All manner of sin can be forgiven, except the unpardonable sin Christ made no provision for; the sin unto death, the Lord says for us not to pray for. I John 5:16. "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." The unpardonable sin is a willful sin, committed by those who know better, and are unwilling to follow the Bible way. That is a SIN. This we will prove by the following verse:
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
“And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
“If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” Hebrews 6:4-6.
This should strike terror in the souls of careless sinners. Some have already taken this fatal step; a step that can never be retracted
This unpardonable sin is a sin against the Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit: “And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven.” Luke 12:10.
In order to understand how there could be a sin for which there is no forgiveness we must understand our relationship to the Holy Spirit, and the nature of His work.
No sin can be forgiven until the sinner repents and seeks forgiveness, but we cannot repent unless the Holy Spirit works upon our hearts to convince us, the Bible says, “…reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” John 16:8. After convincing us of the horrible fate awaiting the sinner, He convinces us that the righteousness of Christ alone will save us from the wrath of God in the Day of Judgment. If we yield to His convictions, and seek forgiveness of our sins, He sheds abroad the love of God in our hearts, and gives us power to purify our souls in obeying the truth.
Romans 5:5 "And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." & I Peter 1:22 "Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently."
But we must be taught by the Spirit in order to understand what the truth is, for “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” I Corinthians 2:14. "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come." John 16:13.
We are dependent on Him to teach us how to pray, and to transmit our prayers to Heaven: “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27.
As we are absolutely dependent upon the Spirit to convict us of sin so that we will seek forgiveness, it is very evident that we could not repent and seek forgiveness if He should forsake us because of our sin against Him. Therefore be careful that ye “…grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30.
There are two ways in which the unpardonable sin may be committed. One is by a gradual and long-continued hardening of the heart by neglecting to give heed to that still small voice in the soul that tries to lead us to repentance. This sin of neglect becomes an unpardonable sin when the conscience becomes so dead that there is no longer any desire for holiness of life. If you still have an earnest desire to get right with God, the Spirit has not forsaken you. But don’t delay!
The unpardonable sin may also be committed by openly and intentionally resisting the convictions of the Holy Spirit. That is what the Jews did when they attributed the work of the Holy Spirit to the Devil, Mark 3:22-30.
"22 And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.
"23 And he called them unto him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan?
"24 And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
"25 And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
"26 And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end.
"27 No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.
"28 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:
"30 Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit."
They had every reason to know that Christ performed His miracles by the Spirit of God, but they fought against their convictions, and were determined not to accept Christ and His teachings. Steven said of them, “Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always RESIST the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.” (Capital emphasis added) Acts 7:51.
In the book of Proverbs we read “But ye have set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
“I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh.” Proverbs 1:25-26.
Proverbs 1:29 reads: “For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord.”
This is a direct reference to willful sinners. The Lord will laugh at those sinners, when their calamity comes and on the Judgment, God will laugh at them, and mock them (Proverbs 1:26).
Whether we resist, or neglect to heed, the conviction the Spirit brings to the soul, we are surely approaching the hour when we will have committed the unpardonable sin, and thus sealed our doom forever. Friends, think of this if you are refusing or neglecting to walk in the light you have received from God’s Holy Word which declares, “…the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work…”
Read Exodus 20:8-11.
"8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
"9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
"10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
"11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."
If you continue to disobey Him on this point, or on any other, He will surely forsake you. If you wait for a more convenient time in which to obey Him, your convictions will gradually diminish as the Spirit withdraws Himself from your soul. Then the spirit of the evil one will come in to deceive you into thinking that you are all right when you have no hope at all. Be sure to walk in the light as it shines upon your pathway. If you do not, darkness will overtake you.
Published by the Church of God, Body of Christ