Lesson 199 – When the Spirit Is Partaken

Hebrews 6:4-7

"For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame."

Once we partake of the Spirit's touch, there is no going back! With our salvation, it is simply an impossibility. God made it that way. Those who are born again by the Spirit's touch cannot, and will not, go back to a life apart from Christ.

The writer of Hebrews tells the church that if losing our salvation were indeed possible, then Christ would need to die again and again as we repent of our sins. And this can't be, for the Lord has died once for all for all the sins of all time.

While I accept this truth from God's word, I'm left with the realization that I seem to be crucifying the Lord again and again. As I slip into disobedience, I find myself needing to confess my sins to the Lord and ask the Spirit to bring a new cleansing to my life. This is to my shame, for the Lord has saved me fully, but I've chosen to live as if this salvation were not a reality.

While I'm not really crucifying the Lord again, my sins, along with the Spirit's conviction, remind me of my failures and the very real need we all have of the Savior. Whenever I come to the Lord with my heart in my hands, hanging my head low, I'm driven to a position of humility.

The good news is that the Lord willing accepts us back when we come back to the Savior in humility. That is the great love of God for his church and the majesty of the unlimited grace that is given to us.

LORD JESUS

Lord, I thank you for allowing me to come again and again to you to know the Spirit's touch and the cleansing your offer to those who bear your name. Amen.

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