The Gospel of Matthew: The Unforgiveable Sin.   

³¹” Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. ³² And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man 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 12:31–32 (ESV)

“That the Bible describes one sin as ‘unforgiveable’ sparks fear in the hearts of those who worry that perhaps they have committed it. Although the gospel freely offers forgiveness to all who repent of their sins, there is a limit reached at the door of this one crime. The unforgiveable, or unpardonable, sin of which Jesus warned is identified as blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Jesus declared that this sin cannot be forgiven either in the present or in the future,” explains R. R. C. Sproul.

Today’s text is one of the most controversial and debated in the church. Biblical scholars has wrestled as to its meaning for centuries. The basic principle of context must be kept in mind in properly interpreting any portion of Scripture. The student of Scripture must keep both the grammatical, as well as historical, context in mind when reaching any interpretation of the biblical text. Today’s text is no exception

The Pharisees witnessed the miraculous work by Jesus done in the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet they continued to attribute this power to Satan (Matt. 9:32-34; 12:22-24). By doing so they were rejecting an explicit revelation of God’s authority and ability. The greatest display of this miraculous ability would be Jesus’ resurrection from the dead (John 2:18-22).

“The sin he (Jesus) was confronting was the Pharisees’ deliberate rejection of that which they knew to be of God (cf. John 11:48; Acts 4:16). They could not deny the reality of what the Holy Spirit had done through him, so they attributed to Satan a work that they knew was of God (Matt. 12:24; Mark 3:22),” explains Dr. John MacArthur.

“Someone never exposed to Christ’s divine power and presence might reject him in ignorance and be forgiven—assuming the unbelief gives way to genuine repentance. Even a Pharisee such as Saul of Tarsus could be forgiven for speaking against Jesus or persecuting his followers—because his unbelief stemmed from ignorance (1 Tim. 1:13). But those who know his claims are true and reject him anyway sin “against the Holy Spirit”—because it is the Holy Spirit who testifies of Christ and makes his truth known to us (John 15:26; 16:14–15). No forgiveness was possible for these Pharisees who witnessed his miracles firsthand, knew the truth of his claims, and still blasphemed the Holy Spirit—because they had already rejected the fullest possible revelation.”

“We commit such sacrilege “only when we knowingly endeavor to extinguish the Spirit.” There can be no salvation if the work of the Spirit is knowingly rejected. This act reveals a heart so hard that repentance is impossible (Heb. 3:7–19),” states John Calvin.

“Pastors both past and present agree that a person who worries that he has committed the unforgiveable sin has not really done so. Those who do the unforgivable act are so calloused that they do not care about their spiritual state and therefore will never be troubled by the possibility that they have gone too far in their wickedness,” concludes Dr. Sproul.

 “Those who fear they have committed this sin, give a good sign that they have not,” Matthew Henry comments.

Have a blessed day in the Lord.

Soli deo Gloria!