26 For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
27 but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
28 Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”
31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings,
33 partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated.
34 For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
35 Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.
37 For yet in a very little while,
He who is coming will come, and will not delay.
38 But My righteous one shall live by faith;
And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.
39 But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.
“For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.” The offer of the sacrifice is there for all who will come. However, the sacrifice is only good for those who will come to it in faith. And the faith that is needed to come to it always produces fruit, not sin. This verse is not saying that one can fall away from the sacrifice. We have dealt with that in previous passage in other warning passages and so I will not deal with that here. Rather, what is being said is that if you go outside of Christ sacrifice there is no other sacrifice that can forgive sins. If you continue in sin that shows that the sacrifice of Christ has not been applied to you, other wise you would have continued in it. So if you continue in sin you have no hope of salvation because there is no sacrifice to cleanse you from your sins.
“Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?” Here the author again makes a lesser to greater argument. In the Old Covenant a man could be condemned by the testimony of two or three witnesses. There was no mercy for the one who broke the Law. If you did wrong according to the Law you were condemned – no questions asked. How much greater punishment do you think the person who tramples under food the Son of God will receive? He has regarded the blood of Jesus, the blood of the covenant, as unclean and has insulted the very Spirit of God that offers grace. He is worse than the Old Covenant sinner who was disobedient because this person has made Christ look like nothing. The great end of man is to make Christ look great. Man is to glorify God by making Him look supreme to all things. But the man who turns away from Christ makes Him look like dirt. If a great suffering came from disobedience in the Old Covenant, I would not dare consider how great the punishment would be for the one that made Christ look like nothing. “For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge His people.’ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
“But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.” Here the preacher brings to remembrance the good things the members of the congregation have done. They have not done wickedness. Rather, they have suffered for the sake of Christ and made Him look great by sticking to the faith even in the midst of trials. They suffered public humiliation for Christ name and endured it with joy. They took care of their own who were in prison for the faith and because of that they suffered loss of their possessions. And they did this with joy because they new that their hope was not in this world. He gives them a strong warning that if they fall away there is no hope for them, but he encourages them by reminding them of the faithfulness they have shown.
“Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” He pleads with them to not give us. Remain faithful because we have a great promise waiting on us. Have endurance and encourage those who are weak. “For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.” We have the greatest hope, the one who died for us will come to gather us up. All we must do is continue in faith and not shrink back, and this is the sort of faith we have – a faith to the preserving of the soul.
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