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 speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come”. Mark 3:28-30 “Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: Because they said, He had an unclean spirit.”
Throughout the Bible we see God giving mankind the opportunity to accept or reject Him (Deut. 30: 15-16; Joshua 24:14-15; Rev. 20:11-15). All mankind will be given a chance to accept or reject God, it is the rejection of God that constitutes the unpardonable sin (Lev. 24:10-16; Num. 15:30-31). To commit the unpardonable sin you must have God’s Holy Spirit and then reject that spirt. This is the “willful” and “purposeful” sin of blasphemy (Heb. 10:26-30 “willful sin is unpardonable). Hebrews is speaking of the attitude of rejection of God with the FULL knowledge of who God is and yet still rejecting God. We must walk with God and not reject Him (I John 1:6-7).
How then does one receive the Holy Spirit? By repenting of sin (Defined as the breaking of God’s law in I John 3:4) and believing the gospel of Jesus Christ (See Mark 1:15 and 16:15-16) and by being BAPTISED into the church of God (Acts 2:38). For detailed information of Christian baptism see the one page article, ”Christian Baptism” #28. Once baptized a person will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16) and then God will depart His divine nature to us (II Peter 1:4). Paul explicitly tells us in Romans 8:9-12 that God is not pleased with the flesh but with the spirit, His Spirit in us! God only gives His Spirit to those that “obey Him” (Acts 5:32). To be a Christian we must have God’s Holy Spirit dwelling in us. To commit the unpardonable sin we must REJECT God’s Holy Spirit.
All humans “sin” but with God’s spirit working in us and through us he allows us the opportunity to repent of our sins (See the one page article, #26 “Guilt, Forgive and Forget” to learn more about God’s forgiveness for all). The apostle Paul fought with sin all his life and he describes his and our struggles with sin in Romans 7:19-25. Examples of those who reject God are found in I John 2:19; Heb. 6:4-6; II Pet. 2:21-22. The consequence of rejecting God and His Holy Spirit is DEATH forever! God will give every human the opportunity to receive His Spirit as all will appear before His judgment seat (II Cor. 5:10; Rom. 8:6-8). In Revelation 20:5, 11-15 we read of the final Great White Throne Judgement where God resurrects ALL mankind who have ever lived and gives them their chance to stand before Him and either accept or reject His Spirit. The consequence of rejecting God is the eternal death described in Revelation 20:14-15. Rejecting God’s Spirit is the unpardonable sin and the result is permanent death. It is our own personal choice to make.
If you believe you have committed the unpardonable sin you probably have not. If one can still call on the Name of the Lord one can be saved from the eternal death of the final judgement (Acts 2:21). Simply do NOT reject God and His Spirit, obey Him, be baptized, receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and you will be saved!
