Hebrews 6:3-8 - "Salvation by the Grace of God Alone"

Hebrews 6:3-8

"And this will we do, if God permit. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned."

Hebrews 6:3–8 brings us face-to-face with the Holy God, where grace and warning stand side by side. The writer speaks not to the openly hostile, but to those who have come near—near to the truth, near to the Gospel, near to Christ—yet may still remain strangers to His Sovereign Grace. This passage presses upon the heart a sobering reality: it is possible to be greatly privileged by the Gospel and yet never be converted by it.

The writer begins with a confession of dependence: “And this will we do, if God permit” (v.3). Nothing in the Christian life—growth, understanding, perseverance—originates in human resolve. Even the desire to go on, to mature, to continue in the truth, rests entirely upon God. God in His Grace does not only initiate salvation, but governs every step of it. This single phrase strips away all presumption and places both preacher and hearer beneath the Sovereign Hand of God.

Immediately, the Spirit turns us to a solemn warning. The language of verses 4–6 is deliberate and weighty. Those described have been “once enlightened.” Light has entered the mind. Truth has been understood. The Gospel has been heard clearly, not distorted or veiled. They have “tasted of the heavenly gift.” There has been a real encounter with the sweetness of the message—some measure of comfort, conviction, admiration, even joy. Yet tasting is not the same as feeding. Nearness is not the same as union.

They are said to be “partakers of the Holy Ghost,” not in regeneration, but in the outward operations of the Spirit—observing His work in others, sitting under His influence in the assembly, witnessing the effects of grace without possessing grace itself. They have “tasted the good word of God,” delighting in its beauty, its order, its truthfulness, and even “the powers of the world to come,” seeing evidences of God’s kingdom set forth in the world in the conversion of God's elect through the preaching of Christ's Gospel here and now. These are not small privileges. These are immense mercies.

And yet, the warning is severe: when such fall away, it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance. This is not a loss of salvation, but the exposure of a false profession. To turn away from Christ after such light is not ignorance—it is rebellion and rejection. It is to side with the world against the Gospel, to declare that Christ’s death is insufficient, unnecessary, or replaceable. Scripture declares, "they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame" (v.6).

This impossibility does not reflect weakness in God’s Grace, but finality in God’s judgment. When Truth is despised, when Christ is rejected after being clearly set forth, nothing remains but condemnation. There is no other sacrifice for sin. There is no alternate gospel. There is no second christ.

The illustration that follows makes the matter plain. The same rain falls upon two fields. One brings forth fruit; the other only thorns and briars. The rain is not the problem. The Gospel is not deficient. The difference lies in where God has purposed to give Grace. Where He gives Grace, He gives Life. The fruit does not commend the soil; it reveals the work of God. Those who are thorns and briars, God has sovereignly ordained them to condemnation.

This passage calls for trembling, not speculation. It urges self-examination, not comparison. To sit under the Gospel is a mercy—but it also emphasizes our accountability. Nearness to Christ without faith in Christ is not safety; it is danger. The warning of Hebrews 6:3–8 is not meant to drive true believers to despair, but to strip away false confidence and to magnify the necessity of God's Grace alone in Christ through His finished work.

If Salvation is ours, it is because God has purposed it, Christ has accomplished it, and the Spirit has revealed it. Anything less is only nearness—and nearness, without Christ, is not enough.