Hebrews 10:38

Hebrews 10:38

Transgressions and Infirmities.

Warnings such as these would not be contained in Scripture were there no danger of our drawing back, and thereby losing that life in God's presence which faith secures to us. Faith is the tenure upon which the Divine life is continued to us: by faith the Christian lives, but if he draws backs he dies; his faith profits him nothing, or, rather, his drawing back to sin is a reversing of his faith, after which God has no pleasure in him. Faith keeps us from transgressions, and they who transgress, for that very reason, have not true and lively faith, and therefore it avails them nothing that faith, as Scripture says, is imputed to Christians for righteousness, for they have not faith. Instead of faith blotting out transgressions, transgressions blot out faith. Faith, if it be true and lively, both precludes transgressions, and gradually triumphs over infirmities; and, while infirmities continue, it regards them with so perfect an hatred, as avails for their forgiveness, and is taken for that righteousness which it is gradually becoming.

I. There are sins which forfeit a state of grace. (1) All habits of vice are such. (2) It is fearful to think that covetousness is mentioned in connection with sins of the flesh, as incurring forfeiture of grace equally with them. (3) All violent breaches of the law of charity are inconsistent with a state of grace; and, in like manner, all profaneness, heresy, and false worship, and, further, hardness of heart or going against light.

II. That there are sins of infirmity, or such as do not throw the soul out of a state of salvation, is evident directly it is granted that there are sins which do; for no one will pretend to say that all sins exclude from grace, else no one can be saved, for there is no one who is sinless.

III. These sins of infirmity tend to those which are greater, and forfeit grace. Never suffer sin to remain upon you; let it not grow old in you; wipe it off while it is fresh, else it will stain; let it not get ingrained; let it not eat its way in and rust in you; come continually to the Fount of cleansing for cleansing. It is thus that the Church of God, it is thus that each individual member of it, becomes all glorious within and full of grace.

J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons,vol. v., p. 195.

References: Hebrews 10:38. W. M. Statham, Christian World Pulpit,vol. xi., p. 248; H. W. Beecher, Ibid.,vol. xvii., p. 164; Homiletic Quarterly,vol. iii., p. 567. Hebrews 10:38; Hebrews 10:39. Homiletic Magazine,vol. viii., p. 132.