Dwight Pentecost has a good note to introduce this most controversial section of Scripture which has caused many believers considerable distress - It is unfortunate that some believers struggle and agonize under the misconception that, although they desire to walk with God, they have regressed beyond some “point of no return” and can never again walk in fellowship with Him. If you have a heartfelt longing to live for Jesus Christ, that desire alone shows that your heart has not been hardened to Him! All that remains is for you to turn to Him in commitment and submission, and to resume your progress toward maturity. (Pentecost, J. D., & Durham, K. Faith that Endures: A Practical Commentary on the Book of Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications)
R Bruce Compton in his discussion of Hebrews 6:4-6 rightly comments that…
The warning passage in Hebrews 6:4, 5, 6 continues to be a notorious crux in New Testament interpretation. The difficulty comes in harmonizing the description in He 6:4, 5 of those who have “tasted the heavenly gift and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit” with the statement in He 6:6 about their “falling away” and not being able to be brought back to repentance. The juxtaposition of these verses has raised a number of questions. Are the experiences predicated in He 6:4, 5 tantamount to salvation, or are they describing something that approximates salvation but falls short of it? If He 6:4, 5 are describing salvation, is He 6:6 describing the loss of salvation? Furthermore, why does He 6:6 say that it is “impossible” to restore those who fall away, or is restoration possible? And, lastly, what precisely is the danger being warned about in these verses? Are those in view being threatened with the loss of reward or with eternal condemnation, with hell itself? The purpose of this article is to survey the views found in the commentaries and related literature on this passage and to update the arguments for the view that supports both the eternal security of the believer and the need for believers to persevere in the faith.
The various interpretations of this passage in contemporary literature may be conveniently catalogued under four views. The views themselves are generally distinguished according to their understanding of the spiritual status of those addressed and the nature of the warning being issued. The four views are
(1) true believer: apostasy/loss of salvation;
(2) true believer: apostasy/loss of reward;
(3) true believer: hypothetical apostasy/loss of salvation; and
(4) false believer: apostasy/eternal condemnation.
These views are briefly discussed in this section to identify their salient strengths and weaknesses and to establish a basis for a more detailed examination of the passage in the following section…
… Conclusion: The chief strength with the fourth view is its interpretation of He 6:6. Specifically, it defines the sin in the warning passages as the sin of apostasy, a conscious and deliberate rejection of the gospel. Furthermore, this sin as an irremediable act whose ultimate consequence is eternal condemnation and judgment. The preceding discussion has substantiated this interpretation. This rules out the second view which argues that the judgment in these verses is that of the saved. The judgment in the warning passages is not that of the saved. It is the final and eternal judgment of God against the unsaved. In addition, it has been demonstrated from He 6:6 that this sin is neither hypothetical nor impossible. In fact, it was argued from He 10:25,26 that some who had been associated with the readers had actually committed this sin. This negates the third view which argues that this sin was both hypothetical and impossible.
Lastly, it was argued that Scripture teaches the eternal security of those who are saved. Salvation, once received, can never be lost. This rules out the first view which argues that the warning involved the loss of salvation. Neither this nor the other warning passages, in describing the action of an apostate, are describing one who is saved. That leaves the fourth view as the only alternative.
The author of Hebrews had confidence in the salvation of his readers, as was seen in He 6:9, 10, 11, 12. Yet, in He 10:26, he indicates that some had forsaken the services of the local congregation and had repudiated the faith they had at one time professed. Moreover, in He 5:11, 12, 13, 14, the author of Hebrews chastises the readers for growing inattentive to God’s Word and to their responsibilities for spiritual growth. This combination compels him to exhort his readers to perseverance and to warn any who might fall away of the dire consequences of such an act. They were to persevere in the faith because, according to He 3:14, only those who persevere show themselves to be partakers of Christ and truly saved.
This does not mean that perseverance in the faith
is a condition for salvation.
Rather,
perseverance in the faith is understood
as the mark of those who are saved.
Were any to fall away, they would show they had not been partakers of Christ, that is, that they never had been saved. Furthermore, by falling away they would be committing an irremediable act which would inevitably bring God’s condemnation and wrath. (Persevering And Falling Away: A Reexamination Of Hebrews 6:4–6 Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 1. Spring 1996 p136) (Bolding
added)
Which is it
@Lizbeth?