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What is the unpardonable or unforgivable sin? |
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Q. What is the unpardonable (unforgivable) sin?
(Submitted by: Kathy)
A.
The verses in question which address this subject are found in the gospels of Matthew and Mark as follows:
"Then a blind and dumb demoniac was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the dumb man spoke and saw.
And all the people were amazed, and said, "Can this be the Son of David?"
But when the Pharisees heard it they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons."
Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand;
and if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?
And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.
"But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.
He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.
Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." (Matthew 12:22-32, RSV)
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"And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebub, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons."
And he called them to him, and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.
But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may plunder his house.
"Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter;
but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin." (Mark 3:22-29, RSV)
From these two sections of scripture we can ascertain what Jesus was speaking about; the sin against the Holy Spirit. He was specifically addressing the Pharisees who accused Him of performing miracles by the power of Satan rather than by the power of God, that is, the power of the Holy Spirit. This is one category of sin which will not be forgiven if someone persists in this type of accusation or blasphemy. Which basically amounts to giving Satan the credit instead of God. This is one type of unpardonable sin.
The other type of unpardonable sin is spoken of in our short article entitled How can God still love me when I still continue to sin
even though I don't want to? It happens when an individual consciously knows better and yet willfully persists in sin and refuses to repent of a specific sin or number of sins. Notice that this refusal must be "willful" as opposed to "weakness" caused by this world and by human nature.
Other than these two types of willful, sinful situations, God promises to forgive all of our sins when we come to Him in true, heartfelt repentance. Please also read Matthew 18:21-35 which speaks of forgiveness.
Answer Given By: Rick/Eileen Beltz
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