Matthew 12:22-32
The Unpardonable Sin: Blaspheming the Holy Spirit
I. Introduction
-Is there a sin that is unpardonable.?
-Scary two words: unpardonable sin.
II. Scripture
III. Background
-Jesus heals a demon possessed man who was blind & mute.
1. It is a triple miracle of restoring sanity, sight, and speech
2. The man is made whole.
-But the Pharisees begin their accusations.
-They said it was only by Satan he was able to do it.
-Jesus response to the accusations of the Pharisees:
1. v. 25-26 Are demons fighting demons? (Can you see humor in this.)
2. v. 27 Who do your people cast out demons by then?
3. v. 29 Jesus work is liberating those in bondage (what does bondage mean?)
4. v. 31-32 caution not to do the unpardonable.
IV. What is the Unpardonable Sin?
-Blaspheming against the Holy Spirit.
-Blaspheme = to speak of or address with irreverence
1. Blasphemy = the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God
2. in the Greek blaspheme literally means to be against... so while it usually means in speech, it can also include your actions and thoughts.
-Apostle Paul was a blasphemer:
1. 1 Timothy 1:13 "Even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; [14] and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus."
-The REAL problem we have:
-We want to minimize our relationship to God to one act/point in time.
1. I got saved then.
2. I repented then.
3. I was forgiven then.
-Being a Christian is being.
-We view salvation as complete already.
1. Salvation is not complete until you are standing in heaven one day having been glorified.
2. Salvation is not complete or you wouldn't need to grow.
V. Blaspheming the Holy Spirit
-So what does it mean to blaspheme the Holy Spirit?
-We try to minimize it to one act.
1. But the unpardonable sin is not one act....(though it could be):
2. Just like salvation is not one act.
-Blaspheming the Holy Spirit is a continual move against the Holy Spirit.
-Hard heartedness, resistance are too tame/too neutral of words to describe it.
1. It is an open obvious, rejection of God's Spirit.
2. It is the continual, deliberate, refusal to acknowledge God's truth from the Holy Spirit.
3. It is more than an instance of "quenching the Spirit."
-It is not...
1. Honest questioning.
2. It is not weak faith.
3. It is not having doubts.
-Point: Ppl are not forgiven because their sins are less (or more) than others – but because they ask for forgiveness.
-Contrary to what some believe, the Pharisees did not ‘commit' an unforgivable sin.
1. Jesus didn't describe what they had done, but what they were doing.
2. Just as salvation cannot be minimized to the act of confession.
-The only sin that is unforgivable is the sin that is unrepented.
VI. You Must Take Sides
-Make no doubt about it, you are in a battle.
-v. 30
-There is no gray area, there is no de-militarized zone, no neutral area, no in-between, etc. in the spiritual realm.
-You are either moving with the Spirit or against the Spirit.
-If you think you are neutral, then you are probably going against the Holy Spirit... blaspheming.
-List of sins God can forgive...
1. Woman caught in adultery.
2. Crucifixion
3. Murderers, thieves, etc.
4. Gossips, drug addicts, liars,
5. Hate mongers, back biters,
-Point: He has never forgiven those who have rejected/ acted against the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and He never will.
VII. Who Commits This Sin?
-Religious people.
-Do you know the hardest ppl to reach with the Gospel are those who have grown up in church.
1. They know the terminology.
2. They know how to behave at church.
-Do you know who the hardest ppl are to catch on fire for God?
1. Regular church attenders.
2. They get heat resistant.
-These two categories of people can most easily go against the Holy Spirit.
-Lost folks may have doubts and fears and questions when the Spirit speaks to them, but...
-"Churched" folks know what they need to do, but they go against the Holy Spirit when He speaks to them about it.
VIII. Pastoral Pause
-Look where we are right now.
-A church in transition toward a deeper intimacy with Christ.
-There are some who are still fighting against the Holy Spirit (blaspheming).
1. They have not progressed deeper with Christ.
2. They may think they're all right to go against the Spirit.
3. But that cannot be forgiven.
-We need everybody on board.
1. We need everybody going with the Spirit; everybody gathering.
2. Because those stuck in Neutral are just slowing the speed of the church as we move toward the cross.
-Some feel, out of frustration, that the best way for this to happen is just let ppl go.
1. That might happen.
2. But we shouldn't hope for that; we should hope for them to go w/ the Spirit.
IX. Conclusion
-If you're honestly worried that you've committed the unpardonable sin, you haven't.
-To Do (for myself):
1. Nurture a sensitivity to the Spirit.
2. Desire for God to speak to you.
3. Learn to do w/out some worldly distractions.
4. Establish a precedence of obedience.
-To Do (for the church):
1. Start praying for those who are blaspheming/going against the Spirit.
2. Be pro-active rather than re-active about the Spirit's movement in our services.
3. Be aware of God's presence in our services... so you can better pray.
-God is still working here.
-That means we still have work to do.
