Sermon # 26 Series: Matthew
Title: “THE BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST”
Text: Matthew 12:22-37
Subject: The Unpardonable Sin
Date: Tuesday
Evening – January 10, 1995
Tape: # Q-88
Introduction:
The passage
we have read contains some of these “things hard to be understood.” The
principle thing that is dealt with in this test is “the Blasphemy Against
The Holy Ghost.” This is a subject about which it must be acknowledged
little is known. The best and fullest explanations of it are far from being exhaustive
and satisfactory. And I have no delusions about being able to fathom the
depths of this subject. I will say no more about it than I know to be so and no
less than I know to be clearly revealed.
We must
never be surprised to find things in the Bible that are simply beyond the reach
of our minds. If it had no deep places here and there, which no man is capable
of understanding, much less explaining, it would not be the Word of the
Infinite God. However, rather than stumbling around and falling over the things
we cannot understand, we ought to give thanks to God for these revelations of
wisdom and grace, which even the simplest minds are able to grasp.
Proposition:
That which
God reveals it is the duty of man to believe.
Divisions:
There are five
things in this paragraph that demand our attention.
I. In verses
22-27 we see The Prejudice of The Pharisees against Christ and his
gospel, and learn that no slanderous speech is too vile and reprehensible for
lost religious people to use against the gospel of Christ.
When our Lord cast out devils, the
Pharisees said, “He does that by Beelzebub!” It was an absurd charge, as
our Lord demonstrated, but these men were blinded by religious prejudice. And
none are so blind as those who will not see. When they could not refute his
doctrine, could not deny the validity of his works, and would not
acknowledge him as the Christ of God, the only way these men could
justify their behavior was to slander the Savior’s name and cast reproach upon
his character.
These Pharisees are not the
only people who have lost reason, good sense, and civility when confronted with
the Kingdom of God. The religious world called Athanasius a devil when he insisted upon the doctrine of the Holy
Trinity. The pope called Martin Luther a devil when he proclaimed the
doctrine of justification by faith alone.
This ought never to surprise us
(Matt. 10:25). I have been called a
devil by more than a few people over the years.
NOTE: When
religious men are determined to reject the doctrine of the gospel, which they
cannot refute, they attempt to defend themselves by blackening the character of
those who preach the free grace of God in Christ.
II. Verses 29-29 describe the work of
Christ as The Binding of Satan.
The Son of God came into this world
to “save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21) and “that he might destroy
the works of the devil” (I John 3:8).
The Word of God reveals a threefold binding of Satan…
A. By his death upon the cross, in the
accomplishment of our redemption, and by his resurrection from the grave our
Savior bound satan and broke the power of his usurped dominion over the nations
of the world.
B. In regeneration and conversion, by
the power of his grace through the operations of his Holy Spirit in the new
birth the Son of God binds satan in the hearts of chosen, redeemed sinners and
takes possession of his house.
C. When he comes again to make all
things new, the Lord Jesus will cast satan out of this world into the lake of
fire, where he shall have no more power.
NOTE:
There is no such thing as “a devil’s
hell.” Hell belongs to God. It is his torture chamber in which he will forever
torment the devil and all who have followed him to destruction.
III. In verse 30 the Lord Jesus shows us The
Impossibility of Neutrality with regards to him, his gospel, and his
kingdom.
Multitudes try to straddle the
fence, halting between two opinions, not wishing to deny Christ altogether and
not wishing to serve him altogether, not wanting to engage in open rebellion to
the Son of God, but not wanting to engage in the cause of Christ. But such
neutrality is impossible.
There are, with regard to spiritual
things, only two camps, there are only two sides. Either you are with
Christ, committed to him and his cause, or you are against Christ,
committed to the world, the flesh, and the devil. You cannot serve both God and
mammon. If you do not serve Christ, you oppose him. There is no middle ground. The
gospel of Christ demand decisiveness!
IV. Verses 31 and 32 introduce us to what
our Savior calls “The Blasphemy Against The Holy Spirit,” and warns us
against the danger of what he declares is the only unpardonable sin.
It is not difficult to show from the
Scriptures what this sin is not. The difficulty is showing clearly what it is.
The Lord willing. I will address this subject again in more detail on another
occasion, perhaps next Sunday morning. But for now, I want you to see these
things…
A. First, our Savior clearly
declares the free, full, absolute and everlasting forgiveness of all sin to all
believers.
Almost all of us are such spiritual
dolts that we pass right over these words of grace – “All manner of sin and
blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men.”
And seize these dark, dark words of judgment – “but the blasphemy
against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.” I don’t know about
you, but I would a whole heap rather meditate upon, understand, and talk
about the first sentence than the second! “If we confess our sins.” No
matter what they are, no matter how vile, how many, how old, nor how new – God
“is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” – All of them! – Completely!
– Forever! – “and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness!” (I John 1:9).
“The blood of Jesus Christ, (God’s) Son, cleanseth us from all sin” (I
John 1:7).
Yet, our text does speak about one particular sin that is unpardonable. It is called “blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.”
B. So, secondly, I want you to see
that this “blasphemy against the Holy Ghost” does not involve sins of
ignorance.
The distinction drawn between
“speaking against the Son of man” and “speaking against (blasphemy) the Holy
Ghost” must not be overlooked – The sin against Christ as the Son of man was
committed out of ignorance, by those who did not know that he is the Messiah. Therefore
they did not receive him, believe him, and obey him; but opposed, persecuted,
and even crucified him. But they did it ignorantly.
C.
So, Thirdly, this sin and blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which is
the unpardonable sin, is committed by men and women who willfully persist in
unbelief and obstinate impenitence, deliberately rejecting the counsel of God against
themselves, and are therefore given up to a reprobate mind.
J.C. Ryle accurately describes it as, “The union of the
clearest head-knowledge of the Gospel with deliberate rejection of it, and
deliberate choice of sin and the world.”
John Gill wrote, “It is a despiteful
usage of the Spirit of grace, an opposing, contradicting, and
denying of the operations wrought, or the doctrines revealed by him, against
a man’s own light and conscience, out of a willful and obstinate
malice, on purpose to lesson the glory of God, and gratify his own
lusts. Such was the sin of the Scribes and Pharisees; who, though they knew the
miracles of Christ were wrought by the Spirit of God, yet maliciously and
obstinately imputed them to the devil, with a view to obscure the glory of
Christ, and indulge their own wicked passions.”
This unpardonable sin is the
willful, deliberate rejection of Christ though you are fully convinced that he
is the Son of God and the only Savior of sinners – It is a deliberate refusal
to bow to him as Lord – It is choosing to save your life, rather than lose it
to the dominion of the son of God – It is nothing less than running over top of
the Son of God to get to hell!
D. Fourthly, those who are troubled
with the fear that they may have committed this unpardonable sin, most
assuredly, have not done so!
The one thing that always characterizes those people described in the Scriptures as reprobate is a callousness and hardness that is the result of a seared conscience. When God gives a man up in reprobation, that man is no longer concerned for the glory of God, the knowledge of Christ, and the things of God.
E. Fifthly,
you who trifle with the gospel you are in very real danger of committing the
unpardonable sin.
As a rule, the children of godly parents and you who attend the ministry of the gospel year after year, and yet refuse to commit yourselves to Christ, seem to be the hardest to reach with the gospel. You sometimes appear to be past feeling.
Lot’s wife, Pharaoh, King Soul, Ahab, and Judas Iscariot stand out as beacons to warn you. Each of them had crystal clear knowledge. Yet, each of them do libratory rejected Christ. They had light in their heads, but darkness in their hearts. Each of them today is in hell, suffering the wrath of God!
Beware, my friends, of despising the light God has given you! Do you know the truth? Then walk in the truth! Walk in the light God has given you. That is the best safeguard against the unpardonable sin!
V. Verses 33-37
show us The Importance of Our Words.
In these verses our Savior shows us the immense importance of being careful about our words. He says, “for every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give an account in the day of judgment.” Then he adds, “By thy words shalt thou be justified, and by thy word thou shalt be condemned.”
A. Our Words reveal the state of our hearts – (vv. 33-35).
Words of grace, kindness, goodwill, and cheer, give evidence of a heart renewed by grace. Words of envy, malice, slander, and gossip, words that are intended to hurt others, reveal an evil, depraved, unregenerate heart (Eph. 4:30-32).
B. Idle words
may seem frivolous to us, but they do permanent damage.
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Pro. 18:21). Idle words often stick in the minds of those who hear them long after the one who speaks them is dead.
C. No member of
our bodies is more powerful to do good and to do evil than our tongues.
· James 3:2-8
· Psalm 141:3
· Colossians 4:6
If there were nothing else in the Bible to do so, these statements of our Lord about the tongue should convince all who read them that we are all guilty before God and need the righteousness of Another, even the righteousness of Christ, to give us acceptance with him in the day of judgment (Phil. 3:9).
Application: Philippians 3:13-14