Warning against Apostasy

Hebrews 10:26-31 speaks about apostasy. It is a warning, not to pagans, but to those in the church. In one sense, only those who claim to be God’s people can become apostate. Aposteinai in Greek means to “stand away from.” Apostasy, therefore, means to stand away from Christ and his gospel and to stand opposed to the living God.

Who Is An Apostate?

An apostate is one who may have heard and believed the gospel and even experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in his life in a non-regenerative way. Yet, in due time, he turns against the gospel and becomes an enemy of Jesus Christ.

There is the potential for apostasy in every church of God. We can picture church people as two concentric circles: those who are eternally chosen and truly regenerate, and those who may have made credible confessions of faith, but are not true believers. In due time, the feet of those in the latter group shall slip and they shall prove themselves to be unregenerate apostates.

We find examples of apostates in both the Old and New Testaments. Saul, the first king of Israel, became an apostate, as did Judas, one of the twelve apostles. Hebrews 3 and 4 describes the apostasy of the Israelites in the wilderness. Though God had promised them rest, the majority of them did not enter into it “because of their unbelief.” The author warns, “See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful and unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God” (Heb. 3:12). In Hebrews 6:4-6 the author declares about such people, “It is impossible, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance because, to their loss, they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” Apostates must experience the covenant curse of everlasting destruction. The bottom of hell is reserved, not for pagans, but for those professing Christians who abandoned the gospel and became enemies of Christ and his cross.

God judges us according to the knowledge we have. The greater our knowledge, the greater our responsibility and the greater our punishment if we apostasize. Jesus himself laid down this principle in Luke 12:47-48: “That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.”

Reasons for Apostasy

The Bible gives us a number of reasons for this deliberate turning away from the living God. The first is persecution, as Jesus himself warned: “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time, many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other” (Matt. 24:9-10). Jesus calls such people “rocky soil,” because they turn away from the gospel when trouble comes (Matt. 13:20-21).

The second reason for apostasy is worldliness. Paul writes, “Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me” (2 Tim. 4:10). Jesus speaks about “thorny soil” Christians, who become apostate because of the worries of life, the pleasures of sin, and the deceitfulness of riches (Matt. 13:22). Worldliness can creep into us, especially in a society such as ours, where we are constantly faced with the idea that more is always better. The apostle John warns, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world-the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15-17).

Another reason for apostasy is false teachers in the church. Jesus said, “Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people” (Matt. 24:11). Paul wrote, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear” (2 Tim. 4:3). How many church people today want only to hear pleasant things and be entertained! But false teaching leads to apostasy.

A fourth reason is neglect of the means of grace. The Hebrews writer asks, “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” (Heb. 2:3). Neglect of the means of grace means neglect of God’s word, prayer, fellowship, and worship. In the same epistle, the author cautions, “Let us not neglect meeting together as some are in the habit of doing” (Heb. 10:25). When we do not feel like going to church, we have a very serious problem and may be on the verge of apostasy.

Clinging to mindless traditionalism can also lead to apostasy. No matter what our religious background, when we hear the gospel, we must reject traditions that do not lead to salvation, and we must commit ourselves to following Christ. New wine cannot be contained in the old wineskins of mindless traditionalism.

How do we know if we are falling away? Professor Gerald Hawthorne writes, “There is no objective evidence that one who has made his Christian confession and has been baptized is indeed a Christian, other than the daily perseverance in love and good works, that is, a persistence in the very essence of what his confession implies” (Gerald Hawthorne, A New Testament Commentary, G.C.D. Howley, general editor [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1969], 560). The Bible urges us to make our calling and election sure, and examine ourselves to see whether we are in the faith (1 Pet. 2:10; 2 Cor. 13:5). The examination question is very simple: Are we being sanctified by doing the will of God?

Professor John Frame’s view on apostasy can be summarized as follows: Those who are eternally chosen shall be historically chosen, meaning they will be part of the church on earth. Such people shall persevere to the end. But those who are onlyhistorically chosen, including children brought up in the church, shall not persevere. Many in Israel were not eternally chosen, and so they perished. This is also true in the church age. Romans 8:29 declares: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Rom. 8:29-30). In view of this, let us examine two points from Hebrews 10:26-31: apostasy and judgment.

Anatomy of Apostasy

The first word of verse 26 in the English translation should be “for,” not “if,” because the author is giving his logic for what he intimated in verse 25. He was warning those who were habitually neglecting the means of grace of public worship and fellowship: “For if we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left.” In the Greek text, the first word is hekousiôs, “deliberately.” The apostle is emphasizing that these people were not sinning out of ignorance, but defiantly, deliberately, knowingly, willingly, and highhandedly.

Numbers 15 condemns deliberate sinning: “But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or alien, blasphemes the Lord, and that person must be cut off from his people. Because he has despised the Lord’s word and broken his commands, that person must surely be cut off; his guilt remains on him (vv. 30-31).

Not only does such a person sin defiantly, but he also sins daily. The Greek expression is in the present tense: “If we deliberately keep on sinning.” Sin becomes one’s habit. We must pause here to acknowledge that the Bible does not teach sinless perfection in this life. True Christians sin, but they do not do so defiantly and continually. John writes, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness . . . My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ, the righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 1:8-9; 2:1-2). Paul declares, “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted” (Gal. 6:1). We oppose the Novatianism of the third century that said God does not forgive post-baptismal sins.

Apostates sin deliberately, defiantly, and daily. They walk out of light into pitch darkness, and love it. John’s gospel gives us the anatomy of such apostasy in the example of Judas. An apostle who believed in Jesus and experienced the Holy Spirit in some measure, Judas preached the gospel, healed the sick, and cast out demons. But John 13:2 tells us that while the evening meal was being served, “the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot,” meaning he had come under the devil’s influence. Verse 27 says the devil entered Judas, taking complete control. In verse 30 we are told Judas went out, leaving the holy communion, and John writes, “And it was night.” Judas turned away from the brightness of walking with Christ and chose to walk with the devil.

John writes of such apostates, “They went out from among us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their going showed that none of them belonged to us” (1 John 2:19). Such people can be leaders, teachers, and fellow church members. But in reality, they are false brothers, apostates, and unregenerate. They are historically but not eternally chosen. They are children of the devil.

Note the phrase in Hebrews 10:26: “after receiving the knowledge of the truth,” meaning after receiving the full revelation of the gospel, which Jesus Christ disclosed to us: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son” (Heb. 1:1-2). Christian apostates have received God’s final revelation in Jesus Christ and clearly know his person and work. They hear the full gospel, yet they reject God’s power unto salvation. Throughout this epistle, the author warns against ignoring such knowledge: “We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. . . . It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance” (Heb. 2:1-4; 6:4-6b).

What else characterizes apostates? “Such people trample underfoot the Son of God” (Heb. 10:29). Apostates treat Jesus Christ with extreme disgust and contempt. They reject his deity and sinless humanity. They grind him underfoot-this One who is greater than angels, greater than Moses, greater than Aaron, greater than Melchizedek, greater than Solomon, greater than the temple. We are told not to throw pearls before swine, but here we see the pearl of Christ and his gospel being despised and trampled. Anyone who hears the gospel and refuses to believe is trampling down the only Savior.

Verse 29 also says such people consider Christ’s blood to be filthy. The heaven-sent blood that justifies and sanctifies us and brings about forgiveness of all our sins; the blood that cleanses our consciences and secures us admittance to the presence of God; the blood that is the only divine provision to cleanse us is seen as unclean. This is utter contempt for the work of Christ. Apostates consider the blood of Jesus to be the same as that of common men and reject its eternal efficacy to save sinners. They are sophisticated people who reject the cross and the doctrine of substitutionary atonement, although it was the blood of Christ that ushered in the new covenant blessings of a new heart, knowledge of God, and total forgiveness of sins..

In verse 29 we also read that they insult the Spirit of grace, whose responsibility it is to apply Christ’s redemption to sinners by granting them grace. They insult the Holy Spirit who dwells in the church and blesses Christians (cf. Hebrews 2:4, 7; 6:4; 9:14; and 10:15). Such grieving of the Third Person of the Trinity is the sin that cannot be forgiven, as Jesus himself says: “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matt. 12:32). The apostle John calls this the sin that leads to eternal death. The church is told not to pray for such a person because he is doomed to destruction. His repentance is impossible (1 John 5:16).

Apostates show contempt for all three Persons of the Godhead. They trample underfoot their work of salvation, despising the living God and his saving work. (PGM) They are known for their insolent self-assertion against the eternal, almighty God.

What will happen to such people? Let me illustrate with a story from my own childhood. When I was a boy growing up in South India, one of us would always have to stay home on Sundays to watch our home and livestock. One Sunday when it was my turn, a neighbor came and started singing in a mocking manner a song about the Holy Spirit: “O Divine God, set me on fire by the divine Spirit of God.” As he was singing, I looked up and noticed that his house on fire. When he saw it, this man stopped mocking and ran, but it was too late. His house was totally consumed. Though we may not experience such immediate consequences, we must be careful not to insult the Spirit of grace, for God will judge apostates.

God’s Judgment of Apostates

The second point, then, is God’s judgment of apostates. The greater our knowledge, the greater our responsibility; therefore, the greater the judgment God will mete out on those who fall away. The cross of Christ declares both God’s love and God’s holiness. God must necessarily judge sin, and he does so, either in Jesus Christ or in those who defy him. The one who neglects the gospel will be judged by Christ.

We find several references to eternal judgment throughout this epistle: “instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. . . Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment . . . But only a fearful expectation of judgment . . . It is mine to avenge; I will repay . . . Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept pure, for God willjudge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” (Heb. 6:2; 9:27; 10:27, 30; 13:4, italics added).

Verse 26 says that for such apostates, no sacrifice for sins remains because they have rejected the only sacrifice God would accept on our behalf. The wages of sin is death, but God’s Son became incarnate so that he could die in our place and make atonement for our sins (Rom. 6:23, Heb. 2:17). When we reject his atonement, no more sacrifice is left for us. The one who rejects Jesus, is doomed forever; it is impossible to redeem such an apostate. He will eventually die a miserable death and enter hell to await an even more horrible eternal punishment.

“Such a person has a fearful expectation of judgment” (Heb. 10:27). Deep within every unbeliever is a fearful expectation of judgment coming, because there is a God-consciousness in everyone. Everyone knows he must eventually face God.

God himself is the Judge of all men (Heb. 12:23). Jonathan Edwards spoke from Deuteronomy 32:35 about sinners in the hands of an angry God. He said in due time their foot shall slip and they shall fall into God’s hands. The living God is not a postulate of human minds. He is not made of clay, that we can fashion him as a God of love and not of wrath. He is love and he is holy. He is Savior, but he is also Judge.

When God came upon Mount Horeb, the mountain itself was quaking and set ablaze. The people were frightened, and “the sight was so terrifying that Moses said, ‘I am trembling with fear'” (Heb. 12:21). We do not fear God because our eyes are blinded by Satan so that we do not see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Brothers and sisters, it is important that God’s people know the terror of the Lord. Paul says, “Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men” (2 Cor. 5:11, KJV). God is a raging fire who consumes his enemies (Heb. 10:27). Leviticus 10 describes how Nadab and Abihu were consumed by fire that came out from God. The holiness of God came and ate up the priests of the Lord, as it later ate up the 250 friends of Korah (Num. 16:35). It is time for us to adjust our view of God and worship him in the beauty of his holiness. “Raging fire” means God is essentially holy. Surrender to him and be saved, or oppose him and be consumed by his holiness.

In Deuteronomy 4 Moses refers to the fire of God’s holiness several times: “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while it blazed with fire . . . You saw no form of any kind the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire . . . For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God . . . Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire as you have and lived? . . From heaven he made you hear his voice to discipline you; on earth, he showed you his great fire and you heard his words from out of the fire” (vv. 11, 15, 24, 33, 36).

Do we see God as consuming fire? Exodus 20:20 says the fear of God will keep us from sinning. A sinning person has no fear of God. It is that simple.

Few churches today speak about sin and judgment. But consider this picture of hell that we find in the last chapter of Isaiah: God’s people “will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against [God]; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind” (Is. 66:24). Jesus himself spoke of unbelievers being thrown “into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 13:42). Revelation 20 tells us that anyone whose name is not found in the book of life will be cast into the lake of fire.

Referring to Deuteronomy 17, the author says, “Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses” (Heb. 10:28). The author then argues from the lesser to the greater: If that was so about the one who defied the Mosaic law, how much worse punishment will those get who received fullness of the revelation of the gospel? In other words, they received physical death, but apostates will get eternal death. He used this argument already: “For if the message spoken by angels was binding and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we neglect a such great salvation?” (Heb. 2:2-3). Finally, he gives proof for the utter judgment of the apostate. The habit of this author is to cite Scripture, and when Scripture speaks, that is the end of all argument, because the author of Scripture is God himself. In Hebrews 10:30 he writes, “For we know him who said, ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ and again, ‘The Lord will judge his people,'” citing Deuteronomy 32:35-36.

Then he concludes, “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:31). It is terrifying, scary, dreadful to fall into the hands of the living God. The eternal God is not an idol of human creation. As Creator of all, he is necessarily the Judge of all.

No one can run away from the living God. We all must face him; there is no escape. Not even suicide will solve our sin problem. Pagans and apostates go to hell the moment they die to experience torment and agony there waiting for greater judgment.

How to Avoid Apostasy

What must we do in light of this teaching, especially if we have been falling away? I would say that we should be like David. Although he sinned terribly, he chose to cast himself upon the Lord, saying, “I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great” (2 Sam. 24:14). Let us repent truly and believe in Jesus the Son of God. Trust in his blood that cleanses us from all sins and justifies and sanctifies us. He will save us and help us to live a holy life to the end.

Brothers and sisters, beware of Korah and company, of Achan and Saul, of Judas and Demas and others, who would entice you to join in their apostasy. Above all, take heed of God’s word that speaks about the coming apostasy (Matt. 24:10-13; 1 Tim. 4:1-8; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 1 John 2:19). Receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and do so now, not tomorrow. Your life is not under your control; God may demand your soul even this night. Enter the ark of God’s salvation, run to the city of refuge, and be safe forever. If not, you shall fall into his hands, and no mountain can hide you from the fearsome wrath of the Sovereign Judge.

It is a frightening thing to be cast into the lake of fire on the day when he judges all who treated him with contempt. Jesus himself said, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can kill the soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28). As John Newton wrote, “It is grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved.”

If you are a child of God, if you have trusted in Christ and are walking carefully, fear not. He shall keep you from falling (cf. John 6:39-40; 10:27-29). Consider Jude 24: “To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy, to the only God our Savior, be glory, majesty, power and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord before all ages now and forevermore. Amen.”