Should I Be Scared of Hebrews Chapters 6 and 10?

Okay, number 7. This is the last one. And it’s actually two people. Candace writes – she nicknames herself “backslider.” “Candace backslider.” “I got saved in August of 2006 right before I was shipped off to JobCorps. At least, I thought I was saved. After returning home, I continued in the same sins I’d been doing before. After I had enough, thankfully, the Holy Spirit convicted me, and I was free at last from my sin. It felt wonderful. I had some trials, but nothing like the feeling I had when Jesus set me free. After a few months of my freedom, what do you know? I got comfortable in my faith and backslid and have been ever since which was three years ago now. I asked the Lord for forgiveness several times, but I feel nothing. I fear my heart is hardened and the Lord has taken His hands off of me. What do I do? I’m tired of hearing what I believe to be false prophets. This is my soul and I will not take it lightly anymore. Please help me. I don’t know what to do next.” The next one comes from Solomon. I grouped these both together because they’re basically the same issues. “Sir, I was saved when I was 20 years old. I submitted myself completely to Jesus. I know good from bad according to the Word of God. It’s been two years and I’ve backslid. It’s terrible sin – especially after knowing the truth. I know there’s no life other than in Jesus, but I sinned and lost my salvation. Now I want to begin a new life. Should I be baptized again? This is a question haunting me. I’m confused, depressed, and don’t know what needs to be done. I believe in Jesus that He will forgive my sin. I’ve tasted the joy of salvation and now I’ve lost it. But is my understanding right? Will God forgive me if I sin even after knowing the truth? Please, please, please. The pain in my heart is so bad that I feel I’m lost. Dear Tim, please clarify my question if possible with God’s Word.” You know what’s very interesting about both Candace and Solomon? I don’t know how well you know your Bibles yet. I don’t know how well you’re familiar with Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10. But you know what’s very interesting? Both of these folks use terminology that comes out of those two passages, which is very scary. Listen, if you didn’t catch it, they use terminology like this: They acknowledge coming under Holy Spirit conviction. They acknowledge sinning after they know the truth. They acknowledge tasting the joy of salvation. They acknowledge a season of freedom from sin. And then both? Back into sin they went. Listen to this. Hebrews 6:4, “It is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened…” They’ve been hit with the truth. They’ve been enlightened. They’ve been exposed to the light of God’s Word. They’ve tasted the heavenly gift. They’ve shared in the Holy Spirit. They’ve shared in what of the Holy Spirit? Holy Spirit conviction. Holy Spirit empowered teaching and preaching. (incomplete thought) They’ve tasted “the goodness of the Word of God and of the powers of the age to come, if they then fall away, since they’re crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding Him up to contempt.” Then, Hebrews 10:26, “if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins but a fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.” Now, listen to this. , “If after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome. The last state is worse for them than the first. It would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness, than after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them. ‘The dog return to its own vomit and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.'” I’ll tell you this, I think people cross the line more than we know. Can I tell you something that’s interesting? You say, “oh, you’re going to scare us with things like this.” I mean to scare you. And I mean to scare Candace and Solomon. Can I tell you something? Go to the New Testament and I want to ask you something. How many examples can you find of people who made false professions and then were truly saved? They made a false profession. They fell away. And then some time later, they were truly converted. How many? Tell me. Give me one. You know why you can’t? Because there isn’t one. God gives you no example to encourage you that falling away is safe. In fact, He gives you reason to believe that if you once know the truth and you fall away, there is no repentance. Why is this emphasized so much to the Hebrews? I’ll tell you why. Because they’re Hebrews. They went after Christ. Can you imagine the national pressure? The societal pressure? The family pressure to come back to Judaism? To give up that faith in Christ? That’s what was happening. The writer of Hebrews is saying stand fast. Hold your confession. Hold to your profession. Don’t let it go. And he says, look – because there were some that were falling away; there were some that had made a profession – and he’s not saying, well, it’s okay. You make a false profession, you can get it right maybe the second or third time. Listen, the Bible holds no hope to you to turn. If you’ve once made a profession, you hold it to the end. Don’t you think you can play with this thing. I’ll tell you what, these are given in the Scriptures as warnings. And you better heed it. Candace, Solomon, I can tell you this. We read over this, but I’ll tell you what. This does not on the surface appear fearful, but it is, if you’ll hear what Paul’s saying. Paul says in 1 Timothy 1:12, “I thank Him who has given me strength – Christ Jesus our Lord, because He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service. Though formerly, I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent…” But now listen to this: “I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief.” And I’ll tell you this, when you once know the truth – Candace! Solomon! What can I say to you? You knew the truth! You knew Christ was the only way of salvation. And you went back to your sin! What can I say? When you know the only Savior, and your sin means more to you than the Savior? What do you want me to say to you? Can I offer you a better Gospel than what you already heard? I have no other one. If you turned down the Christ and went back to your sin – if you are like the pig and the dog, and you were once washed, and you went back to your mire, what do you want me to tell you? Do you want me to give you another way than you already knew? Do you want me to tell you another Gospel than you already had? There’s no other Christ. There’s no other way. If you once have the truth; if you once know the way; if you once come square with the truth of the Gospel and you say, “I’ll have my sin,” what do you want me to tell you? Your heart is so wicked that you rejected Christ and you walked away. I’ll tell you, people are doing this all the time. You know what? Especially in churches where the true Gospel’s taught. Because you know where the true Gospel is not taught, people still are in ignorance. We get people come to us all the time. Hey, you’re over there at CBC like we talked about before. They’re not preaching repentance. Well, you know what? There’s an enormous amount of ignorance. We don’t wonder people come out of that. You come out of Mormonism, there’s a great amount of ignorance. People are believing all sorts of lies. There’s lots of ignorance. Paul came out of Judaism. There was lots of ignorance. Look, if you come out of false religion, you come out of a bad gospel, but I’ll tell you this, it’s a tremendous blessing when you find a church that preaches the true Gospel. But it’s also very dangerous. Because I’ll guarantee, oh, what a privilege that God has entrusted our little church with the truth. But you know what? Sinners don’t realize it. When they come through our doors; when you come face to face with the truth and you reject it, it is not a light matter. Candace and Solomon, I don’t know what ignorance; I don’t know how much light you had. I can tell you this, the truth is still there that whosoever thirsts can come to Christ and drink. Whoever desires can come. And I would say this, if you’re still in a place where you have a desire to come to Christ, then come. It’s still true what’s said there in John 6:37. “Him that comes to Me, I won’t cast out.” It’s still true. No matter what’s true of your past, if you go to Him, He’s not going to cast you out. But you’re walking, you’re treading on very dangerous ground. Very dangerous. And maybe some of you here. I tell you, don’t turn away. You see, you take your doctrine of the sovereignty of God and you begin to do things with it that you ought not to do. I’ll tell you what the writer of Hebrews was saying. He was imploring these people. Do not turn back. You’re going to have temptations to quit this race. You’re going to have temptations to turn back. You’re going to have temptations to go back, some of you to your old sins. Don’t do it. And I’ll tell you what, the writer of Hebrews admonishes them like it’s their responsibility. You know why? Because it is. And if you turn back, it’s you that turns back. And if you turn back, you’ll not be brought back to repentance. There will only be a fearful looking for of judgment. This is a serious, serious thing. You that are faithful brethren and have been preaching the true Gospel, oh, Judgment Day, I believe that there are some of you in this room, you may look at yourself and say I’m a little nobody in this world, but that day, you will be there with Christ on the judgment seat and you will be called to account: Did you preach the Gospel to that man? I did. You’ll bear witness against those who have rejected the Gospel of Christ. And what Paul said to the Corinthians – don’t you know who you are? You’re going to judge angels. I’ll tell you this, you better hold fast till the end. You turn back, it would have been better if you had never known, than to once know the truth and turn back. Don’t think God’s going to hold you guiltless. The more light you have, oh, it’s glorious if you’re saved and you hold fast till the end, but the more light you have and you turn away, it is dangerous. Those that knew the Father’s will and did it not are going to be beaten with many stripes. Those who did not know the Master’s will and didn’t keep that will will be beaten with few. If you’re here in this Bible study, you may say, at least I’m not like one of those cannibals like over in Papua. Oh, on Judgment Day, if you turned out having rejected Christ, you will wish you were one of those cannibals that never heard the Gospel. Because the more light you have, the more severe will be your judgment if in the end, you reject Jesus Christ. Solomon, Candace, I tell you you better repent immediately. You better come while you still have desire. Men think they can repent any time they want to. “I’ll do it tomorrow.” “I’ll do it another day.” Oh, repenting is not such an easy thing as you may think. Today is the day of salvation. Today if you hear His voice, harden not your heart. That’s my word to Candace and Solomon.