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Previously, we looked at the promises made by God for the sake of His believers. Now, we answer the million dollar question: can a Christian fall away from faith, and lose salvation?

I'm going to start with a favorite in theology debates: Hebrews 6. The context starts in 5:11-14, where the writer chastises his readers for still being on the elementary teachings. Unlike Paul in 1Cor., the writer seeks to press on to the meatier teachings in 6:1-3. We then see the warning:

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, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.

For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.

But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way. Hebrews 6:5-9.

Does this refer to actual Christians? Does this mean one can fall away from faith? By extension, does one lose salvation? There is a lot of contextual baggage to consider, so I'll break this down point-by-point.

v. 4a: For in the case of those who have once been enlightened...

What does it mean to be enlightened? Elsewhere in Hebrews, we see: But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings... Hebrews 10:32. Here the term is applied to the Christians the Hebrews writer is addressing. At the very least, the people refered to in 6:4 had been "enlightened," or taught the truth, in the same way as Christians are.

There is, also, an implication here that this isn't hypothetical, but the writer has in mind specific people in mind (i.e., "in the case of those who" rather than "if...")

v. 4b: ...and have tasted of the heavenly gift...

"Heavenly gift" could refer to a number of things, though it most likely refers saving grace (cf. John 3:27 in context, Eph. 2:8... though I'd be cautious about applying Johannine or Pauline concepts to Hebrews). To taste in Hebrews, however, doesn't carry a connotation of merely testing the flavor and spitting without swallowing, as some suggest; In Heb. 2:9, we are told Jesus "tasted" death. Certainly, Jesus didn't just sample death and not actually die.

v. 4c: ...and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, ...

In Heb. 3:17, we are told that we are "partakers" in Christ, referring to Christians (the writer includes himself in "we"). Thus, this doesn't refer just to seeing the work of the Spirit, or merely being drawn by Him, but were indwelt by the Spirit as Christians are, just as Christians are partakers in Christ. Hebrews 6:4-6 refers to Christians.

v. 5: ...and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, ...

On "tasted," see above. The word of God refers to the salvation message (though some may receive the gospel yet not believe, so this is by no means conclusive). The the age could refer to either the Messianic age (the one we are in now), or the Age after Judgement. I take the latter view, but there is room to take the former. I don't consider this conclusive either.

V. 6a: ...and then have fallen away, ...

To fall away from something implies that one used to be "in something" but isn't anymore. Following the flow of the passage so far, it is likely that falling away from Christ or faith is in view. I believe the next clauses make this clear...

v. 6b: ...it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, ...

Some may argue that this doesn't mean to fall from faith or salvation, but only that one cannot repent again. This has led some to believe this isn't speaking of losing salvation, but losing any rewards at Judgement (they draw a parallel from 1Cor. 3:10-15). However, in light of John 15:1-8 and the Semitic Totality Concept, such a person might as well not be saved, since repentance and faith go hand in hand (like how works and faith go hand in hand). Indeed, in the Gospels and Acts, repentance is often linked or else treated as equivalent to belief: Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel." Mark 1:4-5. Jesus, answering why He was hanging out with "sinners," said, "It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." Paul, mentioning his teaching to elders of the Ephesian church, said that he had been "solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." And in light of the Greek, this makes sense, because "to repent" literally means "to change one's mind." To come to saving belief in the gospel, one must change their minds about past beliefs and actions which conflict with the gospel message.

v. 6c: ... since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.

This is probably the clearest indication that these people are no longer saved. Hebrews makes the same point over and over, that Christ died only once for our sins. For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. Christ, now are high priest, died once and for all, so that further sacrifices for sin no longer necessary. And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him. Hebrews 9:27-28. Christ was offered once, so there is now only one sacrifice for sin.

Therefore, there is no longer atonement for sin for those who crucify Christ to themselves again, because only the One Sacrifice of Christ actually saves. Instead of being atoned for by Jesus' blood, these people become as though they were responsible for Christ's death and shame themselves! Personally, I can see no way to reconcile this clause with the idea -- which some hold -- that these fallen Christians are simply saved without rewards. Can those who crucified Christ be saved, if they don't repent?

vv. 7-8: For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.

The imagery here is parallel to imagery in the Gospels of fruit bearing and burning "the chaff." In John 15:1-8, Jesus warns that those who don't abide in him (and don't bear fruit) will be taken away and burnt. "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; ... If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned." John 15:1-2,6. Similar to here, the imagery of burning the field above points to eternal condemnation. (Some may respond by citing 1Cor. 3:10-15; however note that the work itself is being burned in 1Cor. 3. Here, the grammar suggests the field itself is being burned. This is considerably more parallel to the hellfire imagery in the Gospels than the purification flames in 1Cor.)

v. 6:9: But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way.

I've seen this cited as a reason to believe that 4-6 do not apply to real Christians, because the writer showed confidence in regards to the Christians he is now writing to. However, according to Zondervan, "Expressing confidence in an audience or recipients of a letter was a rhetorical device used to create a sense of obligation or to persuade those addressed to take a course of action."¹ Hence, it was more of a challenge to persevere. It would be like sending an email to all the residents in a college dorm, saying, "Now, we know none of you download mp3's illegally..."

Now then, after dredging through that mess of an exegesis, I'm going to move on to an easier text. But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith,... 1 Timothy 4:1. You may be thinking, "by golly! Why didn't you just quote that before?" I don't know, I guess I like to do everything the hard way. Here, Paul makes a clear, unambiguous statement that some will fall away, and not just fall away, but from "the faith." The fact he starts with the phrase, "the Spirit explicitly says..." indicates that Paul here is not trying to be elusive, but stating something that should be clear and obvious. Thus, attempts to explain away the passage should be consider dubious (well, any attempt to explain away a trouble passage without really addressing what it says should be dubious, but this case especially). These people will fall away (again, implying that the set aside something the used to have), from "the faith" (the definite article, "the," may color the interpretation a bit, but the meaning is more or less clear, that they were faithful, authentic adherents to Christianity, but not anymore). To set aside the faith, though which we are saved, is to set aside potential salvation.

There is also a case to be made from passages that challenge us to persevere in the faith. I touched lightly on Romans 8:17 earlier, but we also have passages like 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 (NET), Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. Notice the qualifier in the middle of v. 2: ...if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you.... Also see Heb. 3 and Matt 24:13. Quite often in scripture, we see such passages, where although we are assured salvation, it is said we must persevere to be saved. This, I believe, is a stake in the heard of OSAS (Once Saved Always Saved, a popular view in pseudo-Arminian groups which is similar to Calvinism's Perseverence of the Saints). The problem here is that if we have free will, how is it possible that each and every person who comes to authentic faith could all never lose salvation. After all, it is at least possible that if I have free will, that I freely chose to walk away from God and throw away salvation. Even if the probability is remote, we have a large enough sample (over 1 billion Christians now, and millions more over the past 2000 years) that thay probability is likely to actuallize, and quite often so.

Where these passages fit in here is that they make salvation contingent on not only grace and faith, but also perseverence in that faith. Thus, how can no Christians over all of history have ever fallen away? The only way I see the adherent of OSAS to keep their OSAS consistent here is to adopt a Calvinist view where man has no say whatsoever in his salvation, and that it is God "controls" man such that he is incapable of falling away. The OSAS adherents must either give up OSAS, free will, or Biblical coherency. In the Calvinist view, unconditional security makes perfect sense; however even Perseverence of the Saints is predicated on the above view that God unilaterally controls salvation. In a way, my earlier arguments against Irresistable Grace and Unconditional Election also undermines the foundation on which the Calvinist doctrine of Perseverence must rest. Thus, both the adherents of OSAS and of Perseverence of the Saints are in trouble here.

With all these concerns sorted out, a good summary of the Arminian position on perseverance is this: (1) One must have faith, and remain in faith, to be saved; (2) God has given us sufficient blessings, that one may not fall away except by an obstinate, intentional choice of the will, (3) that it is possible to fall away from faith and thus salvation, (4) if one falls away, they cannot be returned to salvation, and (5) some will fall away from faith and salvation.

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Notes and Citations:

1. Clinton E. Arnold, ed. "Further Encouragement." Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary. vol. 4. p. 39. Zondervan. Grand Rapids, MI. 2002.