The Danger of Apostasy

November 25th, 2025
by Lance Waldie

Hebrews 6:4-6 For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.

The scenario is given in v. 4 regarding some who claim to believe in Christ but who depart the faith. The first of four traits given is that they had once been “enlightened” (Gr. phōtizō)—“to understand.” The reference is to those who once did not understand the gospel of Jesus Christ but who later came to understand it. They were once unenlightened but became “enlightened” to the truth of the gospel. Enlightened is used elsewhere to refer to salvation, for Paul prayed, “that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Eph. 1:18, italics mine).

In addition to being “enlightened” to the gospel of Jesus Christ, those being addressed had also “tasted of the heavenly gift” in v. 4. To “taste” (Gr. geuomai) is to “have perception of something either by experience or by mouth” (BDAG). Here, what is tasted is “the heavenly gift,” or that which is God-given. This was not just any gift from heaven but “the” heavenly gift—the salvation that comes only from God by His grace: Jesus Christ. They tasted Him!

Third, the enlightened who had tasted of the heavenly gift are also said to “have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit” in v. 4. A “partaker” (Gr. metochos) is a “partner; one who shares” in something. In this case, it is the Holy Spirit. Moreover, the passive participle “have been made” points toward the partaker of the Holy Spirit being acted upon to partake of the Holy Spirit. In other words, it was God acting upon the believer to partake of the Holy Spirit after having been enlightened to the truth of the gospel and tasting its goodness. Previously, the author used “partakers” in a conditional sense, saying, “We have become partakers of Christ if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end” (3:14). So, one who fails to hold fast the assurance firm until the end is not an eternal partaker of the Holy Spirit. The NLT puts it this way: “For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.” If not, then it appear that no promise remains.

In v. 5, the author adds a fourth trait to those enlightened who have tasted of the heavenly gift, having been made partakers of the Holy Spirit: “and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come.” Again, the verb “tasted” (Gr. geuomai) here refers to perception or understanding of something and is used in relation to salvation. In this case, what is tasted is “the good word of God”—the sayings of God which are called “good.” Also tasted is “the powers of the age to come”—the supernatural acts of God (signs, miracles, etc.) that will be experienced in their totality in Christ’s millennial kingdom (cf. Isa. 65:17ff.; Rev. 20). Of note is that the author of Hebrews previously used “taste” in reference to Jesus’ death, for by the grace of God, Jesus “tasted death for everyone.” Jesus did not merely sample death; He died. So, if “tasted” in Hebrews 6:4-5 means the same thing it does in 2:9, these people were believers.

The author of Hebrews therefore is not painting of a picture of one who has simply heard the gospel or who is familiar with OT teachings. He’s referring to one who has adequate knowledge of Jesus Christ as the Jewish Messiah, who claims to be a Christian, and who is among believers in the church. Can such a one depart from the faith? Since v. 6 speaks of them having “fallen away” (Gr. parapiptō)—to fail to follow through on a commitment—the answer is yes, they can. They can never lose their faith in the sense that God takes it away after they sin, but they can willfully leave it. This is no backslidden Christian; it’s a false believer; it’s an apostate.