Is it impossible to renew them again?

 Hebrews 6 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

The Peril of Falling Away

Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, ² of instruction about washings and laying on of hands, and the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment. ³ And this we will do, if God permits. 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, ⁵ and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, ⁶ 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. ⁷ 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; ⁸ but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.

⁹ 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 so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

¹³ For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, ¹⁴ saying, “I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.” ¹⁵ And so, having patiently waited, he obtained the promise. ¹⁶ For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. ¹⁷  In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, ¹⁸ so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take 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.

In today’s text the writer of Hebrews says:  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.    This is indeed a serious warning of the peril of a believer who falls away. It seems though that there are examples which would refute this statement, that it is impossible for them to be renewed again to repentance. In Luke 15:11-32, Jesus tells the story of the prodigal, the son who squandered his inheritance, yet came back to the father, truly repentant and was restored. We’ve seen and heard of many modern day church leaders who have fallen and have repented and been restored. Galatians 6:1 says:   Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.     As believers we should seek to restore one who has fallen, not casting judgment as if they indeed are beyond repentance.

There is perhaps a difference which the writer refers to. It is one thing to fall into sin. We all struggle with temptations and we all, at times fall into sin. Jesus paid the price for sin, once for all, on the cross. That means that through the cross every sin, past, present and future of every person is forgiven. 1 John 1:9 says:    If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.    The text though says:  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, ⁶ and then have fallen away…      These have not just fallen to sin, which is itself a serious matter, though one Jesus has provided for. These have actually tasted of the heavenly gift, and more importantly they have been partakers of the Holy Spirit, and it is not a temptation or sin they have fallen into, but rather it is the goodness of God, the blessings of His kingdom, the good word of God and the Holy Spirit Himself that they have fallen away from.   In truth no one can fall away from God or the Holy Spirit. God’s promise is that He will never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6) Jesus says, of the Holy Spirit:  “ I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever.” (John 14:16) So one does not fall away from God or the Holy Spirit; Rather a person must choose to walk away from them. Jesus Himself says:    “Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” (Matthew 12:31-32)     To deny or turn from the Holy Spirit, is to deny the very revelation of truth. Once someone has chosen a lie over the truth they have known, once they have chosen darkness over light, they walk in the darkness and the deception of their choice. Jesus Himself says:  “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” (John 3:19)

Surely it is not our place to make that judgment on the lives of others. We are, as it says in Galatians to seek to restore them. For any who question whether they themselves may have fallen away to the point of no return, if you question God’s goodness because you have failed to see His promises, if you question your faith because of your circumstance and experience, I would encourage you today not to fear that you have fallen too far. The very fact that you have a question is the Holy Spirit contending with your spirit. Do not mistake the conviction of the Holy Spirit about the fears and doubts, or the sin in your life for condemnation. The Holy Spirit does not condemn.     There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:1)     The story of the prodigal, which Jesus tells, is as much about the heart of the Father as it is about the repentance of the son. Look at what happens in Luke 15:20  So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. Verses 22-24 continue:   the father said  ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;  and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;  for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.       God the Father is watching and waiting. The Holy Spirit is calling and revealing the truth of God’s love and forgiveness. If you have not seen God for some time, it is not that He is far off. It’s not that you have fallen too far. Turn toward Him and He will run to you and restore you to all that He has for you. 

Here’s my prayer, His heart for you today      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPen1jQrlhU