“Waymaker, miracle worker, promise keeper” … do you know that song? I thought of it while meditating on Hebrews 6, particularly the Promise Keeper lyric. The author mentioned how we can trust God’s promise. He wrote that the hope we have in God’s promise is so concrete that it is “an anchor for the soul” (Hebrews 6:19).
The author concludes Chapter 6 by encouraging us to believe God is a promise keeper. Yet, let’s start at the beginning of the chapter and work our way down. The chapter begins with the author encouraging us to graduate from the elementary principles of the faith. These foundational concepts are exceedingly important within our Christian belief, but the author called us to mature into greater knowledge.
The fundamental concepts of our faith are repentance and faith in God, baptism, laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal life (Hebrews 6:1-2). The author continues by saying, “We will do this if God permits.” (v.3). If we are professed believers of Christ, we should also believe and do these things.
The next section of this chapter is startling. Though debatable, what’s written next could be considered the unforgivable sin. The author says that there is a person who can't be renewed again to repentance. It is written that it is impossible for them to be restored. Admittedly, this may seem contradictory. Our God is loving, kind, patient, and faithful enough to forgive. But for this person, repentance cannot be offered.
Hebrews 6:4-6 tells us that if someone has been enlightened, received the Holy Spirit, and tasted the heavenly gifts of the word of God and the power of it, yet they fall away, they cannot be renewed again. The author states that their turning away is as if they have crucified Christ a second time and put the Son of God to an open shame all over again. We all war against the flesh and will fall occasionally. It’s inevitable.
However, this text refers to the one who once believed but now completely disregards Christ. It is for the one who rode on the heights of the land with God by having Christ as their Lord, experiencing Him as their savior, walking with Him as their Counselor, confessing Him as their love, and prioritizing Him as number one—and yet, walk away from Him. For this person, they are worse than the ones who spat on and crucified Jesus. They are worse because those who first crucified Christ were ignorant. They did not know Christ was Lord, nor did they experience God’s Spirit or power. But for the ones who have known God and experienced His power yet reject Him—they are left without the invitation to repentance.
It should be noted that some people backslide in their faith and can be renewed. This is because those who return never truly experienced God before they left. Unfortunately, many professed believers do not sincerely know Christ. So, redemption is still available for these individuals. May God reign as judge in determining who is and is not capable of being renewed again, and may we be careful in attempting to judge who this concept may or may not apply to.
The author continued the scripture on a positive note. He said, “But beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you” (Hebrews 6:9). In other words, the writer was confident that his audience would not fall into the category of those who fall away. Please be confident in this as well if you are in the Lord. Do not be confident in your ability to maintain salvation. Rather, be confident in God and His promise to keep you within salvation.
God made us a promise in Jeremiah 31:33-34 that applies to us today. He said, “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days says the LORD: I will put My laws in their minds, and write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” We don’t have to worry about remembering to do right or to keep God’s commands. He promised to internalize them. Also, we have the promised help of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus said in John 14:15-17 that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments, and He will pray to the Father to give us the Holy Spirit to abide with us forever. Christ said that Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. These are promises from God. God promised to help us. He promised to give us a way of escape to prevent us from falling (1 Corinthians 10:13).
The Hebrew author mentions God’s promise to Abraham as a reminder of God's faithfulness. We know that Abraham patiently waited on God and received the promise. But before Abraham received that promise, God solidified it. God guaranteed that the promise would be fulfilled. He did this by making a promise and then by making an oath.
The promise was made when God declared that he would give Abraham a child, but the oath was made when God swore by Himself that He would bless and multiply Abraham. The writer tells us that when someone makes an oath, they swear by someone or something greater than them to confirm their promise. But because no one and nothing is greater than God, He swore by Himself to fulfill the promise. God cannot lie, and He did not lie; therefore, Abraham received the promise of Isaac.
Likewise, this same God has promised us salvation and hope in Christ. Our High Priest reigns, sitting at God's right side, interceding on our behalf. This hope in Christ is the anchor of our souls. We can trust it because God promised it, and we have never witnessed Him lie. We can remain confident of receiving eternal life, not because we trust in ourselves but because we trust in God's promises.
And so, although life presents winds and waves that toss us, sometimes to the point of despair, we have an anchor: God, Our Promise Keeper. May we hold fast to His faithfulness as He holds fast to us, leading us and guiding us into deeper intimacy and knowledge of His power, sovereignty, and love. I pray this message has blessed you. May God keep you. Until next time, take care.
Quin Arrington here. I want to thank you for reading this week's Write On! Wednesday word. Browse the website for Christian Fiction & Nonfiction Books as well as Christian Apparel & Merchandise. The Now, That's A Word! YouTube Channel is here:
Have a blessed day!
I love that Anchor!!⚓️ Hallelujah! Blessed assurance!