There are really two sins which are brought out in the bible that people can commit that are unpardonable and can prevent them from obtaining eternal life. The one that is the most obvious is the sin of unbelief in the gospel of Christ. This one is without a doubt the one that is most prominently committed by most people in the World today.
The second is spelled out in bible scripture as committing blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Jesus spoke about this and is quoted in the bible as follows:
Matthew 12: 31- 32 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaks a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaks against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
If a person is a true Christian and commits the unpardonable sin, however it is defined, he will not be saved. This much is not hard to understand—but it is very important. So, understanding the sin that “shall not be forgiven” most certainly is relevant to the real Christian! That person must be very careful not to commit this sin.
It should be understood that I used the term of being a “true Christian” in the above statement. Rather than to get into a debate over defining the word Christian, as many people have their own interpretation of what a Christian is, I believe a more accurate description should be “a believer in the Gospel” instead of the term Christian. Although I do consider myself as being a Christian, others may disagree because I might not in their estimation fulfill their requirements of what they believe a Christian should be.
The true Christian who is a believer in the gospel cannot be determined by appearance, but can be identified by the words they speak in relation to other people, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God. The scripture does state that the words we speak are very important to our future fate as follows by the words of Jesus.
Matt 12:36-37 But I say unto you, That every idle word that people shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned.
Now concerning a “true Christian” or as a believer as I prefer to refer to a person as being; The apostle Paul wrote, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God” (Rom. 8:14). Christians are those who have the Holy Spirit leading them. But is having God’s Spirit absolutely essential to being a Christian? A few verses earlier, Paul said, “But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if any person has not the Spirit of Christ, they are none of His” (vs. 9)! It is that simple! One either has the Spirit of God, and is a Christian, or does not have it, and is not a Christian—is “none of His.” All those who are truly converted must have the Holy Spirit in them.
So now what is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? Is it simply taking God’s name in vain—swearing? Is any form of swearing “blasphemy against the Holy Spirit”?
The key to understanding this is to properly define the word blaspheme. The Greek word, here translated “blaspheme,” means “intentional indignity offered to God or sacred things.” This is important to grasp. Intent is involved.
The word “blaspheme” in Webster’s Dictionary means to “speak irreverently or profanely of or to God, to curse or revile.” Another part of their definition says “any remark or action held to be irreverent or disrespectful.” Many of the different Bible Dictionaries describe blasphemy as “insulting, cursing, lacking reverence for God, claiming deity.”
There can be no question that calling the Holy Spirit, who is God and Lord Himself, the devil himself, is without a doubt the most blasphemous statement you could possibly make against Him. Calling the Highest of all Beings the lowest of all beings is without question the worst possible thing that these Scribes and Pharisees could have done. Not only was this the height of pure stupidity, but it was also the height of pure arrogance and pride
Since we as nothing but mortal beings and are not as God who knows the heart of every person, we are not able to determine the motive or intent of those things that people speak. It could be that some use words that are blasphemous because of what they believe and some for a reason to be antagonistic.
No matter what our motives are, it is our words that can condemn us. Although we can’t control our thoughts, we can prevent our thoughts from becoming words. Until you have the mind of God, that you will never have, it is better to not use blasphemous words against anyone or anything where the Holy Spirit could be involved. It is better to keep our mouths and our tongue in check and live, than to speak words that could condemn us to hell along with the devil and those who he has corrupted.
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