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For the past months we have been going through the book of Matthew and we arrived at Matthew chapter 12. This segment of Scripture really deals with how the religious leaders in particular rejected Jesus Christ. They would not have Him as King and so we are going to look at Matthew 12 and verses 22 to 32 this morning.

Just something to take note of, this sermon will be the shortest, if not one of the shortest I've ever preached here. I think is because the text itself doesn't allow me to say too much more. So please don't think that I'm 'jiak zhua' (Singlish meaning skiving at work) and I want to be lazy and want to call it a day too early. No I, I think the goal is not to stretch out the time, the goal is just to explain Scripture, show you the Gospel and may the Lord use it then to bless your heart. Alright, Matthew chapter 12.

Really, the central verse that we'd like to look at today is Matthew 12 and verse 31, where it says, "Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven."

Now this is a frequently asked questions. "What is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?" What is this unforgivable sin? What is this unpardonable sin? Well, the word blasphemy really means evil speaking. It can mean something insulting you say about the Holy Spirit. It can mean something derogatory you say about the Holy Spirit. It might be a slander, it might be a curse, but that's what the word blasphemy means, it's evil speaking.

The question we may have then is, are we guilty of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? Can I commit such a sin? Maybe some of you would have flashbacks, earlier on in your life, before you became a Christian or even after you become a Christian. You have said some curse words out of anger against God and against the Holy Spirit and the verse here is very scary. The verse says the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.

In fact, Jesus went on to say, "...whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man (that's referring to Himself) will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." (Matthew 12:32) Mark who writes a parallel passage, says, "...whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin." (Mark 3:29)

Now, these are really weighty words. These are very heavy going phrases. And it is no wonder that people are anxious, fearful, some have sleepless nights as they think about this and as they recall how in their lives they must have cursed God.

So we are going to look at the unforgivable sin and I hope you realize this is not just a theoretical thing. First of all, it's in the Bible, it's important for us understand.

 

But secondly, maybe this is helpful for some of you and perhaps even some of you may have friends who struggle with this. I read John Piper's sermon and he said eight years ago, before he was preaching this sermon of course. He said, "About eight years (before this) a young woman came into my office at Bethel (the church he's in) extremely distressed over this issue of the unforgivable sin. She told me how one day when she was a young teenager, she got so angry at her mother who was a Christian that she locked herself in her room and used every swear word and oath and all the foul language against the Holy Spirit that she could think of. (Ever since then this) was seared into her conscience and would come back to haunt her again and again (and again)." So she's very troubled, to the point she needed to speak with Pastor John.

I read about a Puritan. A Puritan is a Christian man who lived, some time ago, centuries ago. His name is John Child. He was so affected by Matthew 12 verse 31 and 32. He was so sure that he must have committed the sin of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, was so dejected and despondent that he took his own life and committed suicide.

So we are going to look at this verse that has troubled some in Christendom and I hope this will be a helpful session for you. At the end of the day, there will be something that I think is beneficial and helpful for all of us, even if you have never thought about this question before.

Now to understand the sin of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, we need to know why Jesus said these words. Right? I mean these are not words plucked out of nowhere, they must be understood in its context, it's setting, it's background. So let's go back to verse 22, the incident.

The incident is that someone who has been oppressed by the demon was brought before Jesus. This man is blind, he's mute, he must be terribly afflicted by the demon who possessed him. Now, Jesus is going to heal him and the Bible tells us He healed him.

This is not the first time Jesus healed a demoniac, He has done that before. Matthew 8 would tell us the same kind of miracle He did and in fact Matthew has given us more than enough miracles to prove that Jesus has amazing authority and power. He's proving that He has authority as King, He's the servant King, He's the King that has been chosen of God to save His people from their sins.

But the religious leaders by and large have rejected Jesus Christ. Last week we read about how the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus over the issue of the Sabbath. Jesus withdrew from them and then later on, there's this passage that tells us Jesus is really fulfilling all prophecies spoken about Him. And then now we have this healing of the demoniac.

So it has been accumulation of very clear evidences that Jesus is the Son of God and no wonder the people now began to ask and to say, wow, can this be the Son of God? Isn't it clear to us that He must be the Son of David? Now, the phrase 'Son of David' is a very loaded, pregnant term. It has a lot of significance in this short three words.

To a Singaporean today it doesn't mean a lot. Maybe if I say you are the son of Lee Kuan Yew, then you wah! Because you all know who Lee Kuan Yew is, so you think that's something significant. But for a Jew, when you say are the Son, the Son of David, it's really big deal. Why? Because the Jews know that hundreds of years ago, God said to David that he will have a descendant who will be an everlasting King. He will have an everlasting kingdom. So everyone in Israel was waiting for this coming King. This King who will usher in perfect peace and righteousness and joy, who will deliver Israel, they hope, from the dominion and oppression of the Roman Empire. They thought that the King would do that, but the point is they were all waiting for the Son of David, the Savior.

Actually, that has always been the major theme of the Old Testament, the entire Old Testament, not just the coming Son of David, the coming everlasting King but throw back further to the time of Abraham. And God said to Abraham in your descendant, one descendant, shall all nations be blessed. So since the time of Abraham, the Israelites, the Jewish people are also waiting for this coming descendant. And if you draw back even further, right in the beginning in the garden of Eden, God promised that there will come a descendant of a woman, of Eve, who will crush the serpent's head, who will defeat the devil and usher in again righteousness. So, this Son of David, is a very important term. In short, it refers to the promised Messiah, the promised Savior.

 

 

Now the people who were not very educated in the Bible like the Pharisees were, could tell surely Jesus is the Son of David but the religious leaders would not have it. The religious leaders, the Pharisees, heard it and said no He's not of God, He's not sent by God, because all the miracles He did, it is all, "It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons." (Matthew 12:24)

Now they could not deny the evidences. They could not say, oh, there's no healing, there's no casting out. There was - it's clear, everybody saw it, but this is what they deny, He did not do it by the Holy Spirit. Jesus did it by the satanic spirit. He's a charlatan, He's a demoniac himself, don't be deceived by Him.

Again this is not the first time they've opposed Jesus this way. Matthew chapter 9, "He casts out demons by the prince of demons." (Matthew 9:34)  Matthew chapter 10, "If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household" (Matthew 10:25). And so now in Matthew chapter 12, again they repeat, their consistent excuse - Jesus is not of God, He's demonic. Now that is absolutely terrible.

How does Jesus respond? How does He reply? He actually goes to very simple logic. In verse 25, He says, "...Every kingdom (now you say that I'm of devil. You say I'm casting out demons by the power of demons. Listen to what you're saying. "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand." (Matthew 12:25) No country that fights itself will stand for long, no city that fights itself will stand for long. So "...if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?" (Matthew 12:26) It is preposterous that you would say that I'm casting out demons by the power demons because Satan will never do that. He's destroying his own kingdom if I am casting out demons by his power - logic number one.

Logic number two. Jesus then said, "...if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out?" (Matthew 12:27) Now in those days, apparently, the religious leaders will have their disciples, their people, going out to cast out demons. Now, whether they succeed or not, we do not know. At least, I think, they claim that they can do it.

So Jesus is saying, if you say I cast out demons by the power demons, then your disciples cast out demons by what? Isn't it going to be the same thing? Isn't it true then that you're saying that your own disciples are also casting out demons by demons? Are you then saying that you yourself are leaders that are powered or empowered by the devil? You are not making sense!

So the conclusion I say to you, Jesus, I think is saying, is I'm doing this "...by the power of the Spirit of God." (Matthew 12:28) It's, it's not the satanic spirit, it's the Holy Spirit and if I'm casting out demons by the power of the Holy Spirit, then this is the reality, "...the kingdom of God has come upon you."(Matthew 12:28)  What you're seeing is the manifestation of the power of God - the exorcism, the healings, the miracles. It is irrefutable evidence this is of God.

You say why must this be of God? Very simple. Only God has the power to cast out the demon. He says in verse 29, "...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." (Matthew 12:29) You cannot cast out the demon until you are strong enough to bind the demon. So only the Spirit can do so and so this is the clear reasoning Jesus gave. And He said to them, "Whoever is not with Me is against Me..." (Matthew 12:30) and if you're not gathering people to God through Me, you will scatter the people.

So He draws a very clear line between the Pharisees and himself. And this is then the context when He said, "Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven." (Matthew 12:31) What is the context then? The context is this : Jesus is saying that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is done by those who see very clear evidence around them, that Jesus is doing the miracles empowered by God but they stubbornly, wilfully, defiantly, reject it and attribute all that miracle to demonic activity.

So I think it's a very specific sin. It's about very rebellious, persistent, wilful, rejection and it's not just a careless slip of the tongue. So, "...whoever speaks (against) a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven..." (Matthew 12:32) Why? The Holy Spirit has demonstrated so clearly and repeatedly and yet you will not believe.

So this is the unforgivable sin. Some people think it's a careless slip. Maybe you said 'O my ...' and you add the word god behind or some other things you can think of and you say, oh, I, I've committed the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I've committed the unforgivable sin. I don't think that the unforgivable sin is about the careless slip.

Now, sure, it is bad to take the name of the Lord our God in vain. It's bad but that's not the same as the unforgivable sin because I think it's really more about a, not about a careless slip of your lips, but about the hardened heart. That's the context. It's about hardness, hardened hearts of the Pharisees who refused to believe in Jesus, who refused to acknowledge that this was the power of the Holy Spirit. In Hokkien we say tee kee or in Cantonese we say, nga chat chat. You are just very defiant against Christ and all that He has done.

So I think this is what it means, it's from the heart and later on in verse 34, Jesus would say, "...For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matthew 12:34) The blasphemy, the evil speaking against the Holy Spirit, is because your heart is wicked and you will not receive, you will not believe, you will not obey, even though the evidence is so clear over and over again. So the unforgivable sin is about a hardened heart, not about a careless word, alright.

Now let's look at some pastors, commentators, what they say. Some of them like Ligon Duncan, he says the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is "a defiant, irreverence for the Holy Spirit's work manifest in speech". Defiance, irreverence, manifest in speech.

Piper, he would say the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is "an act of resistance which belittles the Holy Spirit so grievously that He withdraws forever with his convicting power so that we are never able to repent and be forgiven." Now if in the light of such clear evidence during the times of Jesus you still won't believe, what else can be done? What is left to do? And so the Spirit can withdraw His convicting work in a man's life and thereby rendering that man never to receive grace and forgiveness.

Louis Berkhof, a theologian, says, "The sin consists in the conscious, malicious and wilful rejection and slandering, against evidence and conviction, of the testimony of the Holy Spirit respecting the grace of God in Christ, attributing it out of hatred and enmity to the prince of darkness (to Satan himself)."

 

Maybe someone nearer our time, younger person he says, Jonathan Pennington, he says, this is a "specific, active, and final choice to declare the person and work of Jesus as being demonic in origin."

So it seems all of them capture this essence of defiance, of stubbornness, of rebellion, of something that is very specific - attributing the work of Jesus as being demonic in origin. So let me try to clarify a few thoughts and I'll ask you three simple questions. They are quite simple. I just need a response from you so that I know you're following.

Number one, are all blasphemers never to be forgiven? Based on what we hear, are all blasphemers never to be forgiven? How many of you say, yes?  Alright, the rest I suppose you say, no. Okay.

Are all blasphemers never to be forgiven? Let me just say this. Blaspheming God is a terrible thing. To speak evil of God is a bad thing. To insult God is a bad thing. That's bad but that's not, I think, the same as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Even the verse itself tells you, Matthew 12:31 "...every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven (men), but (not) the blasphemy against the (Holy) Spirit..." Moreover, you read in the Bible, "though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief." (1 Timothy 1:13) Who is this? Paul. Paul was a blasphemer, he blasphemed the Name of Christ, he blasphemed God's Name, he, he attacked the church, but he received mercy.

Now, we can be guilty of blaspheming God, but that doesn't mean you cannot be forgiven. Paul is a good example of that. Alright, because that is not the same as the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which is a specific, unique sin, in a unique circumstance where you uniquely see the clear evidence of God's work through Jesus' life and still defiantly say, it is satanic. So it's quite different.

Question number two. Can a Christian commit this specific sin? How many of you say no. Christians cannot commit this sin? One, two, three. Christians can commit this sin? Can I see by a show of hands? A few more. Wah, this really most don't know.

Well, my, my, my thinking is this. We as Christians may blaspheme God, perhaps in a moment of anger, in a moment of folly, maybe like Job's wife who may say curse God and die. I do not know, we may. But I don't think that is possible to be a persistent position, a final position for any true believer. I think the Bible tells me in 1st Corinthians 12, "Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says "Jesus is accursed!" and no one can say "Jesus is Lord" except in the Holy Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:3)

I think when a man comes to faith in Jesus Christ, he has a new heart that loves God and yes, sometimes he may be frustrated but that will not be his final position, that will not be his pattern of life.

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a very persistent attitude of rebellion against God and so I suggest to you, Christians can blaspheme, but I don't think Christians can, true Christians can really commit the sin of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

The third question is easier. Is it the same as grieving the Holy Spirit? How many of you say no. How many of you say yes. OK, well, is it the same as grieving the Holy Spirit? It's amazing when you think about it. God is grieved when we sin and God rejoices when we obey. That, that's a stunning thought, that my life can make a difference in that way. But grieving the Holy Spirit is not the same as blaspheming against the Spirit.

Ephesians 4:30 and 31 tells us, "...do not grieve the Holy Spirit..., by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you (among... from you), along with all malice."

So, grieving the Holy Spirit refers to the sins you commit in your life that grieves God. But it's not the same as speaking evil against the Spirit in a persistent, defiant and final way. Alright. So the unforgivable sin is not about a careless slip but a calloused heart.

So as Christians, I think, I hope this offers some kind of a comfort to you because you might have said something unworthy in time past. I just want to say if that is not your position today then obviously you did not commit that sin, the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. And many pastors would say the fact that anyone is bothered by this, the fact that you're troubled by this, probably means you're not likely to have committed the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. So I hope this clarifies for some of you, assure some of you, comforts some of you and I hope you can even take this to help some of her friends who might be affected.

But I really want to close with something else. In the text we are told...we really placed our attention on answering what this FAQ is all about - what is the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. But I think the emphasis that is really cool also in this verse, is "...every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people." (Matthew 12:31) I mean it's almost like when I looked at this verse, I, I thought all the thunder is taken by answering the question but the real amazing thing also in this text, is that every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people. There is forgiveness for every sin.

Some of you today might feel like you have really blown it in life. You are guilty of some sin in, in your family, you've been..., you have committed adultery, you have stolen, you have cheated, you, you feel so dirty and unworthy. Well, this is the central message of the Bible. There is forgiveness for every sin.

Let me show you a text. This is something I refer to very regularly here in this church. It just testifies to the amazing goodness of God. The Bible says "neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) The church in a sense, is not made up of people who are habitually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, thieves and so on and so forth. The church is really made up of people who are not practicing these things habitually.

So you may start to think oh, does it mean then that I have to be a good boy before I can be part of the church? Oh, no, no, no, no. Read on. That's not what Paul is saying at all. Paul is saying, "And such were some of you..." (1 Corinthians 6:11a) The church is not made up of perfect people. In fact, the church is made up of very sinful people, very messed up people, all kinds of sins that we might refrain from, we may be shocked at. But that's what church is, it's real, it's made up of real people with messed up lives. But that was the past, now it's different.

Why is it different? Because "...you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:11b) You see, the Christian message, is a message of amazing salvation and transformation. The Christian message is not about man changing himself and proving himself worthy of God. No. Christianity is about you knowing you can't save yourself but you come to God, to Jesus, that He will cleanse you and wash you. And when Jesus saves a man, He doesn't just change his outside, He changes him from the inside out so that now this applies to you 'such were some of you'. But this is what the Bible is all about. There is forgiveness for every sin. Doesn't matter what you've done in your life, really. Jesus paid it all.

And I hope today, some of you are here, you might be sitting through the past 20 minutes and say what in the world is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? I still don't get it. It's alright. Please get this, please get this. Every sin will be forgiven you if you come to Jesus Christ. You say how do I come to Jesus Christ? The Bible says you need to repent.

What is repentance? Repentance means you acknowledge your sin. You are sorry for your sin and you say I do not want to keep on sinning anymore and I want to turn to God. I want to be saved. I, I know I sit under the wrath of God. I know that I will be judged for my sin one day. I need to be saved. You repent and you believe in Jesus. You believe that Jesus is the Son of David. He's the One who has been prophesied for centuries. He's the One who went to the cross to die and pay for your sins. You believe that He rose again the third day, meaning that He has completed the saving work on the cross. It was a completed, accepted perfect work.

To believe in Jesus means then, that you realize you can't save yourself, but Jesus paid it all and I believe in Him. And when you come to Christ this way, when you repent and believe, the Bible says you are washed. Every sin, every dirt, every filth of your life, of your soul is washed. The Bible says you are sanctified, you are set apart. You're no more seen as an enemy, as a sinner, but you are now set apart for God and you are justified.

In other words, before God you're someone who is as if he has never sinned because Christ took your sins and paid for your sins with His life on the cross. You say does it take away every sin in my life? Yes, Jesus paid it all. On the cross He says it is finished. It is fully paid and that's why people like Paul can receive mercy because of Christ. (1 Timothy 1:13) I pray today you will come to Christ.

Now, I just want to address one more thing and that is some of you may say, oh, I did not commit the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit then that means I shouldn't be judged right? Oh no, we all are sinners, there is none righteous, no not one. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God and the Bible says if you don't repent and believe in Jesus, you'll be damned.

Someone said to me yesterday after the sermon, why do you use such strong word, why do you use condemned, it's very strong. I say, that's not my word, that's what the Bible says, "Whoever believes in Him (in Jesus) is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already..." (John 3:18) Yes, you did not commit maybe the sin of the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, but you are still a sinner through and through and you are condemned until you believe in Jesus Christ.

So this morning, this is the great news we have. This is what we call the Gospel. This church is called Gospel Light Christian Church. We want to tell you the Good News, the Gospel. The Gospel is there is salvation, there is forgiveness in Jesus Christ, God's Son. Repent and believe in Him and you will be saved .

Maybe some of you today are Christians already and you are living in rebellion against God. Sometimes that happens because we just are not walking with God. I hope that this message of forgiveness would encourage you to search your own heart and to repent and likewise to believe 1 John 1:9 for yourself, that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

And perhaps some of you today are struggling with forgiving someone. I was meeting a couple this week. They have a problem with forgiving each other. They want to but they find it hard to. They don't have the power to do so. They do not know how. They cannot find the reason to do so. And I say to you.., only, I said to them, really only when you know the forgiveness of God for your life, then you can really forgive others.

You see, this is what the Gospel is all about. God is amazing. God is not.. Sometimes we think of God as a very harsh Person, as if He's so unkind. No God is very holy. God has His wrath against sinners but at the very same time, the Bible reveals a God of amazing magnanimity and generosity and kindness and mercy. Every sin can be forgive. And if He has forgiven you so wondrously, would you today also say Lord help me to forgive him, forgive her. This is what the whole Bible is about - forgiveness. And it's all possible because of Jesus Christ.

Let's bow for a word of prayer together. Once again I want to give this time to all friends, guests who may be here. You have come at a good time even though the topic is difficult because the Bible really is about forgiveness. From the day Adam and Eve blew it in the garden of Eden sinning against God, God has already foretold and revealed His plan to forgive man from his sins.

There is nothing more important in life than this question, are you forgiven? Really there's nothing more important than this question, are you forgiven. People ask today are you rich? are you healthy? are you famous? are you popular? It really doesn't matter for eternity isn't it. But what matters for all eternity is are you forgiven because if you're not forgiven, you will be condemned forever in the place of hell because we have sinned against the Holy God.

But there is forgiveness and the reason why the Bible is given, the reason why churches exist, the reason why there are people going around preaching the Bible is because we want to tell you there is forgiveness in Jesus Christ, there is the power available at the cross. This is the power of the cross, that the Son of God will be slain for us. He took our blame, He bore God's wrath on our behalf and we stand forgiven at the cross. What a love, what a cost, God's Son slain for us. God's Son was slain for you. Today, would you repent and believe in Jesus?

My brothers and sisters in Christ, maybe this is the time you need to take to repent, to confess your sin before Him too. Let Christ wash you, not your whole body because you are already a forgiven child of God, you are justified. But in the words of Jesus to wash your feet, because we pick up those sins in our daily lives and they hinder our fellowship with Him. So let's humble ourselves, confess them.

And maybe some of you today are struggling with bitterness in your heart. You say I just cannot forgive him, I just cannot forgive her. Look to the cross, look to God's forgiveness for you and may you find that joy, that grace to forgive others around you.

So Father, thank You today for Your Word, blessed it to the hearts of Your people. Thank You for Christ. Thank You there is forgiveness for every sin and even blasphemy. Thank You for Your love. We worship You and thank You and pray all this now in Jesus Name. Amen.

 

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