The Scripture
Jesus said, "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or the age to come" (Matthew 12:30-32).
Define Blasphemy
Before we discuss it, define it.
Blasphemy means:
- blasphemous behavior; the act of depriving something of its sacred character; "desecration of the Holy Sabbath"
- blasphemous language (expressing disrespect for God or for something sacred)
Synonyms: desecration, profanation, sacrilege
Also see: discourtesy, disrespect, irreverence, profanity, violation
Blasphemous means:
- Grossly irreverent toward what is held to be sacred
- Characterized by profanity or cursing
Understand This
Before you can truly understand any scripture, you must at least:
- Keep the scripture in its context. Consider what the whole section of scripture discusses. Ask yourself, what is this section of scripture primarily talking about?
- Consider the whole counsel and character of God. In essence, consider other scriptures. Ask
yourself, what other scriptures discuss this topic?
What other scriptures relate and how to they relate? Are there any
scriptures that seem to contradict it, and if
so, how do I reconcile the them?
Most importantly, ask God for understanding. "If anyone lacks wisdom, he should ask God..." (James 1:5) and "...the Holy Spirit... ...will teach you all things..." (John 14:26). Also see 1 John 2:20, 27 and 5:20.
The point is, when you truly want to understand what someone means, in this case the Lord, you may have to ask them. Even more, since the Lord wants a relationship with you, He is more than willing to speak to you, especially when you are ready to hear Him. Of course, you demonstrate how you are ready by sincerely asking Him.
The Context
So what is the context of Matthew 12:30-32? For the answer, see verses 22 through 37, which outline it. If you go back an read it, you see that Jesus had just healed a man, and the Pharisees (religious people of His day) had stated that Jesus healed with the help of a demon or demons, i.e. an evil spirit or spirits. They basically called God's Holy Spirit evil. Isaiah 5:20 warns us, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil." More importantly, they called God a liar. That is, Jesus came along saying that He was the Son of God -- God in the flesh -- and these Pharisees refused to accept or believe it, in effect saying, "God did not heal through His Sprit in you, but rather you have an evil spirit in you and that evil spirit did it." Jesus rightly correctly them when He explained that evil spirits do evil things -- not good things like heal people -- and if they do good things, then they only work against themselves, proving themselves good and not evil.
The Whole Counsel of God
So what other scriptures relate to this? John 14:17, 15:26, 16:12, 1 John 4:6, 5:6 declare that God is "the Spirit of Truth." 1 John 2:21 says, "No lie comes from the truth." Titus 1:2 says, "God...does not lie." 1 Samuel 15:29 declares, "He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind." Finally, Hebrews 6:18 says, "It is impossible for God to lie." All of these talk about the truth versus lies.
So how does lying relate to blasphemy? Hopefully, you see that when you call God a liar you are in effect attacking His very nature, and essence. God says, "My nature is to speak the truth. I cannot lie because My nature does not allow it." Of course, someone might say, "That is not true. God is lying." They might even argue, "If He is truly God, then He can do anything He wants." Discussing this part of it would lead us into another study altogether, but the point here is, both statements cannot be true. That is, either God is telling the truth or the other person is, but not both. It would be same as saying, "God always tells the truth, but He is a liar."
Conclusion
So why can't God forgive you if you blaspheme His Holy Spirit? To call God a liar is to say that you do not believe Him. Likewise, when you disbelieve God, you call Him a liar. The first part of 1 John 5:10 says, "Anyone who does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar..." The second part explains why God cannot forgive. It says "...because that person has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son." That is, God says, "If you want to know Me and you want Me to accept you, then know and accept Me through My Son, Jesus. He is God in the flesh." If you do not believe what God says about Himself and His Son, that Jesus is God's Son (i.e. God in the flesh) and you can only know God through accepting Him, then what else is God to do? If you reject God, by not believing Him, then wouldn't you expect Him to reject you in return?
Jesus said that the Holy Spirit's job is to tell us to the truth. It is our job to believe and accept it. In John 16:7-11, His says, "The Counselor (the Holy Spirit) will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: IN REGARD TO SIN, BECAUSE MEN DO NOT BELIEVE IN ME." In conclusion, God's word clearly tells us that He has restored us back into right relationship with Himself through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus, He has removed every barrier that keeps us from knowing Him, every barrier except one -- the only barrier we can remove -- our unbelief. The scripture is clear, as Hal Lindsey, in his book "The Final Battle" (pg. 266), says, "the only unpardonable sin is to die without believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, because the Holy Spirit only convicts the unbeliever regarding that sin."
All scriptures NIV unless otherwise noted.