Hi JohnMichael,
My thinking has been moving towards having more assurance. We can have comfort in knowing that Jesus Christ says those He has chosen are "sealed" and have a "guarantee, they are safe in His hand from falling away.
John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me;
v. 28 and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.
v. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.
v. 30 I and the Father are one."
Eph 1:13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
v. 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
What is interesting is we know that God has foreknowledge of all things, well He knows who are His before they are even born, Scripture says we are "given us in Christ Jesus before the world began."
2Tim 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
But there is reason for us to continue and "fight the good fight" (1Ti 6:12), and if we are to stay in the race, then we must keep running.
1Co 9:24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.
Why would there be Scripture warning us, unless there are those that will lose their reward. God certainly is aware of these that will leave/fall away from this truth, indeed it is their destiny. So we do need to be aware the Holy Spirit can be quenched.
1Th 5:19 Do not quench the Spirit.
G4570 sbennumi - quench - to extinguish (literally or figuratively): - go out, quench.
Heb 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,
v. 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
v. 6 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.
Now this Scripture is speaking of someone that has been "enlightened," they have been given understanding of the truth and for whatever reason they fall away and leave this truth behind. This Scripture also says they can not be brought back into the truth in this age, they will be in the second resurrection. Sometimes I think I can see the parable of the sower and the seed playing out in those coming to this truth. Quite a few embrace it for a time, but for one reason or another a lot fall away. For these that don't make it to the end I wonder if they will even be too concerned about it, at the time, maybe they just drift away and they don't even really know what they almost had.
So what I'm thinking is we should have confidence in His guarantee/earnest of the Spirit, because we should be aware if the Spirit is indwelling and that should fill us with hope for the first resurrection. But there might be a real problem if one should become complacent.
mercy, peace and love
Kat