Falling (away) from Grace (Part 3)

Given the background of part 1 in this series and the context of our subject—falling away from grace—it is easy to see why folks feel like Hebrews 6:4-6 is teaching that our salvation in insecure or conditional.

But the troublesome aspects of these verses is not whether or not people can lose their salvation (they can't), but that they leave the grace they once tasted and return to the ungrace of what eventually becomes legalism. This regression away from grace is what the writer of Hebrews is examining.

Said another way: Sorting through the implications of Hebrews 6 raises the same type question as: Having tasted the sweetness of lemonade, why are you returning to sucking on sour lemons that rot your teeth? The biblical discussion is not one of our standing with God but one concerning the rationale of a Believer who backs away from grace and righteousness for an easier course and the resultant consequences of that decision.

Before we proceed further, let's disarm the theological land mine of losing your salvation. The Scripture is clear: Losing your salvation is not theologically possible. If you missed my previous eGrace series on salvation and the security of your position and relationship to God, check out the eGrace archive:
http://www.lifetime.org/get/equipped/egrace-archive/

Given the clear thinking of God about our transformation from sinner to saint through salvation and the security of our place in God's heart, it would be contradictory for this passage in Hebrews to be telling Believers that their standing with God is based upon something other than the completed and finished work of God via Jesus Christ at the cross. Therefore, even though many teach otherwise, this passage is not a series of verses about salvation.

When the passage mentions falling [from grace], it is meaning a decision has been made to turn from that high place of invitation into God's heart and opted instead to return to a lower place of ritual, religious endeavor, and ultimately legalism. What's troubling is that Believers can insist upon dealing only with the elementary aspects of the Word and the faith, and in so doing, live something less than God dreams of for them and Himself.

While there is more to come in this series, the question for now is this: Are you moving toward the heart of your Heavenly Father or polishing up your religious ritual and endeavor as a second-rate option to getting to knowing Him?