Write From My
Heart / September 18,
2020 / The
Unpardonable Sin
Mark 3:28-29 (NLT) [Jesus, speaking to teachers of religious law]“I tell you the
truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the
Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.”
There are many who question or doubt
the forgiveness of God because they believe somehow they have committed the
“unpardonable” sin. As a teenager, I also questioned this for a period of time
in my life. I think what happens is that we are so stunned by the above verse
we somehow neglect to put it into context. So perhaps the first thing we ought
to do is look at the whole event and even the events leading up to this one.
Mark begins his written records with
the baptism of Jesus and then details the accounts of several events, healing,
encounters with Pharisees, the calling of the twelve apostles, and even direct
encounters with demons, ( brief summary of the first three chapters of Mark).
It is interesting that demons cried out “You are the Son of God,” but Jesus
rebuked the demons and gave them strict orders not to reveal his identity yet
(Mark 3:11-12). But I believe this is part of the answer we seek. You see,
Satan fully understands who Christ Jesus is, namely our Savior. He also knows,
as do we, that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.
John 14:16-17 (NLT) [again, the words of Jesus] “And I will ask the Father, and he
will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit,
who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t
looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives
with you now and later will be in you.”
Now we come to the main event
surrounding today’s text. Large crowds gathered around Jesus everywhere he
went, to the point we are told Jesus and the disciples couldn’t even find time
to eat (Mark 3:20). Jesus’ own family thought he was out of his mind (Mark
3:21). Then enter the teachers of religious law who accuse Jesus of being
“possessed by Satan” and further accuse that Jesus’ power came from Satan (Mark
3:22)—in essence, calling the power of the Holy Spirit, the very Spirit of
Truth, to be a satanic power. This, as they say, was the last straw!
As I have said before, I have no
formal doctrinal training nor theological degrees, but I do seek for guidance in
understanding through prayer every time I write. And this is my conclusion on
the matter of the “unpardonable” sin. Time and again we are reassured that all
sin will be forgiven and that all who call upon the name of the Lord will be
saved; in fact, Jesus even begins his response with this very assurance (v 28).
However, one thing will absolutely not be tolerated—to turn the truth of God
into a lie—to falsely identify or associate the Spirit of God, the Spirit of
Truth, as a demonic power. When the teachers of the religious law accused Jesus
of accomplishing his works through the power of evil rather than by the Holy
Spirit, that was truly unforgivable!
Romans 10:13 (NLT) For, “Everyone who
calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.”
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