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.

This passage is so important to the message of the book of Hebrews that we need to solidify its meaning. Rather than presenting the possibility of a Christian losing his salvation, which some in “Christendom” today believe, this passage says precisely the opposite. The writer makes his case subtly, and in the context of the entire book, very poignantly. Let us make one additional observation and then provide a summary.

The phrase “it is impossible” (found in our English translation in verse 5) actually occurs in the original Greek at the beginning of the sentence (verse 4). Scholars tell us that Greek writers tend to move words forward in the sentence for emphasis. It is as though the writer were presenting the case of a genuine Christian falling away from Christ and being renewed at the expense of another crucifixion of Christ, but negating the whole proposition from the beginning.

A contemporary example of this is when a person today might make a statement, then pause, and finally add the word, “Not.” This is a dramatic way of negating something. The writer to Hebrews is doing likewise, but putting the negation first. Therefore, the whole scenario is impossible to begin with.

Let me paraphrase what I believe God is telling us through the pen of the writer to the Hebrews: “I want to tell you about the superiority of Christ over the Levitical priesthood by explaining His being part of a new order, the Melchizedekian priesthood. But you are not mature enough yet because you are hung up on basic stuff. You actually think a genuine believer can lose his salvation. Excuse my satire here, but if that were possible, then the only way to win that person back to repentance would be to crucify Christ all over again. That’s absurd. You see, if Christ’s death were not sufficient for even the erring believer, no matter how badly he errs, then there is no hope for him any other way. To crucify Christ again would make a sham out of His “first” and only crucifixion. However, Christ’s sacrifice was perfect and was once for all. So, let me tell you from the beginning in no uncertain terms that this hypothetical scenario is impossible. So let’s move on from the crazy notion that a Christian can lose his salvation. You have better things to do with your redeemed life.”