Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
Fall of Creation
Hebrews. 6:1-8We do not know who authored the book of Hebrews; but the author understood the Old Testament principles and also the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Savior, very well. It was written to Jews who became Christians, but were wavering in their faith and commitment to Christ due to persecution and doubt. They questioned the necessity of Christ for salvation and looked for other ways for establishing a relationship with God. Some of them were not matured Christians, as their faith was not rooted in Christ. Hebrews 5:11-14, speaks about the spiritual immaturity and it warns against “falling away”. Their spiritual difficulties were compared to an “infant-like” or “immature walk”. In Hebrews 6:1-2, we could see six basic elementary teachings about Jesus, to become a matured Christian. Just as food and milk are needed for a child’s physical growth, these are the basic principles needed for our spiritual growth.
(1) Vs.1. Repentance from acts that lead to death; repentance from dead works; repent and turn away from sin and become a new creation in Christ.
(2) Vs.1. Faith in God; walking in faith; faithfulness toward God. Establish a faithful relationship with God through Christ.
(3) Vs.2. Instruction about baptisms; instruction about washings. Baptism symbolizes the forgiveness of sins that comes through faith in Jesus. It is a requirement for admission into most denominations.
(4) Vs.2. The laying on of hands. It refers to the laying on of hands to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 8:17, we read, “Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit”.
(5) Vs.2. The resurrection of the dead. This refers to the hope of the resurrection of the believers as a result of Christ’s resurrection. (6) Vs.2. The eternal judgement; Final judgement. It shows that Jesus will return to judge all unrighteousness. Hebrews 10:30-31, makes it clear that, “the lord will judge his people. It is a terrifying thing to fall in the hands of the living God”. In Revelation 3:19, we see that God will discipline the people He loves.
For long we have blamed Adam and Eve for our sins too, as the “Original Sin” took place in the Garden of Eden; but in Romans 3:23-4, we read that, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by the Christ Jesus”. Adam and Eve were not created as robots. God did not tempt them, but Satan disguised as a serpent did. Adam and Eve were given the free will to choose, just as we are also given the freedom to choose. Hebrews 6: 4-6, talks about people who have gone back to their old ways of living after repenting, believing and accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. The problem is apostasy; that is “an act of refusing to continue to follow, obey, or recognize a religious faith”. Many of us have become Christians by our birth, but we all are expected to make a personal commitment by accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior is to be “born again”. There is not much that can be done to save the people who drift away after they make a personal commitment to Jesus. Alexander Pope said, “To err is human; to forgive divine”. In Ephesians 2:8, we read that, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith”. So the act of “saving” is God’s prerogative. He knows our hearts. In 1 Timothy 4:1, we read that, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons”. Hebrews 3:12, “See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God”. If a person willfully falls away from Jesus, he has nowhere else to turn to be absolved from his sins. Even though it is impossible for a human being to be perfect, striving to “go on to maturity” is what is expected of us. Just as a child matures naturally when a child gets food, rest, exercise, education, enough love etc., factors like, knowledge of the scriptures, obedience, time etc., are needed for the spiritual growth. Hebrews 6:4-6 makes it clear that, if people who were once enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, tasted the word of God and tasted the powers of the age to come, and have become partakers of the heavenly gift and partakers of the Holy Spirit, fall away, “they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace”. Hebrews 7: 27 makes it clear that, “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself” and I Peter 3: 18, states that, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God”.
Prayer
Lord help us to live according to Your word and will so that we will not be guilty of crucifying You all over again. Amen.
Thought for the Day
Our gracious and merciful Lord is like a shepherd, who left his 99 sheep in search of the one that was lost. We still have hope. Keep the hope alive.
Alex Thomas
Jackson, TN