Q-A: What is the unforgivable sin?

In Matt.12:31-32, Jesus says the following,

"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."

To clarify this statement of Jesus, it is crucial to understand this passage in a dispensational context, where we ensure to rightly divide the Word as we are instructed to do in 2 Tim.2:15.

Doing so, we will then know that when Jesus was operating in His earthly ministry, he was doing so under the law and His teachings were directed to the Jews (Gal.4:4; Matt.15:24). So, in this respect, we should immediately understand that the 'unforgivable sin' that Jesus mentions in this verse is applicable to those who were under the law, the Jews.

Members of the Body of Christ, are NOT under the law dispensation as the Jews were. The instant we get saved, by hearing and responding to the Grace Gospel, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit (Eph.1:13-14) into the Body of Christ, therefore guaranteeing our inheritance! Did you get that? Look at verse 14 again. The Holy Spirit become a seal upon us, identifying us as member of Christ's body and guaranteeing us our salvation. Do you think that in this regard, while marked as Christ's own, while clothed in His righteousness (His works, not our own), while standing blameless in our heavenly position in Christ, we can at the same time carry upon us an unforgivable sin? Of course not. How can we even consider therefore that this unforgivable sin is applicable to us. 

If we analyze this question a bit more, we need to consider that throughout the history of the Jewish nation, they rejected God's work over them. First, they ignored God's prophetic message about a coming Messiah and King and they killed the prophets send to them. Second, when their Messiah actually came, they did not recognize Him and they rejected His gospel and offer of the Kingdom, and they killed Him too. Third, God would send His Holy Spirit to fulfill the covenant He made to Abraham, and even when Peter proclaimed the Kingdom gospel again in Acts 2 and 3, barring a few believers, 'the little flock', the greater part of the Jewish nation rejected the Holy Spirit too! By rejecting the Holy Spirit, they were cutting themselves off from the covenant blessings that God spoke over Abraham and they were rejecting the purpose that God designed for them and their very existence as a nation; to be a light and saving hope to the Gentiles. So you tell me? What more could God offer? What more could God give? There was nothing! Can you understand now that when Jesus mentioned that if they rejected Him, there was still hope and they could find their way back by the Holy Spirit. But once they reject the Spirit, there remains nothing more to save them and to bring them back into right standing with God. That was 'strike 3'! They had reached the end of the rope, the end of grace. The greater part of Israel, who rejected the Kingdom gospel, ended up committing that unforgivable sin. The remnant of Israel however were saved because they received Christ and the Holy Spirit. It is these, the little flock, who will be resurrected to life and who will enter into and reign in the Millennial Kingdom.

As you can see, this is God's work concerning Israel. This is all to do with the dispensation of law during the prophetic times. It has absolutely NOTHING to do with us who belong to a very different economy, one of grace, in which God reaches out towards us in a new way, through the cross, through the perfect work and righteousness of Christ Himself. Of course, it remains to be said that in this economy, God's grace only goes as far as Christ. If an unbeliever continues to reject Christ, they will not receive the gift of God's grace but will experience eternal death after the Great White Thone judgement. 

Praise be to our great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. As Jude 1:24-25 so beautifully says,

"Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, 25 to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen."

Continued reading...

As an addendum to this post, and for more insights into this topic of 'the unforgivable sin', I would encourage you read the post called, "Did Paul commit the unforgivable sin?"