The Unpardonable (Unforgivable) Sin
Matthew 12:31-32 NKJV "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.
Question
Is there an unforgivable sin today? In John 3:18, the Lord says that there is. The verse says, "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” Unbelief or not trusting in the work and person of the Lord Jesus Christ is not forgivable. There is only one way to heaven and there is only one Truth with regard to that great issue. No one comes to faith in that truth apart from the convicting work of the Holy Spirit as He uses the word of God. That is why the Lord tells us that we must be born “of the Spirit.”
Is the unforgivable sin in John 3:18 the same thing as blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? I believe these sins are one and the same.
Differing points of View
Most commentators and preachers that I have read and heard say that the passages dealing with blaspheming the Holy Spirit have to do with attributing to Satan the work of the Holy Spirit. The Lord said in these passages that He was casting out demons by the Spirit of God (see Matthew 12:28). These commentators say that since the Lord is not physically present to cast out demons by the Spirit of God today, the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not possible today.
However, I believe that “whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit” should be read “whoever speaks against THE WITNESS of the Holy Spirit.” It was not the Holy Spirit that was casting out the demons, it was the Lord even though He was casting them out by the Spirit. But the Holy Spirit was doing His work of using the works and word of the Lord to convince people to believe on the Lord.. We often need to add words to the literal translations of the Bible in order to understand the context. In this case we need to add the words “the witness”. The passage mentions that people were wondering if this was the Son of David which means that the miracle was being used by the Holy Spirit to convince them that the Lord was the Messiah. It is noteworthy that being critical of the Lord could be forgiven but being critical of the Holy Spirit could not be forgiven. An example might help.
Two Thieves
In Luke 23 we have two thieves dying on crosses beside the Lord. Both thieves started out speaking critically of the Lord (see Matthew 27:44). But in Luke 23, one of these men had a change of mind. He had blasphemed the Lord, but when he confessed that He was getting what he deserved but that the Lord had done nothing wrong, he was forgiven. The other thief never had a change of heart. One was forgiven and the other was not. Both men had the same Holy Spirit trying to draw them to trust in the Savior but one resisted. In resisting he was actually calling the Holy Spirit a liar. So the while both had bullied the Lord, the one who had submitted to the witness of the Holy Spirit was forgiven and saved for paradise. The other had resisted the Holy Spirit and by resisting His witness, He had rejected the Lord and was condemned. I believe that is what the Lord meant when He said, “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.”
Conclusion
No one can believe that the Lord was and is Who He claimed to be apart from the work and witness of the Holy Spirit. No one can be saved apart from the work and witness of the Holy Spirit. By nature we are obstinate unbelievers. It is the work of the Holy Spirit using the Word of God that changes our minds and brings us to that place of repentance where we admit that God is right even when that makes us wrong. So yes, I believe that we can commit the unforgivable or unpardonable sin today. It is simply refusing to bow to the conviction of the Holy Spirit as He tries to convince us to trust in the Lord. Christ rejecters are really calling the Holy Spirit a liar as He witnesses to them. So yes, John 3:18 shows us the sin that is unforgivable. Those who are condemned already, are condemned because they have not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. They have not believed the witness of the Holy Spirit.
As I have studied this issue, there seems to be a difference between those who are wrestling with the issue of Who Christ is and who have not been able to trust the Lord verses those who in obstinate rebellion turn their backs on the Lord. I believe that the Holy Spirit causes us to think about eternal things at many points in our lives, but I also believe that one who dies and goes to hell had to have come to a point in their lives were they have totally and finally rejected the claims of Christ and the witness of the Holy Spirit. Only God knows if and when that has taken place in a person’s life. I believe that as long as people are questioning whether they might have committed the unforgiveable sin, they haven’t.
I hope no one reading this has committed the only unforgivable sin.
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of October 28, 2018