Evil #1: Unforgivable Blasphemy
Matthew - Masterclass • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 30:12
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· 19 viewsEvil #1: Unforgivable Blasphemy Matthew 12:22-32 Jesus responds to the Pharisees accusation of sorcery with the harshest and scariest words in the Bible: the unforgivable sin. This is not something one can do by mistake. It is the active, ongoing and knowing rejection of the Holy Spirit, which makes repentance and forgiveness unwelcome and impossible. God will not drag the unwilling and unready into His Holy Presence.
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Matthew 12:22-32
Jesus responds to the Pharisees accusation of sorcery with the harshest and scariest words in the Bible: the unforgivable sin. This is not something one can do by mistake. It is the active, ongoing and knowing rejection of the Holy Spirit, which makes repentance and forgiveness unwelcome and impossible. God will not drag the unwilling and unready into His Holy Presence.
Benny Hinn
Benny Hinn
This was a famous scene where Benny waved his jacket at folks and they flew back… and reportedly, they were healed. Or threw his jacket at people… and they were slain by the Spirit… and many folks reported being healed by the Spirit of God.
This guy was headquartered in Southern California not far from where I lived and worked in Irvine.
He is still teaching and leading healing services now.
And he has an estimated net worth of approximately 60 million dollars.
Is he working by the power of the Holy Spirit?
Judge now, on the count of 3...
That’s uncomfortable. I bet we have some different opinions in the room. That’s fun.
Now, in general, you don’t have to judge. You don’t have to decide. You can just choose to participate or not without landing on a firm position.
But now, imagine you are in a position to decide. Your kid is about to send all their money to Benny Hinn and you need to give them counsel.
I was in this position, I had a friend, not a Christian, visit Benny to see what this “Christian stuff was all about.” And as part of my witness to him, had to take a strong position on whether I thought Benny was representative of authentic Christian faith.
Pharisees
Pharisees
Here are the Pharisees. We give them so much grief. And sometimes, they super deserve it. But we want to understand where they are coming from, walk in the shoes of everyone in the story.
They are absolutely devoted to God, deeply schooled in the Scriptures, and many are sincerely trying to walk in righteousness… and doing so better than nearly anyone else.
Sure, some are hypocrites. Some are faking it. Some are self-righteous… but some are the real-deal.
And here comes this new teacher. He is healing, that seems good… but he is teaching strange things. And most of what he has done and said is filtered through the grapevine, likely twisted and distorted.
But you know he is working on the Sabbath, healing on the Sabbath, clearly profaning the Sabbath.
And now, he is casting out demons. Now one option is that he is from God and so much of what you know to be “true” is wrong.
But the other option is that this is a trick from Satan. Surely Satan could make a demon pretend to be cast out for a bit to give the appearance of power and righteousness to lead folks astray, right?
So it is time to make it clear, for the protection of all these gullible and foolish non-Pharisees, that this Jesus guy is no good.
Unforgivable Sin
Unforgivable Sin
22 Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw.
23 And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?”
Correct answer: yes.
24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.”
Beelzebul. May mean “Prince of Demons” or “Lord of Flies”, which could be a reference to a Philistine deity… or could be
25 Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.
26 And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges.
A house divided cannot stand! There’s a famous quote. That’s Jesus, long before Shakespeare.
This is not Satan or a demon pretending for a minute. These are long established illnesses and maladies. How many of the healings are attested by parents and neighbors saying “this dude has been blind and mute his whole life!”
And then they are healed, and not a temporary psychosomatic improvement in symptoms, but total and complete healing this side of heaven.
How could that possibly serve Satan???
And at some level, they know it.
There are and have long been Jewish exorcists. There methods involved elaborate ceremonies. For example, the apocryphal Book of Tobit describes an exorcism method involving burning a fish’s liver in incense ashes to drive away a demon.
If they can do it, with whatever limited success they had. It doesn’t seem to be too successful because the Jewish exorcists in Acts are pretty jealous of the power and authority shown by the early church. They cast out with a word, and do it successfully… where they struggle with hocus pocus fish liver smoke.
But they recognize that it takes the power of God, they do so by the power of YHWH… and they imitate the apostles in casting out demons by the name of Jesus because they see, without question, that they are doing it by the power of God.
But if, here comes the counter-factual:
28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29 Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.
I love this visual of Jesus’ work on earth. The strong man is the devil, the world is his house, the souls of sinners his plunder.
And Jesus has bound the strong man and is rescuing souls as his own treasure. Hallelujah!
30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
31 Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
32 And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
This is such an interesting dichotomy here.
One can speak against Jesus. The “Son of Man.” And they are, often. They will in fact speak against him to the point of crucifixion. It is expected… and that sin will be forgiven.
But, “speaking against the Holy Spirit” will not be. What does that mean? Either in this age or in the age to come?
He speaking to Pharisees who already have an understanding of the forgiveness of sins. They receive forgiveness through the sacrificial system. Commensurate sacrifice in the temple, yearly sacrifice for the sins of all the people.
They also have a theology of God temporarily withholding forgiveness for a season of punishment, but Pharisees believe in physical Resurrection… thus they expect forgiveness in the “age to come.”
Jesus says “Nope! Not in this case.”
Now, one possibility is that Jesus is referring only to forgiveness through the sacrificial system… but Jesus certainly knows what he is about to do, what his mission is, and the radical forgiveness he purchases on the cross. It would be confusing at best for him to say this to the Pharisees, this warning, and have it only be applicable for the next year or two.
So first, this is a case where the manifest presence of God by his Spirit is undeniable. Jesus doesn’t leave them ignorance as an excuse. This is “knowingly” calling the work of the Holy Spirit the work of the Devil.
Likely for the purpose of stirring up people against the work of God.
The Gospel of Matthew E. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit Will Not Be Forgiven (12:30–37)
Presumably what makes the blasphemy of attributing to Beezeboul the work of the Spirit in Jesus unforgivable is that it excludes people from participating in what God is doing in Jesus, and thus from the ‘forgiveness project’. No doubt such blasphemy remains unforgivable only as long as it is sustained. It too may be repented of.
Whoever “speaks” (Aorist, Active, Subjunctive). It is a warning, a potential action, not just referring to what they “have spoken” but what they will speak. Ongoing.
NOT the past tense “has ever spoken.”
10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
From Luke, “is blaspheming” - Aorist, Active, Participle… concurrent action.
The Gospel according to Matthew 6. Conflict with the Pharisees, 12:22–37
Jesus is talking about the set of the life, not any one isolated saying. When a person takes up a position like that of the Pharisees, when, not by way of misunderstanding but through hostility to what is good, that person calls good evil and, on the other hand, makes evil his good, then that person has put himself in a state that prevents forgiveness. It is not that God refuses to forgive; it is that the person who sees good as evil and evil as good is quite unable to repent and thus to come humbly to God for forgiveness. And there is no way to forgiveness other than by the path of repentance and faith.
The “unforgivable sin” is Purposeful and Persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit, by and large, will not go where it is not received, not wanted.
It is conscious rejection of the “good power of God.”
God created our free will, He does not lightly overrule it.
It is not the “limits of God’s forgiveness” but the individual’s own spiritual state that makes them unwilling or unable to seek forgiveness.
And, even just the fact that Jesus is giving them this warning, implies repentance is still possible. If it is the “ongoing, persistent rejection” what is possible when they leave that state of rejection?
Imagine a man lost in the woods. And his friend is calling out to him. Walk towards my voice! Now, he can be mad at his friend. Super upset at him, want to punch him in the face when he sees him. He can yell back at the voice. Just like one can be mad at the “Son of Man.” God is big enough to handle your anger.
But if he hears where the voice is coming from, he hears what it is telling him to do… and he runs from the voice, he runs in the opposite direction… is he going to get out of the woods?
No. By definition, he is refusing, rejecting, the way to salvation.
The unforgivable sin is akin to this: it’s not a mere trip off the path; it’s choosing to go deeper into the woods, away from the light, even when the guide calls us back to safety.
The “unforgivable sin” is Purposeful and Persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit.
This principle is throughout the Old Testament as well:
20 Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who put darkness for light
and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter!
This is helpful, with some helpful metaphors. People who “put darkness for light” can’t see that they are wrong. Why? Because they are in the dark. That is the very nature of what they have done… and as long as they stay in the dark they can’t “see”. By definition.
Those who choose the bitter won’t taste the sweet. By the active and ongoing nature of their decision.
Paul: Chief of Sinners
Paul: Chief of Sinners
Here is my biggest guide in understanding how this works.
Isn’t Paul one who, one way or another, saw the work of the Holy Spirit in Jesus and the apostles as evil enough to deserve stoning? We don’t know what he said, but we know he helped stone Steven, one of the first deacons of the church, and the first martyr.
He did horrible and awful things… because he sincerely believed he was doing the right thing.
13 though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief,
Formerly: blasphemer, persecutor and insolent opponent. Opponent to God. Opponent to Christ. In some sense, maybe an indirect sense, but an opponent to the work of the Holy Spirit.
Ignorantly. In unbelief. Not knowingly and persistently calling the work of the Holy Spirit evil. Not ongoing-ly rejecting the work of the Holy Spirit.
What is the opposite of “acted ignorantly in unbelief?”
Opposite of “ignorance” is “knowingly”. Opposite of “Unbelief” is “Belief.”
First of all “acted” is past tense… what are you doing now? How are you acting / choosing now?
The “unforgivable sin” is Purposeful and Persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit.
Or, we could say, the Knowing, Believing, Presently Ongoing rejection of the Holy Spirit.
So if it is a question you have “have I committed the unforgivable sin?” By the presence of the question, you don’t meet this definition.
Then the next words of Paul are spoken over you:
14 and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.
16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.
I have to imagine Paul knew about those Pharisees… yet called himself “foremost of sinners.” He knew his own sin… and yet the forgiveness of Jesus was all the greater.
Your Unforgivable Sin
Your Unforgivable Sin
A whole lot of people think they are unforgivable. They see sin, in all its ugly… and it is ugly. It is broken and brokenness. It is rebellion. It is blasphemy. It hurts others. It hurts us. It hurts God.
It is murder and lying. It is twisting the good gifts of God into abusive and perverted purposes. It is hatred of others, hatred of self, hatred of God.
And there may be secret hidden sin in your own life. It’s too ugly, it’s too broken, it’s too unspeakable. Unforgivable.
The number one takeaway from this passage should be this: your sin isn’t unforgivable. The Holy Spirit is at work to bring you to repentance. As long as you’re willing to let the Spirit work, to repent and be brought back into righteousness, you will be forgiven and you will be saved.
Forget what you did in ignorance. What you did in rebellion. By the blood of Jesus, by the Command of the Father, by the work of the Holy Spirit, you are forgiven of all your sins.
Open to the Spirit
Open to the Spirit
We don’t want to live in fear of the unforgivable sin. We want the absolute opposite, to be open in every way to what the Holy Spirit is doing.
The history of the church is full of folks rejecting the “new”. The guitar was called “evil work of the devil”… but so was the organ before it.
Wars fought over baptism and sacraments, over Popes and anti-Popes.
I want to be wholly open to what the Spirit is doing. ESPECIALLY when Spirit moves in a new way. ESPECIALLY when Spirit surprises and challenges my way of thinking.
God is eternal and unchangeably good and holy and righteous.
And He is infinitely Creative in expression of that, working it out among us, delighting in our own responsive Creativity, in His image.
Lord, let me be open to what you are doing. Spirit, let me see it. Let me recognize your work, wherever it is found. However it surprises me, challenges me, let me see it.
Let me see you, Jesus, at work among us, by your Spirit.
17 To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
