Apostasy, Part I

Over the past few months, the Lord has impressed the topic of apostasy on my heart. I had turned some of my attention to studying the characteristics of God, but He decided that I needed to change my focus. I can honestly say that in studying apostasy, I have gained a renewed fear of the Lord. I am very grateful for this renewed fear, and pray that it would only increase.

Apostasy is discussed numerous times throughout Scripture, but seems to be considerably reinforced in the pages of the New Testament. When apostasy is mentioned, it almost always appears with warnings to the brethren. In the mindset of the Apostles, they are warning the church members of apostasy, apostates, and the consequences of apostasy. They want the body to be diligent in not “falling away”, to “make their call and election sure”, and to “inherit the promises” of God. However, they also want the body to realize that apostasy is very real.

Apostasy, simply stated, is the abandonment of what one has voluntarily professed. In Christian terms, it is when one renounces, or rejects, their faith in God. We need to be careful and not imply that this rejection of their faith is verbal or visible. The Apostle John clearly writes about those who profess to be Christian with their mouth, but in reality are “antichrists”. These apostates were in the church fellowship and appeared to be believers, with a visible appearance of salvation, but eventually turned and rejected the truth in one form or another; often times taking others with them. Even the Lord Jesus discusses apostates and how He will answer them on the day of the Lord Jesus.

The passages of Scripture that I focused on initially are in the book of Hebrews, Chapter 6, verses 4-8. From the New King James Version, they read as follows:


“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God;

but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned.”


Biblical scholars are divided on whom the author is talking about in the above passage. Is it Christians who simply turn from God for some reason, or is it people who believe they are Christians while not actually being Christians? If we look at the first verse of the above passage only (Heb 6:4), I believe the answer is quite clear. I believe that the author is talking about true Christians, and that this passage is a warning to us all regarding the testing of our faith.

The people being discussed have several qualities given them in verse 4, including “enlightened”, “having tasted the heavenly gift”, and “partakers of the Holy Spirit”. These three qualities alone (not including the additional ones in verse 5) paint a clear picture of a Christian.

First, they were “enlightened”. Enlightenment comes when God opens the eyes of a person to the magnitude of their sin, the holiness of God, and His righteous judgment which must come to all men. This enlightenment brings forth conviction in the heart of the enlightened. He finally sees himself as a sinner under God’s wrath, awaiting God’s judgment and his awaiting eternal death.

Secondly, they “have tasted the heavenly gift”. What is this gift from heaven which one tastes after being enlightened? I submit that this most precious gift from heaven is salvation. The conviction of enlightenment produced repentance which led to salvation.

2 Corinthians 7:10: For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.

If a person were merely enlightened, they would not automatically be saved. Salvation is a heavenly gift given to those who are both enlightened and have truly repented out of godly sorrow. Many people can be enlightened and know that they are sinners, and yet refuse to repent. I certainly qualified as one, as it took awhile for my enlightenment to actually produce the godly sorrow that I needed to truly repent. At first, I had a worldly sorrow that never led to my salvation. Praise God that He continued to convict my heart and soul!

Thirdly, they have become “partakers of the Holy Spirit”. They are not merely knowledgeable in the existence of the Holy Spirit. They don’t simply confess the Holy Trinity. They have become partakers of the Holy Spirit! The Greek word used here is “metochos”, which means to share in. Men can only share in the Holy Spirit once their spirits have been made alive through the heavenly gift of salvation! The Holy Spirit indwells us, and is a gift to all who believe!

Titus 3:5b: ...but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Ephesians 1:13-14: In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory

All true believers have been enlightened. All true believers have tasted of the heavenly gift. All true believers have become partakers of the Holy Spirit. These are three qualities that only apply to believers. No non-believer will ever be partakers of, or sealed with, or indwelt by, the Holy Spirit.

The writer of Hebrews then continues to give additional qualities regarding the people he is referring to, including “tasted the good word of God” and “[tasted] the powers of the age to come”. I believe that the author simply continues showing the progression of a Christian with these qualities. They “tasted the good word of God”, meaning they have desired it as a babe desires milk.

1 Peter 2:1-3: Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

They also have tasted “the powers of the age to come”. Not only do they know about, but they have tasted all the spiritual blessings given to believers! This is not to imply that they have all the miraculous gifts demonstrated by the Apostles and the early Church, but the powers of the age to come given to all who believe!

Ephesians 1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,

We have been elected, predestined, saved, given faith which endures, can pray without ceasing, and will be glorified on the day of the Lord Jesus! And that simply isn’t even a proper beginning list to describe all the powers of the age to come! How else can we truly obey the Lord Jesus, but by His spiritual blessings which He pours out upon His children.

Matthew 5:44-45: “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.

Now that we have established that the passages in Hebrews 6:4-8 refer to Christians, what does it mean to “fall away” in verse 6? Do not the Scriptures declare that once saved, forever saved?

John 10:27-29: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.

The Lord Jesus simply states that His sheep, who He gives eternal life, will never perish nor can they be snatched out of His hand. Ephesians 1:14, which is quoted above, tells us that believers are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession”. Once we are sealed; once we are His sheep, we cannot fall away, praise God!

Falling away, as implied by this passage, is the complete removal or undoing of what God has done for a believer. He strips him of the Holy Spirit and ceases giving His grace. God, who has begun a good work, simply stops. This falling away is not merely a believer falling into sin, from which He can “renew them again unto repentance”, but something much worse. Believers fall when they sin against God, but we do not fall away. I submit that believers can never “fall away”, as it makes God less than holy.

Philippians 1:6: being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

What God starts, He finishes. He completes every work that He begins! There are no exceptions given! Once you are a new creation in Christ. You simply cannot return to your old self.

2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Then why does the author mention “fall[ing] away” in verse 6? He uses verse 6 to show that if one were to “fall away”, they could never be saved again. Jesus Christ died to take away the sins of man, once and for all. Just as it is impossible for a believer to “fall away”, it is equally impossible for someone who has fallen away to be “renewed” again to repentance, or saved again.

Why? Simply put, it shows that Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was not enough to save the believer the first time, thus He must be crucified a second time to allow the believer to be saved again. Since Jesus Christ died once for all, He will not be crucified a second time. To believe otherwise puts Him to an “open shame”, since His word is no longer truth.

Romans 6:10: For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all, but the life that He lives, He lives to God.

Since Jesus will not be crucified a second time, and since believers cannot fall away, what is the purpose of this passage? I believe the purpose is two-fold.

First, it is a warning to all who profess Jesus Christ as Lord. As Christians, we are commanded to be holy, without blame (or spot), and righteous. Just as God demanded that the Israelites remained a pure people, separate from the world, so He demands the same of us. We fall, and He is gracious to renew us again to repentance. However, our entire goal is to be like Jesus Christ…to imitate Him. We should abhor our sins just as God Himself abhors them!

If, on the other hand, we find ourselves delighting in our sins there is a great cause for concern. If we begin lowering God’s standard so that we “feel better” about sinning, there is a great cause for concern. If we begin justifying our sins because we are “good enough”, or “deserve” them (deserving of evil?), there is a great cause for concern.

Thus we have a warning! If we find ourselves falling over and over, growing easier day by day, and aren’t renewed again to repentance, we must examine ourselves through the eyes of God. We must seek the Lord and ask the hard question of “Am I even saved?” We should fear sin in our lives, and hate it with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength! It’s not simply that “a little sin isn’t too bad”, but “any sin is horrific and an abomination to the Lord”, whom we profess to love.

2 Corinthians 13:5: Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?-unless indeed you are disqualified.

Secondly, we have one of the greatest reasons to offer up praises and thanksgiving to the Lord! We who examine ourselves and know we are in the faith, we who are Christians, and we who are the body of Christ can NEVER fall away! His promises to us are complete, unchanging, and forever! His grace is sufficient! By His grace we are saved!

As we encounter various trials throughout the days, let us remember what God has promised us! While the persecutions and trials can produce untold grief and sorrow, remember that we who are His will be His forever! When your mind is only focused on the burden, remember the salvation of Christ! It should bring forth a torrent of praise and thanksgiving! It should calm any storm, even if for but a little while. Simply tell yourself “I am His and He is mine”…forever.

So, I started on apostasy and ended up with praising God for not allowing believers to ever fall away. When I began looking into this, I certainly didn’t expect this. However, who am I to direct God? I am simply amazed at what He has shown me, and how different my worldly expectations were going into this. Of course, this is only Part I. Part II will cover 2 Timothy 3, and address apostasy more, Lord willing!

In Christ,
Ric