You might want to re-read this Hebrews scripture once again. and not be in a rush to draw hasty conclusions. It does require a little thought.
1.If you think that only true repentance means commitment and the gift of God is bestowed on a person, then you are clearly mistaken. I clearly disagree with you and so does scripture. Regardless, it suggests that his repentance was in vain, he did it with a heart for the law not Christ.
2. 'Crucifying Christ on the cross again' means a false and empty repentance and no commitment to Christ for those still under the law. He faked it all the way. He believed in the law. And for someone under the law then to try and to repent again is like re-crucifying Christ all over again. Christ would have to die again for him to grace and away for the law. Quite, a simple concept to grasp I would think.
This person in question NEVER accepted Christ, he went back to the law.
APAK
Haha. See, this is why we have so many different denominations and theological beliefs. I can look at the whole thing in a completely different light and wonder how in the world anyone else can't see it that way.
Anyway, repentance is a huge topic. What does repentance mean? In its simplest form, it basically means a change in mind or mentality. Changing from focusing on things that are not from God to fixing your eyes on Jesus. Don't forget that it
is part of the process, though. Peter said:
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
So yeah, it
is a part of the initial acceptance of salvation. In Heb. 6, it's clear that the subject had already experienced repentance, and they had already experienced the crucified Christ. That's why it uses the word "again" twice. It's not really your place to judge whether they were sincere or not, and the contextual evidence points toward sincerity. I'll explain why I see it that way. Verses 4-6 are purely hypothetical. He isn't speaking to people who have fallen away. Verses 4-6 are a warning to the people he actually is speaking to, which are Christians that he is admonishing to mature in the Lord. It's pretty obvious that, in context, he is speaking to Christians who need spurred on. So why in the world would he slip an example of people who weren't sincere and who had no chance into a passage that is exhorting sincere Christians? It just doesn't make sense.
It's an interesting discussion, but I'm smart enough to know that neither of us will change the other's mind. The main thing that matters is that you and I both have confessed that Jesus is our Lord, and we believe that God raised Him from the dead. We're both saved, and that's the main thing. So I can love you, even if we disagree. :)
takes a while to reconcile (hey, that rhymes) with the other language, the "don't bother even going to look, when someone says 'Here He is!'" or the "so shall the return of the Son of Man be," the lightning flashing, and refs to Noah's day, in Matthew 24, but ya, i agree.
the dichotomy there isn't revealed here yet though i guess;
@Pipiripi (ntmy, btw) really hasn't gotten a complete answer there yet, iow
Sometimes the Bible talks about it like it's a secret event, or a catching away, and sometimes it talks about it like it's a huge event that everyone in the world is going to see. In my opinion, the only way to reconcile that without the Bible contradicting itself is that they are two separate events. A rapture of the church, followed by a tribulation period, followed by the physical return of Christ where He sets foot on the Mount of Olives, the Dead Sea comes alive again, and He sets up a physical reign. I know there are a thousand ways of looking at things, but that's what makes the most sense to me to explain things that could appear contradictory otherwise.