*Hebrews 9:13b / *Heb. 9:13b -
(Re: Will the manna to come sanctify the flesh and make us one with Jesus?)
Regarding the sanctifying of the flesh, note that even the animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant Mosaic law did that (Hebrews 9:13). And Christians who have repented from their sins and confessed them to God are already wholly sanctified in spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4; 2 Timothy 2:21; 1 John 1:9), so that even the flesh of their non-Christian spouses and children is already sanctified (1 Corinthians 7:14).
(See also 1 Corinthians 7:14 above)
Such Christians have already been sanctified by God the Father (Jude 1:1) and by God's Holy Spirit (Romans 15:16; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2) through their faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 1:2,30) and His suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (Hebrews 10:10,14,29, Hebrews 13:12), and through their faith in God's Word the Bible (Ephesians 5:26, John 17:17, Acts 20:32), just as even the meat which Christians eat is sanctified by God's Word (1 Timothy 4:5).
And because such Christians have already been wholly sanctified, they are already of one with Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:11), and already one with their fellow believers in the Word (John 17:20-21, Colossians 3:15-16). They are already one body joined to Jesus its head (Colossians 1:18, Ephesians 5:23, Colossians 2:19). They are one body through their faith in Jesus (Romans 12:5, Ephesians 4:4-5) and His sacrifice on the Cross for our sins (Ephesians 2:16), and through partaking of God's Holy Spirit and baptism (Romans 8:9b, Ephesians 4:4-5), and through partaking of the one bread/body of Communion (1 Corinthians 10:17), which bread/body is the true manna from heaven (John 6:31-38,51-58, Matthew 26:26-28; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 1 Corinthians 11:27-30).
--
*Hebrews 9:14 / *Heb. 9:14 -
Here the dead works (compare what Hebrews 10:22,2 says) would be any sin (Galatians 5:19-21, Romans 14:23b), not works of faith (James 2:24; 1 Thessalonians 1:3, Galatians 5:6b).
(See Ephesians 2:8 above)
--
*Hebrews 9:15-17 / *Heb. 9:15 -
This means that Jesus Christ brought the New Covenant of Jeremiah 31:31-34, 1 Corinthians 11:25, and 2 Corinthians 3:6 into effect at the moment that He died on the Cross for our sins (Matthew 26:28, Hebrews 12:24).
--
*Hebrews 9:23-24 / *Heb. 9:23 / *Heb. 9:24 -
This means that the blood of Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross was not placed on the earthly Ark of the Covenant, but on the heavenly Ark of the Covenant (in Revelation 11:19). The earthly Ark of the Covenant is only a shadow/copy of the heavenly Ark of the Covenant (Hebrews 8:5, Hebrews 9:23-24).
(See also the "Ark" section of Revelation 11:19 below)
--
*Hebrews 9:26 / *Heb. 9:26 -
(Once)
See Romans 6:10 above.
~
(*End)
Hebrews 9:26, like 1 Corinthians 10:11, saying that the "end" of the world had come in the first century AD is like someone today on a Friday evening saying that "the weekend is here!", in that both mean that multiple "days" have yet to come.
(See Hebrews 1:2 above)
~
(Re: Means that there are no aliens?)
See section 2 of Romans 6:10 above.
--
*Hebrews 9:27 / *Heb. 9:27 -
(Re: Means that no one can die a second time? Also, regarding Revelation 11:3 below, would this mean that Moses cannot die a second time, so that Gods' future, Two Witnesses will have to be Enoch and Elijah?)
Hebrews 9:27 is not meant to be taken as an absolute rule but as a general rule with some exceptions, like how, for example, Enoch in Hebrews 11:5 is an exception to Hebrews 11:13a. For it is possible for dead people to be resuscitated back to mortal life (for example, after dying on an operating table), only to die a second time sometime later. An example of a Biblical exception to Hebrews 9:27 is when Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:43-44). For Lazarus must have died a second time, perhaps decades later, because Jesus Himself was subsequently the first person to be raised from the dead to stay alive forever (1 Corinthians 15:20-23,52-54, Colossians 1:18b). And just as Lazarus died a second time, so Moses could die a second time during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 as one of God's future, Two Witnesses, who will be killed (Revelation 11:7).
Also, Enoch was translated so that he would not see death (Hebrews 11:5), not so that he would see death as one of God's future, Two Witnesses. Hebrews 9:27 does not mean that everyone has to die at least once, for some Christians will never die (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).
(See also Revelation 11:3 below)
~
(Re: Cannot God use anyone to perform miracles? So cannot he use Enoch?)
While God can use anyone, He still chooses to give certain people certain miraculous abilities (e.g. 1 Corinthians 12:8-10). It makes the most sense for God to have Moses and Elijah return as His future, Two Witnesses in order for them to cause the same types of miraculous plagues which they caused back in Old Testament times (Revelation 11:6,5, James 5:17, Exodus 7:20, cf. 2 Kings 1:10-12). Is there any record of God giving Enoch miraculous plague-causing abilities?
~
(Re: Means that everyone has to die at least once?)
See sentence 1 of section 1 of Hebrews 9:27 above.
Also, Elijah never died, but was taken bodily into heaven (2 Kings 2:11b).
Also, see paragraph 1 of 1 Thessalonians 4:15 above.
And the apostle Paul makes clear that not all Christians will die (euphemistically sleep) (1 Corinthians 15:51a), but all obedient Christians will become physically immortal (1 Corinthians 15:51b-53).
--
*Hebrews 9:28 / *Heb. 9:28 -
This does not mean that Jesus Christ will appear only to those who look for Him, but that He will appear "unto salvation" only for those who look for Him. For Jesus will "appear the second time" (Hebrews 9:28) at His future, Second Coming, when He will physically appear to everyone (Matthew 24:30, Revelation 1:7). Jesus Christ's Second Coming will not be secret.
(See 1 Thessalonians 5:2(space) and Acts 1:11 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:1-4 / *Heb. 10:1 -
The letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law was not (as is sometimes claimed) the foundation of Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross for our sins. For the animal sacrifices for sin of the temporary letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law were merely types and shadows of Jesus' New Covenant sacrifice, which completely and forever abolished them (Hebrews 10:1-23).
~
(Re: Were only the sacrifices a *shadow, so that we still have to keep the letter of the rest of the Old Covenant Mosaic law?)
No, for not only the animal sacrifices of the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law were a shadow, but other aspects of it as well, such as the letter of the only-one-day-a-week Old Covenant sabbath (Colossians 2:16-17), the spirit of which is continued perpetually in the every-day-of-the-week New Covenant sabbath rest which Christians enter by faith in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4:3a,10, Matthew 11:28-30, Luke 9:23). Because Christians are in Jesus Himself (Colossians 1:2), they are not under any part of His shadow (Colossians 2:17). They are not under any part of the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Romans 7:6; 2 Corinthians 3:6-18). Nor should they have any desire to ever place themselves under any part of it (Galatians 4:21-31). They should instead desire only the person of Jesus Himself (Philippians 3:8-9).
(See the "Law" section of Ephesians 2:15 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:2 / *Heb. 10:2 -
This means that worshippers of God under the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Hebrews 10:1) were not purged from their sins like Christian worshippers are (Hebrews 10:4-10).
--
*Hebrews 10:4 / *Heb. 10:4 -
This does not mean that it is impossible for Mosaic animal sacrifices in themselves to be holy before God (Romans 7:12), only that they cannot take away sins like Jesus Christ's sacrifice of Himself on the Cross can (1 John 1:7). Also, Hebrews 10:4 was true even back when the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law was still in effect, that is, even before it was abolished on Jesus' Cross (Ephesians 2:15-16, Colossians 2:14-17; 2 Corinthians 3:6-18). For all that the Mosaic animal sacrifices could ever do is ritually purify the flesh (Hebrews 9:13,10), never the conscience (Hebrews 9:9, Hebrews 10:1-4).
~
(Re: The Mosaic law cannot save people)
The letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law not only cannot save people (Hebrews 10:4, Galatians 2:21), it brings a curse and a fall from grace on even Christians who think that they have to keep it (Galatians 3:10, Galatians 4:21 to 5:8).
--
*Hebrews 10:9 / *Heb. 10:9 -
This means that all Christians, whether Jews or Gentiles, should stop trying to keep the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law. For Hebrews 10:9 means that on Jesus Christ's Cross, He took away the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Hebrews 7:18-19) so that He might establish the New Covenant (Matthew 26:28).
--
*Hebrews 10:10,14 / *Heb. 10:10 / *Heb. 10:14 -
(Once)
See Romans 6:10 above.
~
Hebrews 10:10-22, Hebrews 8:1-2, and Hebrews 4:14-16 show that even before 70 AD, Jesus Christ's blood shed during His Passion had already completed its work; and Jesus was already fulfilling His office as high priest in heaven, which fulfilling will continue forever (Hebrews 7:25-28; 1 Timothy 2:5). Also, Romans 6:14-15, Galatians 3:23-25, and Galatians 4:21 to 5:8 show that even before 70 AD the first Christians were not under the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law.
~
(*Sanctified)
Hebrews 10:10,14 means that the once-for-all-time offering of Jesus Christ's body on the Cross has sanctified and perfected Christians. But the perfect tense does not denote permanence. For example, if someone says in the perfect tense: "I have washed my child", this does not mean that the child has been made permanently clean. For after having been washed, the child can then wrongly employ his free will to go out and play in the mud. Similarly, spiritually-washed Christians (1 Corinthians 6:11) can wrongly employ their free will to go back to wallowing in the mire of sin without repentance (2 Peter 2:20-22; 2 Corinthians 12:20-21), to the ultimate loss of their salvation (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27; Luke 12:45-46). Also, the "forever" in Hebrews 10:14 does not denote a permanent perfection, but means that the once-for-all-time offering of Jesus is perpetually applied in the ongoing, and eternal, process by which Christians are "being sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14, see the original Greek tense), so long as they are repenting from and confessing to God every sin that they commit (1 John 1:9,7, Hebrews 10:26-29).
--
*Hebrews 10:17 / *Heb. 10:17 -
This applies only to all sins by Christians which have been repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9), not to any unrepented sins (Hebrews 10:26-29).
(See Hebrews 10:26 below)
~
Hebrews 10:17 is quoting from Jeremiah 31:34b, which shows that the New Covenant is made only with Israel (Jeremiah 31:31-34), who are the prophet Daniel's people: "my people Israel" (Daniel 9:20).
(See the "Tribes" section of Romans 11:17 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:18 / *Heb. 10:18 -
This means that repented and confessed sins, forgiven by faith in Jesus Christ's suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (Romans 3:25-26), need no subsequent sacrifice for them to remain forgiven.
--
*Hebrews 10:19-22 / *Heb. 10:19 -
See the "Sanctified" section of Hebrews 10:10 above.
--
*Hebrews 10:25 / *Heb. 10:25 -
One of the great things about online Christian forums like this one is that Christians can gather together here to "exhort one another daily" (Hebrews 3:13, Hebrews 10:25) in the form of writings about the truths of the Bible (2 Timothy 4:2); just as in the books of the New Testament, the apostles of Jesus Christ and their immediate followers exhorted their fellow Christians in the form of writings (1 Thessalonians 4:1, Hebrews 13:22; 2 Peter 3:1) about the truths given to the apostles directly by Jesus (2 Peter 1:16; 1 John 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 9:1, Galatians 1:11-12, Luke 1:1-2, Hebrews 2:3).
Going to a physical church meeting is also great, but not to sit as pew potatoes and watch an entertainment and lecture up on a stage, but to actively exhort each other (Hebrews 10:25b). So if we meet physically in groups, they must be small enough to where everyone will be required to contribute something spiritual to every meeting (1 Corinthians 14:26).
The beauty of house churches (Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19b, Colossians 4:15b, Philemon 1:2b) is that they are small enough to where everyone in the congregation can contribute something spiritual to every meeting (1 Corinthians 14:26).
~
(Re: Full preterism?)
See Hebrews 10:37 below.
--
*Hebrews 10:26-29 / *Heb. 10:26 -
This shows that Christians, who have been sanctified by Jesus Christ's sacrificial blood (Hebrews 10:29), which sanctification requires faith (Acts 26:18b, cf. Romans 3:25-26), can, after they get saved, wrongly employ their free will to commit sin without repentance (Hebrews 10:26). By doing this, these Christians are unwittingly trampling on Jesus and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29), turning the grace of God into lasciviousness (Jude 1:4), so that their ultimate fate will be worse than if they had never been saved at all (2 Peter 2:20-22). Even though Jesus' sacrificial blood is sufficient to forgive all sins (1 John 2:2), it actually forgives only the sins of Christians which are past (Romans 3:25-26), as in sins which have been repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9,7). Jesus' sacrificial blood does not remit unrepentant sins (Hebrews 10:26-29). So a Christian can ultimately lose his salvation if he wrongly employs his free will to commit unrepentant sin (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46).
Some Christians say that Hebrews 10:26-29 is not for Christians. But the immediate context of Hebrews 10:26-29 is Hebrews 10:25, which is addressing "we" Christians. Hebrews 10:25-29 is the same idea as Hebrews 3:13: Christians need to gather together and exhort each other so that no Christian will fall into any unrepentant sin. For any unrepentant sin will ultimately result in the loss of salvation (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46, Matthew 7:22-23, Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 2:20-22, Romans 8:13; 1 John 5:16, James 5:19-20).
One way that a Christian could come to desire to commit a sin without repentance would be if he finds a particular sin to be very pleasurable, so pleasurable and so fulfilling (in the short term) that he continues in it over time until his heart becomes hardened by the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13), to where his love for God grows cold because of the abundance of iniquity (Matthew 24:12), to where he quenches the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19), to where he sears his conscience as with a hot iron (1 Timothy 4:2), to where he becomes so infatuated with his sin that he can no longer endure the sound doctrine of the Bible (such as the doctrine of Hebrews 10:26-29), but instead latches onto a mistaken, man-made teaching which contradicts the Bible (2 Timothy 4:3-4), such as the mistaken teaching which assures Christians that there is no way that they can ever lose their salvation, even if they commit a sin without repentance.
~
(Re: So what is *repentance?)
Regarding repenting from a sin (Acts 8:22; 2 Corinthians 12:21, Revelation 3:19), that means to change one's mind regarding that sin, in the sense of having no plans to ever commit it again, knowing that God has made it possible for Christians not to sin (John 8:34-36, Romans 8:2-14, Romans 6:1-23; 2 Corinthians 7:1), even when they are tempted to do so (2 Peter 2:9a; 1 Corinthians 10:13, Matthew 6:13; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Romans 8:13, Galatians 5:16).
But if, sometime after repenting from a sin, Christians nonetheless wrongly employ their free will to commit that sin again, this does not mean that they had not previously repented from that sin, or that they as continued believers in Jesus Christ and His Gospel are not saved from hell. What they need to do is to repent from that sin again and confess it to God, and they will be completely forgiven (1 John 1:9, cf. Luke 17:4).
Satan wants Christians to fail to continue to come to Jesus Christ, to think that it is hopeless, that they are just too evil for Jesus, when in fact Jesus is waiting with open arms to forgive them for their sins, which weigh down on them so heavily (Matthew 11:28-30).
(See also the "Assurance" part of Philippians 2:13 above, and see Revelation 3:19 below)
~
(Re: Is that crucifying Jesus again?)
No, see the: "Is that crucifying Jesus again?" section of 1 John 1:9 below.
~
(Re: How can someone sin "without repentance" if he has repented at least once?)
See section 2 of 2 Peter 2:20 below.
~
(Re: Is Hebrews 10:26-29 referring only to a temporary punishment?)
No, see section 2 of Matthew 25:46 above.
~
(Re: Is Satan trying to deceive you into fearing that it is an eternal punishment and not just temporary?)
No, to the contrary; Satan would love to deceive Christians into losing that fear...
(See "for Satan knows" under Luke 12:4-5 above)
It is dangerous to give Christians the mistaken idea that the most that they could ever be punished by God would be only for a temporary time. For this idea...
(See "could lead some Christians" under Matthew 25:41 above)
~
(Re: So we have to carry the *burden of our sins across the finish line ourselves?)
No, there is no need for Christians to carry the burden of their sins anywhere. For Jesus Christ through His sacrificial blood frees Christians completely from the burden of their sins, the moment that they repent from them and confess them to Him (1 John 1:9,7).
~
(Re: Is salvation lost simply because someone cannot control his sinful feelings?)
Not necessarily, for no one who relies on Jesus Christ will ultimately lose his salvation based solely on a lack of control of sinful feelings. There also has to be a lack of repentance after willingly entertaining (e.g. Matthew 5:28) and/or acting out those feelings (Hebrews 10:26-29).
~
(Re: "Unwittingly" trampling?)
It is possible for a Christian to be unwittingly trampling on Jesus Christ and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (as in Hebrews 10:29) if this Christian has been taught incorrectly that grace means that no repentance from sins is necessary to remain saved ultimately from hell, and that Jesus' sacrifice covers unrepentant sins (instead of only sins which are past: Romans 3:25, as in sins which have been repented from and confessed to God: 1 John 1:9), so that this Christian has no idea that he is trampling on Jesus and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (as in Hebrews 10:29) by continuing to commit a sin without repentance (Hebrews 10:26).
Christians living in unrepentant sin can think that they are not "devoted to sin", but devoted to Jesus Christ. They can do wonderful works for Jesus in His name, even while they also have unrepentant sin in their lives (Matthew 7:22-23).
Christians can know the truth that they are sinning, but still not repent from their sinning due to them holding to the mistaken teaching described in the second paragraph above.
~
(Re: "Wilfully" = unrepentantly)
Hebrews 10:26-29 refers to sin which cannot be forgiven even through Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross because it is sin which is being continued in without repentance. It has not been placed in the past (Romans 3:25) as in repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9). So "if we sin wilfully" (Hebrews 10:26) means if we sin without repentance. It does not mean: "If we sin because we want to", for every Christian has sinned because he wants to (James 1:14-15). And yet his sins as a Christian can still be forgiven if he repents from them and confesses them to God (1 John 1:9), including during his daily prayers asking for forgiveness for his sins (Matthew 6:11-12, Luke 11:3-4).
~
(Re: Is the one sanctified in Hebrews 10:29 the Son of God?)
No, the one sanctified in Hebrews 10:29 is one of the "we" Christians who was sanctified (Hebrews 10:10).
~
(Re: Does the NOSAS -- the "not-once-saved-always-saved" -- view of Hebrews 10:26-29 mean that there is no hope for any Christian?)
It does not mean that because there is no fatalism for Christians in the sense of them having to lose their salvation. For even though it is probably inevitable that they are going to commit sin at least once in a while, after they have committed a sin they can immediately repent from it and confess it to God and be completely forgiven for it (1 John 1:9). It is only if they wrongly employ their free will to continue in a sin without repentance that they will ultimately lose their salvation from hell (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46).
--
*Hebrews 10:27 / *Heb. 10:27 -
This applies to unrepentant sinners of all times (Hebrews 10:26) and so refers to the future, Great White Throne Judgment and the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).
--
*Hebrews 10:32 / *Heb. 10:32 -
The original Greek word (photizo: G5461) translated as "illuminated" can mean "enlightened" (Ephesians 1:18).
The Greek word (athlesis: G0119) translated as "fight" can mean "struggle" (Strong's Greek Dictionary).
-
Next entry / Prior / Table of Contents
Dec 24, 2018
(Re: Will the manna to come sanctify the flesh and make us one with Jesus?)
Regarding the sanctifying of the flesh, note that even the animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant Mosaic law did that (Hebrews 9:13). And Christians who have repented from their sins and confessed them to God are already wholly sanctified in spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4; 2 Timothy 2:21; 1 John 1:9), so that even the flesh of their non-Christian spouses and children is already sanctified (1 Corinthians 7:14).
(See also 1 Corinthians 7:14 above)
Such Christians have already been sanctified by God the Father (Jude 1:1) and by God's Holy Spirit (Romans 15:16; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2) through their faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 1:2,30) and His suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (Hebrews 10:10,14,29, Hebrews 13:12), and through their faith in God's Word the Bible (Ephesians 5:26, John 17:17, Acts 20:32), just as even the meat which Christians eat is sanctified by God's Word (1 Timothy 4:5).
And because such Christians have already been wholly sanctified, they are already of one with Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:11), and already one with their fellow believers in the Word (John 17:20-21, Colossians 3:15-16). They are already one body joined to Jesus its head (Colossians 1:18, Ephesians 5:23, Colossians 2:19). They are one body through their faith in Jesus (Romans 12:5, Ephesians 4:4-5) and His sacrifice on the Cross for our sins (Ephesians 2:16), and through partaking of God's Holy Spirit and baptism (Romans 8:9b, Ephesians 4:4-5), and through partaking of the one bread/body of Communion (1 Corinthians 10:17), which bread/body is the true manna from heaven (John 6:31-38,51-58, Matthew 26:26-28; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 1 Corinthians 11:27-30).
--
*Hebrews 9:14 / *Heb. 9:14 -
Here the dead works (compare what Hebrews 10:22,2 says) would be any sin (Galatians 5:19-21, Romans 14:23b), not works of faith (James 2:24; 1 Thessalonians 1:3, Galatians 5:6b).
(See Ephesians 2:8 above)
--
*Hebrews 9:15-17 / *Heb. 9:15 -
This means that Jesus Christ brought the New Covenant of Jeremiah 31:31-34, 1 Corinthians 11:25, and 2 Corinthians 3:6 into effect at the moment that He died on the Cross for our sins (Matthew 26:28, Hebrews 12:24).
--
*Hebrews 9:23-24 / *Heb. 9:23 / *Heb. 9:24 -
This means that the blood of Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross was not placed on the earthly Ark of the Covenant, but on the heavenly Ark of the Covenant (in Revelation 11:19). The earthly Ark of the Covenant is only a shadow/copy of the heavenly Ark of the Covenant (Hebrews 8:5, Hebrews 9:23-24).
(See also the "Ark" section of Revelation 11:19 below)
--
*Hebrews 9:26 / *Heb. 9:26 -
(Once)
See Romans 6:10 above.
~
(*End)
Hebrews 9:26, like 1 Corinthians 10:11, saying that the "end" of the world had come in the first century AD is like someone today on a Friday evening saying that "the weekend is here!", in that both mean that multiple "days" have yet to come.
(See Hebrews 1:2 above)
~
(Re: Means that there are no aliens?)
See section 2 of Romans 6:10 above.
--
*Hebrews 9:27 / *Heb. 9:27 -
(Re: Means that no one can die a second time? Also, regarding Revelation 11:3 below, would this mean that Moses cannot die a second time, so that Gods' future, Two Witnesses will have to be Enoch and Elijah?)
Hebrews 9:27 is not meant to be taken as an absolute rule but as a general rule with some exceptions, like how, for example, Enoch in Hebrews 11:5 is an exception to Hebrews 11:13a. For it is possible for dead people to be resuscitated back to mortal life (for example, after dying on an operating table), only to die a second time sometime later. An example of a Biblical exception to Hebrews 9:27 is when Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:43-44). For Lazarus must have died a second time, perhaps decades later, because Jesus Himself was subsequently the first person to be raised from the dead to stay alive forever (1 Corinthians 15:20-23,52-54, Colossians 1:18b). And just as Lazarus died a second time, so Moses could die a second time during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 as one of God's future, Two Witnesses, who will be killed (Revelation 11:7).
Also, Enoch was translated so that he would not see death (Hebrews 11:5), not so that he would see death as one of God's future, Two Witnesses. Hebrews 9:27 does not mean that everyone has to die at least once, for some Christians will never die (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).
(See also Revelation 11:3 below)
~
(Re: Cannot God use anyone to perform miracles? So cannot he use Enoch?)
While God can use anyone, He still chooses to give certain people certain miraculous abilities (e.g. 1 Corinthians 12:8-10). It makes the most sense for God to have Moses and Elijah return as His future, Two Witnesses in order for them to cause the same types of miraculous plagues which they caused back in Old Testament times (Revelation 11:6,5, James 5:17, Exodus 7:20, cf. 2 Kings 1:10-12). Is there any record of God giving Enoch miraculous plague-causing abilities?
~
(Re: Means that everyone has to die at least once?)
See sentence 1 of section 1 of Hebrews 9:27 above.
Also, Elijah never died, but was taken bodily into heaven (2 Kings 2:11b).
Also, see paragraph 1 of 1 Thessalonians 4:15 above.
And the apostle Paul makes clear that not all Christians will die (euphemistically sleep) (1 Corinthians 15:51a), but all obedient Christians will become physically immortal (1 Corinthians 15:51b-53).
--
*Hebrews 9:28 / *Heb. 9:28 -
This does not mean that Jesus Christ will appear only to those who look for Him, but that He will appear "unto salvation" only for those who look for Him. For Jesus will "appear the second time" (Hebrews 9:28) at His future, Second Coming, when He will physically appear to everyone (Matthew 24:30, Revelation 1:7). Jesus Christ's Second Coming will not be secret.
(See 1 Thessalonians 5:2(space) and Acts 1:11 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:1-4 / *Heb. 10:1 -
The letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law was not (as is sometimes claimed) the foundation of Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross for our sins. For the animal sacrifices for sin of the temporary letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law were merely types and shadows of Jesus' New Covenant sacrifice, which completely and forever abolished them (Hebrews 10:1-23).
~
(Re: Were only the sacrifices a *shadow, so that we still have to keep the letter of the rest of the Old Covenant Mosaic law?)
No, for not only the animal sacrifices of the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law were a shadow, but other aspects of it as well, such as the letter of the only-one-day-a-week Old Covenant sabbath (Colossians 2:16-17), the spirit of which is continued perpetually in the every-day-of-the-week New Covenant sabbath rest which Christians enter by faith in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4:3a,10, Matthew 11:28-30, Luke 9:23). Because Christians are in Jesus Himself (Colossians 1:2), they are not under any part of His shadow (Colossians 2:17). They are not under any part of the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Romans 7:6; 2 Corinthians 3:6-18). Nor should they have any desire to ever place themselves under any part of it (Galatians 4:21-31). They should instead desire only the person of Jesus Himself (Philippians 3:8-9).
(See the "Law" section of Ephesians 2:15 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:2 / *Heb. 10:2 -
This means that worshippers of God under the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Hebrews 10:1) were not purged from their sins like Christian worshippers are (Hebrews 10:4-10).
--
*Hebrews 10:4 / *Heb. 10:4 -
This does not mean that it is impossible for Mosaic animal sacrifices in themselves to be holy before God (Romans 7:12), only that they cannot take away sins like Jesus Christ's sacrifice of Himself on the Cross can (1 John 1:7). Also, Hebrews 10:4 was true even back when the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law was still in effect, that is, even before it was abolished on Jesus' Cross (Ephesians 2:15-16, Colossians 2:14-17; 2 Corinthians 3:6-18). For all that the Mosaic animal sacrifices could ever do is ritually purify the flesh (Hebrews 9:13,10), never the conscience (Hebrews 9:9, Hebrews 10:1-4).
~
(Re: The Mosaic law cannot save people)
The letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law not only cannot save people (Hebrews 10:4, Galatians 2:21), it brings a curse and a fall from grace on even Christians who think that they have to keep it (Galatians 3:10, Galatians 4:21 to 5:8).
--
*Hebrews 10:9 / *Heb. 10:9 -
This means that all Christians, whether Jews or Gentiles, should stop trying to keep the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law. For Hebrews 10:9 means that on Jesus Christ's Cross, He took away the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law (Hebrews 7:18-19) so that He might establish the New Covenant (Matthew 26:28).
--
*Hebrews 10:10,14 / *Heb. 10:10 / *Heb. 10:14 -
(Once)
See Romans 6:10 above.
~
Hebrews 10:10-22, Hebrews 8:1-2, and Hebrews 4:14-16 show that even before 70 AD, Jesus Christ's blood shed during His Passion had already completed its work; and Jesus was already fulfilling His office as high priest in heaven, which fulfilling will continue forever (Hebrews 7:25-28; 1 Timothy 2:5). Also, Romans 6:14-15, Galatians 3:23-25, and Galatians 4:21 to 5:8 show that even before 70 AD the first Christians were not under the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law.
~
(*Sanctified)
Hebrews 10:10,14 means that the once-for-all-time offering of Jesus Christ's body on the Cross has sanctified and perfected Christians. But the perfect tense does not denote permanence. For example, if someone says in the perfect tense: "I have washed my child", this does not mean that the child has been made permanently clean. For after having been washed, the child can then wrongly employ his free will to go out and play in the mud. Similarly, spiritually-washed Christians (1 Corinthians 6:11) can wrongly employ their free will to go back to wallowing in the mire of sin without repentance (2 Peter 2:20-22; 2 Corinthians 12:20-21), to the ultimate loss of their salvation (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27; Luke 12:45-46). Also, the "forever" in Hebrews 10:14 does not denote a permanent perfection, but means that the once-for-all-time offering of Jesus is perpetually applied in the ongoing, and eternal, process by which Christians are "being sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14, see the original Greek tense), so long as they are repenting from and confessing to God every sin that they commit (1 John 1:9,7, Hebrews 10:26-29).
--
*Hebrews 10:17 / *Heb. 10:17 -
This applies only to all sins by Christians which have been repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9), not to any unrepented sins (Hebrews 10:26-29).
(See Hebrews 10:26 below)
~
Hebrews 10:17 is quoting from Jeremiah 31:34b, which shows that the New Covenant is made only with Israel (Jeremiah 31:31-34), who are the prophet Daniel's people: "my people Israel" (Daniel 9:20).
(See the "Tribes" section of Romans 11:17 above)
--
*Hebrews 10:18 / *Heb. 10:18 -
This means that repented and confessed sins, forgiven by faith in Jesus Christ's suffering and death on the Cross for our sins (Romans 3:25-26), need no subsequent sacrifice for them to remain forgiven.
--
*Hebrews 10:19-22 / *Heb. 10:19 -
See the "Sanctified" section of Hebrews 10:10 above.
--
*Hebrews 10:25 / *Heb. 10:25 -
One of the great things about online Christian forums like this one is that Christians can gather together here to "exhort one another daily" (Hebrews 3:13, Hebrews 10:25) in the form of writings about the truths of the Bible (2 Timothy 4:2); just as in the books of the New Testament, the apostles of Jesus Christ and their immediate followers exhorted their fellow Christians in the form of writings (1 Thessalonians 4:1, Hebrews 13:22; 2 Peter 3:1) about the truths given to the apostles directly by Jesus (2 Peter 1:16; 1 John 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 9:1, Galatians 1:11-12, Luke 1:1-2, Hebrews 2:3).
Going to a physical church meeting is also great, but not to sit as pew potatoes and watch an entertainment and lecture up on a stage, but to actively exhort each other (Hebrews 10:25b). So if we meet physically in groups, they must be small enough to where everyone will be required to contribute something spiritual to every meeting (1 Corinthians 14:26).
The beauty of house churches (Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19b, Colossians 4:15b, Philemon 1:2b) is that they are small enough to where everyone in the congregation can contribute something spiritual to every meeting (1 Corinthians 14:26).
~
(Re: Full preterism?)
See Hebrews 10:37 below.
--
*Hebrews 10:26-29 / *Heb. 10:26 -
This shows that Christians, who have been sanctified by Jesus Christ's sacrificial blood (Hebrews 10:29), which sanctification requires faith (Acts 26:18b, cf. Romans 3:25-26), can, after they get saved, wrongly employ their free will to commit sin without repentance (Hebrews 10:26). By doing this, these Christians are unwittingly trampling on Jesus and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29), turning the grace of God into lasciviousness (Jude 1:4), so that their ultimate fate will be worse than if they had never been saved at all (2 Peter 2:20-22). Even though Jesus' sacrificial blood is sufficient to forgive all sins (1 John 2:2), it actually forgives only the sins of Christians which are past (Romans 3:25-26), as in sins which have been repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9,7). Jesus' sacrificial blood does not remit unrepentant sins (Hebrews 10:26-29). So a Christian can ultimately lose his salvation if he wrongly employs his free will to commit unrepentant sin (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46).
Some Christians say that Hebrews 10:26-29 is not for Christians. But the immediate context of Hebrews 10:26-29 is Hebrews 10:25, which is addressing "we" Christians. Hebrews 10:25-29 is the same idea as Hebrews 3:13: Christians need to gather together and exhort each other so that no Christian will fall into any unrepentant sin. For any unrepentant sin will ultimately result in the loss of salvation (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46, Matthew 7:22-23, Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 2:20-22, Romans 8:13; 1 John 5:16, James 5:19-20).
One way that a Christian could come to desire to commit a sin without repentance would be if he finds a particular sin to be very pleasurable, so pleasurable and so fulfilling (in the short term) that he continues in it over time until his heart becomes hardened by the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13), to where his love for God grows cold because of the abundance of iniquity (Matthew 24:12), to where he quenches the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19), to where he sears his conscience as with a hot iron (1 Timothy 4:2), to where he becomes so infatuated with his sin that he can no longer endure the sound doctrine of the Bible (such as the doctrine of Hebrews 10:26-29), but instead latches onto a mistaken, man-made teaching which contradicts the Bible (2 Timothy 4:3-4), such as the mistaken teaching which assures Christians that there is no way that they can ever lose their salvation, even if they commit a sin without repentance.
~
(Re: So what is *repentance?)
Regarding repenting from a sin (Acts 8:22; 2 Corinthians 12:21, Revelation 3:19), that means to change one's mind regarding that sin, in the sense of having no plans to ever commit it again, knowing that God has made it possible for Christians not to sin (John 8:34-36, Romans 8:2-14, Romans 6:1-23; 2 Corinthians 7:1), even when they are tempted to do so (2 Peter 2:9a; 1 Corinthians 10:13, Matthew 6:13; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Romans 8:13, Galatians 5:16).
But if, sometime after repenting from a sin, Christians nonetheless wrongly employ their free will to commit that sin again, this does not mean that they had not previously repented from that sin, or that they as continued believers in Jesus Christ and His Gospel are not saved from hell. What they need to do is to repent from that sin again and confess it to God, and they will be completely forgiven (1 John 1:9, cf. Luke 17:4).
Satan wants Christians to fail to continue to come to Jesus Christ, to think that it is hopeless, that they are just too evil for Jesus, when in fact Jesus is waiting with open arms to forgive them for their sins, which weigh down on them so heavily (Matthew 11:28-30).
(See also the "Assurance" part of Philippians 2:13 above, and see Revelation 3:19 below)
~
(Re: Is that crucifying Jesus again?)
No, see the: "Is that crucifying Jesus again?" section of 1 John 1:9 below.
~
(Re: How can someone sin "without repentance" if he has repented at least once?)
See section 2 of 2 Peter 2:20 below.
~
(Re: Is Hebrews 10:26-29 referring only to a temporary punishment?)
No, see section 2 of Matthew 25:46 above.
~
(Re: Is Satan trying to deceive you into fearing that it is an eternal punishment and not just temporary?)
No, to the contrary; Satan would love to deceive Christians into losing that fear...
(See "for Satan knows" under Luke 12:4-5 above)
It is dangerous to give Christians the mistaken idea that the most that they could ever be punished by God would be only for a temporary time. For this idea...
(See "could lead some Christians" under Matthew 25:41 above)
~
(Re: So we have to carry the *burden of our sins across the finish line ourselves?)
No, there is no need for Christians to carry the burden of their sins anywhere. For Jesus Christ through His sacrificial blood frees Christians completely from the burden of their sins, the moment that they repent from them and confess them to Him (1 John 1:9,7).
~
(Re: Is salvation lost simply because someone cannot control his sinful feelings?)
Not necessarily, for no one who relies on Jesus Christ will ultimately lose his salvation based solely on a lack of control of sinful feelings. There also has to be a lack of repentance after willingly entertaining (e.g. Matthew 5:28) and/or acting out those feelings (Hebrews 10:26-29).
~
(Re: "Unwittingly" trampling?)
It is possible for a Christian to be unwittingly trampling on Jesus Christ and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (as in Hebrews 10:29) if this Christian has been taught incorrectly that grace means that no repentance from sins is necessary to remain saved ultimately from hell, and that Jesus' sacrifice covers unrepentant sins (instead of only sins which are past: Romans 3:25, as in sins which have been repented from and confessed to God: 1 John 1:9), so that this Christian has no idea that he is trampling on Jesus and His sacrificial blood and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace (as in Hebrews 10:29) by continuing to commit a sin without repentance (Hebrews 10:26).
Christians living in unrepentant sin can think that they are not "devoted to sin", but devoted to Jesus Christ. They can do wonderful works for Jesus in His name, even while they also have unrepentant sin in their lives (Matthew 7:22-23).
Christians can know the truth that they are sinning, but still not repent from their sinning due to them holding to the mistaken teaching described in the second paragraph above.
~
(Re: "Wilfully" = unrepentantly)
Hebrews 10:26-29 refers to sin which cannot be forgiven even through Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross because it is sin which is being continued in without repentance. It has not been placed in the past (Romans 3:25) as in repented from and confessed to God (1 John 1:9). So "if we sin wilfully" (Hebrews 10:26) means if we sin without repentance. It does not mean: "If we sin because we want to", for every Christian has sinned because he wants to (James 1:14-15). And yet his sins as a Christian can still be forgiven if he repents from them and confesses them to God (1 John 1:9), including during his daily prayers asking for forgiveness for his sins (Matthew 6:11-12, Luke 11:3-4).
~
(Re: Is the one sanctified in Hebrews 10:29 the Son of God?)
No, the one sanctified in Hebrews 10:29 is one of the "we" Christians who was sanctified (Hebrews 10:10).
~
(Re: Does the NOSAS -- the "not-once-saved-always-saved" -- view of Hebrews 10:26-29 mean that there is no hope for any Christian?)
It does not mean that because there is no fatalism for Christians in the sense of them having to lose their salvation. For even though it is probably inevitable that they are going to commit sin at least once in a while, after they have committed a sin they can immediately repent from it and confess it to God and be completely forgiven for it (1 John 1:9). It is only if they wrongly employ their free will to continue in a sin without repentance that they will ultimately lose their salvation from hell (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46).
--
*Hebrews 10:27 / *Heb. 10:27 -
This applies to unrepentant sinners of all times (Hebrews 10:26) and so refers to the future, Great White Throne Judgment and the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).
--
*Hebrews 10:32 / *Heb. 10:32 -
The original Greek word (photizo: G5461) translated as "illuminated" can mean "enlightened" (Ephesians 1:18).
The Greek word (athlesis: G0119) translated as "fight" can mean "struggle" (Strong's Greek Dictionary).
-
Next entry / Prior / Table of Contents
Dec 24, 2018
