In this message, Pastor Matt warns us of the dangers of persistent, defiant rejection of the grace of God, and exhorts us to take the key of promise to find freedom, forgiveness, and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Introduction: The Man in the Iron Cage
Clank, clank—the terrifying rustle of a man trapped in an iron cage, dehumanizing and terrible. It is probably the most terrifying scene from John Bunyan’s classic allegory of the Christian life, Pilgrim’s Progress. Early in the text, Christian, our protagonist, finds himself in the house of the Interpreter. Christian is led into a very dark room where a man sat in an iron cage. The man, to look upon, seemed very sad. He sat with his eyes looking down to the ground, his hands folded together, and he let out a pitiful, brokenhearted sigh.
Christian, after being told that this man was once a growing believer and a pilgrim just as he was, asks him, “What are you now?” The man replied, “I am now a man of despair. I am shut up in this iron cage. I cannot get out. Oh, now I cannot get out.” This scene is drawn directly from the text of Scripture we find ourselves in today: “For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they then fall away.” It is impossible to restore such a one again to repentance.
This teaches simply that there are paths in the Christian life over which it is impossible to return to God—bridges you may cross but not return over. If this is true—and I think this is simply what the text says—how can we understand this truth in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ, His offer of free grace, that anyone who would come to Him can have forgiveness? How can we reconcile this with one of the most foundational parables of Jesus, the parable of the prodigal son, who turned his back on the father, wasted his inheritance, spent time in a far country, and yet was not only welcomed back but welcomed with open arms? How can both of these things be true?
In Pilgrim’s Progress, the man in the iron cage claims that God has denied him repentance. “His word gives me no encouragement. Yea, He Himself has shut me up in this iron cage.” Is this true? How could it be impossible to restore someone? How can we believe the gospel of grace and reconcile it with the man in the iron cage?
Sermon Objectives
I aim to do three things in this sermon. First, we will define exactly what this text means when it says “to fall away,” because I think there are many contextual clues to show us the specific kind of falling away it describes. Second, we will reconcile this with the gospel, and I think once we define this falling away, the reconciliation will become clear. Finally, we will take this text where it leads us: to a strong warning for believers and, ultimately, to hope if you feel like you might be in the iron cage.
Defining “Falling Away”
So, what does it mean when it says “fall away”? This is the crucial question of the text. Falling away without hope of restoration to Christ is more than committing sin; it is an informed, sustained, and callous rejection of Christ’s worth and work.
More Than Sin
First, it is more than simply sin. This is easy to see because the Bible is full of people who sin and are restored—even people who should know better. The best example is King David, a man to whom God gave so much grace. At the height of his kingdom, called “a man after God’s own heart,” he had done so much good. Yet he commits murder, false witness, and adultery—breaking the Ten Commandments like nobody’s business. And yet, he is the one who prays in Psalm 51, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your steadfast love; according to Your abundant mercy, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” And he found forgiveness.
When we read this, we should recognize that this “falling away” is more than simply sin or even a really bad sin. We often think God can forgive the little sins, but maybe the really big ones are harder for Him to forgive. Yet the Bible has many examples of big sins being forgiven. Christ’s blood is enough to forgive sins like murder and adultery.
An Informed Rejection
Falling away without hope of restoration to Christ is an informed rejection of Christ’s worth and work. The text says, “It is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have been enlightened.” “Enlightened” is likely a technical term describing someone who has been baptized and had hands laid on them to receive the Holy Spirit—what the early church called “enlightenment.” Before this, it mentions “elementary doctrine,” likely the teachings they learned before baptism. So, they are baptized, enlightened, part of the church, have tasted the heavenly gift (likely sharing in the Lord’s Supper), shared in the Holy Spirit, tasted the goodness of the word of God, and even experienced the powers of the age to come.
“Tasted” here doesn’t mean just a nibble; the Bible uses “tasted” to mean fully experienced—like Jesus “tasted” death for us, fully dying. This person knows what the word of God says and has experienced the powers of the age to come—what we hope to glimpse in worship together, joined in the joy of the saints. This isn’t about nominal Christians or someone ignorant, exposed to a little Christianity and then wandering off. It’s not about someone in a cult or an unhealthy church who falls away. It’s about people who really should know better.
In Pilgrim’s Progress, the man in the iron cage says, “I was once a fair and flourishing professor of the faith and bound for the Celestial City.” Someone who knew better.
A Sustained Rejection
This falling away is also sustained—a substantial and long-term turning away from Christ. It doesn’t mean just walking away from the church; you can spend a lot of time in church and still turn away from Christ. (I hope it’s uncomfortable if you’re doing that—guilt can draw you back to Christ.) We see this sustained turning away in the parable Hebrews gives right after this teaching: “For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned.”
We are saved by God’s grace alone through faith; nothing we do adds to our salvation. But God saves us in a way that changes us through the Holy Spirit to produce fruit. In this parable, the land is us. The rain is all the blessings of God—baptism, the Lord’s Supper, the Holy Spirit, faithfulness in church, the word of God—falling on us constantly as believers. We should produce a useful crop: the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control), proclaiming the gospel, being a city on a hill.
When that happens, we receive blessings from God—rewards in heaven, more than we can imagine. But if this land (us) receives all these blessings and produces only thorns and thistles—like the curse of Genesis—it is worthless, near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned. If your Christian life produces only bad fruit—no forgiveness, no mercy, no love, despite the Holy Spirit—you’re in danger.
A Callous Rejection
Finally, this falling away is a callous rejection of Christ’s worth and work. The text says, “If they then fall away, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding Him up to contempt.” They can’t be restored because they are crucifying the Son of God again—not literally, since the risen Lord can’t be crucified again—but in their hearts. This isn’t just doubt or turning away momentarily; it’s taking the risen Lord and putting Him back on the cross in contempt.
Reconciling with the Gospel
How do we reconcile this with the gospel? Picture the Christian life as a journey, like in Pilgrim’s Progress. We’re heading toward Christ, our guide, transformed by the risen Lord. Sometimes we turn aside, get caught in sin, wander into Vanity Fair, or get locked in Doubting Castle. Each time, you can return to Christ—His forgiveness is full and free for anyone who turns to Him.
But this person isn’t looking back to Christ; they’re looking for another Christ. Why? Because they’ve treated Christ so poorly they can’t face Him. The text doesn’t say it’s impossible to restore them because they sinned too much; it says it’s impossible to restore them to repentance. It’s not that God burned the bridge, saying, “You went too far.” It’s that they won’t turn back. If they won’t repent, all they can do is ask for another satisfaction for their sins—and there is only one sacrifice: Christ.
In Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian asks the man, “Is there no hope? Must you be kept in the iron cage of despair?” The man replies, “No, none at all.” Christian says, “Why? The Blessed is so merciful. Jesus Christ forgives any sin; His atonement is free and full to any who turn to Him.” The man responds, “I have crucified Him to myself afresh. I have despised His person, His righteousness; I’ve counted His blood an unholy thing. I have grieved the Holy Spirit. God has denied me repentance. His word gives me no encouragement to believe. Yea, He Himself has shut me up in this iron cage, nor can all the men of the world let me out. Oh, eternity! How shall I grapple with the misery I must meet with in eternity?”
This man says he cannot repent because God’s word gives him no encouragement. But if he took God’s promise—”Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”—and turned to God, it’s not that God has denied him repentance. It’s that he will not repent. The unforgivable sin is the bridge you cross where you will not repent—not that you cannot.
A Warning for Believers
So, what shall we do? The first lesson comes from Pilgrim’s Progress. The Interpreter tells Christian, “Let this man’s misery be remembered to you as an everlasting caution.” Christian asks, “How did you come into this situation?” The man replies, “I have grieved the Holy Spirit, and He is gone. I tempted the devil, and he has come to me. I have so hardened my heart that I cannot repent.”
To avoid this, we must press on in the Christian life. If you’re holding on to sins, let go. If you’re casual in your faith, hear this as a call to press further. Hebrews 5:12 says, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food.” We shouldn’t be content with the small things of the Christian life but press on to maturity: “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity.”
Don’t settle for being “just Christian enough” to avoid hell—that’s dangerous. Press on in the Holy Spirit—open God’s word, lean into fellowship, pray with your family, join a small group, fast and pray when you can. Be the land that produces good fruit, not just receiving the rain.
Hope for Those in the Cage
But what if you hear the rattle of the cage from the inside and identify with the man? He says, “I’ve shut myself out of all the promises, and there remains to me nothing but threatenings—dreadful threatenings, fearful threatenings of certain judgment and fiery indignation.” The warning in Hebrews is serious—there is a bridge you can cross and not return from. Some leave the faith and never come back.
But many feel like they’re in the cage and are not. Satan has his prisons too. Feeling like repentance is closed off doesn’t mean it is. The only way to find out is to turn your heart and repent. If you do, God will accept you. If you take His promises, He won’t shut you out.
Later in Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian finds himself locked in Doubting Castle, ready to despair. Then he remembers a key close to his heart—the Key of Promise: God’s promises that He will not leave or forsake you, will not cast you out, and will be with you always. He slides it into the lock, and the bolt slides back with ease, freeing him. If you feel locked in, you have that key. I believe the man in the iron cage had it too—he just refused to use it, asking for something else instead.
Hebrews ends with hope: “Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things—things that belong to salvation.” Today, I trust God’s power for any who turn to Him. Think of Peter, who denied Jesus three times with an oath—”I don’t know the man!”—yet when he turned, Christ accepted him back.
Conclusion and Prayer
No matter what you’ve done or said, turn to Christ, and He will have you—that’s the gospel’s promise. Let’s pray:
Lord God, we thank You for Your faithfulness. I pray right now for the person locked in doubt and despair. May Your Spirit come to them in this moment and give them assurance of Your promises—that each one who turns to You will find forgiveness and grace in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. May they find that today and now. In Jesus’ name, may the lock turn. Amen.