SundayNovember 27, 2016 Phone: 570.829.5216
Pastor David Miklas e-mail
Message:“The Unpardonable Sin” Text:Matthew 3:22-30, Mark 3:28-29
The Sin God Can't Forgive
From the cross of Calvary, Christ repeatedly uttered, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." Thank God, there is FORGIVENESS for sin. The Apostle Paul expressed these arresting words in Ephesians 4:32, "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, FORGIVING one another, even as God for Christ sake, hath FORGIVEN you." Paul expressed the message that it is characteristic of saints to forgive. Shouldn’t we, who have been forgiven by God, forgive others? Forgiveness is an attribute of God that He wants practiced in our lives. Thank God:
He forgives every KIND of sin.
He forgives every TIME we sin.
He forgives the very MOMENT we sin and ask for forgiveness.
He forgives that sin FOREVER, and He never brings it up again.
Because forgiveness is a part of the holiness of God, there are some boundaries to forgiveness. In fact, there are circumstances in which God will never forgive.
When forgiveness shall never occur, is in human government, Romans 13:1-5.
Where forgiveness could never occur, is in Hell, Revelation 20:11-15.
How forgiveness would never occur, is for resisting salvation by the Holy Spirit, Matthew 12:22-30, Mark 3:28-29.
This message is meant to expand upon one of the circumstances in which there is no forgiveness.
In Matthew 12:22-32 we read,“Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. (23) And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? (24) But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. (25) And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: (26) And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? (27) And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges. (28) But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. (29) Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house. (30) He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. (31) Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. (32) And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”
In Mark 3:28-29 we have a similar passage, “Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: (29) But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:”
In both passages did you notice the similar phrase, “but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.” This is called the UNPARDONABLE SIN.In a previous sermon, we examined I John 5:16-17,
“If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. (17) All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.”
Here we studied the subject found in the middle of verse 16, "There is a sin unto death."Let me again clarify the difference between the UNPARDONABLE SIN found in Mark 3:28-29 and the SIN UNTO DEATHfound in I John 5:16-17.
The SINNER can commit the UNPARDONABLE SIN.
The BELIEVER can commit the SIN UNTO DEATH.
The UNPARDONABLE SIN is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. And certainly no Born Again believer,
INDWELT by the Holy Spirit,
LED by the Holy Spirit, and
SEALED by the Holy Spirit,
would ever blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
A Born- Again believer will never commit the UNPARDONABLE SIN, which has to do with the destruction of the soul.
But a Born Again believer can commit the SIN UNTO DEATH, which is speaking of physical death.
Some have suggested murder is the UNPARDONABLE SIN. They say if you kill someone you cannot restore life. Therefore you have committed a sin that cannot be forgiven or pardoned. But murder is NOT the UNPARDONABLESIN.
Others say the sin of adultery is an awful sin, but again this is not the UNPARDONABLE SIN. In John chapter 8, a woman was taken in the very act of adultery. You'll recall Jesus said to her, "Woman where are thy accusers?" and she replied, "Lord no man accused me." and Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn thee, go, and sin no more."
Let me again clarify.No SAVED person can ever commit the UNPARDONABLE SIN. I,Pastor David Miklas, can never commit the UNPARDONABLE SIN. Why?Because as a 6 year old, I put my faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. All my sin was pardoned once and for all -FOREVER. I was then and still am today justified by faith, for Romans 5:1 tells me "Therefore being justified by faith..." Justification means I now stand before God as if I have never committed a single act of sin.
The sad thing is the people who worry the most about the UNPARDONABLE SIN are those whose sins are already pardoned. Let me put your mind at ease. If you have trusted Jesus as your SAVIOUR, you can NEVER COMMIT THE UNPARDONABLE SIN!
The deal is settled.
The case is closed against you.
Your SINS are FORGIVEN FOREVER.
Jesus said in John 5:24, a verse you ought to not only memorize but underline in your Bibles, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” Notice it says "hath", not shall. The word "hath" is in the Greek aorist tense, meaning an action that has happened ONCE, FOR ALL TIME; it will never be repeated. We "HATH ONCE AND FOR ALL RECEIVED ETERNAL LIFE."Alsonotice, we will not face judgment,because we have passed “from death unto life.” What a tremendous verse.
Here is another verse you ought to memorize and quote it back to Satan whenever he drags your sins up and parades them before you. This reference is found in Isaiah 43:25.Listen to it, "I (speaking of God) even I am he who blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins."
The UNPARDONABLE SIN is committed by unsaved PEOPLE.
The UNPARDONABLE SIN is committed by enlightened sinners.
The UNPARDONABLE SIN is rejecting the Holy Spirit's plea to you until there is a lost desire to be saved.
Now go back to Matthew 12:32where Jesus makes it clear “God would forgive all sin and all blasphemy, including blasphemy against the very Son of God Himself!" Now you ask, why would a sin against God the Son be forgivable and yet a sin against the Holy Spirit would be unforgivable? The answer lies in the nature of God and in His patient dealings with the nation of Israel.
God the Father sent John the Baptist to prepare the nation of Israel for the coming of their Messiah. Many of the common people responded to John's call and repented. But the religious leaders permitted John to be arrested and eventually killed.
God the Son came as promised and called the Nation of Israel to trust Him. But those same religious leaders asked for Jesus to be killed. On the cross, our Lord prayed,"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
God the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost and demonstrated God's power in many convicting ways. How did those same religious leaders respond? By resisting the apostles, ordering them to keep silent and then killing Stephen one of the first deacons of the church and the first Christian martyr.As Stephen was dying he said in Acts 7:51, "Ye do always resist the Holy Spirit."
They had sinned against the FATHER and the SON, but had been graciously forgiven.
However when they sinned against the HOLY SPIRIT, they had reached "the end of the line" where there could be no more forgiveness.
Now with that as the background, let us look at the person of the Holy Spirit. May I remind you the Holy Spirit is God? He is the 3rd person of the TRIUNE GOD.
In John 16:7-11 you will find mentioned one of the ministries of the Holy Spirit:
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. (8) And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: (9) Of sin, because they believe not on me; (10) Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; (11) Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.”
Here we discover one of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is that of a REPROVER,meaning one who brings CONVICTION. Here the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to CONVICTthe world of SIN, of RIGHTEOUSNESS and of JUDGMENT.
Now in order for someone to be Born Again, one must be brought under the conviction of the Holy Spirit. There are many people who say, "I know I am a sinner, I know I have done wrong. There is no doubt about it." But they have never been brought under conviction of sin. They know they are a sinner, but they will do nothing about it.
Now when the Holy Spirit deals with that individual, He brings Him to a point of repentance where the person says, "I hate my sin. I can't stand it any longer. I must confess it, and turn from it, and believe that on the cross Jesus paid my debt of sin." THAT IS THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
However, even if that happens to some, they just sit there even after a good message, even after a strong appeal. They just sit there. Why?Because either they refuse to yield to the Holy Spirit or perhaps they have blasphemed the Holy Spirit and there is NO REPENTANCE!
Now we are talking about the CONVICTING ministry of the Holy Spirit. He makes us CONSCIOUS of our sin. Your conscience bears testimony that a sin is sin. However, there are sins people commit over and over and over again to the point they become SCARRED. Let me give you a physical example.
If you put your finger on a hot iron, the first time you say OUCH! You say,“my goodness that's hot.” A blister will form and it may leave you with a scar.
Now if you do this again, you will pull your finger away, but probably not as fast. Why?Because the scar has blocked some of the feeling.
If you do this every day for a whole month, after a while you will feel NOTHING. Why?Because that spot is SCARRED.
There are people who have done that in their lives with sin. They have SCARRED their lives by sinning over and over again. That sin means nothing to them. They have become IMMUNE TO SIN. And no amount of preaching will break that pattern.
That is why it is hard to break a sin pattern in your life. You say,“I just do not feel guilty when I do these things.” Look, it does not make any difference how you feel, it is still sin because God calls it sin. It is the HOLY SPIRIT WHO CONVICTS US OF OUR SIN.
With that as background, again go to Matthew 12:31-33,
“Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. (32) And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”
Here our attention is called to blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
Now the key word is BLASPHEMY, which comes from two Greek words, "bloto"meaning "to injure"and "phemy"meaning “to speak.” Putting these two words together we have "to speak injury of." You have done it, and I know I have done it.
We say something that hurts a person, and maybe we are not even aware of it.
Then on the other hand, maybe we went out of our way to say what we said.
Whatever the case, you have either purposely or unconsciously injured that one. That's what we call blasphemy.
There are people who come, and they hear the message. The Holy Spirit has moved in their heart, yet they throw up a wall of resistance within themselves. There is no way they will go forward and trust Christ. They will not be humbled before almighty God.
That is what we mean by blasphemy. They are resisting the Holy Spirit moment in their heart. They are speaking against the Holy Spirit of God.
I believe God allows a person to do that just so often, and then God's Spirit is withdrawn. When God's Spirit is withdrawn, there is NO CONVICTION. And when there is no conviction, there can be NO CONVERSION. Therefore, a person can never be saved. In Genesis 6:3 we read, "And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man."
By way of an illustration,let me tell youthis incredible story. Years ago during a tent revival meeting a man was standing in the back intently watching as the people were going forward and accepting Christ as their Savior. It was quite a moment as the Spirit of God was at work in the meeting. One of the personal workers noticing this man approached him, and by putting his hand on his shoulder, asked if he would also like to accept Christ as his Savior. The man said, "NO I HAVEN'T and NO I WOULD NOT." Whereupon this man said, I am Aaron Burr and here is my story.
He said, when I was in college, there was a great revival that was going on in PRINCETON UNIVERSITY. (Yes, it's hard to believe, but Princeton University was at one time a Bible College.) "I attended those meetings as a young man. I remembered when the invitation was given I felt in my soul, I needed to respond. Yet instead of getting up and going forward, I got up and went back to the campus to see my professor in Math. I told this brilliant man how I felt in my heart.”
This math professor said, "Aaron you are a very capable and talented young man. There is nothing wrong with religion, BUT DON'T GET CAUGHT UP IN THE EMOTION OF THIS THING."
The professor went on to say, "Aaron if you are going to get religion do it right. Go to a church and talk to the minister and find out what you have to do to become a member of that church. But by allmeans don't get caught up in the evangelistic furor. It's just emotionalism, that's all it is."
And so Aaron Burr walked out and went to the house of a godly minister. To this minister he said, "I have just been to see the math professor, and I have just come from the revival meetings. I don't know what to do." This godly pastor being a man of God said, "Aaron right now get on your knees and ask Christ to come into your heart, the Holy Spirit of God is speaking to you."
Aaron was confused. He said to this godly pastor, "Let me think this over for a moment outside." I proceeded to go outside and for several minutes I paused to think this over then to return to the pastor's study. Here is what I said, "When I was outside, I shook my fist in the face of God and said, God you leave me alone and I promise if you leave me alone, I'll leave you alone and never ask of you a favor the rest of my life."
Now if you know your history, Aaron Burr became Vice-President of the United States. He missed becoming the President by ONE vote. It was this Aaron Burr that shot Alexander Hamilton.
He said to that personal worker that night, "I made a promise to God that I'll never bother Him again, and I never have and He has never bothered me either."
Oh, the Holy Spirit of God was speaking to Aaron Burr that night. Yet at that moment Aaron Burr rejected the CONVICTING MINISTRY of the Holy Spirit. As a result, the Spirit of God was grieved and turned his back on Aaron Burr.
Aaron Burr is in Hell tonight because Mark 3:29 tells us, "But he that shall BLASPHEME against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in DANGER OF ETERNAL DAMNATION:" It is a serious thing when a person turns his back on the convicting of the Holy Spirit of God. In Proverbs 29:1 we read, "He that being often reproved, hardenth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed and without remedy."