BELIEVERS CAN LOSE THEIR SALVATION. HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THESE PASSAGES?

Probably the toughest passage for those who struggle to believe in eternal security is Hebrews 6:1-8, and Hebrews 10:26-27 is also difficult. Let’s look at these two troubling pas-sages in that order.

HEBREWS 6:1-8

Hebrews 6:1-8 seems to say that believers can fall away, and in doing so, they re-crucify and shame the Lord Jesus. There-fore, it is impossible for them to be renewed to repentance (Heb. 6:4-6). The answer begins by recognizing that the book of Hebrews was written to Jewish believers in Jesus who had begun to experience persecution for their faith. Therefore, some of them were considering abandoning their new messianic Jewish faith and returning to Judaism without Jesus.

Genuine Believers Persevere in the Faith

The five warning passages in Hebrews (2:1-4; 3:7-4:13; 5:11-6:20; 10:26-31; 12:25-29) are addressed to these potential deniers of the faith. The writer is letting them know that the mark of genuine followers of Jesus is endurance in their faith. That’s what is meant by saying that we are part of the Messiah's household “if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end” (Heb. 3:6). Note that the opposite is true as well—if we don't hold fast our confidence and hope, it demonstrates that we are not presently part of Messiah's house-hold. Similarly, Hebrews 3:14 says we have become partakers of the Messiah only “if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.” If we have not become partakers of Messiah, we wont hold fast to our faith. Both of these verses show that genuine believers do hang on to their faith in Messiah Jesus while those who abandon it never really knew Him at all.

Moving from Old Testament Hope to Faith in Messiah

In light of their potential status as people who had not yet fully trusted in Jesus, Hebrews 6 was actually calling on these people to move from an Old Testament faith, anticipating the coming of the Messiah, to a full-fledged complete faith in Jesus the Messiah (6:1-2). They are told to “press on to maturity” (6:1), a word better translated “completion,” referring to a complete faith in Jesus. The elementary teaching they are to leave (Heb. 6:1) does not refer to the foundational principles of faith in the Messiah Jesus but to the Old Testament preparation for faith in the Messiah. If the elementary teaching about the Messiah referred to the foundational teachings of their faith in Jesus, the writer of Hebrews would not tell them to leave it behind but to build on it.

This warning calls on them to advance beyond six aspects of elementary teaching about the Messiah: 1) repentance; 2) faith; 3) teachings about washings; 4) laying on of hands; 5) resurrection of the dead; and 6) eternal judgment (Heb. 6:1—2). Each of these ideas were taught in the Old Testament preparation for the Messiah although it seems that they could refer to New Covenant ideas as well. The evidence that this list refers to Old Testament faith is in the word “washings” (6:2). It refers exclusively to Old Testament ritual washings, (although some English versions sometimes mistranslate it as “baptisms”). It makes more sense that the author is telling them to leave their Old Testament faith and move on to a New Testament faith in the Messiah Jesus. We can conclude that this warning is to Jewish people whom the writer fears have not yet genuinely put their complete trust in Jesus.

In Hebrews 6:4-6, the writer fears that their faith was close but not genuine. Perhaps they were “enlightened,” meaning they understood Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecy, but they did not necessarily comprehend His spiritual provision. This is similar to lost false teachers in 2 Peter 2:20-22. Maybe they had “tasted the heavenly gift,” meaning they had experienced the Holy Spirit’s conviction, but they had not yet experienced His indwelling (similar to the way the word “tasted” is used in Matthew 27:34). This is a significant difference. They were “partakers of the Holy Spirit” (Heb. 6:4) in the sense that they saw His miracles and power (Heb. 2:4) but were not indwelt by Him. They had possibly also tasted God’s Word and God's. power because of their presence in the community of believers but had not yet experienced their own personal faith.

The Danger of Falling Away

The danger that some of these readers faced was that after coming so close, if they fell away, humanly speaking it would be “impossible to renew them again to repentance” (Heb. 6:6). Having experienced so much of the Lord’s power in the community of true believers, denying Jesus would be like agreeing with those who crucified Him and putting Him to open shame. The word “crucify” (an adverbial participle) is usually translated with a causal sense—“because they crucify again.” However, it seems that a temporal sense is just as valid and would make the translation, “while they crucify again.” This would mean that should they deny and reject Jesus, agreeing with those who crucified Him, it would be impossible for them to repent. However, we also know that nothing is impossible for God, and He could surely, by His Spirit, bring anyone He so chooses to repentance.

Hebrews 6:4-6 is calling on these doubters to consider whether they were genuine in their faith in Jesus to begin with, and if not, to put their trust in Him fully. Moreover, the author is convinced that, once they consider these things, they will recognize their own genuineness of faith, saying, “Beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation” (Heb. 6:9).

HEBREWS 10:26-27

As for Hebrews 10:26-27, the writer is concerned that if these doubters “go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth,” the sacrificial death of Messiah would not be beneficial for them and they would only face “a terrifying expectation of judgment.” Some people think that “to go on sinning willfully” refers to believers caught in habitual sin or those who commit especially serious sins such as stealing, extramarital sex, or even murder. If this is so, Messiah Jesus’ sacrifice would no longer be of help to them. They would lose their salvation and face eternal judgment.

In context, however, Hebrews 10:26-27 is referring to those who have forsaken “assembling together” (Heb. 10:25). They are the same doubters described in Hebrews 3:6, 14, and 6:1-8. They had been close to the faith but had separated themselves from the messianic community and were now considering returning to traditional Judaism without Jesus. The specific sin they are warned about, in context, is forsaking the community of Messiah (10:25). If they were to persist in this act of abandonment, they would reveal that they had not yet trusted in the Messiah Jesus and were refusing to put their faith in Him still. If they maintained this

FINAL THOUGHTS

People frequently make faith decisions, trusting in Jesus as long as life is easy and smooth. But Jesus promised, “In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have over-come the world” (John 16:33). When they encounter the difficulties, troubles, and persecution He promised, some may choose not to take courage but to abandon their faith. When anyone departs from the faith, it reveals a person who has not really come to know Him. When difficulties come, we need to “hold fast our confession” of faith in Jesus (Heb. 4:14). If we decide to jump ship and abandon our faith, it’s essential to reassess and make the decision to trust in the Messiah Jesus genuinely and completely and experience His perfect and eternal forgiveness. attitude, the Messiah Jesus’ sacrificial death would be of no benefit to them and they would face judgment.