What comes to mind when you consider the unpardonable or unforgivable sin? Your mind might drift back to sinful things you’ve done in the past or are presently doing. You might think about the sins committed against others or against yourself. Many people have a sort of hierarchy of sins taken from a list curated by society over the centuries. There are even some sincere Christians who have a sliding scale of sin severity based on wisdom and traditions of men. The Bible cuts through the clutter of human opinion. It explains precisely what the unforgivable sin is and how to deal with it because ignoring it has eternally tragic consequences. Romans 6:23
As humans, our collective ability to falsely rate and rationalize sin is profound. We have a list of the biggies like murder, robbery, adultery, rape, and abuse, among others. Then there are the so-called lesser evils of gossip, slander, hatred, emotional adultery, lying, greed, pride, and sexual immorality, etc. Then we try to fool ourselves and our Creator by making excuses for sin by blaming our family, upbringing, culture, socioeconomic status, the past, our surroundings, or God. Although the conscience might be soothed for a season, the nagging guilt and knowledge of who we really are inside reemerges.
In Matthew 12:22, Mark 3:22, and Luke 11:14, Jesus has an encounter with the Pharisees and warns about committing the unpardonable sin. Jesus heals a man who was demon-possessed, blind, and mute. The Pharisees are murmuring among themselves and saying that Jesus cast out demons through the power of the prince of demons. Of course, Jesus rebuked them and gave the famous response that a kingdom divided against itself can’t stand. The Lord also warned His listeners that all sins can be forgiven except for the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. The Pharisees blasphemed the work of the Spirit by attributing it to demonic power, but that’s not all.
Jesus warned that those who aren’t with Him are against Him, and whoever doesn’t gather with Him scatters. Not only were the Pharisees guilty of crediting the Spirit’s work to demons, but they were also guilty of opposing the work of the Spirit by scattering people. The Pharisees were guilty of blaspheming the Spirit by lying about and ultimately rejecting Him.
When we consider much of what the Holy Spirit does, we have to take a close look at John 16:8-9. Every believer knows that the Holy Spirit is with us as our Comforter, Helper, and Friend. In the verses above, we see that a large part of the Spirit’s work is bringing conviction to the world regarding sin, righteousness, and judgment.
For thousands of years, right up to our present day, scores of faithful preachers, perhaps billions of Christian witnesses, have spread the gospel. In recent times, we still have some biblical solid radio, television, and internet evangelists bringing the good news. There are Bibles in virtually every hotel room, tracts left for others to find, and evangelical churches on almost every corner in every town in Western society. Creation itself shouts there is a God, and every person’s conscience attests to the fact that we have a Creator to answer to. Romans 1:18-21
As the gospel goes out and the Holy Spirit moves among and convicts people of sin, some will respond with repentance and saving faith in Jesus, while others will hear the same good news and respond with rebellion and hardness of heart. When people ignore and reject the work of the Spirit, they are setting themselves up for blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. They go through life gambling with their eternity by not coming to repentance. Revelation 9:20-21 shows there is a time when people choose not to repent, leading to the time when they can’t repent.
Whether we’re taken into eternity by death or the Lord’s return, whatever our standing is with Jesus at that moment will be our reality forever. To reject the good news that Jesus came into the world to save sinners and decide not to respond by faith and repentance is to blaspheme the Holy Spirit. That is the one sin that God won’t forgive.
Remember the list of sins we mentioned earlier? Every one of those sins can be forgiven, and we can be made clean by the blood Jesus shed on the cross for all of us. The word of God clearly states that today is the day of salvation and not to harden your heart if you hear His voice. Don’t be deceived by Satan or yourself through rationalizing sin. Don’t gamble your eternity with unfortunate sentiments like: “He knows my heart” or “The God I know would never send anyone to hell.” Here’s what famous preachers said about our human ability to rationalize sin and reject the good news:
We’ve tried to call our sin errors, mistakes, or poor judgment, but sin itself has stayed the same.” -Billy Graham
“We have the strange illusion that time cancels sin.” -C.S. Lewis
“People on Earth hate to hear the word repent, while those in hell wish they could hear it just once more.” -A.W. Tozer
Dear friends, this isn’t a hyper-grace message, and I want to make it clear that the temporary pleasures of sin always come with a price. Consequences are measured in broken relationships, families, and lives. When we finally come to the end of ourselves and realize that the wages of sin is death and we only deserve judgment and hell, then will God’s grace truly be amazing to us. If you haven’t come to repentance and made Jesus your Lord, please do it today and be free from the only sin God won’t forgive, Romans 10:9-10.
Fellow Christians, Time is short, Jesus is coming back soon, and many lost people are going into eternity every day. We must do everything we can to bring the good news to everyone the Lord leads us to.
All for Him,
Howard
Podcast Episode: The One Sin God Won’t Forgive
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/concerning-the-times/id1565453348?i=1000732861814
The post The One Sin God Won’t Forgive :: By Howard Green appeared first on Rapture Ready.
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