Valley View Chapel September 28, 2014 God s Final Answer Part 12 The One Bible Passage Pastors Don t Want to Preach On Hebrews 6:4-6.

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1 1 Valley View Chapel September 28, 2014 God s Final Answer Part 12 The One Bible Passage Pastors Don t Want to Preach On Hebrews 6:4-6 Introduction The only place to begin this morning s message is to go right to the text Hebrews 6:4-6. It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Hebrews 6:4-6 (NIV) There s a reason why I titled this message The One Bible Passage Pastors Don t Want to Preach On because it s the one Bible Passage pastors don t want to preach on! And why don t pastors want to preach on this text? First, because it s hard to understand. I read a half dozen commentaries in preparation for this sermon, written by pretty smart men. I found little agreement among them about what these three verses mean. Second, because no matter what position the preacher takes, someone in the congregation is bound to disagree. If the pastor interprets the passage to mean that it is possible for a believer to lose his or her salvation, then those who believe in the eternal security of the believer will disagree. If the pastor says that the passage doesn t apply to Christians, then those who believe that a Christian can lose his or her salvation will disagree. The poor preacher is between a rock and a hard place; what Stephen Covey a lose/lose situation. As I said a moment ago, many people believe this passage teaches that a believer can lose his/her salvation. But it cannot mean that because then it also teaches that salvation, once lost, can never be regained. Yet I don t know anyone who believes that. Those who believe that salvation can be lost must find another text because this one falls far short of supporting their argument A careful study of Hebrews 6:4-6 reveals that it makes no reference to salvation at all. There is no mention of justification, sanctification, the new birth, or regeneration. The enlightened ones are not spoken of as born again, or holy, or made righteous. No term used here is ever used elsewhere in the New Testament for salvation. Personally, I believe that this morning s text shows the extent to which one s spiritual experience can go and still fall short of true biblical salvation. It is possible to have spiritual experiences and not be saved. It is possible to do impressive spiritual exploits and not be saved. We know this from Matthew 7:21-23 where Jesus said: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' (NIV) The warning contained in Hebrews 6:4-6 is addressed to those who have heard and understood the gospel. They may have made a profession of faith, been baptized and even

2 2 joined the church. Outwardly they look like Christians. But they have never been truly converted to Christ. And by the way, every Bible-believing, gospel-preaching church has people like that in the congregation. They look like Christians; talk like Christians; maybe even convinced themselves that they are Christians; but they are strangers to the gospel of grace. The passage before us explains how this can and does happen. People can possess what I call the 5 marks of spiritual privilege and still go to hell when they die. The 5 Marks of Spiritual Privilege 1. Those who have been once enlightened The word enlightened refers to an intellectual understanding of Jesus Christ and his gospel. It means to be mentally aware of something; to be informed about a topic. But is it possible to be enlightened without being saved? Matthew quoted the prophet Isaiah in reference to the ministry of the Messiah: The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned." Matthew 4:16 (NIV) Everyone who saw and heard Jesus was exposed to this great light. Yet not all who saw and heard Jesus were saved. They had first-hand knowledge and factual information of Jesus and his ministry. They heard his preaching; even witnessed his miracles. Yet most of the people who had been so enlightened did not believe in Jesus. Suppose you re not feeling well so you go to the doctor. He runs a series of tests and informs you that you may be a borderline Type-2 diabetic. He explains exactly why you haven t felt well. He lays out a plan to get your blood sugar back under control so that you ll feel better. He phones in a prescription to your pharmacist. You leave the office with a spring in your step because you ve been enlightened. Now you know what s wrong with you and you know how to fix it. But we all know that s not the end of the story. We all know that it s the patient s responsibility to follow through and make a serious commitment to the treatment plan. Enlightenment is absolutely necessary. You won t become well again without it. But enlightenment must have a personal response if it is to be effective. Some of you know the essentials of the gospel. You re as enlightened as anyone in this room. But you haven t made a commitment to Jesus Christ. That segues to the next spiritual privilege. 2. Who have tasted the heavenly gift What is the heavenly gift? I believe that the heavenly gift is the Lord Jesus himself. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 9:15 in reference to Jesus, Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! Paul s familiar words to the Romans reinforce this interpretation: The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The same Hebrews who were enlightened but not saved had also tasted or sampled the Lord Jesus and his gospel. Jesus declared in John 6:51, I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. Eternal life comes from eating, not simply tasting God s gift of salvation in Christ.

3 3 There are certain foods that I ve never tried. If you ask me to taste it, chances are I will. So I take a bite-sized portion and taste it. If I don t like it, I ll politely refuse a full helping. Some people taste the gospel out of curiosity or courtesy. But if they don t like the taste, they ll refuse a full helping of the gospel. After they ve sampled the truth, they walk away from it. You may be here this morning because someone invited you. A friend or relative may have asked you to check out Valley View Chapel. You re willing to taste the gospel. You may come back for a few weeks or months and continue to taste it. Some of you will come to love what you taste and want the full entrée. Others will decide that it s not for you and walk away. 3. Who have shared in the Holy Spirit The word translated shared has the connotation of association. John MacArthur put it this way: It refers to anyone who has been where the Holy Spirit has been ministering. You don t have to be a Christian to be aware that the Holy Spirit is doing something in peoples lives. You come to Valley View Chapel on Sunday morning and see people praising the Lord in song because the Holy Spirit is prompting them to glorify Christ. You see people praying because the Holy Spirit is giving them a desire and a burden to pray. You hear a message being delivered with clarity and passion because the Holy Spirit is energizing and enabling the preacher. You look around and notice that people have a certain kind of joy because the Holy Spirit has put his joy into their hearts. We ve all attended weddings and wedding receptions. We ve shared in the occasion; we ve been around when the special couple is kissing and dancing and celebrating. But unless you re either the bride or the groom, you can only associate with the wedding. You can t fully enter into the experience like the newly married couple. Unbelievers can associate with the Holy Spirit but they can t be indwelt, empowered and filled with the Holy Spirit like genuine born-again Christians. Who have tasted the goodness of the word of God These folks were familiar with the message of the gospel. It s possible to hear the gospel, know the gospel and even like gospel preaching but not respond to it with personal commitment to Christ. Some non-christians love to listen to sermons. They like ancient history; the stories; the passion of the preacher; his humor; or the overall the atmosphere of a gathering where the Bible is taught. They may agree with the ethical or moral counsel that is put forth and even incorporate bits and pieces of it into their lives. Yet, truth be told, they re not much better spiritually than King Herod of old. King Herod was responsible for the death of John the Baptist. Yet he liked to listen to John s preaching. But he never John s message into his life. Mark 6:20 describes his response to John s preaching: When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him. (TNIV) Herod is still alive and well and sitting in evangelical churches today. Hehmant Mehta is an atheist. In his book I Sold My Soul on EBay, he described how he attended 10 evangelical churches to see what the Christian faith was all about. One of the churches was Parkview Christian Church in the southwestern Chicago suburb of Orland Park, Illinois. Here is Mehta s response to the sermon by Pastor Tim Harlow: When I first visited Parkview, I enjoyed listening to Tim speak. He is young and interesting, and though he was

4 4 talking about the Bible, he made relevant references to pop culture that kept me listening and laughing. This was a guy who knew how to relate to his audience. Neither the Hebrews being addressed here nor Herod nor Hemant Mehta could say what Jeremiah said in 15:16, When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart's delight. (TNIV) Who have tasted the powers of the coming age Most scholars believe that this refers to the miracles that were performed by the apostles confirming the validity of the gospel. Back in Hebrews 2:3-4 it says, This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. (NIV) The purpose of miracles in the New Testament was to establish the credibility of the gospel yet the sad truth is that most people aren t convinced of their need for Christ because they have seen a miracle. Let me refer once again to Hemant Mehta. He was asked: What would it take to convert you? Here s his answer: An obvious, undeniable miracle an occurrence that has no other possible explanation.amputated limbs growing back and dead people coming back to life.if you want to convince me of a miracle I ll have to be there to see it for myself or you ll need to provide undeniable proof that it actually happened. Yet the Pharisees had undeniable proof that Lazarus had risen from the dead. Did they fall on their faces before Jesus in faith and devotion? We re told in John 12:10, So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus. (NIV) A genuine, bona fide miracle can substantiate the truth of the gospel. I m not knocking it. But a miracle is no guarantee that it will generate saving faith. It might enlighten someone to the truth about Christ. It might motivate someone to taste the gospel or sample the Word of God. But it s not the default gateway that will automatically save a soul. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ crucified and risen again can do that. Conclusion Let s close by looking one more time at Hebrews 6:4-6, It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Here is the essence of the warning: Don t fool yourself into thinking that having a sympathetic ear to the gospel and being in proximity to Christians will qualify you for heaven. If you continue on this path, and if you die in this state, you will be eternally lost, separated forever from God, and will spend the countless ages to come in hell. By a refusal to repent of your sins and transfer your trust to Jesus Christ for forgiveness and eternal life, you take your place next to those who put Jesus on the cross. Every time you reject repentance and faith in Christ, you are saying in essence: He deserved to die on the cross because if he was who he claimed to be, then I d give him my total commitment. Those of us who attend Valley View Chapel regularly are blessed indeed. We are enlightened by the gospel; tasted the ultimate heavenly gift of Jesus Christ; been encouraged and comforted by the Holy Spirit; exposed to the timeless relevance of God s ever-living word;

5 5 and see God s miraculous hand at work in a variety of ways. Yet all of that is insufficient for spiritual life. There must be a response on our part; a personal commitment to Christ and his truth. If that be true of you and me, then to whomever this fearful warning is directed, it cannot be us.