The Unpardonable Sin
Notes
Transcript
The Unpardonable Sin
Matthew 12:22-32
The subject of this text has been historically one of great interest. People have wrestled with the question of “Is there a sin that is unpardonable?”
Christians and non-Christians alike have wondered if they have committed a sin that God will not forgive. The truth is there is an unpardonable sin. There is a sin that will not be forgiven. The important thing for us is to understand is what that sin is and how that sin is committed. By way of introduction let’s determine what the sin is not.
It is not murder.
It is not suicide.
It is not homosexuality.
All of those things can be forgiven. The unpardonable sin is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I want you to notice how specific Jesus is with this sin. Look at verse 31. Jesus doesn’t say “blasphemy against the Holy Spirit”. He says, “the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.” This is a sin that’s in a category of its own. The person who commits it is beyond hope. They will never be saved. Two times Jesus says very clearly that this is a sin that will not be forgiven (31,32).
That should be enough to get our attention. With that said let’s jump into this text. I want to show you three things in this text:
1. The wonder of the people at the power of Jesus (22-24).
2. The wisdom of Jesus (25-29).
3. The warning of Jesus (30-32).
1. The Wonder of the People at the Power of Jesus (22-24).
A. Jesus heals a man possessed with a devil.
A demon possessed man is brought to Jesus.
This world is filled with devils. There are people in this world that are filled with devils. This man was one of them. He had not always been. He opened himself up to Satan.
We open ourselves up to Satan through unbelief. Resist the devil and he will flee.
We open ourselves up to Satan through an ungodly lifestyle. The devil loves to sin, and he will do it through us if he can.
The devil ruined this man’s life. Certainly, his life was ruined spiritually. But he also ruined this man’s life physically. The man could no longer talk, and he could no longer see. Make no mistake, the devil wants your soul and your body.
I’m sure this man never thought his sin would lead him to this place. Rebellion will destroy us in this world and the next. This man had learned that.
Some might look at this man and think he’s beyond hope. They may think his home will be hell. They may think he’ll never be forgiven. Some might think he had sold his soul to the devil.
Many demon possessed people in the gospels came to Christ and found release and forgiveness. The devil may tell you that once you’re in league with him there’s no going back, but he’s a liar.
I remember in Haiti there was a man who wanted to get saved. He said he couldn’t because he had made a deal with the devil to serve him a specific amount of years. He was afraid if he broke the deal then the devil would have his way with him. God doesn’t honor the devils deals. No matter what promise you have made to the devil you can break it.
Jesus cast the devil out of this mand and healed him as well. He had served Satan. He had given a devil his own body as a home. We cannot imagine the terrible sins this man had committed through the years. But this man had not committed the unpardonable sin.
B. The people are amazed at the work of Jesus.
When you read the gospels, you see a lot of demon possession. The presence of so much demonic activity proved that no one was doing anything about it. The devil was having his way in that region. When the people saw Jesus casting out devils and healing people who had been afflicted by the devil they were amazed.
Even in the Old Testament we see very few instances of people exercising power over the devil. David played his lyre and the evil spirit that afflicted Saul would leave for a time but it would always come back (1 Sam. 16:14-23). Maybe that’s why they ask if Jesus is the Son of David in verse 23.
In the Greek the question is asked in a negative way. It reads like this- “This can’t be the Son of David can it? “It’s worded in such a way that it expects a negative answer.
Son of David is also a title given to the coming Messiah. They knew that the Messiah would be accompanied with miraculous works, but they weren’t fully convinced Jesus was the Savior.
But nevertheless, they are amazed at the power of Jesus. They are entertaining the idea that this could be the Savior.
C. The Pharisees make a horrible charge against Jesus.
Realizing Jesus is beginning to convince people He is the Savior the Pharisees respond viciously. They say “No, this isn’t the Son of David, this is the son of the devil!”
Notice that they didn’t discredit the power of Jesus. They didn’t say this was a con. No one could deny that Jesus was performing miraculous acts. They said He was doing it through the power of Satan. This isn’t the first time they’ve said that. They said it earlier in 9:34. This is how they answered the question of Jesus miracles.
This shows us the lengths the Pharisees are willing to go to justify their own rejection of Christ. There are many who are doing the same thing today. Many people will ignore all of the evidence concerning Christ so they can justify the sinful life they want to live.
Friend, listen. Why do you reject Christ? Be honest with yourself. Are you rejecting Christ because you know your life would have to drastically change if you trusted Him? Don’t be deceived by your own self.
Instead of being skeptical of Christ be amazed at His power.
2. The wisdom of Jesus (25-29).
A. The accusation of the Pharisees was illogical. Jesus tells them in verses 25-26 that a kingdom that fights against itself can’t stand. If Satan is fighting against Satan, then Satan is going to lose. It would be counterproductive for Satan to fight himself.
This is actually an amazing argument. I used an argument very close to this once when I was witnessing to an atheist. I had shared the gospel with him and he kept rejecting it. We debated the truth of the Bible for a while. Finally I shared my testimony with him. Normally that is received pretty well. Then he said something no one has ever said before or since to me. He asked me “How do you know it wasn’t Satan that changed you?”
I was pretty young in the faith and I was shocked at what he said. If I didn’t know Scripture I would have probably been at a loss for words. I told him the Bible says no one can say Jesus is Lord but by the Spirit of God. The Bible is the book that tells us about Satan and it tells me he would never inspire anyone to come to Christ and be saved. That would contradict every intention of Satan. He didn’t know what to say after that. That’s the statement that finally got him to stand down.
That’s essentially what Jesus says here. I was using the same argument Jesus used thousands of years ago.
B. The questions of Jesus.
Jesus asks three questions:
If Satan casts out Satan how can his kingdom stand?
We’ve already dealt with that.
If I’m casting out devils with the power of Satan who are your children casting devils out by?
The Pharisees had people who claimed to cast out devils. Jesus could make the same claim against them if He wanted to.
How can you enter a strong man’s house unless you first bind the strong man?
Jesus is saying He must be stronger than Satan because He is walking into Satan’s house and doing whatever He wants to do.
C. The affirmations of Jesus.
Satan has a kingdom. The devil is real. He is alive and active. He is destroying peoples lives. He is busy in this world and it is not hard to see his work.
Satan is powerful. A normal person can’t just walk into Satan’s house and undo what he has done. He is a powerful being.
Christ’s power over Satan shows that the kingdom of God has come (28). The Pharisees needed to recognize that Jesus is the Messiah and if they reject Him they have rejected God. They have rejected the only One who can deliver this world from the power of the devil.
3. The Warning of Jesus (30-32).
A. Jesus warns these men that they are close to stepping over the line.
Look at verse 31. If they keep it up, they will have no hope of forgiveness. The context shows these men had either already committed or were in danger of committing the unpardonable sin.
I don’t know if they had committed it. What I do know is that it is possible to commit this sin and when someone does, they have no hope. There is no way for any of us to know if a person has committed this sin. We can’t see a person’s heart. But Christ certainly knows if someone has committed it. Christ knows if a person is in danger of committing it as well. So, this statement by Christ is an act of mercy. This warning is meant to shake these people up.
Once this sin is committed there is no going back. Look at the end of verse 32. It’s not forgiven in this world or the world to come. Some might think this is a type of discipline like we see in 1 Corinthians 11. It’s true that the Lord through His discipline may take some believers home early because of their sin. But this sin isn’t forgiven in this world or the next world. This is a sin the person will bear for eternity.
B. This in no way diminishes the mercy of God.
Look at verse 31. Jesus says all types of sin and even blasphemy can be forgiven. He even says you can blaspheme the Son in verse 32 and still be forgiven.
We should be amazed that we can be forgiven for saying blasphemous things about Christ. Maybe you have said awful things to or about God. Perhaps you have even cursed Christ. That’s an awful thing. But Jesus says you can be forgiven for it. Clearly the mercy of God is on full display in this text.
C. What is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?
Jesus makes it clear. All we have to do is look at the context. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is attributing the work of Christ to Satan. That’s the purest definition of it. These men saw the power of the Holy Spirit through Christ and said that power was from the devil.
D. Why is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit so bad?
It’s because God clearly demonstrates Himself and He is rejected. What else could the Lord do to convince these people Jesus is the Messiah? They are rejecting Jesus despite the evidence. There is no ignorance on their part.
The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit can’t be committed accidentally. It can’t be committed in ignorance. Paul is a good example of this.
Paul said in 1 Timothy 1:13 “though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief,”
If Paul had rejected Christ after his Damascus Road experience, I believe he would have blasphemed the Holy Spirit. After God clearly showed him the truth, if he had continued to say the work of Christ was the work of the devil, I think it’s clear he would have blasphemed the Holy Spirit.
The difference is knowledge. The difference is proof. God gave these men more proof than they needed and they continued to say Christ was of the devil.
E. Why is blasphemy directed toward the Spirit different than blasphemy directed toward the Father or the Son? Because of the different roles the Father, Son and Holy Spirit play in our salvation.
We are chosen by the Father
We are redeemed by the Son
The Holy Spirit applies salvation.
The Spirit opens our eyes.
The Spirit convicts us of our sin.
The Spirit draws us to God.
The Spirit regenerates us.
If we reject the Father and the Son the Holy Spirit may still open our eyes and ears to the gospel. To a degree the role of the Father and the Son in our salvation is something that has already happened. The Holy Spirit is involved in the here and now. The Holy Spirit must be involved in our lives if we are to be saved (Romans 8:9). Therefore, to reject Him is to reject the hope of salvation because the Holy Spirit is the One who applies our salvation to us.
The writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 2:3-4 “How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation which at first began to be spoken by the Lord and was confirmed unto us by those that heard him: God also bearing them witness both with signs and wonders and with divers miracles…”
The only way we can be saved is if we are born again through the Spirit of God. To reject the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to reject salvation.
F. There are some that believe this sin cannot be committed anymore.
They believe the only way you can commit it is if you see Jesus do a miraculous work and then say that He did it by the power of Satan. I think that misses the point. The point is that there is an unpardonable sin, a point of no return that a person can cross. Other New Testament Scriptures teach the same truth and these Scriptures were recorded years after Jesus had ascended to the Father.
Hebrews 6:4-6 says
For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.
The sin is against the Holy Spirit and no Bible teacher would say that He is not active in the world today. As long as the Holy Spirit is in the world, He can be blasphemed therefore this sin can be committed today.
G. What does blasphemy against the Holy Spirit look like today?
The first thing we need to remember is this can’t be done accidentally. This is a settled rejection of Christ.
If you’re worried you have committed this sin, you haven’t. If you had committed this sin you would have no conviction concerning Christ at all. You wouldn’t care what the Bible says. You wouldn’t fear judgment at all. You would be so deceived and so hardened that no amount of prayer or preaching would do anything for you at all. The Spirit of God has abandoned the person who has committed this sin. Therefore, they are not convicted of sin and they have no desire for Christ at all. By the time a person has committed this sin they don’t care that they have.
The second thing we need to remember is this sin is committed intentionally. The Spirit of God is active in this world. He has come to convince us of sin, righteousness and judgment. Most of us have witnessed the work of the Spirit.
Through a sermon the Spirit has shown us our need for Christ.
Through the witness of a godly person the Spirit has shown us that Christianity is real and life transforming.
Through the reading of the Scripture the Spirit has shown us that the Bible is more than a book.
Through answered prayer the Spirit has shown us that Christ is the Mediator between God and man.
The Spirit has shown the entire world that Jesus is the Savior through the resurrection of Christ.
But He also shows us specifically that Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life. When He shows that reality to us and we reject it we are calling the Spirt of God a liar. We are doing a blasphemous thing.
I’m afraid that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit may be more common than we would like to think. When I look around and see so few people concerned about their soul it frightens me. Spurgeon said,
“He that sins against the Holy Ghost may find himself waterlogged by sin, so as to be no longer able to move his vessel toward the shores of salvation. Nothing hardens like the gospel when it is long trifled with. “
When a person rejects the Spirit, they reject any hope of repentance. Without repentance we cannot be saved.
2 Corinthians 6:2 says, “Now is the accepted time; behold today is the day of salvation”.
If the Spirit of God has shown you that you are a sinner, repent today.
If the Spirit of God has shown you Christ is the Savior, submit to Him today.
We have often heard of deathbed conversions. We saw one at calvary. But there was also another man at calvary. He knew what the converted thief knew. But his heart was not moved to salvation.
I have witnessed this in my life. As a pastor I have found myself with many people just before they died. I will always remember an old man who would not repent. He had gone to church his entire life. His wife was a godly woman. He had heard more sermons than many in this room. As I spoke with him about his salvation, he was courteous but unmoved by the Spirit. He would not come to Christ. He and I were friends. We had good conversation. But he rejected Christ openly with the full knowledge that he was going to die very soon. I do believe this man had blasphemed the Holy Spirit. Many people were praying for him. I reasoned with him from Scripture. His heart was unmoved. It was one of the saddest things I have ever witnessed. There was nothing anyone could do for him.