No Shrinking Back: The Nature of True and False Faith Text: Hebrews 10:26-39
Introduction: The Covenantal Divide
The book of Hebrews is written to a church under immense pressure. These are Jewish Christians, and the temptation to abandon Christ and return to the shadows and types of the Old Covenant sacrificial system is very real. The temple is still standing, the sacrifices are still being offered, and the social pressure from their unbelieving kinsmen is intense. The author has spent ten chapters magnificently demonstrating the superiority of Christ over every aspect of the old system. Christ is the better prophet, priest, and king. His sacrifice is the better sacrifice, establishing a better covenant. But theology is never an end in itself. High doctrine is always meant for hard times. Now, the author brings all that glorious theology to bear in one of the most severe and sobering warnings in all of Scripture.
We must understand that the warnings in Scripture are one of the primary means by which God preserves His saints. The Arminian reads a passage like this and says, "See, you can lose your salvation!" The hyper-Calvinist reads it and says, "Well, this can't possibly be talking about a real Christian." Both are mistaken. The warnings are real, the danger is real, and the consequences are eternal. But the warnings are God's ordained instrument, like a "Danger: Cliff Ahead" sign on a mountain road. The sign doesn't mean you will drive off the cliff; it is the very thing God uses to keep you from driving off the cliff. God's promise to preserve His elect is not a promise to preserve them apart from the means of perseverance, and these potent warnings are one of those essential means.
This passage forces us to grapple with the nature of the visible church and the covenant community. Within the covenant, there are those who have true, saving faith, and there are those who are covenant members externally but who do not have a circumcised heart. Both are in the same boat, both hear the same sermons, both are baptized, and both partake of the Lord's Supper. But when the storm hits, one has an anchor and the other does not. This passage is a divine diagnostic. It is designed to distinguish between the one who shrinks back to destruction and the one who has faith to the preserving of the soul.
The Text
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. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy by the mouth of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as defiled the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? 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 afflictions, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you also showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted with joy the seizure of your possessions, knowing that you have for yourselves a better and lasting possession. Therefore, do not throw away that confidence of yours, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.
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.
(Hebrews 10:26-39 LSB)
The Point of No Return (vv. 26-27)
The warning begins with a dreadful condition.
"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." (Hebrews 10:26-27)
We must define our terms carefully. What is this "sinning willfully"? This is not talking about stumbling into sin out of weakness, like Peter denying Christ. This is a calculated, high-handed, deliberate rejection of Christ and His sacrifice. It is the sin of apostasy. The context makes this clear. The author has just finished explaining that Christ's sacrifice is the final, once-for-all sacrifice (Heb. 10:18). For these Hebrew Christians, to "sin willfully" meant to turn their backs on Christ and go back to the temple to offer the blood of bulls and goats. It was to say, "Jesus is not enough. His sacrifice is insufficient. I will return to the shadows."
For such a person, who has "received the knowledge of the truth," there is no other sacrifice. If you reject the final sacrifice, what is left? Nothing. There is no Plan B. If you walk out of the only ark of salvation, all that is left is the flood. And so, what remains is not another chance, but "a terrifying expectation of judgment." The apostate is not left in a state of neutral unbelief; he is left staring into the face of a holy God whose fury is like a consuming fire. Notice they are now called "adversaries." They have switched sides. They have declared war on the God who offered them mercy.
From Lesser to Greater Judgment (vv. 28-29)
The author then employs a classic rabbinic argument, from the lesser to the greater, to drive home the severity of this apostasy.
"Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy by the mouth of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as defiled the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?" (Hebrews 10:28-29)
Under the Mosaic covenant, idolatry or apostasy was a capital crime. If someone rejected Yahweh, and it was confirmed by two or three witnesses, they were executed without mercy (Deut. 17:2-7). That was the "lesser." Now for the "greater." If rejecting the shadow (Moses' Law) brought such a severe penalty, what is the penalty for rejecting the substance (Christ)?
The author describes this apostasy in three shocking ways. First, it is to trample underfoot the Son of God. This is an image of ultimate contempt. It is to treat the King of the universe like mud on your boots. Second, it is to regard as defiled "the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified." This is a crucial phrase. The apostate was "sanctified" by this blood. This does not mean he was elect and regenerate in a saving sense. It means he was objectively set apart as a member of the covenant community. He was in the visible church, baptized, and partaking of the covenant meal. He was sanctified in the same way the utensils in the temple were sanctified, set apart for a holy purpose. To treat this precious blood as common or defiled is to commit cosmic treason. Third, it is to insult the Spirit of grace. The Holy Spirit is the one who applies the work of Christ, who woos, convicts, and illuminates. To turn away after having experienced His gracious operations is to spit in the face of grace itself.
The Terrifying God (vv. 30-31)
The author grounds this warning in the very character of God, quoting from Deuteronomy 32.
"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." (Hebrews 10:30-31)
Our modern, sentimentalized view of God has no category for this. We have domesticated the lion of Judah and turned Him into a housecat. But the God of the Bible is a God of holy vengeance. Vengeance is not a sinful, petty retaliation for Him; it is the perfect execution of justice. And notice who He judges: "His people." God cleans His own house first. Judgment begins with the household of God (1 Pet. 4:17). This is a warning to the covenant community, to those who bear His name. To be in covenant with God is to be close to the fire. For the believer, it is a fire that warms and purifies. For the apostate, it is a fire that consumes.
And so the conclusion is stark: "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." This is not the hands of a dead idol. This is the living God, the source of all being and power. For the Christian, to be in His hands is the safest place in the universe (John 10:28). But for the one who has trampled His Son, there is no more terrifying place.
An Appeal to Remember (vv. 32-34)
After this blistering warning, the author's tone shifts. He turns from warning to encouragement, appealing to their own past faithfulness as evidence that they are not, in fact, apostates.
"But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings... you also showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted with joy the seizure of your possessions, knowing that you have for yourselves a better and lasting possession." (Hebrews 10:32-34)
He says, "Remember." Look back. Right after you were "enlightened" (a term for conversion), you didn't shrink back. You endured. You suffered public shame, you stood with those who were suffering, and when they took your stuff, you accepted it with joy. Why? Because you knew your real treasure wasn't here. You had a "better and lasting possession" in heaven. This is the fruit of genuine faith. True faith has an eternal perspective. It values the unseen over the seen. The author is saying, "Look at your own track record! God has already proven His faithfulness in you. The fruit of perseverance is already on the tree. Don't stop now."
The Call to Endure (vv. 35-39)
Based on their past faithfulness, he calls them to future faithfulness.
"Therefore, do not throw away that confidence of yours, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance... 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." (Hebrews 10:35-39)
Confidence, or boldness, is the hallmark of the Christian. We are to have it, and we are not to throw it away. But this requires endurance. The Christian life is not a sprint; it is a marathon. And the fuel for this marathon is faith, grounded in the promise of Christ's return. Quoting from Isaiah and Habakkuk, he reminds them that the righteous live by faith. Faith is the defining characteristic of God's true people.
And this brings us to the great divide. There are two kinds of people in the visible church, two kinds of responses to pressure. There are those who "shrink back" and there are those who have "faith." Notice the destinations. The one who shrinks back goes "to destruction." The one who has faith goes on "to the preserving of the soul." The paths may look similar for a time, but their ends are eternally divergent.
The author concludes with a beautiful expression of pastoral confidence: "But we are not of those who shrink back..." He includes himself with them. He is confident that his readers are the real deal. The warning was meant to startle and sober them, but the ultimate goal was to encourage them to persevere. The warnings are for the church, but they describe the apostate. They are God's loving alarm clock, designed not to condemn the sleeper, but to wake him up to the race he is called to run.
Conclusion: Faith or Fear
So where does this leave us? This passage lays before us two paths, governed by two principles: fear and faith. The apostate is governed by the fear of man. He fears losing his property, his reputation, his comfort. This fear leads him to shrink back from Christ and into the arms of the world, which is a path to destruction.
The true believer is governed by the fear of God, which is another way of saying he lives by faith. He believes God's promises are more real than his present sufferings. He believes the "better and lasting possession" is worth any temporary loss. This faith enables him to endure, to have confidence, and to persevere to the end.
This warning is just as potent for us today. The temptation to apostatize may not be a return to the temple sacrifices, but it is a return to the world's way of thinking. It is the temptation to trample Christ by prioritizing comfort over conviction, to treat His blood as common by living an indistinguishable life from the world, and to insult the Spirit of grace by ignoring His promptings.
The call is to endure. Do not throw away your confidence. Remember what God has done for you in the past. Look forward to the great reward He has promised. And live by faith, knowing that He who is coming will come and will not delay. We are not those who shrink back. We are those who press on, by faith, to the preserving of the soul.