Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
The fear of the unpardonable sin has distressed many sincere people. It discourages some and keeps them away from the joyous eternal life that the Lord wants them to experience.
They are told repeatedly that the unpardonable sin is continued, persistent sinning, to the point that they can no longer hear the Voice of the Holy Spirit. But almost everybody in the world can realize that he/she has indeed sinned in one way or another, persistently, continually.
We must look again at the context of what Jesus Himself said about the unpardonable sin; it's in Matthew 12:22-37:
(a) Jesus healed someone demon-possessed. "All the multitudes were amazed" and wondered positively if Jesus might be the long-awaited Messiah (as we today wonder if our long-awaited "Elijah" may have already begun his work of "turning hearts"). But "the Pharisees … said, 'This fellow … casts out demons ... by the ruler of the demons,'" Satan himself. They reacted negatively to the nth degree.
(b) This had already happened earlier, in 9:34; these leaders of the one true church of that day had already attributed the work of Jesus to Satan (which is the unpardonable sin) but now Jesus has given them another chance to repent; but they have repeated that awful sin. Jesus then goes on to tell the Pharisees that "if I cast out devils by the [Holy] Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" and you didn't know it, or recognize the blessing!
(c) These church leaders went on and on in their way until they felt driven to cry out in Pilate's presence "Crucify Him"! (It makes one want to hesitate before accepting any job as church pastor or leader--it's a frightfully dangerous place to be in unless we walk "softly" as King Ahab did when he repented, 1 Kings 21:27-29.)
(d) The way Matthew (ch. 12) and Luke (ch. 11) tell the story about the Pharisees, the people would have been willing to believe the truth and repent, but their church leaders hindered them and "in a great degree" blocked the way.
(e) This action of the Pharisees was the Unpardonable Sin. Let's not repeat it. But if you fear and tremble, there's hope! Thank God.
Copyright © 2009 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Bread - Readings about life and the Word of God.
