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NASB | Romans 8:39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Romans 8:39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the [unlimited] love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. |
Bible Question:
I'm having a hard time reconciling Romans 8:39 with Hebrews 10:26. I'm thinking that one solution is that while it may be possible to walk away from the Lord, nothing external of that relationship can cause us to lose the love God has for us. Also, are the "love of God" and salvation necessarily the same thing? It's also possible that I'm not reading Hebrews 10:26 correctly. This "receiving the knowledge of the truth", is that knowledge about Christ, or is it the born again believer? Thanks for any insight you can give this puzzled believer. Huron |
Bible Answer: Hebrews addresses 3 distinct groups 'A proper interpretation of Hebrews requires the recognition that it addresses 3 distinct groups of Jews: '1) believers; '2) unbelievers who were intellectually convinced of the gospel; and '3) unbelievers who were attracted by the gospel and the person of Christ but who had reached no final conviction about Him. 'Failure to acknowledge these groups leads to interpretations inconsistent with the rest of Scripture. 'The primary group addressed were Hebrew Christians who suffered rejection and persecution by fellow Jews (10:32-24), although none as yet had been martyred (12:4)... 'The second group addressed were Jewish unbelievers who were convinced of the basic truths of the gospel but who had not placed their faith in Jesus Christ as their own Savior and Lord. They were intellectually persuaded but spiritually uncommitted. These unbelievers are addressed in such passages as 2:1-3; 6:4-6; 10:26-29; and 12:15-17. 'The third group addressed were Jewish unbelievers who were not convinced of the gospel's truth but had had some exposure to it. Chapter 9 is largely devoted to them (see especially vv. 11, 14, 15, 27, 28). 'By far, the most serious interpretive challenge is found in Heb 6:4-6. The phrase "once enlightened" is often taken to refer to Christians, and the accompanying warning taken to indicate the danger of losing their salvation if "they fall away" and "crucify again for themselves the Son of God." But there is no mention of their being saved and they are not described with any terms that apply only to believers (such as holy, born again, righteous, or saints). This problem arises from inaccurately identifying the spiritual condition of the ones being addressed. In this case, they were unbelievers who had been exposed to God's redemptive truth, and perhaps made a profession of faith, but had not exercised genuine saving faith. In 10:26, the reference once again is to apostate Christians, not to genuine believers who are often incorrectly thought to lose their salvation because of their sins.' ____________________ MacArthur Study Bible, Word Publishing, 1997 hebr64 |