The Unpardonable Sin MARK 3:22-30 “WHAT IS IT?” HAVE I COMMITTED IT? I THOUGHT THAT GOD CAN AND WILL FORGIVE ALL SINS!

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? MARK 3: “And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons.“ 23. So He called them to [Himself] and said to them in parables: "How can Satan cast out Satan? 24. If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. “

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 26. And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. 27. No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house. 28. "Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; 29. but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"- 30. because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 1. The Topic for our Study this Morning is – “The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It?” a. It is Topic that brings about much discussion and is filled with much speculation and misinterpretation of the scripture. b. The are some things that are difficult to understand and get twisted in the interpretation and teaching. II PETER 3:15-16 “….as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, 16. as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable [people] twist to their own destruction, as [they do] also the rest of the Scriptures. “

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? c. The Topic of the “Unpardonable Sin” is one of those topics. SPECIFICALLY – “BLASPHEMY AGAINT THE HOLY SPIRIT” d. Some are concerned they may have committed this sin. That they can never be forgiven and have no hope. e. Let me say at the very beginning, if an individual is concerned that they may be guilty of this sin, then they need not be worried any more.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? Meaning of the Text as related to the Topic- 1. Jesus faced great opposition from the Pharisees, Herodians, and the Scribes the religious leaders of Jerusalem during His ministry Mark 3:6 - Mark 3:22Mark 3:6Mark 3:22 2. In our text for this lesson, Jesus is charged by them in essence as being “Satan casting out Satan” 3. Jesus easily answered the scribes‘ charge... a. For Satan to cast out his own demons defeated his (Satan's) own purpose - Mark 3:23-26Mark 3:23-26 b. On the contrary, casting out demons was integral to defeating Satan - Mark 3:27Mark 3:27

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 4. It is on this occasion that Jesus speaks of an "unforgiveable sin"... a. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit - Mark 3:28-29Mark 3:28-29 b. For which there is no forgiveness – Matthew 12:31-32 – Matthew 12: “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy [against] the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the [age] to come.”

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 5. These words of Jesus have troubled many, who wonder if they have committed this "eternal sin" (ESV) that "never has forgiveness". “WHAT IS IT TO BLASPHEME Against the HOLY SPIRIT?” HAVE I COMMITTED IT? I THOUGHT THAT GOD CAN AND WILL FORGIVE ALL SINS! - Let's first seek to identify exactly what was...

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? I.THE UNFORGIVEABLE SIN THEN A. WHAT WAS THIS SIN...? 1. Jesus described it as blaspheming the Holy Spirit - Mark 3:29 “but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"--Mark 3:29 a. Blaspheme - "to speak reproachfully, rail at, revile, calumniate (make false and injurious statements), blaspheme" - Thayer b. So it is to speak evil of the Holy Spirit in some way among other ways that can not be forgiven.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 2. As Jesus prepares for his Crucifixion He Tells the Apostles John 14:16, “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.” 26. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 3. He then tells the Apostles John 15: “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. 27. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” 4. Before His Ascension Jesus confirms to the Apostles - ACTS 1:8 8. “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 3. Therefore All Scripture is given by Inspiration of the Holy Spirit – The Message of Life, the Gospel II TIMOTHY 3:16 “All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,”

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 4. AND – II PETER 1: “knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke [as they were] moved by the Holy Spirit.”

ACTS 2 ACTS 2:1 “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” ACTS 2:4 “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” ACTS 2:17 “'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams.”

ACTS 2 Acts 2:22 "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— ACTS 2:36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 5. They had a choice at this point; A. Accept the message “OF LIFE” coming from Peter and the rest as “INSPIRED by the HOLY SPIRIT” B. Or Commit the “UNPARDANABLE SIN” – blaspheme the Holy Spirit by railing out against the Holy Spirit - speaking in a contemptuous way just as they railed against Christ in our Text. a. They could have declared what happened that day as something that was Satanic, rejecting the Message of Salvation brought through the power of the Holy Spirit. NEVER BEING FORGIVEN.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? 6. Their choice WAS; 38.Now when they heard [this], they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men [and] brethren, what shall we do?“ 40. And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." 41. Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added [to them]. Vs. 47 – The Lord added them to the Church.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? II. Christ and the Holy Spirit. A.We see how significant, how special, how Important the Holy Spirit is in this message. B.Jesus is significant, but He will become even more so after His Resurrection, which will be revealed through the Holy Spirit as we have seen. C.What these Jewish leaders were saying about and to Christ (REJECTING HIM AT THIS TIME) could still be forgiven, but there would come a time that such blasphemy could not be forgiven, THAT TIME IS THE REJECTION OF THE MESSAGE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. THE REJECTION OF LIFE, Then And Now.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? D. There are - “several explanations regarding this topic, the one that seems the most plausible to the writer is that men may sin against Christ and find forgiveness, but not against the Holy Spirit, because Christ was to be succeeded by the Holy Spirit when He returned to the Father. Consequently, the dispensation after Christ’s ascension and under the guidance of the Spirit in which we now live represents man’s last chance to accept God. Any other explanation which would attach greater importance or rank to the Holy Spirit than to Christ would hardly be in keeping with the Scripture.” Edward Neely Cullum “A Simplified Study of the Holy Spirit”, 1967

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? E. McGarvey writes, “Blasphemy against the Son may be a temporary sin, for the one who commits it may be subsequently convinced of his error by the testimony of the Holy Spirit and becomes a believer (I Timothy 1:13). But blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is in it’s nature an eternal sin, for if one rejects the evidence given by the Holy Spirit and ascribes it to Satan, he rejects the only evidence upon which faith can be based; WITHOUT FAITH THERE IS NO FORGIVENESS”…. “ The Fourfold Gospel”, McGarvey/Pendleton

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? F. With what Jesus faced from the Pharisees, Herodians, and the Scribes - the religious leaders of Jerusalem, that could be forgiven if repented of and obedience rendered. G. However – blasphemy against the Holy Spirit in this manner could not be forgiven. MARK 3:28, 29 “"Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; 39. but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"--

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? III.CAN IT BE COMITTED TODAY? A. Yes it can. B. However as I said “at the very beginning, if an individual is concerned that they may be guilty of this sin, (BLASPHEMY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT) then they need not be worried any more” - their concern is showing where their heart is truly dwelling.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? IV. THE UNFORGIVEABLE SIN TODAY IS: “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.” I John 5:16 A. This passage is not in reference to our Message Text of Mark 3 or Matthew It is in regard to a brother/sister who will not repent of sinful ways. 2. It could include those who hear the Gospel and do nothing about what they hear.

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? B. The sin by which we "crucify again" the Son of God Hebrews 6:4-6Hebrews 6:4-6 C. The sin for which there "no longer remains a sacrifice for sin" - Hebrews 10:26-31Hebrews 10: The sin in which there is no hope for forgiveness because forgiveness of sin has not been sought out!

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? Committed openly - Hebrews 6:6Hebrews 6:6 Committed continually - Hebrews 10:26Hebrews 10:26 Sin that is willfully participated in till death. Hebrews 10:26 Committed knowingly - Hebrews 6:4; Hebrews 10:26Hebrews 6:4Hebrews 10:26 It is any sin that we knowingly refuse to repent of, despite many opportunities!

The Unpardonable Sin- What Is It? CONCLUSION 1.Many today worry about blaspheming the Holy Spirit... a. A serious sin indeed, but likely cannot be replicated today b. If one worries about it, they are certainly not guilty of it! 2. People should be more concerned about any sin... a. They knowingly commit b. They refuse to give up 3. There is Not a Sin that God Can Not Forgive if It is repented of by anyone of us.

What MUST You Do to Be Saved? Hear The Word Of God Romans 10:17 Believe His Word Mark 16:16, John 8:24 Repent of your sins Luke 13:3, Acts 2:38 Confess your belief Romans 10:10, Acts 8:37 Be Baptized Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38 For the Remission of Your Sins Acts 22:16 Galatians 3:26, 27 Live Faithfully Titus 2:11-14