Bible Study BLASPHEMY of the HOLY SPIRIT = The Unpardonable Sin??

[GodsGrace]

In a different thread WIP and I were discussing the difference between blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and the unpardonable sin.

Is there a difference?
Does one lead to the other?
What IS blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and
What IS the unpardonable sin?

These two verses were cited by the other member:

Mathew 12:31
"Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. "

Mark 3:28-30
28“Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter;
29but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—
30because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus said the above.

There seem to be some questions regarding the above...so I thought it best to ask others what they believe to be the difference between the two...or, is there a difference?

For now, I'd only like to say that it is the Holy Spirit that convicts us of sin.
This is His work/job/attribute.

What are your thoughts?

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

As I just stated in the other thread I believe that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and blasphemy against the Holy Spirit are different because in one case you're just speaking ill of it, and in the other case you're rejecting it altogether.

 

[Mychael]

If you were to talk evil about someone, lets say they have nothing good only a evil Spirit, it doesn't even have to be behind their back, and that person did not do anything wrong then that could be possibly considered Blasphemy by baring false witness against them. All the Sins listed in the New Testament that prevent you from entering the Kingdom of God. Each one an arguement can be made is a form of Blasphemy.
Repentance is necessary for the remission of sins and to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Bible speaks of many sins that must be repented of.

Romans 1:28-32 – And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only the same but also approve of those practicing them.

Galatians 5:19-21 – Now the works of the flesh are evident which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, out bursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissentions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

Colossians 3:5-10 – Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth; fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness; which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 - Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the Kingdom of God.
Hebrews: 10:26-27
26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

 

[WIP]

As I just stated in the other thread I believe that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and blasphemy against the Holy Spirit are different because in one case you're just speaking ill of it, and in the other case you're rejecting it altogether.

I'm not quite following what you're saying. I think I would need to hear more about how you differentiate between blasphemy of the Holy Spirit vs blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and how you understand that Jesus differentiated.

 

[WIP]

I wonder if we need to start with understanding what blasphemy is, especially with regard to how Jesus used the term.

I'll start by providing Webster's definition, which could encompass many things for which we are guilty of but I'm not sure Jesus' use fits this definition entirely.

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

I'm not quite following what you're saying. I think I would need to hear more about how you differentiate between blasphemy of the Holy Spirit vs blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and how you understand that Jesus differentiated.

Like I believe that just saying bad stuff about the Holy Spirit isn't going to be unforgivable as long as you repent. It's only if you die with a hardened heart and never come to ask for forgiveness and accept Christ that it becomes the unforgivable sin.

 

[GodsGrace]

As I just stated in the other thread I believe that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and blasphemy against the Holy Spirit are different because in one case you're just speaking ill of it, and in the other case you're rejecting it altogether.

Hi HIR,
I'd say that the two you mention above are the same.

If you speak badly OF someone
OR you speak AGAINST someone, I don't know what the big difference is.

Do you think blaspheming the Holy Spirit and the Unpardonable Sin are the same?

Jesus said if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit we will not be forgiven.
Why not? What if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit in our past....our we still lost since Jesus said that?

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

Hi HIR,
I'd say that the two you mention above are the same.

If you speak badly OF someone
OR you speak AGAINST someone, I don't know what the big difference is.

Do you think blaspheming the Holy Spirit and the Unpardonable Sin are the same?

Jesus said if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit we will not be forgiven.
Why not? What if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit in our past....our we still lost since Jesus said that?

I'm sorry for responding so late but I had to think about this. Anyways no I don't believe they're one in the same because I would think that if there was one unpardonable sin, Jesus wouldn't have made it so hard for us to break it.

 

[GodsGrace]

I'm sorry for responding so late but I had to think about this. Anyways no I don't believe they're one in the same because I would think that if there was one unpardonable sin, Jesus wouldn't have made it so hard for us to break it.

Whoa!
I don't know what you mean!
Please explain better.
Tomorrow...it's late here.
'night.

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

Whoa!
I don't know what you mean!
Please explain better.
Tomorrow...it's late here.
'night.

Do you really think that the Lord would make something unforgiveable if He really thought it was that easy to do that one sin. I mean He knew it was impossible for us to follow the Ten Commandments perfectly so that's why He made a way with the cross.

 

[Mychael]

Do you really think that the Lord would make something unforgiveable if He really thought it was that easy to do that one sin. I mean He knew it was impossible for us to follow the Ten Commandments perfectly so that's why He made a way with the cross.

Every sin that prevents you from entering the Kingdom of God can be argued is a Form of Blaspheme against the Holy Spirit.

 

[GodsGrace]

Every sin that prevents you from entering the Kingdom of God can be argued is a Form of Blaspheme against the Holy Spirit.

I'd have to agree to the above, but partially.

Every sin, individually, can be recognized by us, we could be sorry for the sin, and we could ask forgiveness, as John said in his 1st epistle.
It is NOT that we are removed from the Kingdom of God on earth for each sin that we commit...revolving door salvation.
1 John 1:9

I would say that when we begin to ignore our sins, or feel like they're not important, we start to have a hard heart toward that sin or sins and eventually it becomes so that we don't even care about the Holy Spirit or grieving Him.
Hebrews 3:13

This is the Unforgivable Sin
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not forgivable.

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

I'd have to agree to the above, but partially.

Every sin, individually, can be recognized by us, we could be sorry for the sin, and we could ask forgiveness, as John said in his 1st epistle.
It is NOT that we are removed from the Kingdom of God on earth for each sin that we commit...revolving door salvation.
1 John 1:9

I would say that when we begin to ignore our sins, or feel like they're not important, we start to have a hard heart toward that sin or sins and eventually it becomes so that we don't even care about the Holy Spirit or grieving Him.
Hebrews 3:13

This is the Unforgivable Sin
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not forgivable.

So are you saying that it is the same thing after all? I'm sorry but I'm confused since you seem to be contradicting yourself.

 

[GodsGrace]

I'd have to agree to the above, but partially.

Every sin, individually, can be recognized by us, we could be sorry for the sin, and we could ask forgiveness, as John said in his 1st epistle.
It is NOT that we are removed from the Kingdom of God on earth for each sin that we commit...revolving door salvation.
1 John 1:9

I would say that when we begin to ignore our sins, or feel like they're not important, we start to have a hard heart toward that sin or sins and eventually it becomes so that we don't even care about the Holy Spirit or grieving Him.
Hebrews 3:13

This is the Unforgivable Sin
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not forgivable.

I wonder if we need to start with understanding what blasphemy is, especially with regard to how Jesus used the term.

I'll start by providing Webster's definition, which could encompass many things for which we are guilty of but I'm not sure Jesus' use fits this definition entirely.

View attachment 9302

The above is correct....
I do know that blaspemy is also attributing to satan something that God does.

Matthew 12:22-32
Jesus Is Accused of Working with Beelzebul
22 Then some people brought Yeshua a man possessed by a demon. The demon made the man blind and unable to talk. Yeshua cured him so that he could talk and see.

23 The crowds were all amazed and said, “Can this man be the Son of David?” 24 When the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man can force demons out of people only with the help of Beelzebul, the ruler of demons.”

25 Since Yeshua knew what they were thinking, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is ruined. And every city or household divided against itself will not last. 26 If Satan forces Satan out, he is divided against himself. How, then, can his kingdom last? 27 If I force demons out of people with the help of Beelzebul, who helps your followers force them out? That’s why they will be your judges. 28 But if I force demons out with the help of God’s Spirit, then the kingdom of God has come to you. 29 How can anyone go into a strong man’s house and steal his property? First he must tie up the strong man. Then he can go through his house and steal his property.

30 “Whoever isn’t with me is against me. Whoever doesn’t gather with me scatters. 31 So I can guarantee that people will be forgiven for any sin or cursing. However, cursing the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven in this world or the next.

 

[GodsGrace]

So are you saying that it is the same thing after all? I'm sorry but I'm confused since you seem to be contradicting yourself.

Where did I contradict myself?
Perhaps I explained something incorrectly....?

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

Where did I contradict myself?
Perhaps I explained something incorrectly....?

Maybe not in this thread, but in the other thread you mentioned that people often get confused between blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and the unpardonable sin, which is also why I do believe that you started this thread.

 

[GodsGrace]

Maybe not in this thread, but in the other thread you mentioned that people often get confused between blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and the unpardonable sin, which is also why I do believe that you started this thread.

HIR,
I went back to the thread about gossiping and will post what I said.

Mychael, the O.P., stated in his opening statement:

1. Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is an Unpardonable Sin. You can’t be forgiven.

I was saying that the above is not really correct because, at the moment of the blaspheme it is unpardonable....but we can be forgiven of it if it does not become the Unpardonable Sin.
We confuse the two and many believe that because they've taken the name of God in vain or said something against the work of the Holy Spirit, they could not be forgiven.

Below are my two main posts from the Gossip thread...we could discuss it again if you want to.

This was post no. 8:

Hi Mychael,
The above is an interesting concept, but I've never heard of it.

We blaspheme the Holy Spirit when we directly say that a work of God is being done by the evil one. Matthew 12:24-25

We blaspheme the Holy Spirit when we insult God by word or deed.

We can also say that blaspheming the Holy Spirit is done by not accepting Jesus as our Savior. This is known as the unpardonable sin.
Matthew 12:30...

*****************************************************

This is post no. 15:

They could be forgiven...of course in the normal way: If they're sorry and ask forgiveness as John says in 1 John 1:9.

Remember the ONLY sin we could not be forgiven is that of NOT BELIEVING in God/Jesus.

Any other sin could be forgiven.
Jesus said blaspheming the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven....
Speaking badly of the Holy Spirit...
Causing the Holy Spirit to grieve continuously makes the heart hard and eventually the person no longer cares that they are sinning...this is blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

He said it could not be forgiven because it would lead to a hard heart....but if it does NOT and you ask forgiveness and come to serve God, of course God will forgive you anything.

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

HIR,
I went back to the thread about gossiping and will post what I said.

Mychael, the O.P., stated in his opening statement:

1. Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is an Unpardonable Sin. You can’t be forgiven.

I was saying that the above is not really correct because, at the moment of the blaspheme it is unpardonable....but we can be forgiven of it if it does not become the Unpardonable Sin.
We confuse the two and many believe that because they've taken the name of God in vain or said something against the work of the Holy Spirit, they could not be forgiven.

Below are my two main posts from the Gossip thread...we could discuss it again if you want to.

This was post no. 8:

Hi Mychael,
The above is an interesting concept, but I've never heard of it.

We blaspheme the Holy Spirit when we directly say that a work of God is being done by the evil one. Matthew 12:24-25

We blaspheme the Holy Spirit when we insult God by word or deed.

We can also say that blaspheming the Holy Spirit is done by not accepting Jesus as our Savior. This is known as the unpardonable sin.
Matthew 12:30...

*****************************************************

This is post no. 15:

They could be forgiven...of course in the normal way: If they're sorry and ask forgiveness as John says in 1 John 1:9.

Remember the ONLY sin we could not be forgiven is that of NOT BELIEVING in God/Jesus.

Any other sin could be forgiven.
Jesus said blaspheming the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven....
Speaking badly of the Holy Spirit...
Causing the Holy Spirit to grieve continuously makes the heart hard and eventually the person no longer cares that they are sinning...this is blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

He said it could not be forgiven because it would lead to a hard heart....but if it does NOT and you ask forgiveness and come to serve God, of course God will forgive you anything.

Okay, all that makes sense now.

 

[WIP]

I was saying that the above is not really correct because, at the moment of the blaspheme it is unpardonable....but we can be forgiven of it if it does not become the Unpardonable Sin.

You've confused me with this statement. Please clarify. How can it be unpardonable and later pardonable?

 

[HeIsRisen2018]

You've confused me with this statement. Please clarify. How can it be unpardonable and later pardonable?

I think she was saying that it only becomes unpardonable when we don't repent in the end.