44: Responses to the Spirit (Luke 12:8-12)

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I’m grateful for James Johnson carrying the ball last week, growing as a communicator & rightly interpreting the Scripture. You can listen to any of our teachings from the last 4 years on our website: FellowshipofMadison.com - including this Luke series that we are 44 weeks into.

Today we talk about the Responses to the Spirit of God. But before we do, I want to show you a video clip that should make you cringe.

Blasphemy Challenge

Pretty scary huh; that people would SAY this with the understanding that they will NEVER be forgiven?

But…is THAT what Jesus meant when He talked about ‘blasphemy of the Holy Spirit’?

Does blasphemy of the Holy Spirit have to be THAT blatant or could it be something else?

In other words, is it possible that YOU have committed this unforgivable sin and don’t even KNOW it? Let’s find out.

You’ll remember that James closed the teaching with these words of warning.

Luke 12:8–9 (NIV)

8 “I tell you, whoever publicly acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. 9 But whoever disowns me before others will be disowned before the angels of God.

This is more than acknowledging that Jesus lived on the planet. Acknowledging Him means that we pledge allegiance to Him instead of disowning Him.

By the way, can you think of a time when one of the followers of Jesus disowned Him in front of others?

PETER: Was Peter forgiven for that? Yes. How? He turned from his sin and turned to Jesus…and Jesus forgave him. That’s an important piece to this puzzle we are about to solve.

For those who have been part of Fellowship for a while often hear about the importance of reading Scripture in context. In fact, CONTEXT is the KEY to interpreting ancient Scripture.

So too, the context of this passage is VERY IMPORTANT in light of what we are about to read in the next verses.

Luke 12:10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

So wait a second… a person can speak against Jesus and be forgiven, but he can't speak against the Holy Spirit and be forgiven? What’s THAT all about?

WHY is blaspheming the Holy Spirit so much more devastating than speaking against Jesus?

First, remembering the earlier verses, a person who disowns Jesus CAN be forgiven…IF…he/she repents. But there is NO forgiveness without repentance.

So WHICH sins are so bad they are UNFORGIVABLE? That’s a GREAT QUESTION you ask!

Let’s look at a passage that helps give clarity:

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 (NIV)

9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? [Who are wrongdoers? Paul answers:] Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

IF we stop there…EVERY PERSON in this room, is IN TROUBLE! Because you have been ONE of these…and so have I.

This is not an exhaustive list as a few others could be mentioned. For example, Paul - the guy who wrote this - before his conversion - calls himself a blasphemer and persecutor of the faith (1 Tim. 1:13).

But thank the Lord Jesus that the thought continues!

1 Corinthians 6:11 (NIV)

11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Can God forgive people for THAT? YES! YES! YES!

But there is NO forgiveness without repentance.

Now, this brings us back to our passage. If people who repent can be forgiven for these sins, even denying or speaking evil of Jesus, sexual impurity, blasphemy, & persecuting Christians - then why is blaspheming the Spirit unforgivable?

Luke 12:10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

Before I attempt to answer this question, you should note that beyond the gospel writings, there is NO MENTION of ‘blasphemy of the Spirit’, not by Peter, Paul, James, Jude, nor Dr. Luke - in his sequel we call ACTS.

I HAVE listed all the Greek uses of ‘blasphemy’ in the New Testament in the YouVersion Notes (and can get you a copy if you email me or ask). Yet NOT ONE of these passages refer to blasphemy of the Spirit nor remind the reader of it being an unforgivable sin.

Now, I KNOW what you’re thinking

Why not? If this is such a dangerous thing to do…why NO MENTION of it in their writings? Again…you ask great questions!

That’s WHY we need to consider what JESUS means be blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

Thankfully, in context, it’s not a mystery as both Matthew & Mark tie THIS SAYING into the conversation we have already discussed in week 40 of this series as Jesus and the Pharisees tie up. Here’s a quick snapshot:

Mark 3:28–30

28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” 30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

It’s in THIS CONTEXT that Jesus speaks of blasphemy against the Spirit - the unforgivable sin.

According to Jesus, this is what happened when a person

saw the miracles of Jesus

and STILL claimed that He was empowered by Satan rather than empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Now, all my life I have heard that blasphemy of the Spirit is rejecting the conviction of the Spirit to trust Jesus and turn from sin. But if so, I have a question - CAN THAT PERSON BE FORGIVEN? According to Jesus, blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven!

NT Wright states: Once you declare that the spring of fresh water is in fact polluted, you will never drink from it.

If you are convinced that Jesus is an agent of Satan, would you ever seek Him for forgiveness? Of course not.

As we have seen before in this passage, Jesus is holding ‘this generation’ more accountable than ANY OTHER. They have the Messiah in their midst. They have PROOF of His claims in His many miracles, yet they attribute attribute this to Satan instead of the Spirit.

So it seems that the blasphemy against the Spirit that Jesus spoke of could only be committed by people who SAW Jesus perform miracles & attributed those works to Satan instead of to the Holy Spirit. And THAT sin could never be forgiven.

So what’s that MEAN for you and me?

I submit YOU could never commit blasphemy of the Holy Spirit like Jesus talked about.

Therefore, NOTHING you have done is UNFORGIVABLE.

Have you spoken against Jesus, taken a video declaring you ‘blaspheme’ the Spirit, or commit some sort of horrific sin?

Turn & Trust while you still have time.

The Holy Spirit IS still at work today. He is the One who deals with your soul.

The Spirit convicts us of our sin and our need for a Savior.

At a young age, I remember the deep conviction in me - that I had sinned and needed a Savior - at that was Jesus. I bowed my heart, gave Him my life, & have attempted to follow Him ever since.

So while it is my understanding that you cannot commit blasphemy against the Spirit or another sin that is unforgivable, that doesn’t mean you get a free pass to heaven.

Just like me, you have sinned and need to be forgiven. And if you are NOT FORGIVEN, you are held accountable for your sin by our HOLY GOD.

You CAN BE FORGIVEN, but there is NO forgiveness without repentance

Has the Holy Spirit shown you how wicked your sin is? Will you stop making excuses for your sin give it up? What will you do with that?

Today, there are ONLY…

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

The disciples who walked with Jesus, would later experience the Holy Spirit living IN them. To them, Jesus gave this word of encouragement - that they could RELY on the Spirit even in the toughest of times.

Luke 12:11-12 11 “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”

The word synagogues refers to the many local Jewish courts held in synagogues. They consisted of 23 elders to try cases with the authority to excommunicate from the synagogue and to administer a physical punishment like scourging with rods.

The words rulers and authorities are terms used to refer to courts higher than the local synagogue, including both Jewish & Gentile civil authorities.

Can you IMAGINE being told this today…your faith in Jesus will cost you…when the days come - and they will - that you put on trial for Jesus - Don’t flinch. Don’t be afraid of those who can kill the body (as James talked about last week).

It’s in these MOST DIFFICULT of circumstances that you experience, you can be CERTAIN that the Holy Spirit would not abandon you. When you are on trial for your faith in Jesus, just RELY on the Spirit of God to show up and USE YOU!

And THIS has been the characteristic of believers for 2000 years. That even in the most difficult of circumstances - they RELY instead of DENY the Holy Spirit.

Is that TRUE of YOU? Many who claim to be believers live as if there is NO HOLY SPIRIT living in them and through them. Yet when we read the Scriptures it becomes obvious that there are only…[2 responses to the Spirit:]

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELYBIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

BIG TRUTH: 2 Responses to the Spirit: DENY or RELY

As Jesus reminded the 1st century disciples, the 21st century disciples of Jesus need to be reminded that His Spirit is WITH US…even in the most difficult times!

What’s that LOOK LIKE in real life?

When PERSECUTION comes, we trust the Spirit is with us - when people speak evil of us or even threaten us, we RELY on Him…we LEAN on His Presence.

When TEMPTATION comes, we trust the Spirit is with us - regardless of our feelings and desires. We RELY on Him…we LEAN on His Presence.

If you were involved in ‘The Truth Project’, you will remember Dr. Del Tackett talking with a man about his struggle with pornography. Dr. Tackett asked if he believed in the omni-presence of God [that God is always present]. The man responded that he did, to which Dr. Tackett challenged him and said - NO YOU DON’T. If you REALLY believed the Presence of God was with you, pornography wouldn’t be something you give in to. We should

Through the DARKEST & BRIGHTEST DAYS, regardless of our circumstances we trust the Spirit is with us. We RELY on Him…we cry out to Him in difficult days & thank Him in the glorious days. We RELY on the Holy Spirit.

So, in summation, EVERY SIN is FORGIVABLE, but…

there is NO forgiveness without repentance

STAND as we PRAY. “What do you want me to do with what I heard today?”

Jesus is your King. Trust that the Holy Spirit IS near. RELY on Him regardless of your circumstances.

You claim to know Jesus, but your your actions, words, & thoughts DENY Him rather than RELY on Him. Turn from your sin.

Finally, you KNOW you DON’T know Jesus. You haven’t gone too far to be forgiven, but you must recognize that Jesus is God in skin who died to pay for your sin…