Five Warnings in Hebrews, Part 3

The Danger of Deformity

1) Don’t let the New Testament truth slip away (Heb. 2:1-4). To the Christian - The Warning to Pay Attention to the information you once believed and now are rejecting.

2) The Danger of Doubting - Don’t harden your heart against the Holy Spirit (Heb. 3:7-19).

As we turn to the third warning found in the 2nd half of Chapter 5 & 6, it is interesting to note that the writer stops speaking about Christ being in the order of Melchizedek and not after the order of Aaron because of the hearers immaturity. The trouble is with the hearers, not with his subject.

Read Heb 5:11-14 - They are unable to take in this truth, and there was a reason for this condition. The reason which the third warning addresses.

3) The Danger of not going on to Spiritual Maturity. The Danger of Deformity due to Immaturity - A Warning against Turning Away – Don’t Degenerate from Christ. (Heb. 5:11-6:12)

5:11 States they used to be able to handle the truth but now they can not.

5:12 These believers had been learning for a long time and should be teaching others by this point.

5:13 They failed to apply the Epignosis they had. You can perceive and metabolize Bible doctrine all you want, but if you don’t apply it, it does you no good. This is the "Use it or Lose it" principal. This is the believer who had true doctrine, but can’t apply it to life’s situations. The believer knew and believed that Christ was superior. They knew that the age of the law is dead and the age of Grace is now in view, but they don’t understand why they can’t go back to their legalistic ways.

When you can’t use the doctrine you have to discern God’s word or His plan for your life, or discern the differences in the dispensational plan of God, you are either a spiritual newborn or believer in deformity at spiritual immaturity. That is the spiritual problem.

In Heb 6:1-8, we see what the spiritual truth for the problem is.

In Vs 1-3, the writer urges them to go on.

Whenever a chapter or verse begins with wherefore or therefore, stop and ask yourself: What is it there for?

Heb 6:1, tells the immature believer to move on from the basic’s of Bible doctrine to advanced doctrines. There is nothing wrong with the basics as a foundation, but once the foundation is laid you must move on.

Vs 1-2 tells us what those six foundational doctrines are they need to know, master, and move on from.

Six Foundational Doctrines:

a) Repentance from Dead Works – Rebound and Recovery from Human Good.

b) Faith Towards God – Faith Rest Drill

c) Baptism – Your Position in Christ Sealed by the Holy Spirit.

d) Laying on of Hands – Church Administration.

Turn to Acts 6:6 see footnote.

Acts 6:5, The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch. ⁶And these they brought before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them.

The laying on of hands was a formal sign of appointment to the service of Deacon. The rite indicates a link or association between the parties involved. Sometimes it was related to: healing (Mark 5:23) or the Imparting of the Spirit (Acts 8:17; 9:17; 19:6), or was a sign of ordination for special service (Acts 13:3; 1 Tim. 4:14).

e) Resurrection of the Dead – Our Confidence

f) Eternal Judgment – Motivation for the Believer and Unbeliever. Bema Seat and Great White Throne

As a result of knowing and applying these six foundational doctrines the believer will have five spiritual privileges noted in verses 4-5. These five privileges show us the sequence of God’s Grace:

Heb 6:4, For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

1. You become “enlightened” to the truth.

Heb 10:32, But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings,

Enlightened = Aorist, Passive of photizo - photisthentes = give light to, light, shine on; bring to light, reveal, make known; enlighten, illuminate (inwardly)

Aorist Tense Definition:

Aorist tense is used for simple action and looks at the action as a whole. This tense may also view the action from several other angles: the action in its entirety; from the viewpoint of its initiation, or from the viewpoint of its results. The aorist is a snapshot in time from various angles.

Constative – Views the whole and stress the fact of occurrence not its nature. ‘They reigned with Christ for 1000 years’, Rev 20:4.

Ingressive – Stresses the beginning of the action or entrance state. No implication that the action continues. “two blind men began to follow Him”, John 4:52.

Culminative – Stresses the cessation of an act or state. Bring an action to conclusion. ‘The temple was built 46 years ago’, John 2:20

Gnomic – Presents a timeless general fact. A generic event. “the grass withers and the flower falls off”, 1 Pet 1:24

Epistolary – Describes a letter from the timeframe of the audience. “I sent him to you once”, Acts 23:40

Futuristic – Describes an event that is not yet past, as though it were already completed. “believe that you have already received it”, Mark 11:24

Dramatic – an event that happened rather recently. “ Just as I previously wrote in part”, Eph 3:3

1. Enlightened = Aorist, Passive of Photizo

Next we have the Passive Voice Definition: The Passive Voice receives the action of the verb.

So your enlightenment happened at one specific time frame; the first time you accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior.

2 Cor 4:4, 6; Eph 3:9; 2 Tim 1:10

In addition, the word for “once” signifies something that is never repeated. Hapax = one (or a single) time (numerically or conclusively):- once.

Like in Heb 9:7,26; 10:2, 12:26

Heb 9:26; Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

So at one moment in your life you began to have a relationship with the Holy Spirit as He illuminated your soul to the truth - Common grace at the moment of your salvation.

Heb 6:4, For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

2. Tasted of the heavenly gift. geuomai = to taste; eat; figuratively to experience. A primary verb; to taste; by implication to eat; figuratively to experience (good or ill):—eat, taste.

Heb. 2:9, “But we see Jesus … that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”

Tasting in the Greek signifies holding something in common with someone else. It does not signify, as in our culture, tasting it and then refusing to partake of it.

The expression is derived from the fact that the “taste” is one of the means by which we ascertain the nature or quality of an object.

Matt. 16:28: John 8:51; Heb. 2:9.

Heb 2:9, But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

The proper idea here is, that they had “experienced” the heavenly gift, or had learned its nature. Christ partook of death for us completely so that we might partake of the gift of eternal life. God’s gifts and calling are without repentance so that we have eternal life as our possession. We hold this in common with Jesus Christ. His life became our life because He died our death for us.

This is the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit. Ensuring our salvation that is His Efficacious Grace.

Heb 6:4, For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

3. Have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit. “Partakers” - metochos = one who shares in, partner; companion, comrade. Also used in Heb 2:14; 3:1 and 14.

Heb 2:14, Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

Share in = Koinoneo.

The root word has the connotation of: to defile, make unclean. Man prior to salvation is defiled and unclean, yet we still have shared in the saving work of Christ. Christ becoming man shared everything that man is except our uncleanness, our Old Sin Nature (O.S.N.).

Now that Man has been made clean thru Christ, our relationship with the Holy Spirit is without defilement. Heb 6:4

1 Cor 5:7, Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed.

Heb 10:22, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

It signifies in these verses not just participation but rather the personal character that has been gained because of our vital companionship with Jesus Christ. Since He was like us, we now are like Him in character.

In order for us to partake of Christ, He 1st had to partake of us: be like us and suffer like us.

The personal character of the human race was: flesh and blood, body and soul, physical life and spiritual life.

To be partakers of the Holy Spirit is to have the personal character of the person governed by Him (i.e. to be regenerated, indwelt and filled with the Holy Spirit). We have what Christ had. Christ was governed and sustained by the power of the Holy Spirit. We have the same power available to us today.

1. Power Option: That being, the first power option and the first spiritual skill.

2. Power Option: Filling of the Holy Spirit & Metabolized Bible Doctrine.

3. Spiritual Skills: Filling of the Holy Spirit & Perception, Metabolization and Application of Bible Doctrine & Executing the Pre-designed Protocol Plan of God (P3G).

This person’s soul is under the divine guidance of God the Holy Spirit. Not the OSN. This is part of Logistical Grace. (God’s guaranteed promised provisions for man).

Heb 6:5, "and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,"

4. Have tasted of the good word of God. This again goes back to the word “taste” and in this case, you have achieved Doctrinal Orientation: by means of the Grace Apparatus for Perception (P.M.A.), through the consistent Perception, Metabolization and Application of Bible Doctrine, through the power of the filling of the Holy Spirit,

You have grown to the 1st stage of Spiritual Maturity (S.M.) based on the Word of God being inculcated to your Soul (P.M.A.), and are on your way or have achieved Spiritual Self Esteem (S.S.E.). You have fully functioned under the second Spiritual skill.

3 Spiritual Skills

1. Filling of the Holy Spirit

2. P.M.A. of Bible doctrine

3. Executing the P3G

Part of God the Holy Spirit’s Logistical Grace blessings.

Heb 6:5, “… and the powers of the age/world to come.” Or of the “coming age”

“The age to come” was a phrase commonly used by the Hebrews to denote the future dispensation, the times of the Messiah. The same idea was expressed by the phrases “the last times,” “the end of the world,” etc. which frequently occur in the Scriptures. They all denoted an age which was to succeed the old dispensation; the time of the Messiah; or the period in which the affairs of the world would be wound up; Isa 2:2

Isa. 2:2, Now it will come about that In the last days The mountain of the house of the LORD Will be established as the chief of the mountains, And will be raised above the hills; And all the nations will stream to it.

The word “powers” implies some extraordinary manifestation of the “power” of God. An unusual energy will be put forth to save people, particularly as manifested by the agency of the Holy Spirit on the heart.

Powers = the awakening and renewing energy which God put forth under the Messiah, the power of the Holy Spirit.

You had the power and opportunity to be saved. Based on the power of the Holy Spirit we have the opportunity today to gain Escrow blessings.

Escrow Blessings have two parts: blessings in time and blessings for eternity.

Blessings for eternity include the authority to rule with Christ during the Millennium and beyond. We have a power today which we can utilize to produce fruit which results in glorification of God and blessings for man. That same power will be used by God personally and through those reigning during the Millennial reign.

Escrow Blessings are part of God’s Surpassing Grace. Eph 2:7, "that in the approaching ages, he might demonstrate his Surpassing Grace riches in generosity toward us in Christ Jesus."

Surpassing Grace is the optimum in spiritual achievement. Surpassing Grace is the maximum place of blessing and reward, and the ultimate in glorifying Jesus Christ. Surpassing connotes something beyond. Beyond supergrace and beyond time.

There are two special blessing groupings in the Grace Plan of God.

a. Supergrace Blessings, the rewards and blessings in time.

b. Surpassing Grace, the special rewards for eternity for the mature believer only.

Surpassing Grace is the status of special blessings and rewards in eternity for the believer who breaks the maturity barrier. The daily function of the grace apparatus for perception (G.A.P.) is the key to breaking this barrier, James 1:25 cf 2:12-13.

James 1:25, But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

There are no Surpassing Grace blessings without the attainment of Super Grace blessings, 1 Cor 3:11-16. Surpassing grace is the status quo above and beyond ultimate sanctification, 1 Jn 3:2-3.

1 John 3:2. Beloved, we are now children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. ³And everyone who has this confidence fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

Surpassing Grace is the ultimate in glorifying God.

In Summary:

1. “You become enlightened to the truth”. Common Grace prior to and at the moment of your salvation.

2. “Tasted of the heavenly gift”. This is the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit. Ensuring our salvation, - His Efficacious Grace.

3. “Have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit”. This is part of Logistical Grace.

4. “Have tasted of the good word of God”. Also part of the Logistical Grace of God the Holy Spirit.

5. “and the powers of the age/world to come”. Surpassing Grace, the ultimate glorification of God.

All five privileges are in the Aorist tense which means they occur in a singular fashion and not in a repetitive way. They are also either in the Middle or Passive Voice which means the action occurs to you. You are not the one doing the action.

Passive Definition—Passive Voice represents the subject as receiving the action of the verb.

Enlightened – Photisthentas - photisthentas, of Photizo

Aorist/Passive/Participle: “SALVATION HAPPENED TO YOU’

Middle Deponent Definition—Middle Deponent applies to the voice of a verb when the verb is middle in form with an active meaning.

Tasted – geusamenous – geusamenous of geuomai

Aor/Mid/Participle: “YOUR ETERNAL SECURITY HAPPENED TO YOU”

Passive Deponent Definition—Passive Deponent is a verb that is passive in form but with an active meaning.

Made – genethentas - genethentas of ginomai

Aor/pass/Participle: ‘INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT HAPPENED TO YOU”

Middle Deponent - Tasted – geusamenous – feusamenous of geuomai

Aor/Mid/Participle: ‘YOUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND RESULTANT ESCROW BLESSINGS OCCURRED TO YOU,”

Then in Vs 6 we see the contrast and our warning in the Aorist/Active/Participle of Parapipto.

Parapesontas – parapesontas = To fall beside a person or thing, to slip aside, to deviate from the right path, turn aside, wander, to error, to fall away (from the true faith): from worship of Jehovah.

Now lets go back to Vs 4 which begins with GAR = “for” a conjunction particle used to give an explanation of why we must go on.

The context before is speaking about babyhood and wasted years. The only thing they can do is go on.

Then the context following this verse gives an illustration of wasted years of the land bringing forth thorns and briers (6:7-8). We cannot go back and do anything about past failures. The only thing that can be done is go on and bring forth good fruit this year. If we dwell on the past, we will have no future.

And our word "gar" is a warning. And what’s that warning? It’s the second word in the Greek "it is impossible" (vs.6) - Adunatos - in the Accusative case. The case of general reference. Heb 6:4

Adunatos- Adunatos = impossible because of being unable or weak.

In fact the word Adunatos in the accusative case is the subject of an infinitive in the Greek; however, There is no infinitive until Vs 6.

Anakainizo - pres/act/infinitive = Renew. Which all simply means that the word impossible has as its direct object the word Renew or Restore. The writer of Hebrews says it is impossible to renew or restore a certain class of believers, which he is about to describe.

Heb.6:6 "it is impossible to renew them again" (or to restore them again) It means to be restored from backsliding.

And so our warning is to teach us the impossibility of recovering from backsliding under certain conditions. It is impossible to recover from backsliding under certain qualifying circumstances.

Now immediately when you hear this you should know something... To make an absolute dogmatic statement in the indicative mood such as... it is impossible to recover from "backsliding" or "falling away" is wrong. In fact, There is not one indicative mood in this whole sentence.

This sentence is saying it is impossible to recover from backsliding under certain conditions. The certain conditions are..."lifestyle activity". Now even with positive volition toward doctrine, which has been emphasized in our passage ... Positive Volition Toward Doctrine (PVTD) does not do the job alone!

PVTD is the solution to backsliding and the only way to advance to spiritual maturity, but there is something that can keep you from going forward. Even though you say you're positive - Even though you claim you love doctrine - Even though you hear it consistently - Even though, something that you do hinders Bible doctrine from having an affect upon your life... and that something is called "lifestyle". And when I say lifestyle I’m not referring to carnality as sin only... I'm also referring to superficiality, hypocrisy, mundanity "routine", Prov.20:25

Prov 20:25, It is a trap for a man to say rashly, “It is holy!” And after the vows to make inquiry. (States it then doubts it!)

Lifestyle can keep you from going forward and reaching spiritual maturity, and one of the principles that this passage will bring out is that... "lifestyle isn't worth it!" There are certain things you do in life. There are certain functions in your life. Some of them are sinful; some of them are not. But...all together, it would add up to a vicious operation.

In our passage it's not "sinful" activity that hinders recovery; it's religious activity! Religious activity portrays a great insult toward the Lord Jesus Christ. Now if you have an immoral lifestyle, just because you come to Bible class doesn't mean you're going to make it! Many come to Bible class every chance they get but their lifestyle holds them back!

There are also things you could do that are religious and self-righteous that hold you back. You can be loaded up with self-righteousness and human good and never make it.

"lifestyle is your enemy". And this is why in Vs 4-6, God the Holy Spirit is mentioned so frequently.

God the Holy Spirit breaks up the pattern of lifestyle. Through Him you accomplish the third floor of the Edification Complex of the Soul, Mastery of the Details of Life.

So Gar = For, sets up those 5 participles that are very vital in understanding our passage and says “here is the sentence that explains everything”.

Some of you say, "I have no fruit."

Others say, "Doctrine doesn't work."

Others say, “Bible doctrine is not that important!”

Well, here is a sentence that tells you why doctrine may not be working for you. You can be positive toward doctrine and not make it to spiritual maturity. You can have a lifestyle that makes it impossible to ever recover from backsliding. And that lifestyle doesn't necessarily have to be sinful. It could be impossible for you to ever recover from backsliding if you are filled with human good or religion or if you are a moral degenerate.

You could use 1 Jn.1;9 to prolong the completion of the sin unto death.

1 Jn.1:9 could take the heat off occasionally but... Rebound is not enough and Rebound isn't going to get you anywhere when you keep up a certain lifestyle.

And so the real subject of Vs 4 - 6 is that certain "lifestyle" that makes it impossible to recover from backsliding or apostasy. It is impossible for a believer who is living in immorality or moral degeneracy to know a thing about the Christian way of life. Therefore, "impossible" to ever be a normal believer.

A normal believer or a normal Christian life is spiritual maturity.

The normal Christian life is the Royal Priesthood.

The normal Christian life is Spiritual Self-Esteem

The normal Christian life is Spiritual Autonomy.

Wealth, success, prosperity, phenomenal spiritual and materialistic blessings are a part of the normal Christian life. Living in royalty is the normal Christian life. And yet many believers will never be anything but abnormal in the Angelic Conflict as long as they live. Not because you are not positive toward doctrine but because of lifestyle. Something in your lifestyle keeps you, not only from the intake of doctrine, but from Metabolization and Application with resultant Divine Good Production.

You need the Balance of Residency in your lifestyle to avoid the warning. B.R. = Max. Bible Doctrine in your Soul ready for application, plus the filling of the Holy Spirit. B.R. = M.B.D./S.R.4.A. + F.H.S.

Our objective is to find out what it is that keeps us from spiritual maturity when we expose ourselves consistently to doctrine.What did you have in the 1st four participles, which are translated...- Enlightenment - Tasting salvation - Partakers of the Holy Spirit - Tasting doctrine and the powers of the ages to come. You had:- Enlightenment, passive voice - tasting salvation, middle voice - partakers of the Holy Spirit, passive voice - tasting doctrine and the powers of the ages to come, middle voice. And that's when you were doing well. Everything was fine.

Then it's that active voice that blew it. The active voice is falling away. And if you are in this state, we see the next word used here repentance.

Repentance - Metanoias metanoias = Repentance to initial salvation. This is always used in the New Testament of initial repentance to salvation.

Metamellomai – metamellomai - Repentance = restoration to fellowship.

Next the use of the word “again” is significant. It is impossible to renew a saved person “again to initial repentance” unto salvation, simply because he is already saved.

“again” shows a prior experience. In this case a prior experience of salvation. Speaking to the fatality of their way going back to legalism/Religion.

So then we have the Illustration of the Principle in 6:7-8. The land is not burned, but the fruit of the land is if it is thorns and briers.

1 Cor. 3:11-15, So all will be brought out at the Judgment Seat of Christ. It is not the believer who is burned, but his works that are rejected do to production under human power. We cannot erase the record of last year’s thorns. Therefore, let us go on and by the grace of God this year produce a good crop that will glorify the Lord.

So the Spiritual Action of the believer is found in Heb 6:9-20, But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way. ¹⁰ For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints. ¹¹ And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, ¹² that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises . . . . ¹⁸ in order that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, we who have fled for refuge in laying hold of the hope set before us. ¹⁹ This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, ²⁰ where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

Your Part: Things that accompany salvation. (6:9-12)

God’s Part: Immutable, steadfast promises. (6:13-20)

The exhortation is to us: Phil 3:13-14 “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus”

The prospects are as bright as the promises of God. Not one word has ever failed. Therefore, let us go on …..

See: 5 Warnings in Hebrews, Part 4 – Danger of Despising

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Grace Fellowship Church, Pastor James Rickard.
All Rights Reserved.